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Race Across America

Heidi

Heidi

Der hund ist laut und braun
Aug 22, 2001
10,184
797
Bend, Oregon
It starts Sunday in Oceanside. What do you think Tinker's chance of winning is? 45 year old David Tinker Juarez is a two-time mountain bike Olympian, three-time NORBA XC champion, four-time US 24 hour solo champion, and recently won the Heart of the South 500 mile RAAM qualifier. Only once has a rookie won it though.

http://www.raceacrossamerica.org/
 
peter6061

peter6061

Turbo Monkey
Nov 19, 2001
1,575
0
Kenmore, WA
I'm pulling for him. As a former mechanic on RAAM, I watched those guys suffer and I think he's got what it takes to pull this off. There is something to be said for experience, but he's only a rookie because he hasn't done THIS race before. He's definately got the ability to push his body beyond it's limits and trudge through for success. I know I'll be checking in online each day to see how he's done. Ride hard, Tinker.
 
peter6061

peter6061

Turbo Monkey
Nov 19, 2001
1,575
0
Kenmore, WA
Heidi said:
I'm slightly worried because he seems to have the attitude of, win or quit.
Click to expand...
I hope that's not the case. Just finishing that event within the time limit always seemed to be an accomplishment for the newb riders. And if he doesn't win, he will at least have the experience to come back stronger next year. It's not like it's a young guys race. It's all about patience and turning the crank over one more time.
 
M

Mike Stone

Chimp
Jul 15, 2002
55
0
Danbury CT
I really like the idea of the new enduro class with mandatory rest stops. I have always thought that not requiring riders to spend a minimum amount of time off the bike at certain intervals is too dangerous. They are expecting riders who are hallucinating to make rational decisions about when to stop.
 
peter6061

peter6061

Turbo Monkey
Nov 19, 2001
1,575
0
Kenmore, WA
I didn't even realize there was a new class and that Tinker was racing it. I thought he was doing the 'real' race. 40 hours of mandatory sleep during the race should make the avg speed go way up and reduce some of the problems people associate with the race (ie hallucinating, exhaustion, etc,...) NOTE: I said "reduce".

This enduro event sounds like something more 'normal' people might try. I know after crewing I resigned myself to the knowledge that I would never compete in RAAM. I probably still wouldn't, but getting 3-4 hours of sleep a night (and it not counting against you) would make this race much more bearable. I know the guys I crewed for worked on only 90 minutes of sleep a night. Crazy.

Go Tinker. :thumb:
 
McGRP01

McGRP01

beer and bikes
Feb 6, 2003
7,793
0
Portland, OR
Wyss wins RAAM
Boyer leading Enduro division
This report filed June 21, 2006
Atlantic City, New Jersey - Not even looking particulary tired from his 9 day, 11 hour and 50 minute crossing of 3043 miles from Oceanside, California, to Atlantic City, New Jersey, Daniel Wyss of Brig, Switzerland rolled across the finish line at 11:57 p.m. on June 20 to become the first rookie winner in the Solo category of the Race Across America since Jonathan 'Jock' Boyer in 1985.

Wyss won the Solo Traditional division, in which riders may stop as little - or as much - as they choose. Riders in the Solo Enduro division - currently led by Jonathan Boyer - are expected to finish around 11 a.m. Wednesday 21st June.

After a measured start out of Oceanside, Wyss soon began moving up through the field, and led the entire race, including all the Enduro riders, through Mexican Hat, Utah, 682 miles in.

Thereafter, the 36 year-old was involved in every fight for the Traditional division lead.

First he battled with Marcel Knaus who took the lead in Montezuma Creek, Utah. But he went past the police officer from Liechtenstein in between Pagosa Springs and South Fork in Colorado. Knaus never came back into contention and pulled out in Ulysses, Kansas, complaining of saddle sores.

Next came the challenge of fellow Italian, the ten-times RAAM starter Fabio Biasiolo. Biasiolo surged to the front between Trinidad and Kim, in Colorado.

Going through Illinois Wyss caught up to Biasiolo, but realized he had mis-timed his effort. "I went harder than I was comfortable with, and then I realized how hard the RAAM is to people who do this," Recalled Wyss at the finish.

Crediting his team for his win, Wyss described himself as the weak link in the chain.

His opponents might not have agreed. Wyss gathered his strength until 683 miles from the finish, and then powered passed Biasiolo before time station 42 at Troy, Ohio.

From that point on, Wyss extended his lead while Biasiolo lost second place to his compatriot Dino Valsesia.

Dr Christian Hoppe, Doctor to Wyss - and to 2001 champion Andre Clavedetscher - instructed Wyss to gain 15lbs prior to the race. "He needs this for fuel in the second part of the race," Explained Hoppe - who speculated that Biasiolo's problems may have stemmed from lack of appropriate fuel sources.

"We can get about 10,000 kilo-calories into Wyss each day, but he burns 17-18,000 kilo-calories. The body must make up this difference by consuming something, and if the fat is not available it will be muscle." Said Hoppe.

During his ride, Wyss consumed an all liquid diet composed of a product for cancer patients called Resource, a sweetened fat mixture, and a solution of water, salt and sugar. He slept on most nights for 80 minutes, with a 15-minute power nap during the day.

http://www.velonews.com/race/dom/articles/10077.0.html
 
mogulskr

mogulskr

Monkey
Aug 28, 2002
642
1
NH
I've been following this online and the people who do this are unreal. They rode through 100 mph winds and people were getting blown off their bikes.
 
bikeguy100k

bikeguy100k

Monkey
Nov 11, 2001
348
0
Seattle, WA
I was a crew member for Jeff Brain from Bonney Lake, WA in 1989 and it was wild to witness someone riding for that many hours for over 9 days with about 3 (or less) hours of sleep each day. The top three didn't sleep for the firsrt 2-3 days!:eek:

After the first time Jock Boyer did it, he said it took him two yeats for his sleep cycle to return to normal.

It really is a unique event!
 
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