Mike's doing well -- very appreciative of all the support

Just got off the phone with Mike from Kansas City this morning. He wanted to express his gratitude for all the support and positive comments that have been received here on the blog. Believe it or not, he's already talking about all the things that went wrong and how they might improve upon everything next year.

That said, nobody's taking anything away from Juré Robic. "He was unbelievable," says Mike. "These were absolutely brutal conditions and Juré just seemed to power through it all."

Mike explained how this year's RAAM was exponentially harder as he experienced rain, hail, winds, heat and humidity that were very tough on him physically. The accident was very unfortunate and until reason got the better of him, he was convinced he would finish the race with one arm. Fortunately, the doctors and his crew explained this would be very unsafe.

Once outside the heat of battle, Trevino now understands that withdrawing was the only logical action. His arm is in a sling and the doctors gave him some Vicodin which helped him get a great night of sleep.

His plan now is to be back in San Diego tomorrow or Wednesday and at work Thursday. Thanks again for all the support and a huge congratulations for the outstanding efforts from the 11 Team Trevino crew members:

Steve Johnson
Byron Rieper
Howard Shaw
Andy Schlief
Brett Lauinger
Dave Carr
John Crumpler
Tony Trotter
Jamie Edelstein
Steve Kersten
Amanda Schneider

There is no way an event like this could occur without the tremendous dedication and support from crew members. While they don't ride the bike, they deprive themselves of sleep and do everything in their power to make sure Mike's as safe and efficient as possible.

I'm sure Mike will add a final post to the blog when he gets back. In the meantime, thanks again for the kind words of encouragement. A lot will be learned from this 2005 experience.

Some very bad luck today -- separated shoulder -- Mike officially withdraws from RAAM

I hate to report this but Mike fell off his bike a couple hours ago and separated his shoulder. "He was looking back for just a second and hit a little bump that took him down," explained Byron. "We talked about continuing but he would've had to ride with one arm the rest of the way and that's just not safe."

RAAM rules also prohibit riders from taking any kind of pain medication and Mike's in enough pain right now that it wouldn't make sense to continue.

Mike has officially withdrawn from the race as of a half hour ago. Total bummer. But, hey, these things happen. It's been one of those rides.

The crew is collecting their thoughts, heading to a motel to get some much needed rest and then they'll discuss this stuff over a few beers later this afternoon.

Team Trevino would like to congratulate Juré Robic and all the outstanding Slovenian supporters who've helped him ride this race like a true champion. We also appreciate all the kind words and encouragement from Slovenian supporters. Juré was truly unbeatable this year and has ridden a very impressive race, considering the conditions. We look forward to seeing him cross the finish line first in Atlantic City.

To the rest of RAAM competitors, ride safely and stay strong. And to the family of Bob Breedlove, our thoughts and prayers are still with you.

We'll post an update later today as the crew reflects on today's unfortunate accident. Thanks for everybody's support and positive comments throughout this 7-day event. I know Mike will appreciate reading these comments later and when he's back in San Diego.

Humidity and mid day heat has been tough

Byron's reporting that while Mike's still in good spirits, the heat and humidity between 11am and 4pm every day have been way worse than expected. "Give me the dry desert heat over this stuff any day," says Byron. "I'm sweating like crazy just standing outside. It's just really tough doing RAAM in these conditions."

Mike's about to go down for a nap and the crew believes third place Fabio Biasiolo -- who was just about 30 minutes back from Mike at the TS#37 in Effingham, IL -- is also going to be going down very soon as well.

Right now Mike's biggest disappointment is that the race is taking longer than he'd expected and some of the travel arrangements (flights back, etc.) are going to have to be altered and that's kind of bumming him out.

Knowing Mike, he'll get it together after the next nap and have a good day tomorrow. Tomorrow it will be a full week that the solo guys have been riding continously and that's got to wear on a rider tremendously -- almost more mentally than physically.

This has been one very tough RAAM. Let's help get Mike to the finish line. As always, your comments are not only repeated by bullhorn to Mike, they're very much appreciated and are a big part of what's keeping him going.

Time Station 34 Photos

John Crumpler just e-mailed these images from earlier in the day. He transmitted these from the airport before getting on a flight back to North Carolina.

Volunteers were amazing all along the route as they camped out and manned time stations such as this one in Marthasville, MO.

Mike was signing autographs as he waited for a chain to be replaced on his bike.

25 miles to TS#26 -- Amanda with crew

Just spoke with Amanda -- she's now joined the team and reports that the crew and Mike are looking surprisingly good. She remembers how bad she felt at this stage last year so it's nice to get to the race on day 6 and feel fresh. "Byron and Steve look great for having been here since day one," she commented. "Everybody is very alert and completely in control here."

Amanda took John Crumpler's spot on the crew as John had to head back for family commitments.

Mike got a very good two hour nap at a Holiday Inn just east of St. Louis and scarfed down some pasta and basically got completely re-energized for this final multi-day push through the eastern U.S.

It's still very, very hot and Mike's been downing a lot of water plus Cytomax and Pedialyte (for electrolyte replacement) and that's been helping him stay well hydrated and fueled while riding.

They're currently about 25 miles from TS#36 in Greenville, Illinois.

Napping in motel room -- disposition still great

Just spoke to Byron and he reports Mike's disposition and attitude are still great. He's very lucid and having no physical problems other than a saddle sore, which is very common and expected at this stage of the race.

Because it's 95F with humidity over 80%, they decided to do the old one-hour air-conditioned motel room trick and Mike's currently taking a nap in the room. Yesterday it really picked him up after he took his nap. "Conditions are so hot out here, I don't know how any of these riders can deal with it," says Byron. "It's too hot for me just walking around out here. I can't imagine riding in this."

Mike's girlfriend Amanda is on her way and should be meeting up with the crew in the next hour to an hour and a half. With the motel room nap and Amanda's arrival, Mike should be rocking and rolling in a few hours.

Byron also reports that in 2,000-plus miles they've only had four flats on the bike (last year they had 14 for the whole ride) and one of the vans has had one flat tire already and is still operating on a can of fix-a-flat. Mike's riding Specialized clincher tires provided by B&L Bike Shop in Solana Beach, Calif.

20 Miles from the Mississippi River

Just got off the phone with John Crumpler and he reports that spirits are very high and Mike's not about to concede anything to Robic. He's still pushing the pace and continues to feel very good. Looks like Fabio's now moved into third and that effort MacDonald made yesterday to close on Mike has put him in a bad way.

John thinks he's got some decent images he just shot and will try to connect and send them along. The Big River is so close they can taste it. I can hear the excitement in the crew's voices so there's certainly no lull or slow down. They firmly believe -- and more importantly -- Mike firmly believes that the race for first is far from over.

Anything can happen. Keep the positive vibes flowing. They're reading your awesome comments to Mike and that's continuing to fire him up.

Crew out of cell range -- MacDonald 4 hours back at 32

Couldn't reach anybody just now. Looks like they're in a dead cell pocket. But judging from results at TS#32 (Mike's already past 33), Trevino had put some serious distance between him and MacDonald. Not sure how much that surge -- or lack of sleep -- may have hurt MacDonald. Robic's still way up the road but there's still a lot of racing to be done.

Tomorrow they'll be done with Missouri and the big river is right on the horizon. Let's see if Mike can maintain this increased pace and start bring Robic back. Comments here on the blog have been great and very inspirational to Mike. Keep 'em coming.

I'll talk to the crew in the morning and post an update.

Peaking in the middle of a race

Believe it or not, Mike just told the crew he's "peaking in the middle of the race" and is starting to feel very good. He had a sluggish morning and wasn't sustaining the speeds he normally does so the motel nap and cold shower did him a lot of good.

The news that MacDonald was only 20 minutes behind at TS#31 also fired him up and he's really rolling now. MacDonald had been sleeping about 3 hours a night and didn't take as much sleep last night which is a big reason he made up so much time. That said, it seems MacDonald has taken a nap break after TS#31 because the crew waited for 45 minutes to see if MacDonald was gaining and he wasn't anywere in sight.

Mike's Softride Fast TT

Time to head back out on the comfortable Softride. For those of you who don't know, or you've been wondering what the heck Mike's been sitting on for all these hours, it's the Softride FastTT. Click here to check out all the details on his time trial machine.

Feeling MacDonald's heat -- done napping

Mike shown here in the hotel room in Nevada, MO. I don't know how you can leave a comfortable bed and pillow like that when you've been riding for five days straight. Anyway, talked to some of the boys very quickly before getting cut off with poor cell reception. Mike's feeling the heat from Chris MacDonald who had closed to within 20 minutes or so at TS#31. No more naps needed for a while according to the crew and Mike's recharged and ready to hit it hard.

Stay tuned as we'll get you more updates as they get into better cell phone coverage areas.

Downtime in Nevada, Missouri

It's 95F with high humidity in Missouri with some tough rollers ahead, so we took Mikey to a motel for a shower, some real food and a nap. John Crumpler and Tony Trotter guard the door and the bike. Last year this leg was tough on Mike so we decided to prep him for it by taking some much needed downtime during the heat of the day. (That's not Mike on the concrete.)


As you can imagine, the crew is pretty trashed from many sleep-deprived days as well so as Mike naps inside the air-conditioned motel room, the crew naps on the comfortable concrete sidewalks outside the motel room. Who wants to sign up for RAAM crew next year? In all seriousness, while it's not easy, it's a terrific adventure and crew member David Carr didn't want to leave after his shift had finished.

Byron Rieper
Team Trevino Crew

Heating up outside Fort Scott -- winds starting to help

Mike still looks strong despite rising temps. Attached photos gives a little sense of the day. Winds are helping for a change. Keep the comments coming. They REALLY help. Image on the left shows Mike taking a small break while trying to get something out of one of his eyes.

More a little later.

John Crumpler
Team Trevino Crew

Great attitude on Day 6 – headwinds continue

Just spoke to crew member Tony Trotter and he reports Mike’s got a great attitude today despite the continued headwinds. “Yesterday, it seemed to be bothering him a lot more,” says Trotter. “Today he’s really motivated and he’s riding anywhere between 15-22mph.”

The 6-person crew’s been working in shifts of three and everybody is getting decent – albeit not the best – sleep on the mattress in the back of the big van.

Mike’s currently 25 miles from TS#30 in Fort Scott, KS and should be there in not much more than an hour and a half. He got a 45-minute nap last night. Your Web site comments were read to him again this morning and that seemed to fire him up. Remember guys, there’s still nearly 1,400 miles to ride.

It’s hard to imagine riding for six days, averaging about an hour and a half sleep per day, and knowing you still have nearly 1,400 miles to go. The average recreational rider gets bummed out knowing they’ve only got 14 miles to go.

What these RAAM riders put their bodies through is simply mind boggling. Keep the encouragement coming as the next couple of days are going to be key in deciding the finishing order of this race.

Sunrise in Kansas

Sunrise in Kansas this morning from Crumpler's cell phone camera

Pictures from the Halfway point

Attached are photographs taken a few moments ago, 9:55 pm EST, at exactly the halfway point of the race. The temperature has cooled considerably, the winds are dying down, and Mike is settling in for a solid night of riding. Spirits are high! Unfortunately, still no laptop so these cell phone images are the best we can provide.

John Crumpler
Team Trevino Crew

18 Miles from TS #27, Breedlove news broken to Mike

Just spoke to Byron. They decided to go ahead and tell Mike about Breedlove. Mike cried for about 5 minutes and then just got mad and started riding hard. “That’s probably what I would’ve done,” said Byron. “But Mike took the news about as well as we could expect.”

They didn’t want some media vehicle to come by and spring the news on Mike such as last year with the allegations of cheating. Right now they’re 18 miles from TS#27 and still fighting those nasty 20-25mph crosswinds. They’re looking forward to about 7-8pm when the winds die down.

In a couple hours the crew is going to read messages from the Web site comments you guys have been posting. Mike’s been asking about them and really wants to hear what people are saying. So don’t think you’re wasting your time posting comments here. Mike is hearing it all and very happy and encouraged that so many of you are supporting his amazing effort.

So keep the comments flowing! And God bless Bob Breedlove and his family.

Tragic news: Bob Breedlove, RIP

Breedlove is shown here climbing Wolf Creek Pass in Colorado yesterday, June 22, 2005.

Following is the official release from RAAM officials on this tragic and sad story.

Trinidad, Colorado – Tragedy hit the Race Across America today around 12.15 – 12.30 p.m. EDT, when Bob Breedlove, competitor #188, collided with a westbound pickup truck 28 miles west of Trinidad, Colorado. When paramedics arrived on the scene they pronounced him dead.

The accident took place on a section of road that sloped very gently downhill for cyclists in the race. According to the driver of the pickup truck, Bob Breedlove appeared to slump on his bicycle and swerved into the path of the oncoming vehicle.

The driver attempted to avoid Bob Breedlove, but the significant impact was made at the lower left part of the windshield.

At the time of the accident, Bob Breedlove was leading the 50+ category, and was 12th overall in the race.

Jim Pitre, the race director, decided after consultation with Bob Breedlove’s brother, Bill, to continue the race. Bill Breedlove considered that his brother would have wished this. If a rider or team decides to pull out of the race, the management and officials will provide assistance wherever practicable.

Talking about Bob Breedlove, Jim Pitre said: “This is a terrible tragedy, just terrible. We all stand in awe of the memory of Bob Breedlove, who was a supreme cycle racer, an outstanding surgeon, and just a great human being. Speaking both personally, and on behalf of the entire management and all those associated with the race, I extend my most sincere sympathy to the family of Bob Breedlove.”

The support vehicle was providing leapfrog support to Bob Breedlove at the time of the accident. Bob Breedlove was last seen by his crew members about a mile before the accident took place. They reported that he seemed fit to continue the race. “He seemed fine, we passed him a PowerBar and a Spizz (energy drink), and he went on his way,” said one of the crew members.

Skidmarks leading off the road to the right suggest that the driver of the vehicle did what he could to avoid a collision. “It seemed like he must have passed out, he slumped on his bars. He just swerved right into our lane.” Said the distraught driver of the vehicle, who hurried to the next town immediately after the accident and made the 911 call himself.

From the evidence and accounts, the accident is thought to have happened very quickly. While it is unknown whether or not it would have made a difference if a support vehicle had been present for Bob Breedlove, as an additional precautionary measure, a directive was issued from race headquarters that safety continues to be a primary concern and that all crew members are required to pay special attention, and to continue to conduct the race in a safe manner.

Crew members and riders have been instructed that if they feel the need to do so, to pull off the course to process their thoughts and gather themselves to continue. A 15-minute time allowance is provided for this. Riders and crew members who require more time will be granted this on request.

Latest photos from Kansas

Mike getting back on his bike after the break in Pratt Kansas.

Crew members posing in front of Big Van

20-25 mph Kansas Crosswinds

Just spoke to Byron and he reports Mike is up and riding well again. He took a 45 minute break to eat, nap and shower in Pratt. They let him rest in an air conditioned room which was very refreshing. The shower and rest did him well and he’s continuing to ride strong. No problems except for the 20-25 mph winds coming out of the south which are pretty typical in the plains states.

Gap to Robic closed by 1:28

Mike’s just motored through TS #25 and is about 15 minutes from getting a hot shower. He’s taken almost an hour and a half out of Robic from TS splits at 24 and 25 and is now only down by 5:52.

From a technical standpoint we have a little bad news. It seems John Crumpler’s laptop doesn’t want to turn on anymore. Even after working at 70 mph last night. He’s going to mess around with it – it’s a Dell – and see if he can get it to come back to life when they get to the hotel. For that reason we can’t send you those great images he’s taking from a real camera. Oh well.

I’m also giving Crumpler direct access to making posts to this blog from the road – which can be done on a wireless Internet phone he can type into. Ain’t technology great? – Except when it comes to certain laptops.

Note to potential sponsors: A reliable laptop and cross-country connectivity for a fully mobile blogging setup would be way cool for RAAM. Anybody want to get the crew a laptop somewhere on the road?

A real shower and sleep – hotel in Pratt

Just spoke to Byron and he’s headed to Pratt, KS to grab a hotel room so he and a few of the crew members that have been on since San Diego can get 5-6 hours of sleep. They’ll get there 6 hours ahead of Mike while the rest of the crew tends to Mike’s riding.

Then to help Mike they’ll have him take a shower and get a little break in the hotel room as well.

Day 5 -- Looking Good, Feeling Good

Just spoke with David Carr, the new crew has joined and they’re doing hands on training today with everybody. Mike’s feeling great and showing very good form. He had a good bowl of Oatmeal for breakfast this morning and is staying focused at the task on hand. He went through TS #24 about 7:24 behind Robic and is starting to distance himself from Baloh and MacDonald. That said, it’s still a very long race. We’ll be getting photos posted later today as they’re transmitted.

New crew replacements on the way

The new crew is on the road flying toward Montezuma KS from Kansas City, where we will rendezvous with Team Trevino. The new crew includes Tony Trotter, Jamie Edelstein, Steve Kersten (the good looking Uncle), and John Crumpler. We'll be traveling all night and should meet up sometime after sunrise. Jamie just got a speeding ticket, only 78 in a 60--$130. We'll be passing the plate to help cover it.

Spirits are high and we're looking forward to the journey ahead.

John Crumpler
Trevino Crew Member

Picking up the Pace – Finally Optimal Conditions

Just got off the phone with crew member David Carr and he’s reporting that conditions are ideal right now – almost no wind – and everybody’s enjoying a beautiful evening as they approach TS #22 in Walsh, Colo. Mike’s picked up the pace and, to quote David, “he’s looking like the Mike Trevino we all know.”

David mentioned the previous stretches had been particularly brutal with headwinds and temperature ranges from 96 to 37F. They experienced rain, nasty traffic and semis that could give a damn about RAAM and just wanted the bikes off the road. Today was especially tough as they experienced brutal headwinds for much of the day.

The good news is that Mike’s picked up the pace three hours ago and he’s feeling strong. It’s also good to be back in the Midwest where there should be better cell coverage. At several points they had no way to communicate with the vans as none of the cell phones were getting a signal.

They’re 6-8 hours from meeting the additional crew members, which include Mike’s uncle and a friend who helped with the Trans Iowa record. David claims they’re “gonna have to pry him away” as he wants to stay for the whole ride. But the plan is to refresh the crew and train the new people during the day tomorrow. Final goodbyes will be said at TS#30 in Fort Scott, Kansas.

Amanda, Mike’s girlfriend, will be joining the crew in Indianapolis for the final couple days or so.

Photos, new crew members tomorrow

A big thank you should go out to crew members Andy Schlief, Brett Lauinger and Dave Carr who are going to head back to their respective homes after tonight. A few fresh crew members will be joining tomorrow, including John Crumpler and Mike’s girlfriend Amanda Schneider. Not sure who else is joining but we’ll get you that as I hear from the crew.

For those wanting information and photos, the good news is that Crumpler’s bringing a digital camera (yes, a real camera not a cell phone wannabe) and laptop computer that he can wirelessly transmit through Bluetooth technology. John sent me a few wireless tests today while back in North Carolina and we learned good quality images could be transmitted in less than 12 seconds. So look for good images coming to the blog by late tomorrow.

John’s words in an e-mail to me today: “I am connected to the internet at 115k with a bluetooth connection between my laptop and my phone, and the upload takes about 12 seconds. No wires in sight. Amazing!”

Crew seems to be out of cell range at the moment. We’ll try to get a real time update later this evening.

Day 4 -- 92 degrees -- TS 20 in the bag

Just spoke to Byron as they passed through time station 20 and the energy is all positive. Mike’s in full focus mode and ready for Kansas coming up. In fact he’s really looking forward to tearing it up in Kansas. Kansas is also Byron’s home state and it’s the type of terrain where Trevino excels. His record ride across Iowa was set on the same types of rolling roads.

Last night going up Wolf Creek Pass, a 2800 ft. climb, the crew timed both Mike and Marko Baloh. At the bottom of the climb, Trevino had a 30 minute lead – by the top he’d increased the margin to 62 minutes. Who says Mike can’t climb well on that Softride?

It’s currently 92 degrees and Mike’s taking in about 2-3 water bottles/Cytomax and electrolytes per hour. In addition to eating a lot of tortilla wraps, he’s also been wolfing down a lot of ice cream. “Just give me regular food,” is what he’s telling the crew.

He’s also drastically cut down on the number of Mountain Dews. He had six of them the day he had stomach issues and the crew thinks that could have been a contributing factor.

Keeping the focus … almost at TS #19

Just spoke to crew member Andy Schlief and he reports Mike’s approaching TS #19 with a little more energy. He’s going through the typical ups and downs a RAAM rider experiences. He took a 45 minute nap about 2:30 in the morning and we know Baloh got some good down time at the summit near TS #17. Since it was mainly a downhill coast to TS#18, Baloh’s probably going to be a little fresher on the climbs coming into 19. This news has motivated Mike to get the energy and focus back. He’s eating like a champ and had a couple of good BMs in the last few hours which has helped him feel a little better and stronger. This stomach ailment is just about history.

No major news ... crew doing an outstanding job

I’ve called the phones a couple times and it seems the crew is out of cell phone range again tonight so we’ll probably wait to update again in the morning. Looks like status quo for the moment. Mike’s holding onto second with Baloh within an hour. Robic’s still out there setting a blistering pace. You’d have to believe he’s gonna have to slow down.

For those that admire Mike’s will and determination, please remember that he could never do this without the tireless support of his crew. Even though they’re not riding their bikes, it’s still incredibly difficult to drive across the country at 15 mph and operate on limited sleep. A big thank you to all the guys in big van and little van. They’re the ones keeping Mike safe and properly fueled for this epic ride. There’s a post yesterday with a little info on each of the Team Trevino crew members.

Until mañana.

So what's up with Slovenia?

With both Juré Robic and Marko Baloh – both Slovenians – and arguably Mike’s biggest challengers – it’s seems appropriate to give you guys a little education about Slovenia. The country sits just east of Italy, below Austria and north of Croatia. They joined the European Union in May 2004 and were part of Yugoslavia from 1945 until gaining independence in 1991.

Here’s a link to the wikipedia entry on Slovenia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slovenia

Yes, surprsingly, you may even learn something on the Team Trevino Web site. Speaking of which, let’s try to minimize the juvenile comments. So please refrain from the Mike’s sister and “affairs with Robic” comments. I’m all about having good fun, but let’s try to keep the comments focused on getting Mike to the finish line first.

As the evening progresses, we’ll post another update assuming the crew doesn’t find itself in another isolated cell-free zone of our wonderful western United States.

Trevino moves into second place

About a half mile outside of the Durango time station (#15), Mike just passed Baloh’s RV with Baloh sitting inside. Apparently Mike’s got a big grin on his face and is feeling strong again. Temperatures are 95 degrees and winds are still very strong. Tough conditions for the second day in a row. These are not RAAM record-breaking conditions so Pete Penseyres can rest easy knowing his record will probably not be broken this year.

The crew was also able to dial Mike into a little home remedy of ginger and honey to help ease any stomach discomfort. The adjoining image is another cell phone quality shot of Mike rolling out of Durango. We're looking to get a digital camera to the crew with the crew change and hopefully get some better quality shots by Thursday.

Morning Update .. Mike feeling good again

Spoke to Byron just now and he’s reporting that Mike probably took in some bad food yesterday that gave him a pretty bad case of diarrhea. They took some down time, called some doctors to get advise on the phone, and while one doctor suggested he stop riding -- another, with RAAM experience, suggested he get some good food in him and continue.

Mike’s been eating turkey roll-ups and burritos that were pre-made in San Diego. The crew’s decided to start handling all the food with latex gloves from here on so as to avoid any more possible contamination.

Mike got about a 50-minute nap during his down time and is feeling good again. The biggest problem right now is they’re fighting some pretty strong headwinds going into Durango, Colo. It’s a consistent 10mph, gusting to 20mph right into Mike’s face. Not what you want when you’re riding across the country.

Long story short is Mike’s feeling strong again and has put about an hour or more on MacDonald and is focused on bringing back Robic and Baloh.

It’s a long race.

Still no word from our crew, Baloh leads at 13

Still waiting to hear from Byron and the boys. At least Mike's made it through TS #12 and Marko Baloh, the other Slovenian, has overtaken Robic at TS#13 to lead the race. I’m sure it’s nap time for Robic and you’d have to believe Baloh’s gotta go down soon. We should hear from the crew this morning. I’d hope they can get to a land line and fill in some detail as to how Mike’s feeling.

Time Station #11

The good news is Mike’s made it to time station 11 about 26 minutes ahead of Chris MacDonald. Seems he’s moving better since he’s made up a little time on MacDonald since TS #10. Still no word from the crew nor how Mike’s feeling. They are in one of the most desolate areas of Arizona and headed to Utah so cell phone coverage is almost non-existent.

Waiting for details on Mike’s condition

When I spoke to Byron at about 2:20 PDT, he sounded very hurried and mentioned they were looking for a doctor and he’d call me right back. It wasn’t till I hung up that I realized Mike – or somebody on the crew – could be having problems. Judging from the comment on my previous post, and the fact Mike’s lost a big chunk of time on the way to time station #10, I would tend to agree he’s probably having some serious GI problems. I’ve tried to reach both cell phones in the vans and they’re completely out of cell range as both go directly into voice mail. As soon as I hear more details on Mike’s condition, I’ll be sure to post what’s happening. As many of you may know, RAAM tends to follow some of the back country roads in the west, many of which are not within cell phone tower range.

Please note that all the times on these posts are Pacific Daylight Time as we're posting from San Diego.

Trying to track down the crew

Haven't heard anything since a few hours ago and we're trying to track down the crew in an area with limited cell phone access. We'll post as soon as we hear something. Stay tuned.

Will sleep deprivation get to Robic?

2004 winner Juré Robic has been setting a blistering pace since taking the lead very early. Here he is flying through the California desert yesterday. We know he doesn't like to take a break for at least the first couple days. At time station #9, nearly 500 miles into the race he was holding about an hour lead over Marko Baloh and nearly two hours on Mike.

Long and lonely road ... please comment for Mike

It's a long and lonely road for RAAM riders. Here's a shot of Mike 16 miles before time station #10 in Tuba City, Ariz. The crew is checking this Web site and will be passing comments on to Mike for inspiration and encouragement. Please feel free to comment on any of these posts by clicking on the "comments" link at the bottom of each post.

A quick rundown on the Trevino crew

1. Steve Johnson - San Diego (experienced) Crew Chief, driver, engineering

2. Byron Rieper - Kansas (experienced)
Crew member, driver, primary press contact, bike maintenance

3. Howard Shaw - San Francisco (experienced) Crew member, primary handler, logistics

4. Andy Schlief - Iowa (new)
Crew member, primary handler

5. Brett Lauinger - Iowa (new)
Crew member, primary handler, Mike's step father

6. Dave Carr - Ames, Iowa (new)
Crew member, driver, secondary handler, bike maintenance

Andy, Brett, & Dave leave mid-way, and a new crew comes in. Not sure of all their names, but Amanda is joining in to train them in Indianapolis and will be Mike's primary handler for the 2nd half.

7. Amanda Schneider - San Diego (experienced) Crew member, primary handler

Report from crew member Howard Shaw

Just left for the airport after handling Mike from kickoff through TS#3. He’s doing fabulously. Every time I look at Mike I’m amazed at what he can accomplish. There’s just something in his mind that makes him push himself harder than anyone else. We are in the midst of an incredible person and should all count ourselves lucky that Mike has touched our lives in one way or another.

This year Mike is a lot more focused - even more intense, but in a good way! He’s not concerned about anything else but winning, and no amount of mind games from anyone will penetrate his rock-hard attitude this time. He’s not just participating in RAAM, he’s racing his own race (with class and style), and all other considerations are irrelevant.

It was great to take care of such a world-class athlete again after handling Mike last year. My job was to kick him off while training the new crew, and I think they’ll do wonderfully. His new primary handlers (Brett, Andy, & Dave) have what it takes to keep Mike riding strong and smooth.

Halfway through the race, we’ll do some crew swaps, and Amanda will join the team again this year to train the new folks coming in. This year’s crew is just awesome!

We’re fortunate to have Steve (crew chief) & Byron on the team again this year – their experience and focus will be invaluable. And they’ll be the two that tirelessly sticks through the entire race.

Kick butt Mike, we’re all pushing for you!

Howard Shaw
Trevino Crew member

Morning Update

Just spoke to Byron and he reports Mike’s 40 minutes ahead of schedule and right where he wants to be. Other than typical early morning crankiness most RAAM riders experience, Mike’s content to let the Slovenians beat each other up.

Best part of this year – so far anyway – is there are no Robic spy vehicles hovering around Trevino and his crew. Last year they were hounded by those guys. “Seems like they’re all over Marko this year,” says Byron.

The most excitement, and a little scary experience, occurred late last night when Mike was flying down the switchbacks out of Prescott, Ariz. and he almost smacked straight into a deer. Fortunately, the deer moved the right way and a possible disaster was avoided.

Currently, Robic’s about 56 minutes ahead of Mike, while Baloh’s sitting at 41 minutes.

Yesterday start photo

Our friends at B&L bicycle shop in Solana Beach, and sponsors of Mike Trevino, forwarded an image of Mike at the start yesterday. He's looking as lean and strong as any rider we've ever seen start RAAM. He was calm, cool and collected before heading out on a 3,052 mile bike race. Ever wonder how you sleep the night before RAAM? In a normal race, no big deal, you know you can get some sleep after the race. But RAAM doesn’t give you that opportunity.

Words of encouragement

Mike:

I am one of many who are in awe of your athletic talent and preparation, your mental toughness and raw intellect, and your proven tenacity, focus, and will to win. You are off to a great start. Congratulations.

I commend you on restraining yourself and riding consistent with your plans, rather than trying to challenge Robic and Baloh in the early stages of the race. In the footsteps of Robic's and Baloh's great fellow European RAAM champion Wolfgang Fasching's 2004 RAAM, let them burn themselves out in the desert so that you can put them away later in the race. Clearly the winner is the first rider to cross the finish line in Atlantic City, not the first rider to reach earlier time stations. This is not a stage race with prems, but rather an all-out race to Atlantic City. Stay with your plan.

In your rookie year last year, you proved that you are currently the best ultracyclist in the U.S. Now you can prove that you are indeed the best ultracyclist in the world. Hey, this is the Race Across America, and it certainly will be nice to see an American named Mike Trevino bring the solo RAAM title back to the states. And, it would be icing on the cake to see you break Pete Penseyres' long-standing average speed record.You are blessed to have both great talent and great opportunity. Their intersection should result in a great victory!

Stay focused and on plan and recognize that there are thousands of fans out here pulling for you. May the winds be at your back.....along with the rest of the riders. I, along with your many supporters and fans, look forward to learning of your victory next Sunday. Best wishes for a safe and successful journey.

Larry
La Jolla, CA

No more breaks -- back in 3rd

Well, reeling MacDonald back didn’t take long. Just 23.5 miles to time station #5 and Mike stormed back into 3rd place and doesn’t look like he’s gonna need a bathroom break – or any break for that matter – for awhile. All systems go.

Andy Schlief
Trevino Crew member

Bathroom break drops Mike back to 4th

Mike took a bathroom break and MacDonald reclaimed 3rd place but all is well in the Trevino camp. At time station #4 Mike was 14 minutes ahead of schedule. He’s riding his own race and has a set arrival plan for every time station. That said, Mike is hot on MacDonald’s trail and look for him to reclaim 3rd place a little later. An accident had closed the Interstate to one lane for a bit and the crew momentarily lost Mike.

Andy Schlief
Trevino Crew member

Trevino moves into 3rd Place

Mike has just passed Chris MacDonald to move into 3rd place overall. According to the ever analytical Byron Rieper, Trevino is about six minutes ahead of where he planned to be at this stage. He’s maintaining just about exactly 20 minutes behind race leader Juré Robic after about 10 hours of racing. The other Slovenian, Marko Baloh is just about 10 minutes up the road. Even more amazing is the three leaders are staying very close to the two fastest eight man teams that are only riding 492 miles. Better to be chasing than to be chased at this early stage of a long -- very long -- ride. Fasten your seat belts, RAAM is just getting heated up – and it’s got nothing to do with the 100-degree temperatures and 8mph headwind they’ve been experiencing all day through the California desert. This is racing!

Thanks Mike, for inspiring us

One has to ask why do people, like Mike Trevino take on challenges like RAAM? He was born in Iowa and has lots of siblings and great parents. Maybe he ate some special hybrid corn growing up. We will never know. I have a theory that heroes aren’t born -- they are self made. Those who are willing to do what few others would do even if they could, live heroic lives. They attempt things most of us would not consider doing. Like RAAM.

Conceptually RAAM is difficult to understand, even by whom most would consider great athletes. How may people do Centuries (100 miles) or Double Centuries? Imagine doing 30 or so Centuries back to back, with a couple hours sleep every third Century if you’re fortunate. My back and neck hurt just thinking of it, not to mention my rear end. Welcome to Mike’s world.

The great tours of bicycle racing are usually a couple thousand miles long over a period of about three weeks. The racers get to draft each other, sleep in beds at night and have professional chefs prepare every meal they eat off the bike. Those races are tough. One bad day and you’re out of contention. Just ask Ivan Basso who was contending for the lead in the Giro before he had a bad day in the mountains and lost 30 minutes. Grand Tour bicycle racing is arguably the most difficult team sport in the world. Those races are decided by who wins the time trials. RAAM is one long time trial from the Pacific to the Atlantic.

We admire people like Mike, who take on incredible challenges and prevail. We are inspired by them. There are those who think people like Mike are nuts. They have their point of view. Then again they are probably the same people that like to tell others why something is too hard, too competitive and too unrealistic or that it can’t be done. They hear no and they stop. Thanks Mike, for setting an example of what is possible, for finishing RAAM last year when many people would have quit given the dirty tricks played on you by a rival’s team.

Thanks for making us realize that maybe what we aspire to is possible despite all those who warn us it’s not. I will think about that when I go to bed tonight and when I wake tomorrow morning, knowing that you are out there pedaling, not just for you, but for all of us who aspire to be more than ordinary. Ride on Mike!

Mark Erwin
San Diego

Afternoon update from the road

I just spoke with Brett who handled Mike through TS #1. Brett said Mike
felt great, was comfortable with his position and was looking
forward to the heat of the desert. Two weeks ago Mike rode a 300 mile training
ride out to El Centro when it was 115 in the desert. It's payback time.

Byron Rieper
Team Trevino Crew

By the way, we are using two support vehicles, Big Van and Little Van.

Time Station #1 -- Four Contenders

At the first time station in Pine Valley, the four favorites were very close to each other. Marko Baloh, Juré Robic, Christoper MacDonald and Mike Trevino all came through within six minutes of each other. Baloh was the 2004 Furnace Creek solo winner and will certainly give Robic and Trevino a challenge. Mike is feeling comfortable and waiting for the heat of the California desert. He spends a lot of time training in the heat and believes he has a huge advantage over the Europeans.

Team Trevino Bullhorn starts RAAM

Byron Rieper and the crew decided they were going to need a bullhorn this year so, at the last minute, they purchased a bullhorn at Radio Shack just before they closed last night. Turns out this morning the RAAM public address system stopped working and race organizers were frantically looking for a way to address the riders and start the race. Of course you know what happened. Byron snagged the bullhorn, gave it to race director Jim Pitre, and the race was started with the siren attached to the Team Trevino bullhorn.

Getting ready to start

Mike looking calm and relaxed just before the start. These photos, while not the greatest quality, are being taken with a Sprint cell phone and will be transmitted during the race.