Before the Race

The Furnace Creek 508 Bicycle Race (www.the508.com) is a 508 mile race starting just north of Los Angeles, CA, going through Death Valley & ending in 29 Palms. I (Vicki Pelton) was crewing for Tim Woudenberg, a solo rider on a recumbent. I was joined by Richard Philabaum & Jim Haltom on the crew. Richard & I had crewed for Tim on RAAM this year so it was nice to be working together again. Jim had experience on other RAAM adventures.

This race doesn't use boring race numbers (as the race director says), but rather uses totems, which has to be an animal. If you do this race more than one time (people actually do that), you can keep your totem. Tim's totem is Werewolf. This was Tim's forth time doing this race.

The day before the race (Friday, 5 Oct 07) we drove down from Redwood City, using the small GPS system to get us to our hotel. Somehow the GPS had us going in circles so we gave up for the time being & headed down to the start line hotel. I think I detected a smile on the face of the GPS system as it seemed to enjoy teasing us.

We put the required signs & lights on the van, in addition to adding external speakers for the PA & music for Tim. Inside we had plugged in a cell phone, CD player, auxiliary car battery, battery charger, and a gallon water heater (more on that later). Half way through the race, when some component wasn't working, I had to crawl under the seat to try to find the missing wire. It was a rat's nest down there. The question that came to mind was, "How many wires does it take to run a bike race?" Continuing with startup procedures, we got the bikes & van inspected & approved & then went to the pre-race meeting.

The approximately 200 racers (solo & 2 & 4 person teams) with accompanying crew packed the room. I enjoyed seeing everyone together, all eager & anxious for the race to start. We couldn't sit together so I found a single seat somewhere. The guy next to me said, "Do I know you?" I didn't think so. He said, "You're Vicki Pelton. I've had ice cream in your backyard." Oh, I guess we do know each other. In the summer I often lead bicycle rides that come to my house for an ice cream social & have served hundreds of riders, so I guess this was one of them.

I've never ridden The 508 but have crewed it before so this guy, being a rookie, was pumping me with questions. Wow, I felt like I actually knew something. They showed a short video of last year's race. Whenever it showed the vast expanse of the desert or yet another unending hill, this guy would say something like, "Ohmygawd, we have to do that?!" It was pretty comical. (Turns out his team did quite well.)

At some point they asked for questions. During the race, there are several mountain passes, one of which is called Sheep Hole Pass. I asked the question, "I was wondering, what IS a sheep hole?" The answer was, "You can't use it as a totem."

Then it was back to the hotel. This time we actually got there (take that, you GPS system).

The Race, Day One

The next morning we were up bright & early for a buffet breakfast & the race start. Just a few minutes from the start Tim was about to get on his bike & realized he didn't have his bike shoes on. I did a sprint to the van (at the very end of the parking lot, of course) to get the shoes & Tim got them on a few seconds before the race start. It's exciting to see the riders finally starting out & seeing all the vans following. This is really a big team effort. The rider can't do it without the crew & Tim was very appreciative of the support we gave him.

We're not allowed to help during the first part of the race so all the vans drive up to the 25 mile spot & wait for their rider. It's quite a sight to see all the vans & crew, eagerly waiting for their rider, ready with whatever food & water is needed. As we were waiting, one of the riders saw us & shouted out, "Tim is stopped by the side of the road." Ohmygawd. What does that mean? Does he have a flat, a mechanical failure, a minor problem or a show stopper? We're not supposed to go back to help so we decided to wait for awhile. I had given Tim my cell phone for this first stretch in case he needed help, not knowing if there was cell coverage in the canyon he was in. I called the phone but it wasn't turned on so I figured he wasn't looking for help … yet. He eventually came by. What a relief. Turns out it was a small mechanical problem that Richard quickly fixed.

Now we could do Leap Frog support. Tim passes. We wait awhile. We drive past him a bit, find a safe place to pull over, then wait for him to pass. As he passes, we run along beside him to hand him food or drink. Repeat.

At the start Tim was drinking mainly Maltodextrin (a powder mixed with water) for fuel. When he was tired of that, he switched to soda & wraps. We made the wraps with tortillas containing lunch meat, cheese, lettuce, mayo, mustard & pickles. We'd fold the bottom over so nothing would fall out. This was much easier for him to handle than a bread sandwich. We perfected this on RAAM & it worked well here also.

To follow the route, we used both the directions from the race packet & also the GPS system. The GPS system actually worked quite well in this case.

Near the end of the first day we were starting up Townes Pass, the highest pass (4956 feet elevation). While most riders had "normal" upright bikes, Tim was riding a recumbent. People always wonder which is faster. The answer is that it depends on the terrain & the rider. Generally, recumbents are faster on the flats & downhills, while the upright bikes are faster on the uphills. While starting up Townes Pass, Tim expected to be passed by upright bikes. Turns out he held his own, so that's always nice. The cool thing about Townes Pass is that it's in a dramatic setting & it's just getting dark as the rider climbs. As time passes, it's getting darker & darker. You can look down the long road & see the headlights of the vans slowly creeping up the mountain, following their rider. You can look up the road & see the tail lights of those in front. During the day you might see a few riders at a time, but at night, on this mountain, you can see so many riders. It makes you realize how many people are involved in this endeavor. We're really all in this together, struggling against the elements.

At night we switched to Follow Mode. We stayed behind the rider & he used our headlights to see the road ahead. This can be a hair raising experience when you're driving at night, keeping five feet behind your rider & you're all going downhill at up to 60 mph. Just close your eyes & think about that. As we're zooming down the back side of Townes Pass, it's actually hard to get a feel for how fast we're going. Then up ahead, there are two upright bikes, with their vans, also zooming down the hill. We're approaching very fast, & then within a second, Tim has passed them both & we quickly lose them. Ohmygawd. Now that's fast!

In this type of race, everyone is pushing themselves to the limit. The legs, heart & lungs are all working overtime. Considering all the things that can go wrong, it's amazing that what stops people the most is stomach problems. It's difficult to digest food & push your body hard for long periods of time. Of those that don't finish, more than half have stomach problems. Tim is well known for his stomach problems (you don't want to know the details). In the middle of the night, at one of the time stations, his stomach said, "Enough of this, I quit."

Through trial & error over the years, Tim has discovered that the road to recovery is hot chicken noodle soup & cold soda (& you thought pickles in a burrito were weird). To make sure he'd have hot soup when needed, he bought a gallon coffee pot that can be used to heat water. Since it was so big, he had to get a huge inverter which required an auxiliary battery, which required a battery charger (how many wires …?). Early in the race I had heated a bunch of water to have ready. By now it was just warm so turned on the pot to reheat it. But now it wasn't working!! Oh no. Richard & I tried to analyze the problem but it was all behind the back seat under a bunch of stuff & we had to be contortionists to get to it all. We weren't able to solve the problem & warm water on dried noodles didn't quite make it.

Tim then wanted to try Pear Juice. I said he was tempting fate, since everyone has a "Tim & Pear Juice" story to tell. Sure enough, that's what happened (you don't want to know the details). Here he is in the middle of the night in the middle of nowhere, exhausted, not knowing if he'll finish the race & has just leaned out the window to do you-know-what & he calmly says, "Well, that didn't work." Cracked me up. Tim decides he needs to sleep. This is always dangerous, as I've heard so many stories of the rider wanting to take a short nap & then not wanting to get out of the van. Tim asks us to wake him in 10 minutes so we decide to let him in the van. After 10 minutes, we wake him & he groggily gets up & on his bike. Here he is, totally exhausted, with no food in his system, awakened from a deep sleep & he actually has the mental ability to get going. Very amazing.

The Race, Day Two

The next morning we can go to Leap Frog support again so we dash ahead to Baker to get real chicken noodle soup at the Mad Greek Restaurant. But they don't have any. Oh no. So I just buy a quart of boiling water & a vanilla shake for me (yes, for breakfast, but hey, they are famous for these). Then we dash back & I have the soup ready when we find him. He stops right there & sits on the gravel at the side of the road & chows down. Hey, it's a picnic. I ask if he wants a fork for the noodles. He says, "Who needs a fork?", as he does a face plant into the soup.

Everyone has a spot in the race that is the most difficult. For Tim, it's the Kelso Grade, just after Baker. He's been biking an entire day & an entire night & he's had stomach problems. The grade is not steep but it's very long & it's straight so you can see the summit but never seem to get there. It's a long grind.

The three solo recumbents are in their own category. At the other time stations, Tim was ahead, but only by a few minutes. We figured that during the meltdown last night, the others had passed. At the time station in Baker, we'd find out the damage. Tim went ahead while we stopped to get the times. I looked at the hand written chart but couldn't find their totems. Maybe I was missing something. I quizzed the time keepers & they assured me neither had come through yet. We were still ahead? How could this be? We caught up to Tim & I asked him how far behind he figured he was. He gave an estimate. Then I told him the good news. His response was, "What?!" Once it finally sunk in, he was in high spirits & put the pedal to the metal. What excellent news to have on the Kelso grade.

Tim brought 3 recumbent bikes for the race: the Velocraft Nocom for the flats & downhills, the Velocraft VK2 for the uphills & the Lightening for the very rough road on Sheep Hole Pass. While we were stopped for a bike exchange, some friends of Tim's on a two person recumbent team came by (the teams, which are in a different category, start two hours after the solos). While their rider went ahead, the crew & other rider stopped to chat. Hey, this is a race, Tim let's go! And he did.

Our crew would rotate positions every once in awhile. There was driving, navigating & preparing food in the back. Tim had built a bench in the back for the crew to sleep on. I couldn't sleep during the night. Just too uncomfortable. By the time day rolled around, I was so tired that I finally was able to sleep when I had time on the bench. Just a little bit of sleep really helps.

Tim was getting sleepy. It didn't slow him down much but he started hallucinating. Many people have reported this. He would see an enormous building slide into the road in front of him. He knew it was an illusion so just kept going. But he told us that if there really was something in front of him, be sure to tell him. We tried chatting with him on the two way radio & that seemed to help.

The Finish

We were finally near the town with the finish line as it was getting dark. It seemed so close but seemed to take forever to get there. But finally, there it was, the finish ribbon (made out of toilet paper!) Tim crashes through! Success!! The small crowd applauded & there were pictures & handshakes all around. Tim got another well earned medal. The race director was enamored with Tim's very low Nocom recumbent & wants to give it a try. Tim happily set it up for him with a big smile on his face (Tim knows how difficult it is to start). The race directory got ready & off he goes … for about 2 feet, & then he tipped over. Maybe next year.

Tim won the solo recumbent category, which is a great feeling. In addition, one competitor was quite a bit younger than Tim so that's an even sweeter victory. Tim also set the all time record for the solo recumbent 50-59 age category. So that's another feather in his cap. Everyone was in high spirits.

Next morning all the riders & crew had breakfast together. The riders wore their hard earned medals. A few were a bit shy about putting them on, but we all insisted. They pulled the medals out of their pockets & put them on. I thought it was cute. They felt thrilled with their accomplishment but didn't want to show off. But with the support of the community, they were able to wear their medals proudly.

It was great to have everyone together one last time so we could schmooze & get all the stories. We also got to see how others have set up their vans, which is always interesting. So that was it. Another grueling race & a sense of accomplishment, for both rider & crew … until next year.

--Written by Vicki Pelton