Southern California - What's the Story on RAAM?

the chief mechanic was the one who could come up with the right tool the fastest. there was a day or two when rick was constantly asking us to make changes to his saddle position and adjust his cleats. i don't know who was making adjustments when james and i weren't in the follow vehicle, so i don't know how it worked for others. but for us, it was just whoever had a free hand to make changes at a given time. we modded rick's bars with gogirl, and changed george's saddle at one point in utah.

at some point, rick's bike stopped shifting crisply. noone is sure what happened there, but it wasn't clicking and indexing solidly, and would be forced out of gear when under load on climbs. none of know anything about campy, so we weren't able to get it sorted out. had he been riding shimano, we probably could have put the thing back in order pretty quickly.

Definitive, undisputable proof that Shimano is better than Campy. Thank you, Jason.

none of know anything about campy, so we weren't able to get it sorted out.

I should have been there..:D

Anybody know how much fuel was used by the 3 vehicles or the cost?

not sure on the rest of the vehicles, but it cost $392 to get the van back here from atlantic city. at one point on the way there, the camry had used $350 and still had a few days to go. that was one of those things where we were killing our resources because a vehicle wasn't being used as efficiently as it could have been.

Definitive, undisputable proof that Shimano is better than Campy. Thank you, Jason.

haha we can now quote Jason on all future Campy vs Shimano threads :)

Wow.....perhaps chugging along at 15mph uses quite a bit more fuel?

3 vehicles, averaging (with a Camry, minivan, and RV) 15 mpg, for 3042 miles, downed 608 gallons of gas. Add 200 miles for other excursions, and you've got about 620 gallons. Multiply by $3 (national average, give or take), and you've got (at least) $1,860 for gasoline alone.

Don't know if the RV took diesel, and at Team Beat Cancer's 12.95 mph average, gas mileage was probably way less, especially through the desert with the A/C going.

My guess is gas total was more in the neighborhood of $2500.

not sure on the rest of the vehicles, but it cost $392 to get the van back here from atlantic city. at one point on the way there, the camry had used $350 and still had a few days to go. that was one of those things where we were killing our resources because a vehicle wasn't being used as efficiently as it could have been.

Wow...I was way off.

luckily, the rv would do 50-60 mile jumps at a time, driving at normal highway speeds. so gas mileage wasn't really an issue there.

Definitive, undisputable proof that Shimano is better than Campy. Thank you, Jason.

Ignorant savages. This means war.

Rick also had a flat on one of his tubulars, but it was fixed with the tire sealant.

I offered to fix the tires for George, but was told by Brandy that he would take care of that himself (then I got yelled at because his tire was still flat when he decided to use that set)

I can feel the love, Phil.

Although I'm perfectly capable of making most on road repairs myself, the last thing I would imagine wanting to do is to make my own repairs after logging a long day/night in the saddle.

Will there ever be another TdSS?

+1... I might even drive down for that one... depending on the date :p

+1... I might even drive down for that one... depending on the date :pAs long as it's not the "new and improved" TdSS that rolls at civil twilight with a 200-miles hilly route. :eek: :D

I don't want to do my own repairs when I'm quite rested from no riding :D

Another question: Will there ever be another TdSS?

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=307334

I can feel the love, Phil.

I saw Extort/Phil a few days ago and I would say that he's been very matter-of-fact with respect to the events. He does not seem to be holding a grudge and he publicly stated that he accepted George's apology.

Rick also had a flat on one of his tubulars, but it was fixed with the tire sealant.

I offered to fix the tires for George, but was told by Brandy that he would take care of that himself (then I got yelled at because his tire was still flat when he decided to use that set)

Rule number one, fix flats as they happen. Swap riders to maintain momentum, or swap tires/bikes and when that bike comes off the road, the mechanic in the follow vehicle is fixing the flat. Also, it's advised to remove any unnecessary clothing when doing tubulars as that glue is messy.

http://www.wolfenet.org/gallery2/v/RAO2006/IMG_3336.JPG.html

swapping riders for small issues wasn't even an option most of the way because the follow van was outfitted to handle one rider at a time. it was too full of things it didn't need to be carrying and storing - namely "dedicated support people" and one rider's entire inventory of wheels - to fit both rider's and their necessary gear.
even when we did have both riders working out of the van, there was still the one support person, and she only helped the one rider. a strategy that was meant to even-up the workload still managed to become lopsided in that regard.

Rule number one, fix flats as they happen. Swap riders to maintain momentum, or swap tires/bikes and when that bike comes off the road, the mechanic in the follow vehicle is fixing the flat. Also, it's advised to remove any unnecessary clothing when doing tubulars as that glue is messy.



Well, yeah...that's how it's supposed to work.

I just finished reading this thread and the blogs and all I have to say is, wow! Great story (all drama aside) and congrats for getting through it. Most travelogues I have read show 3 months to get across the country on a bike. You guys did it 10 DAYS?

DEEYAM. Impressive.

Of course I have read the thread. Who hasn't?

Congrats to all involved and I hope Brandy and George come back to play with us on BF.

You will both be missed otherwise.

Whew....finally.



Too over the top for rug burns. Do I even want to know?
http://three91.com/raam2007/random/RAAM2007-0337.JPG


Awesome!
http://three91.com/raam2007/random/RAAM2007-0474.JPG


Wow!
http://three91.com/raam2007/random/RAAM2007-1507.JPG



Question: I understand that there was at least one, "Lauren prancing around naked" incident. What was that all about? Did you notify the authorities? What Warrant song was playing during THAT video?
Videoooooooooooooooooooooooo????????????????

What's a seppo?

Seppo is Australian rhyming slang for an American (septic tank = Yank).

I think I want to change my handle to Limeymadness.

Seppo is actually rather derogatory...Yank rhymes with Septic Tank, meaning Americans are full of *****.


/saved their a$$ in dubya dubya too!

They did not come back with any hot eastern coast chix...I am highly dissapointed in the whole group!!

They did not come back with any hot eastern coast chix...I am highly dissapointed in the whole group!!

You live in the land of the "California Girl" and you want East Coast:rolleyes: ...you need to try harder.:)

You live in the land of the "California Girl" and you want East Coast:rolleyes: ...you need to try harder.:)

Having grown up here, I love California Girls...heck, I married one. I have to admit though that there is something about those Brooklyn/Staten Island girls...

http://www.prisonflicks.com/images/MCVLisa1.jpg

Having grown up here, I love California Girls...heck, I married one. I have to admit though that there is something about those Brooklyn/Staten Island girls...

http://www.prisonflicks.com/images/MCVLisa1.jpg

Well...I'll have to concede the point just this one time.:D

They did not come back with any hot eastern coast chix...I am highly dissapointed in the whole group!!
why are you such a frakin ****** all the time?????? :roflmao: :roflmao: :roflmao: :roflmao:

Why do you love Ovoleg so much?

You always seem to have a cute thing to say to him...it's beautiful, in a manlove sort of way.

Seppo is Australian rhyming slang for an American (septic tank = Yank).


Australia? I've heard of that place.

Isn't that where they filmed all those great 'Lord of the Rings' movies?

Australia? I've heard of that place.

Isn't that where they filmed all those great 'Lord of the Rings' movies?

Not to mention Flight of the Conchords. ;)

Australia? I've heard of that place.

Isn't that where they filmed all those great 'Lord of the Rings' movies?

See, I thought it was the place where all the convicts were sent.

See, I thought it was the place where all the convicts were sent.

Nah, that's France.


Google is cool! I found this picture of the Australian monarch:

http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/customs/queen.jpg

Who'd of thought the Kiwis would have a Queen!

...other than *this* one, of course!

http://www.missd.net/gallery/posing/p13.jpg


http://www.missd.net/

Australia? I've heard of that place.

Isn't that where they filmed all those great 'Lord of the Rings' movies?

No, that was New Zealand...and they are the Kiwi's.

I ran into Rick going into Ralphs today wearing his full 360 Cycling kit. He said that he is riding again but not at 100%. He also said that he was working on putting together another two-man RAAM team for next year. This time he is starting early to line up $ has already been approached by several potential sponsors.

Wow. Good for him! And thanks for sharing, Dan.

Not to mention Flight of the Conchords. ;)
And who can forget the classic "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert"?

why are you such a frakin ****** all the time?????? :roflmao: :roflmao: :roflmao: :roflmao:

its my job

I ran into Rick going into Ralphs today wearing his full 360 Cycling kit. He said that he is riding again but not at 100%. He also said that he was working on putting together another two-man RAAM team for next year. This time he is starting early to line up $ has already been approached by several potential sponsors.
Good to hear. Thanks for sharing.

I ran into Rick going into Ralphs today wearing his full 360 Cycling kit. He said that he is riding again but not at 100%. He also said that he was working on putting together another two-man RAAM team for next year. This time he is starting early to line up $ has already been approached by several potential sponsors.
4-man with extort!

No, that was New Zealand...and they are the Kiwi's.

Shhh, don't tell tossermadness, mmkay?! ;)




But Australia DOES have a Queen, apparently, she's just not Australian.

Funny that, wot!

:beer:

I ran into Rick going into Ralphs today wearing his full 360 Cycling kit. He said that he is riding again but not at 100%. He also said that he was working on putting together another two-man RAAM team for next year. This time he is starting early to line up $ has already been approached by several potential sponsors.

Wow! Keep us up-to-date, if you can.

http://forums.wolframstudios.com/blog/strange_will/index.php?showentry=62

Wow, that took quite awhile. Anyway for anyone still interested, it's quite a long one, and I still got a little work to do to give our sponsors the credit they deserve, and everyone along the way that helped us out.

awesome report, will. i'd thought i was completely over it and that all of my bitterness had finally faded, but thanks to your thorough review...i now realize that's not the case. THANKS! :lol:

seriously, though, i hadn't even seen most of those pics yet. lots of great memories. great job, and thanks for sticking it out to the finish with us.

I feel cheated.

Lauren...2 pics...Whisky Tango Foxtrot?

Thanks for sharing.