POST RACE REPORTS
Race Crew Report
***Kevin finishes at 3:57 PM EDT in a time of 10 days, 3 hours and 57 minutes!
Post race report, coming soon! New photos posted for all days.
Post Race Summary
Jeff Rushton
Seldom does one get the chance to participate and experience a truly life changing experience as I did seeing my dear friend Kevin Wallace undertake solo RAAM. I was lucky enough to be a crew member for the last 5 days of the race and I wanted to take a moment to provide a personal perspective.
First on Kevin. I thought I loved him before but this experience moved up my respect and friendship to a new level. What I saw this past week was a man who did everything in his power to complete RAAM not for personal glory but to create an experience and movement in support of our collective shared desire to eradicate cancer and make the Betty Wallace Women's Health Center the premier cancer support center in our community. Kevin gave every ounce of his being to ensuring this event could act as a springboard for the real goal of raising $250,000 to support this fantastic center named after the mother he cherished. Kevin, if you are reading this, now you have my lifelong support, respect and friendship to help you in this quest. I'm honored to be your friend.
Second, a word about the amazing crew that took Kevin coast to coast. Peter Willson, Ian MacKenzie, Mike MacMurray, Dr. Pat Hewitt, Ron Mitchell, Ladislav Optis, Jack Hewitt, Michael J Kolesar, Robert Langley, and Oliver Moore (Globe reporter) worked tirelessly to ensure Kevin's health, safety, and spirits where maintained. At the same time working with our friends Fred & Scott from Boomerang they created the teamrace.com website to keep the extended community informed so this event could become a shared experience for everyone following from home. The personal time and passion this team put into this event was truly monumental. I can't thank you enough for what you did for Kevin and for making RAAM a shared community experience.
Third, I wanted to tell everyone the impact your support had on Kevin. I was lucky enough to read most of your guestbook entries and dedications to Kevin while supporting him in the "crying chair" and I can't begin to tell you the positive impact this level of support had on him. From the fun/funny (Neil Ostrum your personal note particularly stands out!!), to the personal ones some of you sent me to read that are not posted in the guest book, I can tell you each and every comment provide Kevin with one more level of resolve to complete RAAM and make this a platform for achieving the goals he has for the fight against cancer. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for the support you gave our friend.
Finally, I have one request for each of you: Kevin's real goal throughout this whole event was to raise $250,000 and create a community of interest around the Betty Wallace Women's Health Center. You can help him achieve this goal by making a donation, and telling friends.
Peter Willson
Hello Kevin and Team: As part of the team helping you along the way I can truly say it was the experience of a lifetime (I can also guarantee I'm not doing that again-Larry you are on your own next year). Part of our process was to hopeflluy gain some learning on this adventure about ourselves.
Beyond learning about the keen competitive nature of Kevin, the compassion the community holds for him and all he's done in creating the Betty Wallace Centre and the love and support he has from his friends there was an opportunity for personal growth.
For me I learned that my place is at home with my wife and kids. I don't want to experience an event like this again without them being along. It won't mean as much.
I've learned that building a team isn't easy (especially if they have to spend 10 days in 3 vehicles with little or no sleep). But this team performed incredibly well in our primary focus of getting Kevin to the end, safely. We may not have won the race, or set the record, but we'll win the battle. Our tag line for this event is "there is no finish line" and although I couldn't be there for the breaking of the tape, it wasn't so much about crossing the line, as it was the journey to get there.
Thanks to the entire crew. We got to the end without penalties (A rookie first I'm sure!) and I know we made stronger friends in the process. Thanks to Kevin, without you, this wouldn't have been possible.
Peter
Oliver Moore
From Tuesday June 27, 2006 Globe and Mail
Cyclist receives surprise donation
Fundraising goal met after slow start
The crew shadowing Kevin Wallace as he put body and mind to the test in
the Race Across America had a strict rule: Never tell him how the
fundraising was going.
Mr. Wallace went to California this month with plans to break the RAAM
record by cycling across the United States in little more than eight
days. It proved too ambitious a physical goal and he arrived in Atlantic
City about two days later than planned.
And as he struggled with the mountains, desert heat, wind and rain of
what some call the world's toughest endurance event, the crew kept secret
the fact that fundraising was also lagging. Mr. Wallace had hoped to
generate $250,000 for a breast cancer treatment centre at the Trillium
Health Centre, but donations were slow to arrive at the teamrace.com
website.
During the race the official total doubled twice in two days -- rising to
approximately $60,000 -- but then slowed again.
The tally had hit $100,000 by the end of the race and continued to creep
up but remained this past weekend substantially below Mr. Wallace's
target.
Enter Bob Tattersall, an investment adviser and amateur cyclist who knew
Mr. Wallace slightly through his bicycle store. He had tracked Mr.
Wallace's progress across the United States and was hugely impressed with
what he had been able to accomplish.
"The guy did what he set out to do," Mr. Tattersall said in an interview
from his Mississauga home. "It was an incredible physical effort. There
must have been many times when it would have been easy to quit, but he
didn't."
That dedication touched Mr. Tattersall deeply enough that he offered to
make up the fundraising difference. He hadn't planned to make such a
large donation, he said, but didn't want Mr. Wallace discouraged about
finishing the race but not hitting his fundraising target.
"I thought he'd achieved his objective, even if he didn't win," Mr.
Tattersall said. "The guy deserved to achieve his second objective."
Mr. Tattersall, 58, rides to his current job and has cycled most of his
life. Touring excursions in Italy's Dolomites and in Britain, where he
rode end-to-end from Land's End in the southwest to John O'Groats in the
northeast, have made him keenly aware of how hard it is to cover long
distances on a bicycle.
"You start out thinking it's a small country," he said of his travels in
Britain. "Then you get to northern Scotland and you've got four more days
to go."
He said that he could not imagine doing RAAM, which is roughly three
times the 1,600-kilometre route from Land's End to John O'Groats.
Oliver Moore
From Thursday's Globe and Mail
Saddle-sore cyclist has 10 days of sleep to catch up on
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. -- Kevin Wallace rolled across the finish line of the Race Across America in fifth place yesterday, his face stubbled with 10 days' growth, his right knee aching and his tenderized buttocks swaddled in three pairs of cycling shorts.
Already slim before the race -- endless hours of training had shrunk his hands such that he had to wear his wedding ring on a chain around his neck -- he pedalled in on powerful legs with not a scrap of fat to be seen.
With the sun shining on the Atlantic City boardwalk and his wife and children waiting in the small crowd, Mr. Wallace approached the finish escorted by two motorcycle policemen. The end of his nearly 5,000-kilometre route across the United States was a small banner. He knocked it down with the front wheel of his bicycle, his official time clocking in at 10 days, three hours and 47 minutes.
He looked remarkably healthy for a solid finisher in a race notorious for taking participants up to six months to recover. He flashed the broad smile that had been absent from his increasingly haggard face for the past few days and spoke agreeably to reporters. His evening plans included a team dinner and then a good night's sleep.
Mr. Wallace did admit to being pleased to leave RAAM behind, walking easily up the stairs to a small stage to tell the crowd: "I'm glad to be off my bike."
He looked immediately for his family, the wife he hadn't spoken to in nearly two weeks and the daughter and stepson whose pictures had been taped to the wall of his team bus. In a poignant note, the children had urged him to ride fast so they could see him again as quickly as possible.
Mr. Wallace entered the race -- billed as the world's toughest endurance event -- with a conservative plan. He wanted to keep his effort at a sustainable level, allowing his body to strengthen throughout. His approach is a contrast to the more aggressive riders, who go as hard as they can as long as they can and then try to hold on to the finish. The latter can lead to injury and many riders not finishing the race.
Douglas Stoddard, from the Toronto Sports and Exercise Medicine Institute, warned of hormone rage caused by the prolonged stress of such a race. He described raised levels of cortisol, adrenalin, glucogen and human growth hormone, which surge and then drop.
He said that the overall effects of ultra-endurance activity over the long term are still unknown, but that the general strain is borne by a rider's knees, elbows, back and neck, accompanied by saddle sores, muscle degradation and fatigue of the nervous system.
Mr. Wallace's plan worked for most of the race, allowing him to move up the standings, but he slowed over the last few days. How much of that decline was physical and how much psychological wasn't clear.
The race, featuring 15 competitors this year, is notoriously gruelling to both body and soul.
"Riding at night in RAAM is very isolating," Mr. Wallace said at the finish. "It's one of those things that accumulates. At first you can deal with it, but then you start to think, 'Is my crew there?' or 'Why are they sleeping when I can't?' "
He said one of the positives of RAAM, for those strong enough to deal with it, is it doesn't allow you to deceive yourself or anyone else.
"I knew I was going to be exposed," he said. "Your weaknesses are exposed. If anything, RAAM, if you finish it, it does make you feel like a warrior. Definitely, my self-confidence went up a notch."
After two weeks of a largely liquid diet and 10 days with almost no sleep, he will have to ease back into a normal lifestyle. A celebratory meal could wreak havoc on his bowels and he may wake up repeatedly in the night, worried that he's missed an opportunity to make up time on a competitor.
Nightmares about cycling are common both during and after RAAM.
"He's not so much physically tired as neurologically tired," said Pat Hewitt, Mr. Wallace's medical adviser, in the final hours of the race. "He should be up and walking around tomorrow but his head will be more affected."
Mr. Wallace believed he was ready for the emotional trauma, though, after having gone through the deaths of both of his parents, his father when he was 9 and his mother when he was 23. He believes that their loss helped him fulfill his "destiny" on the race course.
"I don't think I could do RAAM without that experience, without that personal loss," he said.
He set out to use the race as a vehicle for raising another $250,000 for the Betty Wallace Centre in Mississauga, a cancer treatment facility named for his mother that has already benefited from $2.7-million worth of fundraising spearheaded by Mr. Wallace.
The race was split this year into two categories. He and 14 others competed in Traditional RAAM, where competitors' overall time includes every minute they are off their bicycles.
Oliver Moore
From Wednesday's Globe and Mail Online
Canadian cyclist completes endurance race
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Kevin Wallace fought his way to the Atlantic Ocean to finish fifth Wednesday in the Race Across America. He had ridden his bicycle from Oceanside, Calif., to Atlantic City in 10 days, 3 hours and 57 minutes.
The Canadian cyclist crossed the finish line in the late afternoon sun and was to be met by his wife. Mr. Wallace has been saying for days that the real reason to rush to the finish line was to see his family again.
His race plan called for starting conservatively and then catching up to the front-runners when they ran out of steam. He did move up the standings throughout the race but not enough to catch Swiss native Daniel Wyss, who finished first late Tuesday night.
The Canadian cyclist had hoped to win the race and set a new record for a trans-continental crossing — a bold gambit dismissed as unrealistic by many RAAM veterans — but settled for a credible middle-of-the-pack finish in what has been billed the world's most gruelling endurance race. The RAAM route is designed to push competitors to their limits, including passage through the extreme heat of the deserts, up to the thin air of the Rockies and into the huge winds of the Kansas and Colorado plains.
During the second half of Mr. Wallace's race it became apparent that he would not break the record. And then, gradually, the crew began to realize that he could not catch the race leaders unless they crashed or suffered a complete meltdown. He battled on, increasingly haggard but determined not to quit after so many sacrifices, and with so many people rooting for him.
Mr. Wallace had always made clear, too, that breaking the record was a means to an end. In his case, he wanted to raise publicity about the fight against breast cancer and was willing to race in hot pink to do so. He also set out to raise $250,000 for the Betty Wallace Health Centre in Mississauga, a cancer treatment facility named for his own mother.
Report filed by Danny Chew
via RaceAcrossAmerica.org:
3.5 hours after Valsesia, Fabio Biasiolo finished his 5th RAAM placing 3rd in the Traditional race. With a history of trouble in the desert heat, Fabio wisely hung back on day 1 riding through TS #3 in Chiriaco Summit, CA as the 23rd solo rider. He worked his way up through the field, taking the overall solo lead in Kansas, and winning 15 consecutive time stations. Traditional rookie Daniel Wyss of Switzerland took the overall solo lead from Fabio in Ohio.
On the finish line stage in Atlantic City, Fabio dedicated his finish to the late Bob Breedlove & Brett Malin who were both killed while riding RAAM. He even had their names stuck on his follow vehicle. This years RAAM was one of his best ever, until day 7 when he rode over a stone and crashed in Putnamville, IN after which something changed in his body. He said, “Kansas is terrible for everyone and for me too this day. The short hills in Pennsylvania seem like you go round and round getting nowhere.” Boyer and Baloh tried to drop Fabio, but couldn’t when Fabio was on his game. Dino passed Fabio for 2nd place Traditional while Fabio was sleeping near the IN/OH state line.
2 hours after Biasiolo, David Haase finished his 2nd RAAM placing 4th in the Traditional race. On the Haase Crew’s drive out to Oceanside for the start, their RV broke down (had to be abandoned) in Colorado at the same place their support vehicle broke down the year before. Dave said this year’s race wasn’t as hot as last year, but a lot windier. When his crew sprayed him with champagne on the finish stage, Haase said that’s the first shower he’s had the whole trip.
Dave was glad he made it to Atlantic City before the first Enduro rider. He thinks the Enduro guys (especially Marko Baloh) got too caught up in racing against the Traditional guys. At his 11 hour stop in Pratt, KS, he lost 8 pounds. He thinks he had more time off the bike than all the Traditional riders. He loses time to other riders who can urinate off their bikes while riding. His Cousin Alicia did finally meet up with him in London, OH.
100 miles from Atlantic City, he felt so great he thought about turning around and riding all the way back to California, but soon after felt horrible/terrible. Close to dropping out after his 11 hour stop, he told his crew if he can get on his bike and ride at over 12 mph, he would stay in the race. Before the race, Dave’s mother asked him, Do you think you can beat Robic?” Well Haase has beaten Robic this year, so his mother should be very happy. Haase said it was nice to see somebody like Tinker Juarez struggle in this race to show how tough it is. Dave doesn’t keep training journals/diaries because it would take the fun out of riding.
Jonathan Jock Boyer won the new solo Enduro RAAM setting a new 50+ speed record of 12.63 mph. He was the 5th solo rider to reach Atlantic City arriving 13 Hours, 15 Minutes after Traditional winner Daniel Wyss. He logged 45:14 off bike time at Enduro control checkpoints. The only rider to ever win RAAM as a rookie (until Wyss this year) in 1985 when he set the rookie speed record of 14.31 mph, Boyer was the first America to ever ride the Tour de France placing 12th one year. He took the overall solo lead in CO and again in KS where Biasiolo took it from him after he lost his 2nd support vehicle and crew in an accident. Plagued by saddle sores and Shermerneck, Boyer was down to just 3 crew members in one van. Three time 4 man team RAAM winner Kerry Ryan held the small Boyer crew together. In KS, Byron Rieper joined Ryan & Rick Gonzales. This marks the first time a RAAM winner has finished with so few (3) crew members.
After losing the overall race lead to Fabio in KS, Boyer held onto the Enduro lead, but got passed by 4 Traditional riders and the 6 man handcycle team by the finish. A supporter of the new Enduro division (a more sane way of doing RAAM), Boyer said there were no easy sections on his long ride. Having never experienced neck problems before, Jock’s low aerodynamic position (everytime he got down on his aerobars, he gained two mph) caused neck pain after 2 days. 2005 RAAM finisher Cat Berge sent the Boyer crew a neck brace that Jock used. He had to look down at the road more than forward – a dangerous situation. Despite getting more sleep than the Traditional riders, his pace still got slower and slower. He says once you get so tired on RAAM, your mind perceives you’re going fast, but you are not. At some point in the race, every solo RAAM rider gets trapped in slow motion, and they can’t get out of it.
Boyer said that Robic & Baloh made a mistake in that they started as Traditional (sleeping very little) and went to the Enduro format. Boyer’s crew used a hydrometer on him at every stop to check his hydration levels. Worse than his neck, saddle sores slowed him down, and he started using Lynocane on them. He had diarrhea for a whole day in CO, and wasn’t able to hydrate. He had to start eating solid foods. He’d dream of the next Enduro control checkpoint where he would be able to sleep. He never had any difficulty reaching the checkpoints from sleepiness. He was usually asleep within a minute of lying down.
Comparing his 2006 RAAM with his 1985 RAAM, this year he was more coherent, more efficient, and never really hallucinated. In 1985, he was more wasted, but had more energy sources to draw upon. Riding RAAM for a charity (Donate Life organ transplants) has given him a whole different viewpoint on why he rode RAAM. He said, “It’s impossible to get disappointed when you are racing for a cause.”
He wasn’t surprised by Robic’s pneumonia DNF because Robic went out too hard. When asked to compare RAAM with the Tour de France, he said you need a totally different mentality to want to do RAAM. Most Pro bike racers aspire to do the Tour de France.
Canadian rookie Kevin Wallace was the 6th solo rider to reach Atlantic City, and 5th place Traditional. A very well financed rider, Wallace stated on his website that his goal was to win Traditional RAAM and break Pete Penseyres’ 20 year old 15.4 mph solo speed record. Dr. Pat Hewitt had Kevin on a strict regime regulating his sleep, diet, and speed. He started out easy through the desert heat riding mid pack the first two days. He began moving up through the field and was the 7th solo rider to cross the Mississippi River. He held that place passing Baloh en route to Atlantic City.
Wallace was very talkative at the finish line. He asked himself, “How could I get another day off of my time?” He slept 9-13 hours total. When asked about the speed record, he said it’s an incredible record he has more respect for now. When he did two man team RAAM (setting the speed record of 18.71 mph) and was passing solo riders, he wondered how these people can be so slow on a bike, He now knows the answer to this question as he lost his speed after the 4th day. The winds were so STRONG in KS that Kevin could feel the wind pulling skin from his bones. Kevin being a certified bike fitter may have helped his neck which was OK.
He said he didn’t underestimate the race, but it’s so long. He doesn’t know if he enjoyed any of the scenery because he was so worried about staying alive. He said the race exposes all of your weaknesses. There was no privacy in his race, and he felt so exposed to the elements. He started the race intentionally slow. With only 700 miles to go, he sprained his knee, which forced him to take a 5 hour stop. He believes you have to train full time to win RAAM. He thinks he is built more for Traditional RAAM. He kept seeing Guus Moonen for the first six days.
Wallace had to leave his giant RV and bus driver behind after the steep West Virginia Mountains disabled it. In Jefferson City, MO, his crew and Jeff Rushton emerged from a cornfield wearing pink jerseys like his, and had a pep rally. Jeff was his team-mate for their two man team record. Kevin’s wife and baby girl were in Atlantic City to see him finish. He was wearing 3 pairs of shorts. He said that breaking the speed record is egocentric since the record only helps one person. His Betsy Wallace Foundational Fund charity work is much more rewarding to him.
2004 Michigan 24 Hour Champ (470 miles) Larry Optic was on the Wallace Crew. Optic qualified for RAAM at the Adirondack 540, and plans on riding solo RAAM in the future. Training buddies in Canada, Wallace told me that Optic could be the next RAAM champion.
After two DNFs, Marko Baloh’s first RAAM finish on Wednesday evening was very sweet. He placed 2nd in Enduro finishing 8.5 hours behind winner Boyer. The 7th solo rider to arrive in Atlantic City nearly 22 hours after Traditional winner Wyss, Baloh logged 43:12 off bike time at Enduro control checkpoints. Baloh shared the overall solo race lead with fellow countryman Robic until Eastern CO. Once Baloh fell behind Boyer in the Midwest, his fear of another DNF kept him from chasing after Boyer, and allowed Traditional riders to pass him by Atlantic City. A supporter of the new Enduro format, Baloh found it difficult to know where he stood early in the Enduro race because of riders accumulating different off bike time amounts towards their mandatory 40 hours. He said it was nice to catch a few of the Traditional riders.
When his legs swelled up in the desert on the 2nd day, he had to back off his pace. He said, “Before the race you have a very clear mind to know why you are doing the race. You need a good crew to pep talk the rider." He has pictures of his children taped onto his stem. With emotional tears flowing at the finish line, he was too tired to appreciate his finish. He felt very bad when he heard of Robic’s troubles (went to a hospital with pneumonia that caused him to DNF). From Baloh’s experience, American doctors take very good care of their patients. Robic called Baloh to wish him luck in catching Boyer.
In the beginning, Baloh felt better from sleeping more, but later on he felt as bad as if he was only getting one hour of sleep per night. When asked if he would do the race again, Baloh said there was too much hardship trying to get money & sponsorship, and it took up too much of his family time to train for RAAM.
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