A late posting of Rick Ashton at the finish line hiding in the weeds from the Mexican Police! My wife remembers him for his soft "Southern Drawl". He rode to Albuquerque with my wife and I and Richard Costello. Both good people!!

Yukon Krauss at Antelope Wells on July 31, right on the border and with Roger and Lloyd Payne who took him back to Silver City where he intended to buy a VW Bug that he found for sale. He thought it would be a good souvenir. He is a real gentleman. Roger and I were impressed with the quality of people who made the ride. It was a very interesting privilege to get to meet them and hear their views and experiences. The U.S. Customs were kind and cheerful people too. Thanks to them for their good natures and kind help.
Thanks,
Roger and Lloyd Payne

Roger Payne and his wife were waiting at the finish line and had a bet on the time Dennis would finish. Roger won as Dennis finished at 5:46 p.m., on 7-10-2013.  Roger had him hit his spot but apparently it didn't register. Roger took pictures on Dennis'  camera and Roger's wife took a picture too on her camera. Roger then hauled him to El Paso, TX. He should be 59th position. I called Matthew this morning and informed him of this info.

I will re post my prior entry. I do not know what more to do. It still shows Dennis Loewen at the AW border but does not show him finished.

Not to change the subject but has Dennis Lowen gone into the camping mode in order to get the "Red Lantern" or did he just forget to hit Spot?

Roger Payne and his wife were waiting at the finish line and had a bet on the time Dennis would finish. Roger won as Dennis finished at 5:46 p.m., on 7-10-2013.  Roger had him hit his spot but apparently it didn't register. Roger took pictures on Dennis'  camera and Roger's wife took a picture too on her camera. Roger then hauled him to El Paso, TX. He should be 59th position. I called Matthew this morning and informed him of this info.

Sara rode from Pie Town to Antelope Wells with only about 4 hours sleep. She left Pie Town at 7:30 a.m. on Friday morning and we picked her up at about 3 a.m. Sunday morning. She is a real LADY too, a real Classy Lady.

Getting down to the end here. I'll be picking up two riders and bikes on Friday and I have no idea what to expect. The satellite view of the border crossing doesn't show much of a place to pull off to the side of the road to wait. Antelope Wells seems to refer to a set of water wells to be used by antelopes. What should I expect?

Antelope Wells is about 65 miles south of I-10 and the exit is pretty well marked. You will get on
NM 181 and go south for about 18 miles and will come to Hachita, NM. There are no services there. The route jogs left through the "Front Street" of Hachita about 4/5 blocks and then you turn south (right) for about 46 miles. After you leave Hachita (another 4 blocks)you will only pass one abandoned ranch house (on the right) until you reach Antelope Wells.
The U.S. Gov. has built a new station there for the Border Patrol. It is very modern. The only problem is that they didn't plan adequately for their electrical needs, so it has been just sitting there for over a year. On the right you will see the old Port which they still have to use, with several travel trailers parked in the back, with one full sized trailer where a port employee lives. Park just outside the swinging pole gate and walk to the port. There were 3 employees there the other day, in a small building. It has a soda vending machine. There is one uni-sex restroom, which can get very busy if a shuttle bus from Mexico comes to the port. The employees are friendly and well acquainted with the Tour Divide routine. You can take the riders and the bikes to the actual exact US Mexico border line and get pictures. There were Mexican soldiers there tonight who were not friendly and I wouldn't disturb them very much. Get your pictures in front of the monument designating the border line. Try to stay out of the way of vehicles and the port customers. The US officials will stamp your Visa if you have one. It makes a nice souvenir saying Antelope Wells, etc. The port is only open from 8 to 4 and not at all on Sunday. No open alcohol allowed on the port property. NM also has an open container law for motor vehicles which could be problematic. Hope this helps. Enjoy!!!

My brother Roger and I just picked up the two Swiss riders, Saemi Burkart and Reto Koller, and saw and visited with Forest Baker, all at Antelope Wells. We passed and exchanged greetings with Markley Anderson too. All were doing well except for Markley who had torn the large muscle in the top/front and side of his right leg. He was riding in agony with about 14-20 miles left to go.

Here is photographic proof of the finish. You figure out who is who and who was ahead. We had trouble getting them to hit their check in buttons. Jesse Carlsson was there to join in their arrival too. I furnished Cola, not beer. But, they soon had some.

Jesse Carlsson at Antelope Wells and restaurant in Lordsburg where I first met Matthew Lee. In fact he is sitting where Matthew was sitting. That is my ugly brother, Roger, sitting with him. Getting in the truck to go to church this morning, my wife found all of his credit cards on the floor of the truck. We drove up to Silver City and we got to see him again. He was resting peacefully at the motel.

For those in the know the attached link may be superfluous, but at least for me it is new.
Therefore, I don't understand why the phone number of LP in Lordsburg was edited out shortly after he sent his first mail. It may be of use to family and friends of TD racers too.
http://www.adventurecycling.org/default/assets/File/Routes_Maps/pdf/GD_shuttle.pdf

COPY OF TEXT FROM LETTER I SENT TO MATTHEW LEE-----
"Matthew,
I deleted my post with my phone number as I don't want to bend any rules. Sure do appreciate you and all of your effort. I am not running a licensed service with regulated tariffs so I also want to be careful not to end up afoul of the law. I am glad to be of assistance though, just so I don't  bend or break any of the conventions of the race. .............." end of quote.
The organizers have my info and if they see fit to post it to the board, fine. I just don't want to turn the forum into a place to advertise services or have someone say, "Well, you let Lloyd do it."
I'm still transporting riders from Antelope Wells, and in fact transported Jesse Carlson last night.
Lloyd Payne

He will be doing superbly if he is there by 6-7 pm MDT.

I didn't know him personally. I only knew of him and heard of his death second hand.

Sam died just this month.

I assume the Bursom Rd reroute is pavement.

No, it is mostly gravel about equal to the closed route, with elevation reaching about 9200 feet. It is also known as forest rd 28. Mike will hit some rough pavement as he descends to route 180 from the Ghost town of Mogollon. It is wild country with bears, elk, and a lot of solitude.

Sara D rolled into Antelope Wells at 8:01 yesterday evening. She finished strong pushing on with only an hours sleep the night before. She had a flat at Separ because it is "Goathead City". Everyone watch out. She had put a tube in earlier because of a large nail. Those goatheads dont respect tubes. Soon she was in Lordsburg where she will catch a Greyhound to Tucson for her flight home. She was in good spirits and hungry!

I am a lifelong resident of SW New Mexico. Luck, or the Gods, or pure Chance, plays a disproportionate part in the TD, and the final results are often skewed because of this. Those riders that hit the ferocious headwinds in Wyoming will attest to their effects. Here in New Mexico, if you hit the Gila country just wrong, rain and storms will play havoc with your progress. Then, if you weren't blessed to hit New Mexico before the heat and winds here, you were penalized disproportionately again by the weather. The temps after leaving Silver City have been from 106 to 108, however the moon has been bright enough to ride at night the last few nights. A black bear was hit and killed by a truck on the Interstate at Separ last week. Can you believe that? You never know what it will be your lot to encounter. That is part of what makes the TD such a great challenge and accomplishment. So what do you do? Go SB or go NB. Push through the night or resupply and get some rest. The early finishers rolled the dice, they had the physical ability to hit things right, and their equipment held up.

My congratulations to all of the participants. I hauled some to Antelope Wells and have given rides to some finishers. You are all WINNERS.   

It looks like Cjell just took the wrong fork!!!  What to do? Can he be notified?
Lloyd "his ride to Antelope Wells".