Central Wyoming College Students Embark on Coast-to-Coast Cycling Expedition

LANDER, Wyo. – Central Wyoming College students have hit the road on a coast-to-coast cycling expedition, turning classroom learning into a 3,000-mile real-world adventure.

The team joined PAC Tour, a national leader in long-distance road cycling tours, to ride from San Diego, California, to Tybee Island, Georgia. The experience builds on CWC’s tradition of hands-on, field-based education through its Alpine Science Institute, where students gain career-ready skills in outdoor science and leadership.

“Our students are living, breathing examples of how the CWC mission to transform lives and strengthen communities plays out in actuality,” said Jacki Klancher, CWC director of research and innovation. “We enact our mission every day and in every way—inside the classroom and far beyond.”

Aidan Hereford, Bachelor of Applied Science major in Outdoor Program Leadership. She is no stranger to adventure—having trekked to Everest Base Camp, monitored wilderness areas with the U.S. Forest Service, and pedaled nearly 1,000 miles of the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route with Klancher and Darran and Stacy Wells.

“This time around, Aidan is trading fat tires for skinny wheels,” Klancher said. “She’ll gain new road riding skills, contribute to environmental research, and help manage the logistics of a professional bike tour.”

The expedition also includes Taufen, an experienced marketing professional who is documenting the ride, supporting PAC Tour operations, and earning college credit while building her professional portfolio.

“These are the types of adventures we craft at Central Wyoming College,” Klancher added. “Experiential learning that expands résumés, builds professional capacity, and launches careers.”

Along the way, the group reconnected with CWC alumni, including Kole Cox, who now works for Specialized Bikes in Salt Lake City, and Mary Jensen Eddy, a 2006 nursing graduate who works in burn care.

Klancher, who has logged more than 7,000 miles with PAC Tour herself, said opportunities like this are rare among community colleges nationwide.

“Central Wyoming College is not your typical community college,” she said. “With the support of programs like the NASA Wyoming Space Grant Consortium, WY EPSCoR, and WY INBRE, we provide incomparable research, field, and leadership opportunities that truly change people’s lives.”

The 28-day tour will take riders through California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia, covering more than 3,000 miles and climbing over 100,000 feet. The journey begins Sept. 10 in San Diego and ends Oct. 7 on the Atlantic coast at Tybee Island, Georgia.

To learn more about CWC’s outdoor science and leadership programs, visit the Alpine Science Institute.