Today was our first day into Alaska, and what a “warm” welcome we received! But we’ll get there soon… More excitingly, it was the Alaska border race which the Sierra team has been excited about and expecting for quite some time. We kicked off from the lodge which was about 20 miles out from the AK border and started out. Sierra team was super hardcore about this border race really wanting to beat the Rockies, and a few took it more seriously than others. Nevertheless, the stretch was long, and rewarding. Never had I pushed myself to keep going as hard as I did these twenty miles. We started out in a single paceline, and after a slow and steady pace for not even one full mile, our three strongest riders pulled off and never let up thereafter. They started booking away and we just kept on pushing. Climbing the grades, I kept thinking of Angie from Lathrop and how she kept pushing through and through even at age 80. Eventually I passed my ride group with people far in front and far behind me and rode for nearly 10 miles by myself—pressing hard to not let up, but to stay. By the end of the race I found out I had come in 9th behind three ride groups who came in before me (six riders of whom were Sierra riders!). Jon, Zaid, and Joel turned out to have won the race together—and I could not be happier for them, pulling through the finish line together and putting eachother before themselves. We got to the Alaska border, and it was truly a glorious sight. The sign which I had seen pictures from for years was finally before us. We had BIKED to Alaska—I think even writing this now, it still hasn’t hit me quite yet. There we dedicated the rest of the day to our teammates and reminded ourselves of the people who brought us all together (those we ride for and continue riding for).

Not too long after the official international border, we passed through customs and just about as soon as we got to Alaska, rain came down… hard. We had the rest of the day left before us and rode it all in the cold and rain. Fortunately we had rain jackets and such—nevertheless, it was chilly as can be! One excited blessing was that we got to have some warm food at the rest stops—they had prepared for us some delicious mac and cheese sandwiches to enjoy…the perfect treat on a cold and soppy day.

By the time we arrived there, the rain had died down quite a bit, and the sun had peeked out—just in time to set up our campsite. Fortunately, that night we had showers and a convenience store we can snack from—so we had a nice finish to a tough day. Tomorrow we ride to Tok, where we’ll be camping out by a lodge with fresh dinner and breakfast the next morning. Can’t wait to see hosts again! Until then.