And I thought the RAAM rider were nuts !

[Blastinbob]

A non-supported race from west to east coast with a 21 day maximum time.Crazy riders sign-up here ! (http://www.transamracing.org/)

[bags27]

Having never ridden more than 250 miles in a day, I don't know why I'm saying this, but it doesn't seem to be that hard. It's a super brevet: tactical and mechanical skills are more important than VO2 Max. You've got to be cleaver about the weather and where you stash your stuff (you will wear out a couple pairs of tires, etc.). You just break it down to 150 miles/day. If that takes 16 hrs. on some days, well, that's what it takes. Other days, it's 9 or 10 hrs. Plan ahead, ride with a friend, and have a bit of luck. I'm tentatively planning to try it, and I know a couple of people who will have no problem with it.

This is where those bikes that dbrk always yells about come in mighty handy!!

[chrisroph]

Bags: I have a dear friend and riding mate who has done many brevet series including PBP. The 1200's he has done have brutal and taken a huge toll. If you are thinking about leaping into a cross country brevet without having ever done rides of over 250miles/day, I think you are in for a big surprise as to hard a venture you are considering. You might want to plan a brevet series this spring.

[Tom]

Heck, they let you make it even easier by riding a fixie! No shifters or brakes to maintain, how much easier can it get?

Maybe they could let you make it twice as easy by riding a unicycle.

[coylifut]

I can honestly say that I don't know anyone who would have no problem finishing.

Qualification to Enter:

Exact qualifying standards have not been confirmed yet, but it will most likely include one or more of the following palmares:

• Paris-Brest-Paris or other 1200km randonnée finisher
• 2006 Furnace Creek 508 Expedition Race finisher
• Furnace Creek 508 finisher
• Race Across America finisher
• or comparable

[Too Tall]

As Spock would say "innnnteresting". Talk about brutal. Yeah, I've seen the info. before.

Riding 150-200 miles a day for an experienced distance rider is hard as all get out however it's as they say "doable"...with support I was working for Haldeman/Notorangelo during the re-birth of their "Elite" PAC tour...a 15 day crossing. Haldeman and Jerry Tatri and I were driving the Motel truck who's job was to provide middle of the day support and get the bags to the hotel. Since Tatri was not training for RAAM and Haldeman had a show to run they let me ride my bike most of the day...the deal was if they caught me before the Hotel I had to get in the truck. Most days I was able to ride all but 30-50 miles. It absolutely crushed me. We rode at a steady 17-22 pace all day long in a paceline and solo.

The riders only had to scout out dinner at the end of the day...everything else was provided and THEY were at wits end if so much as a spoke broke...no spare energy. They started at dawn and finished at dusk.

SO you can imagine how freakin' hard it would be for someone on their own to ride that far each day, maintain their bike, navigate and stay healthy/clean/fed/clothed.

In advance of a winner, my hat is off to any brave soul who does this. It will be no joke and will humble the best riders.

Think about it...the fastest RAAM riders finish in just under 9 days...this is RAMM + some sleep - support! Ouch.

[bags27]

I sure don't want to sound cavilier about this (or any other long distance challenge). But let's remember: PBP has to be completed in 90 hours, which is 200 miles every 24 hrs. And the road is mobbed with people wanted access to the same food and sleeping facilities. It's sleep deprivation that is especially exhausting. I've known people (okay, they're in really good shape) who bike coast-to-coast in a month comfortably. This is 50% more (according to the website 155 miles/day). The challenge, I think, is, once you clear the Rockies, to ride pretty evenly everyday. You should be able to sleep a full night most nights, and that's a huge, huge, difference. By no means am I minimizing the effort (and I certainly shouldn't have said that I know people who will have "no problem" with it). It's definitely a very, very hard ride for anyone, but because it's meeting controle times and not a race, a lot of advanced logistical planning will ease a lot of the body stress. And if you ride with a friend or two, then you've got support and encouragement. A GPS, emergency tools, and multiple hotel room reservations (which you cancel as you bike by) are necessary.

I'm sorry that I wrote in such an extreme way, because I respect the challenge enormously. But I just don't think it's the same kind of challenge as RAAM--which, because it's competitive and ridden in a little more than 1/3 of the time, has to be among the hardest things one can put the human body through.