Discussion: Team Nor'easter all set to RAAM

Team Nor'easter's riders and crew are all from the orienteering community. You can follow their progress, read biographies, etc. at the Race Across America (RAAM) official site.

I hope to be providing additional information on my site. It will depend on the phone coverage, and how much the crew/riders feel like talking to me. :)

The race for teams of 2+ starts at 2 PM PDT. The single riders started on Sunday.

Awesome. Please keep us posted.

Unreal!

Here I am trying to get back into shape to run a 'good' 5K and who knows, maybe even a 10K :)

Looks like they'll be passing through just north of St. Louis sometime Saturday perhaps. I'll keep tabs and try to be there. KATY bike trail would be a great way to cross Missouri, but there'd be no access for support vehicles - oh well. Big storm moved through Saturday night. Much cooler than normal now. Should be dry and temps peaking near 90 by the weekend. Sorry, no Nor'Easter here.:)

Good Luck

Hmm... Perhaps a trip to Atlantic City some time next week is in order... Any chance there will be any sanity left in the group by that point?

They are though the first check point! I am sure they are relieved to finally get going.

Bad news: Team Nor'easter member, Ken Walker Sr. (kadley), took a fall off his bike about 5 miles from CP 2 and is in the hospital. Though it was a very serious crash, and injuries may include a broken shoulder, he is conscious and alert. He wants the team to continue, and they are deciding now what they are going to do.

oh no! Please keep us posted.

Ouch!. It looks like the team did make it to CP 3, so is continuing? Good luck to Ken Sr.'s shoulder, and the team!

Ops, we hope everything will be OK.

Yes, Dave Nash and Brad Whitmore are pushing ahead and are almost to CP #4.

Damn, that sucks. Is it just Brad and Dave now, or is Greg still along?

They hope that Greg will be rejoining them in the near future.

Per the RAAM site: Team 404 - Team Cyclonauts - had one of their own support vehicles back out onto the road and run into their own rider just before Time Station 2! The rider sustained minor injuries and had to go to the hospital to get checked out. As of 8:00 a.m. on June 14th, the team is still on their way to Atlantic City.

Also from the RAAM site:

"...Team Cyclonauts and Team Nor'easter, have sent riders to the hospital in Brawley, Calif. The latter's rider was blown off his bike by crosswinds that sent him skidding 5-10 yards. His fall left him unconscious but he is now awake and on the mends."

Ken is doing well and we're just waiting for an orthopedist to see him this morning. He's hungry, thirsty, and wants to get out of here. We hope to get Greg back in the race sometime today. I spoke with Eddie and Brad about an hour ago; Brad and Dave are riding well and pushing ahead but with only two riders and two crew and no sleep for more than 24 hours it's tough going.

Sandy just called and reported that she is driving Greg and Ron to rent a car. They will meet up with the others and Greg will resume cycling.

Dave and Brad have reached CP #5 just 50 minutes behind the team ahead which also had an accident. They are holding a good steady pace.

Update as of 5:20, California time...

Ron Grayson drove Greg Walker up the race route and got him back with the team a little before Prescott, AZ. They're keeping Ken one more night in the hospital here just for observation. Lex Bundschuh is arriving here this evening and we'll drive the RV tomorrow morning to rejoin the team.

average speed is slowly picking up, so they are indeed making good time especially in light of the fact that they've been down two riders and the current pair have had a long pull. Hopefully biggins got some rest and will get back in the mix - though I'm interested in how the shift logistics will change with only three riders on the road...

And if you are interested in the other team that crashed around the same time as Ken, here is their update:

17:35 RAAM time: Maggie just called and they are near the Summit of Yarnell Grade. "There's no shade on the Yarnell Grade" They are exchanging riders every 1/2 mile as they are climbing a 5 1/2 mile section of 6% grade.
The vehicle carrying Bernie has caught up with the rest of the team and all of the vehicles are now back in normal rotation. I lost connection with Maggie before I could confirm WHERE the injury is but I believe it was his arm. Bernie has been cleared to ride by the doctor at the hospital who basically said he was crazy but he could be able to ride. He received 80 stitches to repair his injury.
He got on the bike to see how he would do and rode for a couple miles until he had a mechanical problem with something to do with the crank [again lost full signal] As of right now he is acting as a crew member until they can hopefully get parts to repair his bicycle at the next TS #7 in Prescott, AZ

OK, I'm begining to think this race is completely insane!

Just spoke with Ken. He sounded good, trying to eat some light food, rest. Says he's sore in lots of places. Tomorrow, all being well, he will go on with the RV with Sandy and Lex and help as navigator, etc.

Oh, it's been well established for years that the RAAM is completely insane. If you think this is bad, remember that there are also riders doing this solo.

Report is from 5:50 EDT: My home phone rings, and it is Ken. He sounded good, talking briefly before passing me off to Lex.

The foursome of Lex, Sandy, Ken, and the RV have left the hospital near Salton Sea at around noon California time. They are heading to Cortez, Colorado to try to meet up with the rest of Team Nor'easter. Right now they are passing through Gila Bend, Arizona (southwest of Phoenix). Mapquest estimates that this is about a 9 hour drive, and with the team putting up some excellent times into CP #12, and due into CP #13 anytime now, it is going to be difficult to catch up with them before CP #16, Pagosa Springs, Colorado.

Stayed tuned for progress on the race withing the race.

Hi all -- we're on the road trying to catch up with Greg, Brad, Eddie and Dave. We just went by Phoenix, so should make it to them by Pagosa Springs. They are only 25 minutes behind the next team, who also lost time due to an accident. We were off the road for almost 5 hours while my injuries were assessed.

My crash occured on the downgrade to Salton City, CA. This was after an earlier descent off Mt Palomar area where the road drops 4,000' over 10 miles -- a sustained 10% grade. On that run my max speed was just under 50 mph. Fortunately I was a bit slower for the crash -- 35 mph. I got hit with a gust from a side canyon just as I hit some rough rutted pavement. The front wheel started to shimmy in resonance. Quickly it was out of control and I was over the handlebars.

The follow van was behind me. Greg said I tucked my head under and hti first on my back and tumbled. They blocked traffic with the van. Another RAAM team stopped to help and a volunteer fireman called the EMT's .

I recall being asked some silly questions like who I was and what I was doing, and had no answers for any of them.

The damage was a busted clavical, which required some minor surgery, 4 broken ribs, lots of lost skin from my back, arm, hip and leg, and 4 staples in the back of my head. My helmet is reduced to pieces, but it did its job well.

Thanks for everyone's concern -- Ken

Update at 7:31 EDT: I just finished talking to Dave, with Eddie adding input in the background. Team Nor’easter is pursuing Team Cyclonauts with a vengeance and have closed the gap to 25 minutes. They are estimating that they will reach Durango, Colorado by 12 midnight - I am still unclear if that is race time (EDT) or their time (-2 hours), but based on their pace, it appears to be EDT.

The slow time around Prescott, Arizona has been attributed to an overheating van. The fan was not cycling on and off correctly, so it has been “fixed” to stay on continuously. They were also affected by the detour because of the wildfire near Flagstaff, Arizona. They were allowed to use a detour, but if they had been any later they may have been stopped completely for an unknown amount of time.

So, place your bets now:

1. Where will the RV catch up with the van? The RV was 120 miles from Prescott at 8 PM EDT, and the riders were 1:45 out of CP #13.

2. Will Ken ride again? Eddie “The Mechanic” Bergeron has been instructed to ready the bike. Sandy “THE Team Manager” Fillebrown and Lex “The Team Doctor” Bundschuh say don’t bet on it, except maybe walking the bike the last 10′.

Ken seems like a tough guy - the kind who wouldn't let minor injuries like a busted clavical and some pesky broken ribs get in the way of riding.

Update 10:25 PM EDT: Dave just called in and reported that Team Nor’easter, with Brad on the bike, has just pulled ahead of the Cyclonauts at about 17 miles out of CP #14. Team Cyclonauts are the other team with an injured rider. TN was behind them just 3 minutes through the CP. This pulls TN out of last place among the teams still in the race. Yeah!!

Thanks for the awesome updates Val... especially since the RAAM standings pages have been only sporadically working (though they claim to be fixed now)

Go Team Nor'easter!

Thanks, Julie. It has been interesting...

Posted 10 AM EDT: Team Nor'easter is tackling the hills of Colorado. If you haven't looked at the graphics showing the elevation for each CP, you should do so. Click on the individual CP name and scroll down to the bottom of the page to see the elevation chart for each section. Some of those hills are pretty impressive!

Update 10:22 AM EDT: The team has checked into CP #17, and is most likely looking forward to the next leg which is mostly downhill. They gained an impressive 1:09 on the team ahead of them, Team JDRF, and only trail them by 1:16 at this point.

Here is a table I created showing how the team's split stacked up against the others for each CP.(It includes all riders except the Endro category since their data is a bit wacky...)

Wow, they're really cranking now. Any chance you could include the lead teams actual splits, too? Or is that easily available for comparison somewhere?

You have to look at the individual teams to see thier splits, or convert the info available under the Computer Readable Reports area (a text file).

Do you mean something like this Excel spreadsheet or the same file in html? The rank data is good through CP 16. After that is subject to change...

If this is desirable, then I'll update it again tomorrow when more CPs have been completed.

First of all, I haven't met y'all but I am rooting for you. I hope Ken heals quickly. Keep working. It looks the team is moving pretty well now.

There are probably more people than you know reading your updates. Thanks for posting the experience here.

Question: Do teams worry too much about the penalties? Or do they just know that they are going to get them? It seems like there is strict enforcement over a huge area.

Again, good luck. And here is my wish for good weather and tailwinds.

Thanks, Jerritt. It is nice to know that people are following this way, as well as on the RAAM site.
I think the number of penalties, and not necessarily the time, is taken pretty seriously. Six penalties result in disqualification. So, making a bunch of silly errors, like not calling in, can end up be being pretty bad. And as teams get tired, they are probably more likely to do silly things, so not getting them early on is key, in my opinion.

Keep on rockin' you crazy guys! I'm humbled to know you.

Rough calculations, but it seems that Nor'Easter is gaining nearly one hour per leg (ie time station) on its nearest competitors! WOW!

Missouri coming up tomorrow(?): hot and humid unfortunately, but shouldn't have the cross winds, and its a lot shorter than CO and KS:)

Looks like JDRF has been passed, and 2CURE - HD has only has a few hours left before Nor'Easter has them too :) 3's enough that the team members can get real sleep in the van, right?

Latest update. Brad left Trinidad, CO about an hour ago. The other riders hung around while we cooked up hot spaghetti and served some roast chicken from the Safeway next to the checkpoint.

Everyone is feeling in strong spirits and doing well. As has been suggested, a key challenge is making sure everyone gets enough sleep. Our original plans have been rendered impossible by my crash. We have settled onto longer pulls, about an hour, that give two hours for napping. Some flat sections are running longer and the off duty riders are getting more rest. Greg had 2 hours of solid sleep this afternoon, and Dave is trying to do that now.

We just came over a small crest in CO 160 and the road just stretches out straight across the grassland. This section has a few small rises, but the next runs 72 miles in a slight downgrade, dropping 1,500 feet. One strech goes 35 miles without a turn. This should be good for a low stress overnight ride.

Best all -- Ken

Yes, 2CURE - HD is in their sights, and they are also gaining on Team eXtreme which is a 2 Person Male team. The next 4 Person Male team is Vencendo Desafios Team Brazil, and they are gaining on them as well. They are very excited about doing so well, and nothing like those competitive juices kicking in.

You guys are doing awesome! I'm barely tough enough to get through crash description. Keep grinding out those miles, you'll reel in those other teams!

Update 10:45 EDT: I had a long conversation with Pete Dady at CP #23 in Ulysses, Kansas at 6 AM this morning. He wanted to know what I was doing up already. :) Well, I was meeting a friend for a run this morning around Burke Lake. We did two loops for a total of 10 miles. Yeah!

Well, enough about me and back to the bike race…

The RV with Sandy, Lex, and Ken caught up to the riders at about 4 AM on Friday morning. So, the crew has been back together for 1+ days, and things are going smoothly. So, well that Pete missed the riders as they came through Ulysses because he thought he had about 30 minutes, so he went inside for a shower. But the rider and chase vehicle came through about 15 minutes earlier than expected. Pete reports that Ulysses was an excellent check point.

He says that they got only a little rain overnight.

I spoke to Ken at 10:10 AM EDT. They are at CP #25 waiting for the team to arrive. As we were talking, he was helping Lex maneuver the RV into a shady spot. It is currently 70 degrees with 70% humidity in CP #25, Mullinville, Kansas which is where the team has just passed through at 10:56 EDT as I was composing this…

They have had little cell coverage and hope to get the pictures to me when they get to Wichita, Kansas…

Dave Pruden has arrived in Kansas City, Missouri and is staying with Mary J. (maprunner) and Mike E. (spike) for the night. It looks like they will drive him to Jefferson City, Missouri in the morning to make a player trade (Dave P. for Sandy). Sandy will fly home to Philadelphia to attend her son’s graduation on Monday. Then she’ll need to figure out a way to get back in the game.

Update 1:25 PM EDT: The team was harmed by the wind on the first day when Ken was blown off his bike. Today, crossing Kansas, they have a tailwind and are making amazing progress recording another top split into CP #26!

Update 12:55 PM EDT: With all but 3 teams through CP #25, Team Nor’easter recorded the 2nd best split for all teams & individual tradition riders for that CP!

Updated split data through CP #25 (teams & non Enduro individuals) is here in a spreadsheet or the same file in html. Just the minimum data for CP rankings this time. I hope to do stuff for overall and by division later on.

The team is almost to Pratt, KS (CP #26) where they will have the option of partaking in some free McD’s.

Awesome guys. Keep on cruising (maybe avoid the free McDonalds?) :)

Mike E. (Spike) has driven Dave P. (StoraMoo) down from Kansas City, Missouri to make the crew exchange - Dave P. for Sandy. The riders are between CP 31 (Collins, MO) and CP 32 (Camdenton, MO). After making phone contact with the crew vehicle, and determining that they were just behind them, Mike and Dave P were asked to stop at McD’s for about $40 of breakfast items for the riders/crew. Now that’s what I call service - a crew member and food delivery!

I wasn’t sure if this exchange was going to fall in place correctly or not, so I am pleased it has worked out.

Hi all: been following team progress since departing at Prescott. Great going!! Have posted some pix from Sunday's pre-race parade and first 2 days (Tues, Wed) on my yahoo albums page:

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/rongrayson/my_photos

Go TN.

Update 2:47 EDT: After returning form the crew exchange zone, Mike posted this:

I did my small part to help Team NorEaster in the bike Race Across America. This morning, I shuttled a new crew member, Dave, down to the race route and brought Sandy back to Kansas City after she'd been a crew member since the beginning of the race.

Here is a short video clip* of Greg (probably best known among orienteers as the creator of CatchingFeatures). The video is from the highway a bit east of Collins, Missouri. It was inspiring to see the team. They looked good. Well, not really good, but not as bad as you might expect after riding so far.

*You'll have to go to Mike's Blog , the Sunday, June 18, 2006 entry, to view the video.

A report from Sandy at 3:38 PM EDT: Last night was really hard on the riders - there were some brief, but quite severe thunderstorms in the late evening forcing a couple unplanned stops. The roads were very rough (lots of loose gravel, rumble strips, uneven surfaces) on top of being wet and the riders smartly chose to slow it down and be safe. The morning sun and the arrival of the McDonald’s sumptous feast via Mike Eglinski revived some flagging spirits.

Ken is feeling well enough to start contributing as an active crew member which, together with the arrival of Dave P. who isn’t sleep deprived, will give the crew a little bit of breathing room.

Some random thoughts…
Each rider has had at least one flat with Greg having 3 I think. Eddie has been doing duty as chief bike mechanic with Dave Nash doing a fair share of the work as well.

We made a foray to a nearby Walmart last night to buy spare parts for the lighting system on top of the follow van which was occasionally going on the fritz. It’s working fine now and we think the heavy rains may have gotten something wet.

I spent a little time with the team this morning as Greg rode east from Collins, MO. Ken looked remarkably good and the first thing he said was "how did Jukola go?"

Sunday evening, Fran and I met the team at Marthasville MO and at the Mississippi River (Time Stations #34 and 35). (We provided another Big Mac fix at #35.) 2/3 of journey completed.

The RV had a long stop at 34 (very hospitable family provided food and access to their house). Brad napped; Eddie fine-tuned Brad's bike; Ken looked real good (don't make him laugh though); Lex was tired but in good spirits as she struggled with finding best site along the way to dump grey and brown water from RV.

They reported tough biking and following in MO. Besides the weather, they had recently had 5 flats due to lots of stuff on shoulders. With narrow windy roads, traffic backed up quite a bit. Good navigation required with all the small roads used.

Dave rode strong past #34 as the 2nd vehicle stopped for 10 minutes. During the heat of the day, Dave and Greg had been trading off, giving Brad a chance to recuperate. Vehicles left together. In late day, Brad and Dave traded off.

Taking over an hour to drive to #35 highlighted the logistics problems with only two support vehicles. One is usually with rider, but other has a hard time getting a big jump ahead to stop and rest - especially if they have tasks to do. Ie the crew is troubling over how to get enough sleep. And Lex and Eddie report that tailing/protecting a rider is a tough way to drive across the USA :) (especially at night). Eddie took some pictures of the Mississippi River Bridge at sunset.

Overall, they're doing great! Illinois is very flat and good chance they had a tail wind with no rain last night.

Many thanks to Spike, Rick and Fran for their recent help. The Micky's D high fat diet works wonders for the spirits! It was good to see O friends and receive encouragement.

Coming out of the Ozarks was hard on crew and riders. Later on, we got into S Illinois where terrain flattened out and a bit more rest was had by all. The route runs on US 40 thru Dayton, OH. This parallels I-70, so the RV can move at a faster pace and get ahead for rest and services.

This morning we had a horrific scare when socked in by fog in the early dawn. Suddenly 3 tractor trailer gravel trucks came screaming by us on 2-lane US 40 at over 75 mph. Just as the first passed the van. a car appeared from the other dirrection. The truck cut us off and just missed Dave, who was 30' in front of us. Dave had to swerve and went off the road and shoulder onto the grass. He made it back on the road just as trucks 2 and 3 went past. The car coming the other way must have gone onto his shoulder, or would have been smashed.

We got the tag number of #3, as well as the company owning the trucks. Discussed this with the local sheriff, who admitted trouble with this guy's fleet of 20 drivers. This specific complaint may give him some urgency to slow the crew down.

Update 7:25 EDT:
Just some miscellaneous things…Brad’s parent’s met up with the team outside of Indianapolis.

By Eddie’s count, there have been eight flat tires in the last 36 hours. They stopped by a bike store today and bought ten more.

The storms have cooled things off and lowered the humidity to a more comfortable level.

Sandy has landed in Indianapolis and is heading towards Troy in a rental car. She was about an hour later than expected due to delays caused by storms.

The team which Team Nor’easter has spent the most time near is #201. Interesting that this is the team who’s R.N. came to Ken’s aid after the accident. Team Nor’Easter and Cheniere’s Making Cancer History Team have been within ~30 minutes of each other for the last 700 miles.

Dave P. reports the following: “Last night around midnight we passed a power station along the Missouri River. Dave N. was riding and he said the noise from the stations was a low bass
like hum. Kind of like the aliens were coming through the fog to get us.”

And finally, Dave writes what I have been thinking all along: “This is a real trip. I can’t believe the will power of the boys to to get back on the bike every hour. Greg has been great, as Dave N. said, we should stop abusing the poor kid. I think about the times I have gone for a twenty
mile ride and then was spent for the rest of the day. These guys are doing that every hour.”

They're now in Pig country! Like the "Flying Pig".

On their way to Troy OH, they pass Richmond IN - the NW boundary of Pig country.

Enjoy and cooler temps and let the miles 'fly' by!

Awesome progress Team Nor'easter! Get ready for the Appalachians. They are steeper than the Rockies and the shorter climbs can total to more. Good luck. The ocean is getting near.

They were stopped for a bit again because of lightening in the area west of Troy.

Speaking of PIG country, OCIN's Matthew Robbins (cedarcreek) tracked down the team outside of Troy, Ohio and phoned in this picture of Ken and Pete. Thanks, Matthew!

I met the RV at the Dayton Airport, and chatted with Ken and Pete for about an hour while Sandy was driving in from Indianapolis. We drove north to Troy, and arrived 10 or 15 minutes ahead of the minivan and the rider.

Everyone seemed weary. Ken said he had improved a lot since he got out of the hospital. His 4 broken ribs aren't as sore, and he has been taking deep breaths easily for about a day (before that it was painful, but necessary to avoid complications like pneumonia). Eddie said he's had 11 hours of sleep in 6 days.

I took a lot of photos between 12:27am and 1:20am. Then I drove 1 hour to Cincinnati, processed the photos and put them on my website. I didn't do any editing. The photos are all available light---no flash. Some of them came out really well. Since it's now 3:36am, and I have to get up at 7am, the high-res photos might not work for a day or so. Once I get them posted, I'll leave them up for a month or so. Team Nor'easter is 413. I took photos of every team I saw.

The Photos from Troy, OH

The rider on the Cervelo (O'Keefe) is Canadian, and a single, meaning he's ridden this far completely by himself. That was probably the most surreal experience of the night. His support crew didn't smile at all, spoke very softly, and moved in slow motion. It reminded me of the Do Lung Bridge scene in Apocalpse Now where this soldier on acid prepares a grenade launcher. It sort of freaked me out.

Ken said he was in the hospital when another rider got brought in for a wreck maybe 2 minutes past where he wrecked. He said the guy's own minivan collided with him, and he broke the window with his elbow, and ended up with 50+ stitches. If you look at the last two photos, you'll notice a minivan with a broken window. I asked if they were that team, and not only were they the team, the guy in the last photo, who had just ridden in, was the guy in the hospital with Ken.

I kept telling myself, "These people are crazy", but every indication was against that. Everyone seemed level headed and as normal as you or I.

Or conversely, our own craziness is on par with theirs.

Couple more things:

I planned to stop at McDonald's for Big Macs and Fries, but every one I saw was closed. My backup was to find a Big Boy and get 6 or 8 Big Boys, but the closest one was 10 miles back. When I mentioned not having Big Macs, I got the impression they'd had enough McDs to last for a while. I did donate a can of Gookinade mix, enough for 5 gallons.

I ended up with 4 hours of sleep, and I've been a zombie all day. Maybe they are crazy.

Eddie sent me these pictures earlier this evening.

And I took some of Matthew's pictures and put some text with them, so that you could put some faces with the names.

I showed these to a guy at work today, and I told him Team 404 "Cyclonauts" was a competitor to the 413 Team Nor'Easter. He said:

Shouldn't they be "404 Team Not Found"?

Oddly enough, I've thought that every time I see that team number. I suppose it's a geek thing :-)

Looks like Nor'easter will be stormin' through Hanover tomorrow... unfortunately when I'm at work. I would have liked to see part of this adventure

Wow, that pic Eddie got with the rainbow is sweet

The team tackled & conquered the four most difficult climbs on the course overnight. Less than 250 miles left to the finish line.

They maintained a very nice pace over 4 wicked hills at night - great job riders and crew! I never would have guessed that Maryland had such hills (pan-handle). One last climb on today's first leg - and they are probably already past it.

Have a great finish; looks like they should be in the Atlantic Ocean sometime between midnight and dawn.

This morning, the STL Post Dispatch had an in-hospital picture of David Maegerle, a member of the 4-person Swiss team, who was hit by a truck 2 days ago near the Mississippi River bridge near Alton. He is recovering from broken ribs, broken bones in back (no paralysis), and lung and liver damage. Quote, "His prognosis is good." He is stabilized and will be flown to Switzerland Thursday on special medical transport.

http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/...

Team Nor'easter just passed Station #52 in Rouzerville, PA. They are getting closer to the finish line:)

And look, they passed one more team and closing gap with another one!

They have passed #53 as well at 12:35 PM EDT and have less then 175 miles to go! Will "seeing the barn door" propel them to a pre-midnight finish?

A couple of DVOAers are planning to be at the entrance of White Clay Creek @6:30 (estimated passing time of 6:47 at present pace), and then at the Delaware Mem Bridge checkpoint @8 (estimated arrival time of 8:17 at present pace)

For those of you that get WGAL 8, we will be live at the Georgetown checkpoint @ 5 and 6 PM news. I was hoping to make it down there but with their present pace it looks like I'll still be at work. Please give a big cheer on my behalf :-)

I'll meet them at the finish line and provide with shower, food, and rest at my place.

Make sure you take pictures!

That's a plan:))

Team Nor’easter is within 175 miles of the finish after passing through Hanover, Pennsylvania. The route took them within 4-5 miles of Brad’s house. Wife, Julie reports that they are all looking quite well, though a little “shaggy.”

They are now heading towards CP 54 - Georgetown, Pennsylvania. After the Georgetown leg, which includes the most total climb of all the legs in the race, they’ll skirt the entrance of White Clay Creek State Park, Delaware (had to get an orienteering reference in somewhere) before heading over the Delaware Memorial Bridge. For safety reasons, the rider will get into the van to make the trip across the bridge.

This totally rookie team (riders and crew), in the personally created Three Person Men’s Division, has been doing an awesome job! Word has it that Ken whas been cleared to ride the last little bit on the Boardwalk to the finish line.

I can’t begin to imagine the emotions Team Nor’easter must be feeling as they near Atlantic City.

They just passed station #54 (Georgetown, PA) at 04:55PM. And they are really pushing hard leading a pack of several teams now.

Expected finish time is around 10:00PM and midnight.

Just talked to Sandy at CP 55 - Delaware Meemorial Bridge. The RV is waiting for the team, and several DVOA members are there as well - Maryann, Randy, and Tom.

Update 7:26 PM EDT: Team Nor'easter has just checked into CP 55 - Delaware Memorial Bridge and has just 64.9 miles to go!

Sandy reported that the team was having a strong day. The results show that they have passed a couple of other teams today.

A trip to Atlantic City didn't work out for me, so Vadim, another DVOA member will be there to cheer the team on to the finish.

They are in the homestretch now.... awesome!

Does anyone know if the Finish Line webcam ever shows the actual finish area? I get an office with a map on the wall... or is that all it is?

Julie, I have only seen the office as well. Can't quite figure that out either.

I seem to be having server problems, so will post anything I know here first.

The actual finish line should on the Boardwalk.

Just returned from TS 55 (DE Memorial Bridge) where a number of DVOA'ers (Maryann Cassidy, Randy Hall, Eric Weyman and myself) turned out to cheer on Team Nor'easter.

The RV arrived around 7:00 pm and the riders pulled in just before 7:30. Everyone looked to be in pretty good shape. The riders looked amazingly fresh considering all they've been through. Greg was taking the first shift to AC and left in a blur. They had a very good split into TS 55 and it looks like they are poised for a strong finish. 3 or 4 other teams pulled into the Burger King a little behind them but none are in the 4-man/3-man division.

The RV apparently stopped at White Clay Creek SP where a sleep-deprived Eddie somehow managed to get in a run.

It was really inspiring to see the riders and crew. An incredible accomplishment - makes me want to jump on my bike and start riding!

Now the webcam is showing outside... albeit lopsidedly

I think they are showing the banner for the next finisher, Marko Baloh. They put the time on it in big numbers.

Too bad the webcam isn't better than this.

They were moving much faster than I anticipated, and I just barely missed them at White Clay Creek. I was able to get a handful of pics
at the Delaware Memorial Bridge checkpoint (the first 2 are of team 417 from my car near Kemblesville, PA, which was about 15 minutes in back of them at the time).

As Tom said, they are in great sprits with the finish so close. It was stunning how fast Biggins took off out of the checkpoint.

They just cleared the last checkpoint at 10:18! On to the finish!

Yeah!!

Way to go, team! Ken, I hope your race wounds heal quickly.

Then it probably should say:

"Seats, pedals, handlebars for the stoker, *and the stoker* have been removed to save weight."

Totally amazing, I am really proud to know you guys. Have been watching RAAM over the decades when some crazy loners first did it. Congradulations, wish i could be there.....

We watched Team JRDF leave TS 55. The rider did a 180 and headed off in the wrong direction along with the follow vehicle. Fortunately she heard us yelling and turned around after about 100m.

WOW! Finished at 11:01 PM!!!!

Congrats guys, this whole thing was amazing! You rock!

Congratulations! This was a totally awesome journey and accomplishment! Get some rest!

Eight+ days after leaving Oceanside, California, Team Nor’easter crossed the finish line in Atlantic City, New Jersey in 197:44 (adjusted to 197:59 with the 15 minute penalty from very early in the race).

Think about it!! Despite a horrific accident before CP 2, which changed the team composition from four to three riders, this all rookie team of riders and crew rode a great race!

And I don’t think they got lost, not even once! Maybe every team should have a national class orienteerer on their crew next year.

You guys are amazing!! Congrats to you and your wonderful support crew! What an incredible feat.

Awesome job guys!!! And many thanks to the crew and friends that so vigilantly kept us up to date via Attackpoint.

Way to go! w00t, even! It's been pretty awesome to follow along.

Congratulations! When the adrenaline and caffeine wears off, maybe you can get some sleep...

Congratulations, WEll done old boys, jolly good show....it was fun crewing for first 2 days. Can I ride next year? Sleep well, you earned it...then hit the casinos.

I just came back home from Atlantic City. They did it. They are tired, but happy.

15 minute penalty from early in the race. Now I understand how JRDF team finished 3 minutes in front of them.

Photos from the finish line.

Thanks for the pictures, Vadim! I see that Megan Donahue and Mark Voit were also there to greet the finishers.

<15 minute penalty from early in the race. Now I understand how JRDF team finished 3 minutes in front of them.> Nor'easter finished 4 minutes ahead clock time, then added the 15 minute penalty, but then they had started later then JRDF by 8 minutes because of the staggered start, so the final difference was 3 minutes behind JDRF...

Congratulations. I can't even imagine what it took to make it the entire distance..especially after being down 1 rider. Take some well deserved rest time.

Congratulations!! I am so impressed by you guys. Thanks for sharing this experience with us.

Well, now...I had to actually break down and register just so I could add my congratulations to the "official" Team Nor'easter thread. That was just the most inspiring performance, and a model of organization, resiliency and guts on the part of the riders and crew. If you only read some of the rules and directions, you realize that it was a complex organizational undertaking as well as a grueling endurance race.

It was such a thrill for me to be able to meet up with the team at TS 55 last night. After all the adversity, it was obvious at that point that nothing was going to stop them and it was just a matter of hours. Thanks, Vadim, for the great pictures from the finish. All I could see on the webcam was a desk and bulletin board - looked kind of like my office! And thanks, Valerie, for the wonderful coverage throughout.

I do feel a little conflicted though about Team JDRF. That's the team that went the wrong way out of the TS, and now I find out they came in 3 minutes ahead. Oops

(Now that I registered, I hope that doesn't mean I'll have to actually do something resembling training!)

Congratulations to a great effort by riders and crew. Outstanding effort and support. Well done. Cheers to you all.

way to go everybody (riders and crew)!

an amazing trip, and you're hard-core. biggins looks a lot skinnier in the recent photos, he might be down to 2G.

When goes Greg start the loooong ride home? :)

Thanks for all the support everyone. The various team and crew members have departed for home and some well deserved rest, but we'll all remember the people that were cheering us on throughout the adventure. We all have some memories that we'll cherish; I'm incredibly proud to have been a part of this.

Thanks to Biggins, my RAAM photos are now posted on a real server. 15 pages worth. Enjoy! Full-res "L" versions are not posted...ask if you want one. (M)ediums are posted. Some nice shots in Monument Valley, AZ start on page 6.

I especially like the one on page 10 showing Eddie and Ken having a good chuckle over the sign posted at the McDonald’s.
Thanks, Biggins, for posting Eddie's pictures.

Yeah, there's a photo from the RAAM site that says it's Eddie Bergeron, but it sure looks a lot like Greg!

http://raceacrossamerica.smugmug.com/gallery/15484...

All the photos are great, but I think my favorites are Eddie's of the bridge over the Mississippi at twilight and Vadim's picture of Team Nor'easter just coming into view on the boardwalk. The 3 headlamps in the distance....a beautiful sight. Really makes me wish I'd gotten in the car after TS55 and headed to Atlantic City.

Doh! And they had done so well with the name switch so far...

The CP probably had some school kids make the signs up early on.

Yesterday's RAAM press release on Team Nor'easter.

Finally!! It took them long enough. I gave up looking yesterday morning...

Good recap of the RAAM from the winning 4-man team at cyclingnews.com.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/riders/2006/diaries/nat...