[raam]Race Across America - The Final Stretch

Special Guest Blogger: Tim Brock, Sir Steve Redgrave Team Crew Member

Friday June 18, 2010

This is one of the toughest days, as the team and crew are climbing through the Appalachians in West Virginia. The mountains aren't as high as the Rockies, but they constantly go up and down so the riders do not get any rest between hills. We are using the LR4 as a follow vehicle through these stages at night as the high beams provide a great deal of light for the riders to see where they are going. It is a long and slow process with the average speed of the stages at about 20 mph, but sometimes the cyclists are only able to climb at eight mph. The downhills are awesome though and everyone is buzzing from the exhilaration of completing the mountains.

The cyclists did a phenomenal amount of cycling over the last two days, with one team cycling for 24 of the last 36 hours before the fall; over some of the most demanding territory. Because of some failed rendezvous, the LR4 was used to help supply provisions for the riders who were trying to cram as many calories as they could. Food that four hours ago was very uninteresting has now become more appealing.

At 5:00 p.m., the team was struck with some bad news as one of the riders fell off his bike and had to be taken to the hospital. We are not sure what the damage is yet, but we have discussed options for carrying on. In true team spirit, the injured rider wants us to go on and finish the race, but as everyone is very tired, the team has decided to stop for the night. This is the first time the LR4 has been stationary for more than five minutes in the last six days. The only time the engine had to stop was to refuel, or to change crew. With less than 250 miles to go, the team is determined to make it to the finish line as their commitment to each other and their cause is stronger than ever.

Saturday June 19, 2010

Everyone is still a bit shell shocked about our fallen rider. On the bright side, some of the crew has been able to get more sleep in the last few hours than they did over the past week. Rather than start too early, we set off at 7 a.m., for the long ride to the finish. The crew and racers are fresh and ready to go. It's amazing to see where our team is today compared to one week ago when we started in California. We have all gained a wealth of experience in changing bike punctures, navigating routes, and now we are all communicating immensely well with each other.

With one rider injured and another with him at the hospital for support, we are now down two riders and have to change the structure slightly so that all of the riders work as one team. The LR4 and the other support cars will work together so that the LR4 follows the rider and helps them to navigate, while also carrying two resting riders, which we will swap out at hourly intervals. The follow car protects the rider from traffic by straddling the fog line on the road.

At this point, the team is doing very well and everything seems to be going smoothly, that is until our LR4 gets a flat tire. We are unable to undo the wheel nuts with the wrench so we call back the other support vehicle to pick up the resting riders so they can carry on together.

We attempted to use a wrench and a compressor that we received from a neighboring house near where we were stranded, but both proved to be unsuccessful. As there was no local recovery company nearby, our only option was to limp along on three wheels to the nearest tire repair place in Mount Airy. While the riders progress towards the finish, we slowly drive the LR4 to Mr. Tire in Mt Airy for a quick tire change and by noon we are back on the road again.

We are on our way to the finish point in Annapolis to meet the riders and the other support vehicle. At 7:30 p.m., seven days, three hours and 42 minutes after we departed from Oceanside, Calif., we ride down the parade route to reach our final endpoint, City Dock. The cyclists and support vehicles are welcomed into the finish line with cheers from the local townspeople and other supporters and competitors.

This has been a fantastic experience for everyone involved. As a team, we experienced some low, but mostly high points during this amazing adventure. The achievement is immense and will take some time to sink in, but the reality remains that in the end, eight people that have never before cycled seriously, made it across the U.S., in a time that they never thought they would achieve. The 14 people who supported the team through this quest also learned a great deal along the way, all the while pushing themselves beyond their limits.

Due to the rider accident, which caused the team to stop, the Sir Steve Redgrave team finished in eighth position. If the time for the accident was removed, the team would have finished in fourth place. As our journey together has come to an end, we'd like to thank everyone who supported the Sir Steve Redgrave team and helped make our memorable journey a reality!