Uniontown, Pennsylvania

Waking up this morning was tough not only because getting out of the big comfortable bed was challenging but because I had to leave another city and get one step closer to D.C. I was talking to one of my teammates and we realize that we are super excited for Washington and we know it is going to be an awesome experience, we just don’t want the times we spend together to end. Once I got all of my stuff out of the hotel room I was in a great mood this morning and I was super excited to get the day going. Nick and Spencer explained to the team the night before that the road conditions leaving Pittsburgh were impossible for cyclist so we would have to rack to our breakfast location, and then again to where we would start our ride. My day got even better when I was told we were going to Chick Fila for breakfast.

Dino Taylor, the gentleman who provided us with lunch when we arrived in Pittsburgh sponsored our breakfast. Chick Fila is my favorite fast food place by far and the fact that I started my day with a chicken biscuit made my day so much better. The team enjoyed a great breakfast and then we went out in the parking lot and circled up to talk about our day. During circle up Nick explained to us that the roads were going to be pretty crappy, and then he told us that when we got to Uniontown there would be a surprise waiting for us. Once we drove to our drop off location I got in my pace line with the one and only Danja Doug and Kevin Dubbins. Our ride to Uniontown wasn’t to long so I was hoping to be off the bike in a short amount of time. As we get closer to the Appalachians we are beginning to feel some of the hills and today we definitely saw that. We didn’t have to climb any super big hills until the end of the ride but the incline was noticed. We made a turn at Sam’s stop about 5 miles out and hit one of the steepest hills Ive seen all trip. A few minutes later we arrived at lodging but those hills to end the ride had me breathing heavy.

We pulled into the YMCA and met with one of the Pi Alphas from last year who set up our lunch for the day. Along with his mom, and some of her friends we were served sandwiches, chicken tenders, corn, and lots of fruits and veggies. Everyone really enjoyed the meal, and what we found out next was even better. The Pi Alpha also works at a nearby White Water Rafting place who offered to take us all out on the river so the whole team loaded up in the vehicles and we made our way out to the river. We split up in groups of 6, went over the safety stuff and then made our way to the water. The name we gave our boat was the Banshee, and everyone in it had a name. My name was Hog, along with Hawk, Iceman, Breezy, Magnum, and Searg. We had so much fun out on the river, and I know I will never forget it. The river was full with all kinds of rocks and although I think my boat had the most fun we definitely weren’t the best at navigating down stream. We made it out with only minor scratches, lots of laughs and even more memories.

After a few hours on the water we had to hustle to make it to dinner where our sponsor of 17 years was waiting for us. The Knights of Columbus of Uniontown sponsored a wonderful mean for us and he created the perfect environment for us to relax and hang out after a long day. After we ate about 12 of us starting playing volleyball, which was a lot of fun. By the time we were done everyone was getting pretty tired so we made our way back to lodging.

Hanging out with Sam after dinner 

We got back to lodging and called it a night. Tomorrow we head to our final state of the trip, Maryland. It is such bittersweet feelings knowing that this trip is almost over, and I cant imagine spending this summer any other way. Tomorrow also brings the beginning of the Appalachian Mountains and a lot of climbing so I am looking forward to seeing how much I have grown as a cyclist.