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!