Noe’s RAAM Report Numero Dos…
More RAAM…
Hey amigos y amigas,
Now in Pratt, Kansas and just a few miles from half way! Half way!! Now that I’m in the great plains (again) I have to say that we really have some of the most beautiful land in America! The Mountain region is truly amazing!
Well, thus far for those keeping track/score of the riders: It’s looking like Jure Robic is on pace to capture his third consecutive solo male victory! A RAAM first-Very immpresive!!! His closest competition is three time stations back, about two hundred miles back! (Bridge that gap!)
Never the less, this is so much more than winning a catagory; it’s a true test of the human will and spirit. Yesterday as I caught some of the solo riders “off the back” I had to inform them that ther was no way (at their current rate of mph) they would make the next cut-off at the Mississippi River; 2000 miles into it. It was heartbreaking to have to be the one to tell them. Some wept with no reservations. Many at that point are suffering bad, from either medical conditions-saddle sores being most common- or just suffering from… well you ride your bike for days and nights on end and see what you suffer from! But the connection you make out here across the Country is like nothing else. While still a diffucult and disapointing task it was to inform the riders of the time cut-off, for me it was still something of an honor to be the one. Because while some it was inevitable and for some it brought out the “fight” in them to push harder against all odds!!
In the middle of the low points for me, it’s seeing the human spirit and the conquering of “demons” that propels me forward. Because while I’m in the confort of a car, it’s still quite a endurance test for everyone involved. And when I see a rider get over the next hill, it almost makes me weep! (Tears of joy… I think!) There is a rider this year (#125 Beny Furrer) that has one arm and everytime I see him, I;m reminded just how life is truly a gift and that if we set our minds to it, we can move mountains or at least in this case get over them!
Please be inspired to do great things-today and everyday!!!
Much love and respect from the roads of RAAM,
Noe