Wednesday, Aug. 25, 2010

Raleigh teen has trip of a lifetime

Sandwiched between the moment Kelly Whalen dipped a bicycle wheel into the Atlantic Ocean in Georgia and when she dipped her whole body into the Pacific Ocean in California was a six-week smorgasbord of adventure, deep friendships, the kindness of strangers and experiences that will stay with her forever.

This summer, Kelly, 15, along with 10 other teenagers and two young adult leaders from all over the United States, rode her bicycle 3,040 miles across America. Along the way, a spine tingling lightning storm forced the young travelers to ditch their bikes and lie flat on the ground next to a highway.

A real-life Tornado Alley funnel cloud chased them into a private home where a family sheltered them for two hours. A wreck cracked Kelly's helmet and sent her to the emergency room.

She loved every thrilling minute of it.

"My team looked out for each other; we loved each other, we kept our group morale up through the tough days, the long days, the days we were biking hard," she said.

Kelly lives in North Raleigh and is a sophomore at North Raleigh Charter High School. She swims year-round for her school and with the Marlins of Raleigh swim team.

Her trip, the American Challenge, was organized through Overland, a 26-year-old company based in Williamstown, Mass., that offers adventure travel for young people 10 to 19 years old.

Kelly's journey started June 25 at Tybee Island, Ga., just outside of Savannah. For six weeks, she and her comrades rose before sunrise every morning, packed their tents, sleeping bags, toiletries and clothes into two panniers, or saddle bags, and headed west.

For many of the teenagers, getting up early was the hardest part.

Kelly laughs.

"I'm a swimmer. I'm used to getting up at 4 a.m., so when everyone else was dragging themselves out of their tents, I was already up, eating breakfast and ready to go," she said.

The group averaged 88 miles per day. They scheduled "buffer days" for rest and bike maintenance. They slept in churches and community centers. When the dangerous lightning storm knocked them off their schedule, they spent the night in a dirty, abandoned barn, full of bugs and refuse from the cows that once occupied it.

"That night, we didn't get to sleep until 12:30 and we were up again and going at 4 a.m.," Kelly said. "On a trip across America, the only thing you can expect is the unexpected."

Then there was the tornado.

"I have never been so scared," she said. "The sky was clear, and then all of a sudden these wicked winds whipped up, and we saw the funnel cloud."

The trip took the teens through eight states: Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arizona and California.

"We had insane days of climbing," Kelly said. "One day we climbed 40 miles, all uphill. It was a 14 percent grade, so steep our front tires came up off the pavement. "

Every day, the team took turns cooking, cleaning, performing bike maintenance and keeping a journal. Kelly's favorite chore was cooking.

"Some of the churches we stayed in had kitchens; sometimes we cooked with gas burners," she said. "We ate lots of pasta, Mexican food and stir fry. We were starving constantly. It's amazing how our bodies used the food we ate."

Nothing prepared them for Union, Miss.

"We had scheduled buffer days in Union, over the Fourth of July. The people there treated us like celebrities. They paraded us through town, and the church had a huge lunch spread," Kelly said. "The people there prepare for the bikers to come through town every summer."

The cyclists may have reveled in the beauty of the Arizona and New Mexico deserts, and experienced a breathtaking sunrise at the Grand Canyon, but it was tiny Union that grabbed Kelly's heart, symbolizing the simple generosity of humankind.

"I was so appreciative of what people did for us," she said. "And now that I'm back, I still notice the generosity of others. I notice now when people are nice."

Kelly also learned a lot about herself.

"I learned to really appreciate the little things. A home cooked meal, a bed to sleep in," she said. "I also have more self-confidence. I know that I can put myself in any situation and be OK. "

The trip ended Aug. 5, when the team cruised across the Santa Monica pier and stopped at the edge of the Pacific Ocean.

"We ran into the ocean, just ran right in," Kelly said. "We were just consumed with each other, hugging, singing and laughing. I just looked around at the people I had pushed through pain with, suffered with and had viewed the most beautiful parts of America with. Everyone in my group was my best friend."

Kelly's group leader pulled his bicycle chain apart and gave each adventurer a link. Kelly wears hers on a string around her neck and vows never to take it off.

"Reaching the Santa Monica pier at the end of the trip was the greatest moment in my life. I have such a sense of accomplishment," she said. "It's insane."

Insane in a very good way.