TD'11 Race Discussion

[Area45]

Speaking of frames anyone out there riding a Moots? I'm sure there are a few, but don't know.

Woody

Bob Anderson is on a Moots. I saw it at The Outdoorsman in Butte.

[ZackR]

I like that frame plenty.

Yeah, that's the first blue one I saw (not that there was a lot of blue visible) and I really want one now. It's a great color on a really neat frame.

[elobeck]

Paul is riding through some crummy weather here in Steamboat at the moment. Pouring rain and thunderstorms. Unseasonably cold. Yuk. Weird weather year. Hope he has good rain gear....

[JF-mtnbiker]

About 100 miles separate the Northbound and Southbound leaders. The golden spike is hard to predict with PA not moving out of Steamboat yet. JB & KR can make the Brush Mtn Lodge tonight. Will they stop or keep going into snow? Will PA get out of Steamboat tonight or do a early start in the am? Lobek says it  raining really hard in the Boat... Hmmm.

[riverfever]

Yeah, that's the first blue one I saw (not that there was a lot of blue visible) and I really want one now. It's a great color on a really neat frame.

Yeah I had not spoken to Jefe before he left. I'm glad he's on that. Gives me an excuse to go over to Gunny and see it and him when he's back.

[ComoDepot]

Russ and Franck are staying with us tonight. Russ has a bit of an injury.

[Georg66]

An earlier (page18?) link to a Kurt R. interview had a description and picture of his bike which IIRC was a Ti El Mariachi with a rigid custom White (Bros?) Carbon Fork.

More details about Kurts equipment and other valuable info you can find here:
http://outside-blog.away.com/blog/2011/06/the-cycle-life-10-questions-with-tour-divide-favorite-kurt-refsnider.html

[FernieTeam]

Russ and Franck are staying with us tonight. Russ has a bit of an injury.

thks a lotfor the update ! we hope that after a good night , Russ will recover  ..
all the best to the F & R Duo

[ComoDepot]

Russ did not look good to me, he has a big bag of ice and we will see what tomorrow brings.

[mr cowboy]

I will chime in - following my brother, Norb DeKerchove,  from Boise, ID.  He has accomplished so much - numerous Ironman competitions and now this!  Am very proud of him - the local newspaper ran a story about him and taking on the Tour Divide.  He has so many supporters both locally and across the US. 

cool! i'm from boise. had no idea anyone from here was racing the divide this year. i'll be following him all the way!

[mtbcast]

Dan Simas called in from Sawtell Resort. He’s been slogging through mud. Kurt Refsnider called in from Rawlins! Sheila Torres-Blank called in from Butte! Vance McMurry called in to say he’s OUT. A Dave Golderg fan called in with an update! Paul Attalla called in from Steamboat Springs. He reports Big Rock Creek is impassable. Ray Porter called in from Lima. JP Evans called in from Lima with a confession. A message from Orange Peel Bikes. David Horton called in from Lima. And Justin Voss called in from Pinedale.

You can get the audio here, via RSS,  or on iTunes!

[Mrs.BigPoppa]

All these blue dots are quite amazing to follow BUT

Just a quick shout out to all the “guests’ following this thread, all the friends and family members of all these many TDR racers. 

So far lots of time/comments spent here on the leaders, naturally, and also about racers some of us already know from this forum or other races

But why not please sign on and chime in with info about your racer! Photos, links, race or route comments made by your racer during their calls to you , etc etc

I for one would like to know more about all the ‘other’ racers, not just the leaders.  imo many times the most interesting adventures are happening further back in the pack and part of the spectator fun is to hear about them.

I'll chime in as well.  My husband, Justin Voss is a Southbound Rider.  He's currently showing in 9th place, and apparently passed Paul Spencer sometime today.  I talked to him this morning and he said that he had not seen anyone in about 48 hours, but that he seemed to be following someone's bicycle tracks and every town he went into, people told him that someone else had JUST been there.  I guess somehow he got ahead.  Unfortunately I am at work and only chatted with him briefly before he left Pinedale.  He said not to expect to hear from him probably until Rawlins.

A little background on Justin.  He has more drive than anyone I know.  Justin is a former triathlete and police officer.  He was hurt in the line of duty a couple of years ago when he was rear ended while stopped on the highway and was no longer able to wear the gear and the daily duty requirements the job requires.  Instead of feeling sorry for himself, he finished school, applied for and got accepted into medical school, which he starts this fall. He still is unable to run, but found that he is able to ride a bicycle without intolerable pain and has gone at riding 120% since then.    As he told me, a lot of the guys he is riding with are far better riders who weigh much less (Justin is 6'4") but I think his mental strength and willingness and ability to persevere through low times are getting him far in this race. 

He had a pretty fun story from earlier today.  After a long climb, he stopped to chat with a local road bicyclist who was asking about the race.  He asked Justin what route he was taking and when Justin told him the local recommended he not take that way because of the snow.  Justin told him he had to stick to the route and the guy again suggested that he not go that way and made an alternate route suggestion.  He said the local just looked incredulous that Justin was planning to go down the way he did and just shook his head and rode on.  When Justin told me that story, it made me realize how treacherous this course is compared to just riding the highways and maintained roads.  It makes me really impressed with JS and his chosen route!

Justin had a few rough moments early in the race, but he sounds stronger and more optimistic every time he calls.  I'm curious to see if he's able to keep the guys behind him behind him and maybe even catch up to Aidan Harding.  He's definitely keeping this race exciting for me, although it doesn't make up for him being gone (we've only been married six months).  He has a lot of supporters and cycling friends who are keeping tabs on him.  He certainly is doing us all proud and we look forward to getting him home!

[mtbcast]

I'll chime in as well.  My husband, Justin Voss is a Southbound Rider.  He's currently showing in 9th place, and apparently passed Paul Spencer sometime today.  I talked to him this morning and he said that he had not seen anyone in about 48 hours, but that he seemed to be following someone's bicycle tracks and every town he went into, people told him that someone else had JUST been there.  I guess somehow he got ahead.  Unfortunately I am at work and only chatted with him briefly before he left Pinedale.  He said not to expect to hear from him probably until Rawlins.

A little background on Justin.  He has more drive than anyone I know.  Justin is a former triathlete and police officer.  He was hurt in the line of duty a couple of years ago when he was rear ended while stopped on the highway and was no longer able to wear the gear and the daily duty requirements the job requires.  Instead of feeling sorry for himself, he finished school, applied for and got accepted into medical school, which he starts this fall. He still is unable to run, but found that he is able to ride a bicycle without intolerable pain and has gone at riding 120% since then.    As he told me, a lot of the guys he is riding with are far better riders who weigh much less (Justin is 6'4") but I think his mental strength and willingness and ability to persevere through low times are getting him far in this race. 

He had a pretty fun story from earlier today.  After a long climb, he stopped to chat with a local road bicyclist who was asking about the race.  He asked Justin what route he was taking and when Justin told him the local recommended he not take that way because of the snow.  Justin told him he had to stick to the route and the guy again suggested that he not go that way and made an alternate route suggestion.  He said the local just looked incredulous that Justin was planning to go down the way he did and just shook his head and rode on.  When Justin told me that story, it made me realize how treacherous this course is compared to just riding the highways and maintained roads.  It makes me really impressed with JS and his chosen route!

Justin had a few rough moments early in the race, but he sounds stronger and more optimistic every time he calls.  I'm curious to see if he's able to keep the guys behind him behind him and maybe even catch up to Aidan Harding.  He's definitely keeping this race exciting for me, although it doesn't make up for him being gone (we've only been married six months).  He has a lot of supporters and cycling friends who are keeping tabs on him.  He certainly is doing us all proud and we look forward to getting him home!

Thanks for sharing that! It really brings home that these racers are regular people in many cases and in some extraordinary people. People that are out there to prove who they are, to push themselves to overcome. I live through the words of these riders. I imagine what it must be like to be out there, though I have been out there following the route in a truck in the past. People like Justin are an inspiration and I think it spurs more people to do this route and race. So many things can go wrong: timing, illness, weather, what have you. But to start the race with what many would consider a disadvantage and compete only encourages others to overcome what may simply be a mental challenge: "Can I do this?" I hope to be out there some day and the thought of many who have done this race having overcome so much only to succeed I hope will push me to overcome my doubts.

[sanjuanrider]

All these blue dots are quite amazing to follow BUT

Just a quick shout out to all the “guests’ following this thread, all the friends and family members of all these many TDR racers. 

So far lots of time/comments spent here on the leaders, naturally, and also about racers some of us already know from this forum or other races

But why not please sign on and chime in with info about your racer! Photos, links, race or route comments made by your racer during their calls to you , etc etc

I for one would like to know more about all the ‘other’ racers, not just the leaders.  imo many times the most interesting adventures are happening further back in the pack and part of the spectator fun is to hear about them.

I'm personally watching Dylan Taylor.  Last year on the CTR he decided to kick it up a notch when he was half way through the ride.  He followed up with kicking it up about 10 notches and riding the second half harder and faster.  He might just do the same on the Tour Divide - Go Dylan Go!

[CathyP]

Great story about Justin Voss, overcoming debilitating injuries to become a TD racer and making such an impressive showing so far! 

I'm following my SoBo brother JP Evans (JE on the tracker) and my sister's boyfriend Tom Sap.  JP and Tom have been leading somewhat parallel lives from McKinney, TX and Brussels, Belgium, respectively.  They finally decided to ride on the same continent at the same time.  We've got a whole mess of siblings, parents, aunts, uncles, cousins and friends from both continents keeping eyes on their blue dots as they ride in a quartet with Ray Porter from Dallas and Martin Wimpenny from the UK.  JP created a blog for the race.  It has some updates and photos posted by both JP and his wife Elizabeth.  Elizabeth put together a nice video of the Grand Depart and the first climb which you can find on the blog. 

http://www.jptourdivide.blogspot.com

Our other brother and his fiancee scheduled their wedding around the TD.  After the race is over and the boys are cleaned up and reunited with their womenfolk in AW, the whole family will repair off to Minneapolis (by air this time) for the wedding festivities in July. 

Somebody mentioned Father's Day earlier.  JP and his wife Elizabeth have 5 canine "kids" - Moseley, Haley, Kiwi, Hemi, and Andretti, with physical accomplishments of their own - at least two are highly decorated Agility Dogs!  Guess it runs in the family.  I hope someone out there can wish Happy Father's Day to JP!

[gpe]

Tom Sap’s girlfriend here (and another sister of JP Evans).  Someone had complained on the blog yesterday about “friendly groups” which were forming.  So I would like to add to Cathy P's comments on JPE and Tom.  JP and Tom did not intend to be riding together.  When they both committed to the race, they had independently concluded that they would complete it in 24-25 days.  Tom is usually riding solo, but I’m very glad to see them riding together along with Ray and Martin, especially given the comments people have made about the mental challenges of riding alone for so long.  (Read Tori Fahey’s awesome Day 6 blog post on social isolation (http://www.observatori.ca/2011/06/tour-divide-day-6.html).  (Matthew Lee, I hear you yelling from your armchair now, “But that’s a large part of the point!”)

Some insights on Tom:  I’ve asked JP to get Tom to call in.  I know his family (and I!) would love to hear his voice.  But he’s an incredibly quiet guy, so I’m sure that the fact that he has no phone with him and his calling card ran out would be his excuse.  (Another reason I’m glad he’s with JP—at least I get word that he’s safe.)  Tom’s life is all about biking.  He is not one to compete against others though.  When he’s out there, he’s competing with himself.  The longer and steeper the climb, the more he loves it.  Regardless of what the Belgian weather brings, you can find Tom out slogging away in the hilly/muddy Ardennes (and even hillier Luxembourg) most weekends.  Two years ago he got the bug riding marathons and pretty much everywhere on his rigid singlespeed 29er, so that’s the question I get from our friends here now:  “Is he riding his SS on the TD?”  No, he’s got gears this time and front suspension.  Go Tom!

[woody]

Thanks for sharing that! It really brings home that these racers are regular people in many cases and in some extraordinary people. People that are out there to prove who they are, to push themselves to overcome. I live through the words of these riders. I imagine what it must be like to be out there, though I have been out there following the route in a truck in the past. People like Justin are an inspiration and I think it spurs more people to do this route and race. So many things can go wrong: timing, illness, weather, what have you. But to start the race with what many would consider a disadvantage and compete only encourages others to overcome what may simply be a mental challenge: "Can I do this?" I hope to be out there some day and the thought of many who have done this race having overcome so much only to succeed I hope will push me to overcome my doubts.

+1 for all of the above. I really enjoy reading about the racers and is really nice with the blog links.
Great job everyone.

Woody

[TamaraD2010]

I'm following my husband Ross Delaplane, a Northbounder.  Revelate and the USPS messed up his custom bag order and he is riding with the infamous seat rack and likely carrying 7-10 lbs of rack system.  The seat rack broke just before the high climb south of Del Norte, CO.  He wrapped spare spokes around it to secure until Salida, but is now carrying a lot of weight on his back until he can replace the rack.  The same night his rack broke he was 'victimized' by some varmints.  While he was sleeping they ate up his aerobar padding!  The excitement today is that he needs to get into Salida by noon for the post office - which is holding his revelate bags.

Before leaving town everyone was asking if this was a charity ride; so he put it out to our friends and family to donate to the charity they are most passionate about.  So now he is not only riding for himself, but also for the American Cancer Society, MS, a Maryland Food Bank, a Colorado Youth at Risk organization, a biking youth group that is currently riding the path of the underground railroad, Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado and others.

[muze]

Thanks for the all family and folks sharing their stories. I'm loving it!!

[ComoDepot]

Russ and Franck left this morning, photo's on the blog: http://comohotel.blogspot.com/

It is interesting how often little groups come through, even outside of the race people tend to meet up with others travelling at the same sort of speed and hang together for a few days or few weeks.