FAQs

My love for cycling began back in 2014 when I trained for and rode RAGBRAI (Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa) with my family. I had very little to do with the planning and training for that trip given that I was 16 years old, but my dad set me up with an awesome road bike and all the necessary gear, and I survived the 7-day, 480-mile ride. Once we got back I didn’t touch my bike for almost six years. It wasn’t until the spring of 2020 that I decided to get back in the saddle (literally) and start riding again. The COVID-19 pandemic started around the same time and biking became a saving grace during a very boring summer. 

What is 4K for Cancer?

The 4K for Cancer is a 70-day, 4000+ mile bike ride across the country. The ride (and run) supports the Ulman Foundation, a non-profit that provides free support and resources to the young adult cancer community. The ride is limited to college-aged participants, so 4K participants are around the same age as the people who will benefit from our fundraisers. You can read more about the 4K here and more about Ulman here.

When was your ride?

The 2022 ride began with a two-day orientation on June 3 & 4, followed by our send-off ceremony on June 5. The ride ended on August 13, 2022.

Where did you go?

We started in Baltimore, MD, and ended in San Francisco, CA! I was on Team Zion, named for the gorgeous national park we visited in Utah. We visited several other national parks along the way and passed through a total of 13 states: Maryland, Pennsylvania, West Virginia (briefly), Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas (briefly), Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and California.

Why did you do this?

Anyone who’s had a conversation with me recently knows I love cycling, so I was initially drawn to the 4K simply because I love to bike! I truthfully didn’t think I had a strong enough connection to the cancer community to apply. The more I read about past riders’ stories and reflected on my own experiences, though, I realized I have felt the effects of cancer directly throughout my life, from losing grandparents to seeing aunts and uncles fight this awful disease, and indirectly through so many of the people I love who have their own connections to the cancer community. I think I would be hard-pressed to name someone I know who hasn’t been affected by cancer, and I am so honored to have spent the summer doing what I love in support of this cause. My Uncle Tim passed after a years-long fight against cancer during my ride, which added a whole new level of dedication and personalization to my ride.

…okay, but why did you write a blog?

One of the main reasons I decided to do the 4K was because a friend’s sister did the 4K in 2013 and maintained an awesome blog documenting her trip. Her blog was invaluable to me as I researched the 4K, and my hope is that I can similarly inspire future 4Kers who want to learn more about the experience. Plus I love to document things because I can be a very nostalgic person! So, this serves as a journal of sorts that I can look back on and fondly remember that time I biked across the country (:

Please keep in mind that the posts I share on this blog are my own and do not necessarily represent positions, strategies, or opinions of the Ulman Foundation.

How on earth does this work?

All members need to fundraise $4,800 minimum before send-off in June. We were eligible to receive the bike we used on 4K once we raised $1,500. Each year, the program partners with a bike manufacturer to ensure all riders will have a reliable ride across the country. I had my bike shipped directly to a local bike shop to have it assembled, and I shipped my bike home from San Francisco home at the end of the ride and flew home.

Each day we divided into small riding groups and covered 18-136 miles each day, averaging 65-75 miles a day. Our team was equipped with two vans, and riders rotated van duty with two people per van each day. Van duty entailed chalking out the route each day, setting up water and food stations for the riders, and securing food donations for lunch. The process for run teams is slightly different since they run relay-style but follows the same general structure. This year was a bit different from years past because the runners, who usually are a separate team, joined up with us in Nebraska after starting their journey in late June. So, we proceeded from there with three vans and 31 people total.

Yes, we had rest days! Our days off the bikes were spent exploring our host areas, skydiving, doing epic hikes in beautiful national parks, and working on service projects. We worked with local organizations to share information about 4K and the Ulman Foundation in our host communities.

Along the way, we stayed in churches, gyms, dorms, hotels, campsites, even a fraternity house– basically, anywhere we could sleep for free! Most of our meals were similarly donated by hosts and local businesses.

There’s a lot more to be said about 4K, which I hope you’ll read about in my blog posts from the summer. You can also find some ride stats and other fun facts in my 4K by the Numbers post. Thanks for reading!