Monday, December 25, 2017

2017  was an interesting year for me and the team.  In mid-February, I flew to San Antonio and helped my friend Tim Barrow, a teammate from RAAM as well as Furnace Creek 508 and SoCall  Challenge in 2014.  Time was driving his "souped-up" van to mid-Florida for the Sebring 12/24 Championships. This would be my 3rd Sebring in a row and a great way to start the new season. Unfortunately, the weather in Northern California had been terrible and I wasn't able to get the proper amount of training in. I arrived in San Antonio a few days early and Tim and I redied the van and worked on putting my bike together after the flight.

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The Van
The drive out was for the most part, without any drama although Tim did freak me out when we stopped at a rest stop in Louisana and pulled a pistol out from under the seat. He walked into the facilities carrying it in his pocket. Didn't realize that that part of Louisana was that "sketchy"! We did manage to arrive at Sebring safely.
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Mother Ship (motorhome)

The race itself went well enough. I had signed up for the 24 hours and Tim and Dan Rocco were doing the 12. After they finished their stint they became my support crew. After 15 hours I decided I had enough (again not having been able to train as much as I would have liked)! I wound up with 174 miles, plus an additional ten or so due to missing a turn and getting lost. I did take 1st place though in the Men's 70+ Standard bike non-drafting category.



Tim and I drove home after the race, uneventful as the trip out. I flew home from San Antonio.