Amazing

I just spent the past fifteen minutes enjoying some seriously good video from the follow vehicle. I only tore myself away because the car with the satellite receiver clearly had to refuel and left the course after an exchange between Ken and Jeremy. (I can't tell who is who this year, perhaps because I've had less time to watch the feed.) At any rate, they're riding to TS 45, which, as mentioned below, is the climbiest section of the race. (Yes, I made that word up.)

They are HAULING! I'm just amazed. And even though this is my third race as team scribe, I still have a hard time wrapping my mind around the concept that it's been just five days since Greg and the rest of the team and crew were here in CA, prepping. Astonishing. Amazing. And this brings me to something that can't be highlighted enough.

This race can't happen without the crew. We're always lucky to have incredible people crewing for our team - this year is no exception. While there are many people back home in CA who are working to make things run smoothly, I'm going to focus on the 9 people who are on the front lines, on the course, providing support to our team. This year, we were able to do things differently - each two man sub team got its own crew person. Here's how they break out: Chuck is Ken and Jeremy's main support person. Matt is Greg and Brad's support person. Steve, who raced with Team ViaSat in 2006 and 2007, is Dan and Jeff's support person, and Suzanne, who is the veteran of three RAAM crew stints, is crewing for John and Kevin. Suzanne is also John's wife. (They defected to another RAAM team, North Coast Cycling, last year. We welcome both of them back with open arms and lots of teasing!)

ViaSat has a designated follow vehicle, as do many teams. Team ViaSat's follow vehicle is outfitted with some pretty amazing equipment which allows a live video feed of the racer on course to be broadcast back to ViaSat's RAAM webpage (where those of us following them lurk for amounts of time we'll never admit to!). The follow vehicle has a crew of five. There will be two persons in the follow vehicle at all times, one driving, the other navigating. These incredible people are Spencer, Barrie, Leah, Ken, and Julie. These 9 people make the racing possible for the team. I know I need to personally thank them - I am frequently asked if I'm going along with Greg on his race. My response is always the same: "Are you kidding? I LIKE being married to him! I want to keep it that way!" Plus, I hate mountain roads. Our crew members are solid gold, and they need to be commended.

Thank you all for giving us your time, energy, good humor, and best efforts during this race. You are all wonderful.