The Trans American Bike Race (TABR) launched on Saturday morning, June 4th. From Oregon to Virginia, the Trans Am is the hardest unsupported road race in the US. At 4400 miles, it’s twice as long as the Tour de France.
Day 14 Trans Am Race Report:
After a long day in flight, Steffen Streich bedded down last night in Farmington. Deutsch and Wilcox rode another hour before shutting down at 11. After breaking from his customary long sleeps, the question was: when will Streich get up and start moving? Pushed to exhaustion, Streich fell back to form and slept 6.5 hours. This past 24 hours could have been an extraordinary day of epic proportions. Now, let me tell you how it wasn’t.
Rather than capitalize on their good luck, Evan and Lael decide to uncharacteristically extend their sleeping too, another hour or so. Effectively letting Streich off the hook for the previous 48 hours of effort. Free sleep for the leader. That late start would cost them 20 miles on Streich, who held them characteristically at 80 miles for most of the day. Nice day on the road despite the seesaw route, but a temperate 89 degrees is a relief from the furnace of the previous days. As press time approaches, we see Streich within a few miles of Cave-in-Rock and the passage over to Kentucky which will come about 7pm CST. Laevan won’t close the distance to the last ferry before it shuts down for the night. Presumably they will bed down until first light, a period that is longer than their routine and thus forfeiting another 20-30 miles to Streich.
Today is the day that the Second Place riders could have closed to within 50 miles of the leader and kept him in overdrive; instead Steffen Streich is fully within his game once again and has gained hours on his rivals with nothing but blue sky and stray dogs between him and the finish.
We are now past 2/3rds finished with the Trans Am route with a few punishing days of climbing still to come. It’s not an exhibited weakness for Steffen Streich. Deutsch and Wilcox had planned to bring the pain to Streich in Kentucky, but that might be one river too late.
After a bad few days, Sarah *The Aussassin* Hammond seems to be on the rebound, closing the gap to Kai Edel. She’s a strong climber and if those legs have returned, she should slip into 4th quite handily. If the ferry crossing does bar Laevan, we could see some opportunity for 4th and 5th placed riders to open up some competition on 2nd. Interestingly, placings for the rest of the Top 10 have become fiercely contested between Bathurst, Fancoli and Colwill. Regardless of what happens up front, there should be plenty of action to keep an eye on in the days to come. This is a crazy race.
QUOTE OF THE DAY: “Missouri is where you should send people you hate.” – Sarah Hammond
THE FANCOURT PRESS: Road Angel JD Schwartz pulled up to a vacant patch of dirt in the middle of nowhere and with a few bird calls solicited a quasi-feral Lee Fancourt the dense cover of the brush. With Colnago hangar installed and the call of civilization like some distant memory chiming across the plains in front of him… as of 2:30am Lee Fancourt is BACK in it!
MEDIA COVERAGE: Cave-in-Rock (the ferry crossing) has a live cam.
CARE TO MAKE IT INTERESTING?: Some of us have made predictions about how this is going to end. Staking our favorites for the Win; with losers making a donation to Newton Bike Sbop. Entirely opt-in and self patrolled. Only 24 more hours to step up and enjoy the final week fun. Details at the MAKING IT INTERESTING, reply within yesterday’s comment to join the fray.
AUDUBON JERSEY Leader Board: Marshall continues to pull forward, and Buchs ties for 3rd. Fwiw, I could very easily have started a competition for best food pictures and rider’s dietary grousing. Could have gone either way.
Jason Marshall – 9 points
Laura Scott – 7 points
Wayne Kurtz – 2 point
Andi Buchs – 2 point
Joseph Boquiren – 1 point
Ilaria Corli – 1 point
(c) Andi Buchs
(c) Jason Marshall
For additional information about the Trans American Bike Race, you can find them online at: site. Or on Facebook.
Among his less savory qualities, he's a poor sport, a sore loser and ill fitted for honest labor. He makes bad friends and worse decisions. Animals avoid him and children despise him. He's been known to drink to excess, carry on with seditious talk and leer at women. He's a coward, a card cheat and a known liar.
Mrs. Call's second grade class said perhaps all that needed to be said about Larsen.In a moment of vindication and possibly clarity, Call would add to Larsen's permanent record that he was a bit of a dreamer and that Larsen was "an excellent student but his grades trailed off in the final semester."True, Larsen was filled with promise and saddled as starry-eyed but one can't help but notice that Call's inability to chisel this raffish diamond-in-rough wasn't also a clerical trick to distance herself from the responsibility of the 'Nurture' debate.She also said he was "prompt".She wasn't wrong.
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