Cyclists riding from the Atlantic to the Pacific stop off in SLT

What did you do for your summer vacation? Many students will hear that when they return to schools this fall but no group will probably have quite the story to tell as will a group of 30 college age students who were in South Lake Tahoe Thursday and Friday.

The students were guests of Tahoe Douglas Rotary for two nights as they took a break from their 70 day, 4,500 mile bicycle journey from Baltimore, Maryland to San Francisco, California. They left Fallon, NV on Thursday morning, stopped off at Carson Tahoe Hospital to visit with cancer patients and then rode up to the south shore Thursday afternoon.

The students are 4k for Cancer's Team San Francisco, one of four teams crossing the country on bicycles this summer, representing the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults. Each team starts by dipping the rear tire of their bike into the Atlantic Ocean and ends by dipping their front tires into the Pacific Ocean.

They travel with two support vans who are responsible for getting food donations and housing for the riders along the way as well as carrying spare parts for the bikes. Of the 30 students taking part in the ride, 26 ride each day with the other four riding in the support vans. They take turns riding and resting.

In 2013, 127 4k for Cancer riders raised almost $775,000 to support young adults affected by cancer. So far in 2014, the riders have raised $1,000,000. The Team San Francisco group alone has raised $300,000 as of this weekend.

Each rider has to raise a minimum of $4,500 (a dollar a mile) prior to embarking on the journey. Team San Francisco has surpassed their 2013 total with one rider raising over $55,000 on her own.

Tahoe Douglas Rotary Club members housed the riders before they leave town early Saturday morning to head off to Lee Vining, through Yosemite to Angel's Camp, up to Napa and over to San Francisco. They said they never take the direct route!

They plan to be at the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco on August 9th.

4k for Cancer is a program of the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults. They are a non-profit organization that works to support, educate and connect young adults, their loved ones and those affected by cancer. The riders will go into towns and connect with the local cancer patients and hospitals. Along their journey they offer hope, inspiration and support to cancer communities along the way.