Gage Matzen rode his bike from coast to coast this past summer, but oddly one of his biggest takeaways? The baguettes in Mazama, Washington.

With a two-month-long diet of instant oatmeal, honey banana wraps and protein bars, you got to take the splurge where you can get it.

Matzen is a 27-year-old Sioux Falls cyclist who always had the life goal of biking across the country. When he began volunteering for the Veterans Community Project (VCP), a transitional home support service for homeless vets, he wanted to make his dream worth every mile.

Eighty-two days, 4,000 miles and $14,288 later, the all-volunteer-based local VCP chapter has more to give, and Matzen’s legs are tired.

“I kind of miss it,” Matzen said.

He began May 4 on a rainy day in Norfolk, Virginia, and finished July 26 in

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