Today was the absolute best day of the trip!
The morning started off extremely chilly as we made our way through the end of the Rocky Mountains and into the plains of eastern Colorado. As we peaked over the last mountain, we were taken away by spectacular views at Lookout Mountain (Check out the Picture Link to the right). The last descent into Golden, Colorado was so much fun as we had a 3 mile downhill through switchbacks and tight curves. When we arrived into Golden we rode by the Coors factory and smelled the amazing aroma of beer being brewed.
We continued cycling through the suburbs and stopped at Invesco Field (Denver Broncos) where we met up with the TransAmerica Route Team. We had the incredible opportunity to walk out on the field as the big screen read “Welcome Journey of Hope.” After we snapped pictures, we started our arrival procedures to the Capitol Building in downtown. We had all 70 cyclists ride together to Downtown with a police escort. The police shut down the highway into town as we rode through, which created significant attention for our event. We arrived to a sizeable crowd in the city center who were eager to ask questions and find out more about the Journey of Hope. I had the opportunity to talk to some families from all across the country and share information with them about our incredible Journey.
After a few hours downtown, we made our way to lodging. We were all so excited because we would be staying in a hotel for the next 2 days. It has been such a long time since we have had the luxury of hot showers and clean sheets!
Next, we went to a park in the city for the annual Pedal for Pennies Event. Pedal for Pennies is an event sponsored by the Special Olympics and Push America where athletes and JOH cyclists ride laps around a 1 mile loop. As a helper, I kept track of the number of laps for my team which included Emily, Evan (JOH), and Adam (JOH). I was extremely pleased when our team finished 2nd overall with 9 laps! After the cycling was completed, we had a really fun dance with the athletes. I would have to say that my favorite songs of the night were the Cuban shuffle and Shout!
Tomorrow is our day off and mission #1 is to find a place to get my haircut!
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