Day 1 - CT to WA!

Welcome everyone to our Coast to Coast for a Cause 2022 Blog! We are hoping to use this space to share our stories and adventures as we travel (on bike!) from Washington state back home to Connecticut. 

Were we English majors in college? No. Will we ever be published novelist? Probably not. Will we have grammar and spelling mistakes in these posts? Most definitely. With that said, we will try to make this blog as interesting to read as possible, and make you feel like you are sitting around the campfire with us as we dive into our tales of the day! 

At this point you are probably wondering, “Who is even writing this blog right now?” and “What is Coast to Coast?” Well, I am so glad you asked!

We (Dustin Moore, Julia Neri & Brian Legato) are three students from UConn Schools of Medicine and Dental Medicine. We will be sharing the duties of blog posting, so today your author is Julia! I will try to give you a quick “About Me” today, and then Brian and Dustin can introduce themselves over the next couple days. 

Who is Julia Neri?

I am from Wallingford, CT born and raised. Currently I am a rising second year medical student, as well as a Masters of Public Health student. I have been a proud husky for many years since I attended UConn for my undergraduate studies in Biological Studies, Spanish and Latino Studies with the Class of 2020. 

I enjoy swimming, running, watching NatGeo (especially Secrets of the Zoo), DIYing stuff with the help of my Cricut, and playing with everyone’s dogs/cats since I don’t have one of my own. Fun Fact: my party trick is moving an Oreo from my forehead to my mouth in under 30sec without using my hands. 

Why Are We Cycling Across the Country?

Coast to Coast for a Cause was started in 2006 as a way for medical and dental students to bike across the country, while raising funds for a local CT charity. As the 17th annual group, we are raising money for The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, located in Ashford, CT. Founded in 1988 by Paul Newman, The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp is dedicated to providing a “different kind of healing” to seriously ill children and their families through a variety of year-round programs. It provides a special hideout from their illnesses, where they can simply be kids. Annually, Camp serves over 20,000 children, and all services are free of charge! Check out this amazing video about Camp: Promo Video

With that said, donations are a vital part in the operations of such an incredible camp! We will be collecting donations throughout the entire duration of our trip, so please consider donating using one of the methods linked in our Side Menu. 

What Did We Do Today?

Now that you know a little bit about Coast to Coast and The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, let’s dive into our adventure! 

Like any adventure, you have to start with a travel day and actually get to where you want to go. Since we are starting in WA, we actually shipped our bikes via UPS two weeks ago. That was an experience in itself. Let’s just say it was the day before our giant 8 hour medical/dental exam, we decided to save money and take apart our bikes ourselves…. 4 hours later we have two broken wrenches, 3 bikes heavily bubble wrapped, and hopes & prayers that our bikes make it to WA without breaking. 

Fast forward to last night and you will find me in my room with 3 giant loads of laundry (nothing folded, of course), my bike gear in a mound in the corner of my room, and my floor no where to be found due to an explosion of random stuff and clutter. Marie Kondo would’ve had a panic attack if she saw the state of my room. 

Miraculously, I was able to clean my entire room and pack everything I will need for the next two months into two panniers, a handlebar bag, and a CamelBak, all before leaving at 1:30pm today. I have never been more impressed by my packing than I was today. Each of my pannier bags only weighed 13.5lbs/each! This is very exciting for me because I am a notorious overpacker. FYI typically for a week long vacation, you can expect my suitcase to be close to 50lbs. 

Then came time time to say our final goodbyes to all our friends and families for the summer (if you saw me crying, no you didn’t. It was just pollen in my eyes). Dustin’s girlfriend Pascale was absolutely incredible and drove us all the way to Newark for our 6 hour flight to Seattle, where we were blessed with extra leg room in the emergency exit aisle seats. 
In Seattle, we were greeted by my boyfriend, Jon. He was able to catch an earlier flight and grab a rental car that way he can graciously hang out with us for the first week of our journey for support as we get our feet on the ground. 
You will definitely see a trend in our posts, where we will be highlighting all the amazing people in our lives and who we meet along the way. This is because we wouldn’t be able to tackle this impressive journey, if it wasn’t for all the support we have been receiving from everyone. Thank you to everyone who has helped leading up to our departure, and all those that will be a part of our trip moving forward. We are so grateful for each and every one of you. 
Thank you also to all of our donors thus far. With your generosity, we can share in the joy of knowing that we are helping to provide “a different kind of healing” to children and families coping with serious illness. Let’s give every child, no matter their illness, the chance to “raise a little hell!”