Today is day 5 and it was a 7am wake up, so the team was super relieved. Compared to the 5am wake ups that we’ve been having all trip, this one was easy. We stayed at a yacht club so as soon as we took those very few steps outside you can feel the ocean breeze in your face. During our team circle up, Hunter, our project manager, said we only had about 35 miles today; you can see the signs of relief on everyone’s face once he said that. Although 35 miles may seem like a lot, to us, this was like a walk in the park. We had been averaging about 80 miles a day so it was nice to have a shorter day. We started off with a 12 mile bike ride to The Arc of Tampa Bay where they treated us to some breakfast and our friends there showed us all the talents they had; someone sang the National Anthem, another had some sick dance moves, someone else played the piano, and lastly we were shown the basketball championship trophy they had one that year. We were all very impressed with their ABILITIES and their accomplishments and as much as we wanted to stay, we had to get back on the bikes and head deeper into Tampa. After a 25 mile ride on the shores of Tampa bay we finally arrived at our last destination, the MacDonald Training Center. Everyone there welcomed us with so much energy it gave me chills knowing that so many people could be so happy to see us. After the visit we had a sponsored dinner by two Pi Alphas, Matt and Ryan, who shared their experiences with us on Journey of Hope and Gear Up Florida. The food was amazing and it was definitely a well deserved meal after a long few days. Once we got back to lodging the team was free for the rest of the evening to do whatever they wanted. Today was a good day
Camilo Restrepo