That Strava page is just unbelievable (as if it wasn't already).
Simply incredible.
150,000 calories in 14 days!
why has the activity been flagged?
I do wish he had a premium account so there was a suffer score!
someone has obviously taken offence at him doing more miles than they have! Im sure strava will actually review that one in person!
Uh oh.. my Mum's now a STW member ) "Hi Mum..."
I'm logged in at a hotel in El Paso, re-booked my flights for later today. Coming home earlier than expected for the best reason possible.
All a bit of a blur at the moment and I've never felt so tired. Just looking over some photos now. Felt strong on the last day, until I got over the line and had a beer, turned into a limping, sleepy wreck in about half an hour.
Liam, Alex and I rode the last 20 miles as a relaxed bunch, we'd met near a food stop in Silver City around 12pm the night before and as long as none of us slept for more than an hour or so we all knew it'd be close. A straight-through was tempting but I think fatigue would've been greater than it would have been worth. I'd got past them just after dawn unknowingly as they stopped for supplies, once I realized I was probably in front I tried a TT finish and was fairly confident of holding my pace for the last 30 miles when I saw them chasing in the distance, but my lack of aero bars (stupid principles..) and 34t single ring up front weren't helping. When we regrouped and relaxed, then decided we should go over the line all guns blazing I knew I wasn't going to get 3rd, Alex deserved it and had done since a week earlier. He's a tough rider with good experience in long events, you only need to know his list of expedition achievements to feel demoralized when riding against him. Spot error had me in 4th, but Liam got 4th within a few yards of Alex, I was 5th a hundred yards back, spinning like an idiot.
Such a hard thing to do, way harder than I expected (and I had the full-on fear pre-race, I knew it'd be a major test) since I never thought I'd be racing with riders that close for 80% of the race, looking over my shoulder at every stop, wishing I had some tactical experience or advantage aside from being prepared to sleep in the dirt wherever I needed to. Extra points for sleeping out every night, no motel/shower stops from one end to the other? A bit grim, I know ) I sat in a stream now and then to clean off..
And to Mike Hall - you've become a legend of the TDR. It's truly amazing the pace he rode at and the miles he covered each day. We really felt for him at the closed road in Abiqui, he deserved an almost unbeatable record. But from here, positions and records seem less important now, what counts is how you ride and cope with what comes up. Mike showed how it can be done and everyone noticed, wherever we called in, if Mike had been there people were talking about this crazy-fast guy who was 200 miles ahead already. Jesse is a hugely talented and really nice guy too, from BMX world champion to TDR 2nd place as a rookie and a very long way ahead of the rest of us. Managed to look pretty damn cool while doing it too. I feel proud of my ride as well as very humbled by the guys who were so far in front of me.
A few pics coming up.
Proper awesome result James, massive well done!
So, can we look forward to seeing a TD race bike in the shops soon 😉
Nice one, well done on a superb achievement.
Jameso
I live in Albuquerque and while following the race was trying to figure out if you had to detour around the Silver fire in S. New Mexico or does the official trail run to the west of the fire?
well done James - a truly excellent performance and inspiration to us all.
busydog, we were sent off the main rout on FR28 toward the FR159 and mogollon (sp?), then 65 miles of tarmac on Hwy 180 to Silver City. A tough day, but apparently easier than the main route? I'm not sure where the fire was, I rode into Silver City around midnight and had been breathing thin smoke for a few hours and could see ash and smoke in the headlight beam, but no fires. I think the trackleader spot trace shows the diversion.
jameso--thanks, I know the area around both FR28 and FR159 as I have camped in the area a number of times, so that clarifies what I was trying to figure out.
I think the actual fire was east of you---not surprised you encountered the smoke---almost the whole damn state is smoky these days waiting for the monsoon season (actually got 1/2 inch of rain here last night--first real measurable rain in almost 6 months).
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and thanks for the +ve comments, it's appreciated.
Well done to Mike and you JamesO. Simply getting to the start line , knowing whats in front of you is an acheivement in itself .
Any major mechanicals with the bike?
James - how about doing it one of your own bikes next time 😉
WELL DONE JAMES!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Just out of interest are you based in Stroud ❓
Great ride James, well done on a massive achievement. A couple of years ago your speed was ~record pace subject to re-routes in NM. Enjoyed following your blue dot.
Mike has made a call in:
[url= http://mtbcast.com/site2/2013/07/03/mtbcast-td13-mike-hall-called-in-from-pivot-cycles-hq/ ]mtbcast[/url]
Mike hae told be before leaving that once you finish you normally have another day to pedal back to civilisation. ...so a finish meeting was planned for him. He now gets some R&R and to visit the Pivot guys befor flying home next week.
he found time to go for a relaxing........bike ride out of Phoenix. Nutcase.
Great to see some pics James!
Very impressive sleeping and washing out - respect!
Looking forward to hearing a few more details once you've settled back into normal life (which will probably be a real comedown) 🙂
Awesome achievement James. Mike had a lot more experience but you did amazing for a rookie and such a different race with the others so that must have added a whole different dimension for you than just being out on your own!
STmind - A couple of rear flats, a cut sidewall and a cut tread that I didn't fix properly 1st time meant 3 stops for UST faff, but otherwise no mechanicals aside from a broken frame-bag zip that I stitched up on day 2. That and some right-hand nerve issues / numb fingers made getting things in and out of the bag hard so I just left stuff in there and faffed less. I aimed to get through on the same parts as I started on (hence the 1x6 gearing that didn't do me much good in the last sprint!) and it worked out, no bike shop stops needed.
Blackhound, thanks, and thanks for the advice earlier in the year, very much appreciated.
Qwerty, thanks; Stroud-born but living in Herts now, ah well. Still love the Cotswolds.
Bland, it would have been an easier ride for me without the pressure of such close racing all the way but they pushed me harder and in the end I rode better for it. Without Alex on my case I'd never have experienced the sleep-monster side of endurance riding later in the race ) a surreal place..
Geoffj, Jeff Jones did a better job there )
