Sacrificial RAAM

February 10, 2012

Do you ride your bicycle because you feel like it is the gateway to another dimension that can be reached through suffering? Maybe you feel that bicycling is a method to experience the true essence of your being? Do you want to see how you feel and what your body does in situations that are completely inexplicable? Well, if you answered no to all of these questions, then perhaps you are a symmetrical mandala of contemplation. If you answered yes, then maybe you should go get RAAMed. It is the infamous Race Across America. Competitors in the solo category will ride for about 9 days without much sleep or stopping for about 3,100 miles, from San Diego to Atlantic City.

RAAM was the subject of a movie called Bicycle Dreams that I watched at the Aksarben Cinema last night with a crowd of fellow bicycle enthusiasts.



How many bicycles can you spot?  How many bicyclists?

 The movie was part of a fund raiser that was organized by two of the local bicycle clubs:  Omaha Pedalers and Bellevue Bicycle Club. Funds were being raised to help with the construction of local trails and bike lanes, specifically a Fort Crook Road bike lane connecting Bellevue to downtown Omaha. Turnout was good, and it included the mayors of both cities, who gave some brief speeches endorsing both bike paths and bike lanes. There were also a few bike shops with bicycles on display, such as a $3,000 Trek Madone 4.7 (?) from the Bike Rack. 

Look at me.  Crisp, clean and oh, so refreshing!

Yes, that is a lot of money, especially if you like your bikes like me- old, slow and stable (wait, is that me, or my bikes...?   Hmmmmm.)  But the good new is I hear the Rack's got a sale this weekend.

I bought some raffle tickets and headed in to claim a new, very comfortable seat in the theater where I relaxed in the company of fellow bicyclers. I met my neighbor, Martin, who encouraged me to join one of the local bicycling clubs. We bitched about how our family members mostly hated bicycles.

If you hated bicycles already, watching Bicycle Dreams would not improve your perception of our lovable 2-wheeled accomplices. The movie portrayed a motley group of extreme endurance athletes out on the highways of the US of A. Mostly they were bicycling very rapidly with a big van full of people behind them to cater to their needs as they engaged in this epic exercise in masochism. The transcendental nature of the race was discussed using a variety of metaphors. Superlatives flew out of hyperbole in volleys of verbal fireworks that ignited the ensuing wildfire known as Bicycle Dreams. One of my favorite quotes was by Chris McDonald of Seattle (the [spoiler alert!] eventual 2nd place finisher), who said something along the lines of, "You know, the most primal form of surviving. It's just...survival!" Yes it is, Chris. I don't think many of us would argue with you on that one. Kind of like the most primal form of human communication is crying, which most of the RAAMers did a lot of due to the extreme suffering and varying degrees of delirium they endured. Quite a few tears were shed when the affable strong man Bob Breedlove (a 53 year old orthopedic surgeon from Iowa who was on his 6th RAAM) was struck and killed by an oncoming vehicle during the race. Bob's motto was displayed as an acronym on his license plate: "IADIP" for "It's another day in paradise."

The movie seemed like it went on for a long time. It was really only about 2 hours, but they covered over 3,000 miles, so no wonder it seemed long. Two Slovenians, Jure and Marko, were vying for the lead for awhile until Marko had to go to the hospital due to breathing difficulty. It turns out he had a dangerously severe case of pneumonia in both lungs and had to bow out. Jure, a member of the Slovenian army, was the 3rd time winner of the race by a large margin. Hopkinson was a bit of comedy relief as the blundering Briton (an itinerant music teacher who had suffered multiple bicycling accidents and injuries and had an irrepressibly puckish sense of humour) with a colourful mouhawk. After about 1,900 miles his crew helped him apply an inflatable tube around his neck to keep his head from falling forward as he rode. He became the first Briton to finish the RAAMing ritual.

After the film, a former RAAM participant, Kay Ryschon from our fair city did a Q&A. She told a few good stories about the event and how she passed a guy who was about to settle down to a well-earned nap, when she passed him. He passed her about an hour later because he wasn't going to let a girl get in front of him!
I made it out to the lobby and won a New Belgium Brewery bottle opener during the raffle, yay! Thanks to all the people who made this happen.

If you are interested in RAAM, I am told that there's a really good book about it called Hell on Two Wheels. Also the same director of Bicycle Dreams, Stephen Auerbach, has apparently done another movie about the race, and is possibly making a third. If you are looking for some meaning to life. Maybe you are looking for the mean RAAAMMMM! Race Aaa! cross Mmmmerica! Run away, run away! I hear there's a tandem category. Maybe a relay category, too. I'll take a downhill stage.

Oh, and if suffering, two wheels and a movie is your version of a burger, fries and a beer, then you might wanna check out the upcoming Ghost Rider 2.