TD`13 Race Discussion

[Canbaroo]

Wow, great competition.  Mike and Craig are really taking turns at putting on the pressure.  Looks like Mike had a great day, took shorter breaks, and got within an hour of Craig, but went to bed earlier at 9pm.  Craig took longer breaks but continues into the dark at 11 pm.  Jesse is keeping up with the leaders, but still has nearly 100 miles to make up.  Man it must be tough to keep looking over your shoulder!

Jess has just arrived in Lima, looks like he's filling up with some Exxon .... don't think he's looking over his shoulder

[larelsail]

Wow, what a day! It's past 1am in Pittsburgh and now that I see my husband's blue dot 'parked' in Seeley Lake Motor Lodge - I can finally turn off the computer and get some rest. Well, yes, maybe I am pathetic but somehow I feel I am not the only one who wants to make sure her loved one is safe. Anyway, if anyone is ever going to write/post a definition of a "blue dot junkie" anywhere - MY photo goes with it!!! Good luck and good weather to all the riders! What you are doing is waaaay beyond ordinary - enjoy every moment of it!

Jape: You are not alone! I am in California, so at least it is earlier here, but my husband has been riding 'til very late at night and I just can't sleep until I know where he has stopped. I've also been waking up really easily at night. Once that happens, I have to get up to see where he is! Combine that with working some intermittent graveyard shifts and my routine is all messed up!
I got to talk with Leo by phone while he was in Butte today and asked him to send me a check in message with his Spot once he is stopping at night. Earlier this year he set it up so that I get the same message whenever he presses the "Check In" button: "Don't worry! I am fine and probably having a great time :-)"  (Yes, he included the smiley face). That way I can stop refreshing over and over to see if he really has stopped moving. He remembered tonight and it was quite reassuring, though I might not buy the whole smiley/having a great time message after seeing him off course for an hour.
Don't feel pathetic! We put a lot into helping our guys get to where they are and it is natural to worry, fun to follow along....and ohmygod, so stressful when your rider is off course!! I think we'll settle into this just as the riders do after the first few days and hopefully we'll start sleeping better, refreshing locations a little less frequently...and maybe my appetite will even come back!  ;-)

[Canbaroo]

Is Liam's [Crowley] mother allowed to ring him and tell him he's heading the wrong way?

[larelsail]

Oh, isn't that a terrible thing to watch?! He'll probably figure it out when he gets to the highway, but that appears to be a good way down the road.

As far as letting a rider know (not sure if you were really asking or wishing you could call him), Matthew Lee said this in regard to Billy Rice going off track as he was headed north a while back: "It wouldn't be anyone's place to contact Billy to inform him he made a mistake. It's probably also not kosher to discuss non-compliance here on the forum 'as it happens', so it might be used by tuned-in racers to correct their own bad behavior."

Hope Liam figures out his mistake quickly!!

[larelsail]

Looks like he did :-)

[Canbaroo]

Yeah, your right. I don't tweet but I can be a twit!

Anyway no damage done. John Olsen's jumped him now and has been riding strong over the past few days so he'll have some company for a while.

[mtbcast]

Overnight: Drew McIntosh called in from below Richmond Peak! Cjell Money called in from Del Norte. Totally Should Have Strava’d! Ethan Stewart called in from Butte. First beer in five days! Peter Kraft Sr. called in from Seely Lake. Erick Armentrout called in from Whitefish. And Max Morris called in from Butte.
http://mtbcast.com/site2/category/td13/

[the tortoise]

Billy Rice made a great push yesterday from Elkford to the Border. He made Elkford after a late start on Monday. Be interesting to see if he can do a "negative split" on his run? Hopefully his rear wheel issues have been resolved.

[Crow_flies]

Is Liam's [Crowley] mother allowed to ring him and tell him he's heading the wrong way?

No - but 2 of his brothers shouted at the screen for an hour - looks like it worked!

[Crow_flies]

No - but 2 of his brothers shouted at the screen for an hour - looks like it worked!

By the way - Liam is originally Irish, so he probably detoured to the pub for a break....

[liney]

To all of the wives/significant others blue dot stalking from home (and work...!) - I can definitely relate!  This is the second year in a row for me as an armchair quarterback so to speak and yes it can drive you crazy!!!  Last night at what I thought would be a reasonable time to stop for the night - my husband and some others left Ovando heading over Huckleberry Pass in the thunder and lightning!!!! Aaarrrrggghhhhhh!  I was at home basically shouting at the computer - stay in Ovando - stay in Ovando!!!  But of course he didn't listen to me and made it just fine to Lincoln!

Now on the flip side - this AM I am looking at TrackLeaders and basically shouting wake up, WAKE UP - for god's sake it is 7AM - get out on the trail!!!!!  lol........this Tour Divide stuff can drive a person crazy!!!   

[dp]

OK, I am loving the banter from the significant others!  I can just picture wives and girlfriends and siblings and kids around the world, eyes glued to a blue dot on the screen, cheering, shouting, admonishing, and in all other ways exhorting that little dot to do something!  Not to make light of the stress you're under as a bystander, but it is actually really cool to see something of a community developing among you.

[zedmorgan]

OK, I am loving the banter from the significant others!  I can just picture wives and girlfriends and siblings and kids around the world, eyes glued to a blue dot on the screen, cheering, shouting, admonishing, and in all other ways exhorting that little dot to do something!  Not to make light of the stress you're under as a bystander, but it is actually really cool to see something of a community developing among you.

As one of the spouses/dotwatchers, I agree! Amazing what a cool group of people participate in and support this race. It's ruining my life, actually (in a good way). Catching up on the MTBcasts, and one quotation from Max Morris struck me as speaking for nearly all the racers (or at least "my" racer"):

"It's like being punished all day and then begging for more with a smile on your face. No place I'd rather be suffering than out here" - Max Morris (calling from Butte)

They really are a special breed.

[liney]

Deepee - uh...yeah....my two daughters and I had a Tour Divide 2013 kickoff party in New Smyrna Beach where we obsessively stalked "our" blue dot (traveling in from NC, CO and NY) - and rooted him on and hypothesized about what he was doing when, etc, etc. (that usually revolved around me thinking I was sure he had been eaten by a bear...)....  Basically our whole weekend revolved around some sort of stalking whether it be MTBcast, bikepacking.net, trackleaders, fb, etc!!!!  The Blue Dot Disease has gripped us!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[cookiegirl]

Question from a new "blue dot watcher" - would Mike Hall know Craig Stappler is close up ahead (and would Craig Stappler know Mike Hall is so close behind) or are they out there just doing their own thing, keeping one eye on the horizon for another rider?

[bobloblaw]

Mike Hall does not show up on my blue dot mobile app on either my iphone or ipad.....does anyone else have this issue?

[desertrat]

OK, I am loving the banter from the significant others!  I can just picture wives and girlfriends and siblings and kids around the world, eyes glued to a blue dot on the screen, cheering, shouting, admonishing, and in all other ways exhorting that little dot to do something!  Not to make light of the stress you're under as a bystander, but it is actually really cool to see something of a community developing among you.

Thanks, DeePee, for making us feel so welcome!  I am amazed at what the human body can endure.  Our son, BP, has been riding for something like 18 hours each day, not counting re-fuels.  My husband said this morning, "I'm getting tired just watching him."  

We are loving looking at all the pictures being posted - thank you!!!  The big smiles warm our hearts.  

This race is terrific!!

[larelsail]

desertrat, your son and my husband, LP, are probably in the same place right now. Just heard from Leo having breakfast at the Montana High Country Lodge. He said he and Brian rode together yesterday and had a bit of trouble getting off course on Fleecer Ridge. Brian's Spot still seems.....spotty. Did he get a new one in Butte?

[Mathewsen]

Mike Hall does not show up on my blue dot mobile app on either my iphone or ipad.....does anyone else have this issue?

Mike Hall is carrying a prototype Gen3 SPOT (pinging every 5min instead of every 10), and his feed is different. It's a 'test feed' that can be piped through Trackleaders primary script, but needs some work to be made visible on Blue Dot. Trackleaders / Dave Harris are working on this. With any luck, he'll be visible soon.

[Mathewsen]

There is a 15mile section of the Rockefeller Pkwy (hwys 87/191/287) that requires a (mandatory) ride in a pilot car due to road construction. Pay attention to what happens with the front runners dots when they arrive to it. Luck will play a part. Unfortunately they will both be hitting it in the busy part of the day. Delays could be significant. I hate think the gap between the two leaders could be decided by the vagaries of pilot car cycles, but it's very possible. I recall waiting nearly 30 minutes there in 2010.