Why do the RACE ACROSS AMERICA?

We all need challenges in order to strive; sometimes they are imposed on us from the outside, sometimes we create them ourselves. The Race Across America (RAAM)  belongs to one of the "ultimate challenges" in the latter category.

The attraction of the Race Across America is somehow based on the simplicity of the rules: start on the Pacific west coast of the USA, travel on a predefined route, and after about 3,000 miles reach the finish line on the other side of the American continent at the Atlantic ocean. The clock never stops. The racers do not take predetermined breaks; they ride as many miles in a 24-hour period as they possibly can. Besides the physical challenge, RAAM is primarily testing the athlete’s mental strength.

Since the body follows the mind, RAAM is primarily a mental challenge. This poses the special attraction for me and defines my ultimate quest:

Is RAAM physically possible with primarily mental strength? As a trained manager, who has learned to deal with complex mental challenges, do I have a chance in a race where good physical fitness is surely important, but ultimately not decisive?

Power can be defined in many ways. At RAAM, one way to define it might be the extremely long distances one has to bicycle everyday. To reach the finish line as an official finisher in 12 days, over 250 miles need to be covered and 10-15,000 calories need to be consumed daily.

RAAM is not for masochists, although many who hear about the race for the first time wrongly think so. A masochist would fail after a few days, because ignoring the body’s warning signals would quickly and inexorably lead to disaster: the mind would not be able to master the body’s troubles.

Over 50 percent of all solo starters do not reach the finish line in the required timeframe to be considered an official finisher. Avoiding the key DNF (did not finish) reasons has therefore the highest priority for my team and me.

Here I see my chance as a trained manager: careful planning to be optimally prepared and staying focused in order to manage the daily challenges with utmost concentration to be ready to expect and manage the unexpected. The support team is of utmost importance – and I can trust in the best team I could have imagined in helping me.

Many RAAM veterans describe RAAM as a metaphor for life itself: being prepared for all obstacles by overcoming them in a team effort to reach one’s goals!

Our goal is to reach Annapolis on the Atlantic coast in the required 12 days. With self-imposed anti-doping tests, which the Department for Sports Medicine of the University of Freiburg, Germany, developed, we intend to demonstrate that the bicycle sport can be newsworthy with full legal behavior.

I already want to thank my team for the immense engagement with which they have prepared for the event, and my sponsors, who provided me with their best materials and know-how, and last but not least all of you, who cross your fingers for us.

Start of RAAM: June 8, 2008 in Oceanside, California!