Finally in DC!

Okay, okay, I know some of you have been waiting for this last page for quite some time. In case you were wondering, I did in fact make it to DC on August 12th! As the team woke up that final morning together everyone was a mix of emotions ranging from excited to nervous to sad. We rode the 15 miles together which was the first time that the entire team stayed together the whole day. Once we got to DC we met up with the other two teams and the Build America guys at Washington Circle. From there we all paraded on to the capital building. That mile stretch was so difficult with all the emotions flying high and everyone getting jittery it was all we could do to get our legs to keep pumping! It was pretty awesome seeing over 500 people cheering us on as we rode to the capital lawn. Once there we lined up in picture formation one last time as we were welcomed and congratulated. Mom, Dad, Jacob, Trent, Cara, and my great buddy from WSU, Shawn O'Leary, were all there to see me arrive. The next hour was packed with hugs, smiles and pictures as we all reunited with our families. Cara was kind of excited to see me, she only about knocked me over with a bear hug once we were released following the welcome! Good thing my legs had become stumps over the summer, making me able to handle the surprise attack! At right is a picture of Luster, Mulch, and myself with our ladies. We were all fortunate enough to have women who came all the way to DC to see us. It was great seeing the family again though, two and half months away from home is a long time! The picture at left is of myself and Ceasar Garcia. We were the only two on our team to cycle every single mile. It was pretty cool to think about that accomplishment. I am so thankful that my bike performed amazingly well and that my health remained strong all summer. Not once did I have to take my bike into the shop and all summer I only had to replace one tire due to regular wear. Oh, and I had two flats, both of which were minor ones caused by rumble strips! The final picture at right is of Luster, Brent, Winston, John, and I.We rode together most days, especially during the latter part of the summer and tended to always push each other to finish the days first while always enjoying great conversation. After getting to the motel and cleaning up, I went to lunch with the family before we headed to the evening banquet. The banquet was nice and proved to be a great recap of the summer. This day was a very fitting conclusion to an incredible summer. The day was so full of emotion as we all came to the realization that our summer of memories was over and not knowing when we would ever see each other again.