Rider Support, Team Support

From everything I have read and heard about past Team RAAM experiences, the crew is critical to the riders performance. I mean, teams have gone very fast - this needs to involve smooth transitions between the riders, which requires a lot of coordination in dropping off riders at the right point up the road, picking up the fatigued riders and taking care of them, transporting them, getting them to motels, feeding and hydrating them, maintaining the bikes & equipment...the list goes on: what about massage?

It is common knowledge amongst bicycle stage racers (eg, Tour de France), doing hard efforts day in and day out, that massage will follow their arduous days to help them get ready for the next day. Massage is a critical element in the muscle recovery of professional cyclists. This may involve flushing out of muscle toxins and improving lymphatic flow (circuation) to the muscles.

I have enlisted the services of a friend, Wynne Dacey, LMP, who runs Touched, a massage practice here in Wenatchee, to train our crew members how to do massage for cyclists. Wynne has generously volunteered her time to help in this endeavor. I am very excited to have such a professional to lend us her advice and training.
Thank you, Wynne!

Riding with a Purpose - Links and Sponsors

I hope that we can make this thing fun in the process...I enjoy sharing the experience, and hope to create a chronicle that is bound to include interesting experiences as we cross this vast land with all the various peoples sharing or simply observing our exploits. Rising out of the Race Across America organization, which is well-supported from a media standpoint, there is an opportunity for international exposure. For one, there is a moving caravan of vehicles; we have three vehicles and plenty of room for advertising on them. For another, we have this blog site and any other coverage the RAAM organization may offer in their media coverage; their website (www.raceacrossamerica.org) will offer several glimpses in the form of blog chronicles and documentaries of individual racers and their teams. In fact, it is an excellent website worth checking out, with all kinds of interesting charts, maps, stats, articles, links, etc. What a way to get to know the country's geography!! Finally, there are other opportunities, such as interviews, word of mouth, etc. For example, yesterday I was interviewed by KPQ talkshow host Ken Johanneson (I hope to stream it onto this blog in the future), and he plans to have me back on that show after the race. Yesterday's Wenatchee World (our local paper) featured an excellent article in the sports section by Rob Ollikainen: please check it out -

http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080527/SPORTS/70353120.

Currently, I would like to recognize the following contributors:

Chuck McGarrity of ANSPAC Surgical Devices
Brandon Elggren of Southridge Microsurgical Devices


University of Utah, Neurosurgery Dept (THANKS Lanette Dunbar!)
Motorola, Day Wireless of Seattle/Wenatchee
ITC (Illinois Tool Corp.)
Tom Feil (GREAT work on the generator mount or the back of Bruce's van!)
Idaho Potatos (THANKS Vaughn Randall for advocating and connecting!)
Mitch Curtis of Biomed Surgical Corp.

Any donations to our cause our tax-deductible, of course, and will go through the University of Utah Neurosciences Department. Please contact Lanette Dunbar at 801-581-6554 if interested.

Thanks!

Evolution of the Revolution

Cycling is a sport that draws much from inspirators and conspirators. Sure, there are the heros we have watched on TV or read about, eg, Lance, Floyd, Marco, Eddie, Sean and so many others...sometimes we don't even know whether those riders are somebody we can relate to.

I don't think I am alone to say that I have heros among the everyday common bike racing folks; I draw my inspiration from the past, much as a well that always keeps yielding refreshing drinks of water. I started riding at Stanford University when I became an injured runner who was desperately trying to make it as a walk-on scrub on the Stanford University track team. I started riding around on a beat-up old 10-speed, Nishiki or something like that - hey it had some light parts on it for its day. I saw the Stanford team on the road and I must say it looked enticing - all these serious & determined lycra-clad riders in apparent exclusion of the would-be challengers/wankers - inviting from a competitive point of view and also to be part of a very driven, knowledgeable group. Plus they knew where all the awesome rides were - Old LaHonda, Skyline, Hwy 9, Big Basin, Alpine Rd, Tunitas Creek, Hwy 84, and so many other beautiful places to ride in the Santa Cruz mountains area.

My good friend Rowen Bensch really introduced me to the sport of cycling; he and I resided in the French House at Stanford, my sophomore year. Rowen always had a way with "liberating" people's spirit - he convinced me to part with my educational loan money and purchase a $500 Bianchi. A very nice bike for its day, with Ofmega, Zeus and a few Campy components (6-speed cluster). Also, Vittoria shoes. Plus, he really thought he could kick my ass up Page Mill Road. I proved him wrong, much to his surprise. Seriously, I am indebted to Rowen to opening up my mind to a whole world of culture (mostly Euro-centric), and the fantastic universe of cycling.

The Stanford Cycling Team was awesome. There was a sufficient amount of ridicule and sheer talent to humiliate me but leave me coming back for more. I was soundly beaten at one point or another by nearly all women and pimply, coke-bottled glasses grad students. I think even "Cadaver-man" beat me (never mind that story). Brian Bauer was one of the gifted ones, one of the established riding stars, but I must say that he was too goofy and non-intense to ever want to clobber. Art Walker, on the other hand was another story. He was a PhD grad student in physics who had an ego almost as enormous as his intellect. Plus, he was just damn funny. Man, he was intense, he didn't miss a single detail. He was simply a great bike racer who knew how to make others around him great. He dangled the carrot in front of me, soundly dropping me on both climbs, descents, and at first, time trial riding (He told me early on in my career I would never beat him in a TT - it took me 2 years but not only did I beat him, but I shattered the school record he had held for the Arastradero TT that the Stanford team would do to establish TT hierarchy). Art turned out to be a great friend, and coach. He really is responsible for the spirit of compulsive and aggressive riding style I have; he gave me the base I needed to achieve an edge in any cycling discipline. I always felt confident that after Art advised me, I had all the advantages. So no wonder that I have turned to him for advice on RAAM!

Years later, having gotten back into competition as a Masters category bike racer, I have run into some individuals who showed me what fight and determination were all about. I have surrounded myself whenever possible with these people. One friend and local Masters rider, Randall Smith, established a nearly legendary work ethic in his rain-or-shine loops on Joe Miller Road and Badger Mtn. It is mostly because of him and his riding prowess that I am inspired to ride repeated tough loops and series of climbs that have a tendency to shatter one's legs after only one of them; 9,000 vertical feet or 40 miles of headwind, pick your poison! I feel that I am ready!

I am fortunate to see the next generation of riders emerging from our examples - Tyler Farrar, who is excelling on the Slipstream professional team, and Jake McArthur, a young emerging star, who I feel is capable of world class results.

Equipment: the bikes

I am planning on using the best bikes I have ever owned for RAAM 2008. The first pictured bike is definitely the fastest bike I have ever ridden. It is a bike I purchased on E-bay this winter and needed some work, esp. the addition of two really fast wheels! It is aluminum with carbon rear triangle, seatpost and fork. I plan to use it on flatter stages; it puts you really low and is not as comfortable as the second bike, the Marinoni. The latter is titanium with carbon rear triangle, fork and seatpost - a bit lighter and definitely absorbs the bumps better. Everything is Campagnolo Record, as with the other guys on the team; so parts are interchangable. Clinchers are faster and more convenient, and we will use them predominantly. However, the Zipp wheels are mounted with Zipp Tangente tubulars, which are both supple and still fast. My concern is trading speed for comfort - hopefully there is not too much fatigue in riding an extreme aero position. But I think that team RAAM gives one a chance to switch out equipment that is not working and make decisions on the fly.

Preparing for RAAM

Are you prepared enough? That is always the question...

The hardest thing is the training. We have 4 guys who I know have proven their stamina and durability over days on end. Nevertheless, it is a question of going fast. It is also a question of suffering less. At the center of these components is fitness. Cycling, after all, is an endurance sport. The best and fastest cyclists in the world rack up 100s of miles every week in preparation for their grueling seasons. You can't do it with speed and talent alone. So it comes down to preparation. One thing learned from doing the Baja Peninsula (1000 miles+) in 9 days for years in a row, is that you can never be fit enough. There is always the unpredictable, the "spank." You have to battle through it, in all cases.

With that in mind, I have sought to push the limits of any training I have ever conceived. At the age of 44, I am doing rides that are longer and tougher than anything I ever did before (except Baja). I racked up 9,000 vertical feet on wednesday and 8,000 vertical yesterday. The climbing forces you to ride hard, near or at the aerobic threshold - no hiding. Then, 90 miles today, with wind. This has given me the confidence to take on the unexpected (which I fully expect!)

We will see in June...

History of Team Utah Neurosciences, RAAM 2008

By now, a lot of the groundwork for Team Utah Neurosciences is done.

It started with 2 guys, Bill Couldwell and I who knew each other from medical training at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec. It seems that every year since we parted ways (me to Reno, NV for family practice residency and Bill to U.S.C. neurosurgery professorship), we have managed to merge our busy lives for 9 days or so; it started one December - we got the idea from one of Bill's acquaintances to bike the whole Baja Peninsula on our winter vacation. We weren't sure if it could be done - and we managed to bike maybe 2/3 of it our first attempt; by the next year, we had it dialed it in. We spanked ourselves through darkness, mechanicals, fatigue, heat, cold, pouring rain, bad machaca...you name it! But we made it. A couple of years, we went to Chile and did much of the length of that country. After that, we got together with an another buddy of mine, Brian Bauer, who was in the same fraternity (Alpha Delta Phi), and was a rider of awesome potential on the Stanford Cycling team (Yes, the word "potential" is there for emphasis!). Anyways, Brian called me up and told me that he was interested in getting back into bike racing. We kept trying to figure out how we would ever get together to do something (like ride...I think we went nordic skiing in Tahoe once; another time, it was a college reunion I think), so we decided to ride the California coast with Bill. Except for when I broke a seat post, it was a piece of cake, compared to Baja (you have to picture Brian riding while seated on his rear bike rack, in the dark on a 150-miler into Santa Barbara, cruising by us while singing "Low...ri-dah..." I had to laugh and admire him at the same time for saving my bacon...) So Bill, Brian and I did Baja. We made a great team and we kept each other laughing the whole way (you have to find something to break the monotony of the Vizcaino Desert, the Laguna Chapala, and so many other sections!)

We felt pretty accomplished making those trips down in Baja, and we finally decided to put our abilities to the test in one of the world's greatest endurance feats - the Race Across America! Bill had taken the job as the University of Utah Neurosurgery Dept. Chairman a few years earlier. He felt that we could raise money for neurosurgery research and help defray the considerable costs of putting a team together for RAAM. This race begins on June 11th at 2pm at the pier in Oceanside, CA. It doesn't end until you hit Annapolis, MD! 24-7, baby! I volunteered myself as team captain, and suddenly realized the organizational enormity of what we were attempting. Then there was the training (15-20 hours per week). We knew people who had done the team race, and they have been excellent resources. My friend Art Walker, who coached me at Stanford University, was crew chief for a team of 4 women in 1994. Another Stanfor alum, Eric Heiden, former professional cyclist and multiple olympic gold medal winner, did the 8-man team race, and has also given us advice. I got a 4th rider, Christian Clerc, a french former musher (sled dog racer) and current tough-guy bike racer. Christian lives close by, in East Wenatchee, and he has been a great training partner, a very hard worker, and meticulous in his attention to cycling detail. I found a good candidate for crew chief in Bruce Huntoon, who lives in Chelan, WA - Bruce is a stickler for detail, and very generous in his time, and is extremely dedicated in his love of endurance sports. Other crew members include Dave Warn, a long-time friend (since junior high) of mine - who has about a million ideas, he has managed to stick with me no matter how far away I got, if nothing else, just to balance out my serious side with his humor! Then there is Howard Schnirman, an accomplished bike rider, who has accompanied Brian on Bike Aid (tour across America). Add Brian's wife, Ellen Jones, who is a PhD genius and organizational guru (thank God, Brian!), from the same class as Brian and me at Stanford, and rode with Brian across America in Bike Aid. Rounding out our crew of 6 will be Carol Oules, a friend of Bruce's and also Bill's nephew, whose name I don't know yet...).

So that's it. Team Neuro, as Dave calls it. It's really hard to believe we are putting this together - and I think that is half the fun!