The Furnace Creek 508 is one of the most grueling bicycle races in the world. It runs non-stop 508 miles from Santa Clarita through the Mohave Desert and Death Valley to Twenty Nine Palms with over 35,000 feet of climbing along the way.

The racers have "totems", not numbers. The totems are of an animal, mostly real, but the race director has allowed some liberal interpretation of "real".

Marko Tweety Bird Baloh is an accomplished ultra cyclist from Slovenia. He raced RAAM in 2003 but had to drop out 400 miles from the finish due to a blood clot in his lungs. He had a long recovery period and had trained hard for this race. He described the 508 as a "test ride" for RAAM in 2005.

A few weeks before the race Marko caught a bad case of the flu that knocked him off the bike for 10 days. He also spent three days waiting for his bike to arrive the week before the race. He spent his time scouting the local part of the course and watching TV in his hotel.

The crew was composed of three people, all of whom Marko met via the ultracycling email list.

Jack Blackbird Bochsler from San Diego was our crew chief. He'd completed the 508 last year in 15'th place with a respectable 39 hour finish time. He was the only crew member who had seen the entire route.

Tim Greenland from Mountain View was relatively new to the ultra scene. He'd done a few centuries but hadn't participated in any doubles, yet.

I'm from San Francisco has been doing doubles for three years. I've twice crewed for Rob Kish in RAAM and I've always been interested in seeing the the 508 for a potential go at it myself.

A standard crew is composed of three members, who generally have distinct duties:

• A driver whose job just to drive, watch for turnouts during leapfrog support, and not run over the rider while pacing directly behind them. It's good for the driver to be the most well rested person in the vehicle
• A navigator, sitting in the passenger seat, whose job it is to keep the vehicle and rider on course, and keep an eye out for supply and fueling locations along the way.
• A feeder who will generally sit in the back, clean and mix bottles, and do other duties like replace tubes on wheels. These duties will fall upon the navigator when the third crew member sleeps.

The crew rotates duties as necessary to allow crew members to sleep. Joe and Tim drove down from the San Francisco Bay Area together. As we pulled into the Hilton Gardens parking lot we realized we had no idea what Marko looked like. We had previously sent him a copy of our driver's licenses for the car rental and he had apparently studied them because he recognized Tim as soon as he walked into the lobby.

The 35,000 ft of climbing along those 508 miles brings out the low gears for many riders. Lots of riders had triple chain rings and huge rear cogs.

The rental van was smaller than we had expected, and Marko had a LOT of stuff. After trying a few things we immediately realized that the third row seat needed to go. The problem was that we weren't staying at the hotel that night and the van needed to return to LAX along with Marko after the race. We would check out of the hotel the next morning and were pretty sure the hotel wouldn't store a seat for us. After a few attempts we somehow we squeezed the seat across the front row of Jack's pickup and decided that we would just have to go back to LAX, drop off Marko, pick up the seat from the start, and head back to LAX to return the van.

The van had some annoying features. There were two keys on the key ring, but they were permanently tied together with a heavy plastic cord. We quickly remedied that by cutting the cord. Another was the automatic locks that would seemingly lock at random times. We figured out how to turn off this "feature" but it still locked on us once during the race. All our keys were in the van, but fortunately we left a window open and were able to retrieve them.

The various totems allow some teams get quite creative about decorating their pace vehicle with their particular theme. Some even decorated themselves for the race.

Every time we thought we had the van fully packed Marko would surprise us with another item that needed to go into the van. After we though the van was "really" full. He came out with a big hard side suitcase that we somehow got to fit.

While setting up the van we commented about how much easier it is for someone in the US to compete in this race. They can easily bring racks, spare bikes, and other equipment. We didn't have anything fancy. Jack had brought his roof lights, I brought bike tools, food for the crew, electronics such as a laptop/GPS and my bike as a spare. We all brought a cooler and various other random bits that would be difficult for Marko to bring on the plane.

We brought lots of supplies, tools, parts, etc. We packed just about anything that will fit in the pace vehicle that might end up being useful, figuring it's much better to bring something and not use it than to need it and not have it. This philosophy included ice, water, and gas. Get it before you need it and don't worry about spending a few extra bucks on ice that will melt unused.

Efficient radio communication between rider and crew is invaluable. We had a set of FRS radios that allowed Marko to use an ear bud speaker with lapel microphone. It's helpful even while pacing directly behind, and invaluable during leapfrog support. The only issue we had was wind noise. Sometimes it was pretty bad and we could barely understand the rider.

We also used a GPS for navigation. It may seem like a gimmick but after using one you'll never want to go back. I loaded the route into Microsoft Streets and Trips and found it did a good job keeping us informed as to where we were on the route and to also helped avoid missing turns. Even with a GPS it's not a substitute for double checking the route sheet during the race in case as I might have entered something incorrectly. Streets and Trips was OK, but at the finish I saw someone had use Street Atlas USA along with a pocketPC device that seemed like it would have been smaller and less obtrusive (and less prone to spillage) than a laptop across the front seat.

The Friday night pre-race meeting is required for all racers. Race Director Chris Kostman went through a bunch of formalities such as reviewing important rules, answered questions clarifying rules, gave us a demo of how to do handoffs, and played an awesome video from last year's race.

The 17 inaugural hall of fame inductees were introduced. These are people who completed an amazing five races in any category.

The race grows every year. The field this year was huge with 124 racers in various divisions such as mens and womens solo, 2x and 4x relay teams, a recumbent, and three completely crazy fixed gear racers. The new fixed gear division this year required the rider to ride the same gear throughout the entire race. They couldn't have a freewheel either. This made for an incredibly challenging race considering the climbs and descents the riders would face.

After the meeting we all enjoyed a pasta feed with plenty of garlic bread. We debated getting ice the night before or morning of. We decided we'd fill the coolers the night before and half a cooler left in the morning was better than nothing.

We all headed back to the hotel and set our alarms for 5:00 am.

At 6:30 am the riders assembled for the 7:00 am solo rider start. It was a chilly morning and there were a few unsettled nerves. Chris gave a few last minute words of wisdom. and then they were off to cheers from friends and family. I always wondered what local drivers through about 100 cyclists taking off out of a hotel parking lot at dawn on a saturday. It's also amazing how many volunteers it takes to run this race. They're running around as much as the rider and crew and sit out in the middle of the desert all day and night for us. We were sure to thank the volunteers when we saw them.

4 miles into the race the narrow twisty climb up San Francisquito Canyon began. All the crew vehicles raced to beat them to that point, otherwise we wouldn't be able to pass the group until Elizabeth Lake, 20 miles into the race since it would otherwise be too dangerous for all the vehicles to pass the riders on that climb. Drivers were lining up their vehicles or headed out early so that they wouldn't get stuck in traffic or at the end of the caravan and miss their rider at the first handoff point.

At Elizabeth Lake there were pace vehicles stretched out on the shoulder to the horizon. This first stop poses potential problems to the riders. There are so many vehicles and crews waiting to do handoffs that the riders will sometimes pass their crew and be stuck without food and water until miles later. We somehow were able to fit our van on the shoulder nearest the turn so that we would be the first van after the turn. This was strategic in that our rider was guaranteed to not miss us.

The 508 is famous for temperatures of 100 degrees or more. While it gets very hot during the day it also gets very cold at night. At the stop it was especially windy. We waited for Marko while shivering in our winter wear, wishing it would warm up soon and knowing that in a few hours we'd be fondly remembering the brisk morning. Jack demonstrated the value of being nice to officials when he scored some hot coffee from one who shared from her thermos.

At 9:00 we heard the call of "riders coming!" and got ready for handoffs. Oyster was first around the turn, with Marko right on his tail!

Handoffs to a moving rider can be tricky. They're moving at 20mph and don't want to slow down or stop for a handoff. Having a rider try to grab a bottle from a standing crew member can be dangerous and frequently results in the bottle getting knocked into the dirt. The best technique is for the crew member to hold the bottle from the top in their left hand, face forward, and when the rider approaches hold their arm out and run to minimize the speed differential between rider and crew. The rider will generally discard their used bottle to the shoulder before reaching the handoff point, and the crew will retrieve the bottles after the handoff is complete.

Shortly after the first turn Marko passed Oyster to move into first place. The second place position shifted between Oyster, Python, Border Collie, and others, but Marko was flying and didn't let any of them get close enough to make a move.

The race rules specify penalties for rider or crew infractions such as not stopping at stop signs, not displaying proper lights or signage, doing improper leapfrogging or handoffs, among others. The penalties include warnings, time penalties where the rider must wait in the "penalty box" at the last time station for a period of time, and potentially disqualification for flagrant or repeated violations.

The 508 is full of interesting scenery. A rider and crew will see giant windmills covering the landscape for miles, a huge airplane graveyard, amazing mountain vistas containing the entire rainbow of color, narrow winding canyon roads, sand dunes, and a spectacular sunrise, sunset, sunrise, and for some yet another sunset. At the first time station an official warned us that a few times we had forgotten to use our turn signal to enter and exit the road during leapfrogging. The last thing a crew wants to do is have their rider lose their place (or the race) due to a rule violation. After that the pace driver used his blinker just about every time he turned his head.

At some point we passed a motorcyclist standing on the side of the road. We didn't recognize until after we passed that he needed help. We turned around to go back, thoroughly confusing Marko. The motorcyclist was with two others. One of them had broken his radiator hose and needed water to refill it. He asked if we could spare a half gallon and we told him that we just happened to have about 15 gallons on board and it was his lucky day. We gave the grateful motorcyclists some water and he apologized for cursing at us when we passed him the first time.

The second time station is across the street from a Texaco in Trona, a tiny impoverished town littered with abandoned cars and buildings. What's there is mostly supported by a local Borax mine. Ironically Trona is the only town along the course with a bike lane. The lane is really just a gravel trail separated from the road by some brush that runs from the Borax mine a few miles into town. We suspect it exists because the residents ride their bikes the few miles to the mine.

Trona is also the home of a high school where the football team plays on a field that's just a big open dirt field. A newspaper article hanging in the local ice cream parlor discusses how the team tends to do very well in home games because their opponents from lush counties aren't used to playing on dirt.

The gas station in Trona is the last gas station that the teams will reach during daylight the first day. After dark the rider is not allowed to progress without their pace car so at Trona every crew sends their rider forward while they fuel up and purchase ice and water.

A huge benefit of being the first team to Trona is that they are guaranteed a good supply of ice, water, and a variety of amazing homemade burritos.

Usually when the crews encounter "civilians" and explain why their vehicle is adorned with bikes, wheels, sound systems, lights, and various depictions of real or imagined animals they're met with responses that indicate our sanity is in question. I'm not sure they're wrong. This time we met a motorcyclist who had previously crewed for RAAM and was familiar with the race. Every year he and his buddies make an evening of getting drunk at the Furnace Creek time station to cheer the riders as they came through.

In the dry desert air you can see for miles in every direction. This is especially pronounced on long, straight sections of road. In Panamint Valley there's no unique scenery and while even when moving at 55 mph (honest!) towards the mountains more than 15 miles ahead it didn't feel like we were making any progress at all.

Throughout the first day we would occasionally see riders headed in the opposite direction from us. This amazed us as they were many miles from anywhere with water and we couldn't believe how they did it without support. We dubbed them the "805" riders.

During the first day of the race the crew is required to "leapfrog" the rider in order to avoid congestion on the busy roads near the start of the race. They will drive past the rider at highway speeds, pull over, do a handoff if necessary, wait until their rider heads up the course some, and repeat.

Since the crew isn't always right next to the rider this requires them to time their passes such that they have time to warn a rider of a turn or get to the turn so they can "mark" it by standing there and pointing. This doesn't always work out and at the left turn from Trona Road to Panamint Valley Marko got there before his crew and missed the turn. Python was just behind him, knew the turn, stopped and yelled to Marko that he missed it. Marko realized his mistake but not before he lost the lead to Python.

Steven Barnes who was writing articles for the webcast was at the turn. He saw Marko miss the turn and also yelled at him. When we passed he stopped our van and asked if Marko had a few minutes to answer questions for an article. We explained that Marko had no intention of stopping for any reason and that it's unlikely he would stop for an interview. Steven received the same response from many other riders, but as the race wore on he found that they started looking for excuses to get off the bike and became much more receptive to stopping for a chat.

We kept a binder of all race information we thought we might need. It contained the route sheet with turns, checkpoints, and warnings highlighted in different colors. We also printed out most of the 508 site, including course description, time station locations and descriptions, splits from previous races, and other things we found useful. We wouldn't get the chance to print it out in the middle of the desert. We had different brands of pens as the heat and altitude caused some of them to self destruct.

Marko had prepared a feeding schedule for the race. It contained a list with times of everything he would eat throughout the race. We also had alternatives such as Snickers, should he need something different. He set a target of 500 calories per hour and it was our job to make sure he didn't fall behind in order to avoid bonking. We recorded the actual feeding time for everything that he ate or drank.

We used different types of liquid nutrition (water, Sustained Energy, Perpetuem, electrolytes). In order to keep things straight we used different colored bottle tops for each type so we could easily grab the right bottle when needed. We kept at least one of each mixed in the cooler at all times. We also taped a color-code cheat sheet to the dashboard and found ourselves checking it every time we'd reach for a bottle.

Another thing that's legendary in the 508 is the potential for high winds. The race route is an upside down "U" and throughout the day the winds were blowing strongly from the south. This led to strong tailwinds and a blazingly fast morning for all the riders.

At the right turn from Panamint to 190 and the base of Towne Pass Python was about a minute ahead. This turn is just about 200 miles into the race and makes for a good comparison to the double centuries that many of the riders use to train for the 508. Due to the incredible tailwind Marko and Python had just completed a double century in 8.5 hours for an average speed of 23.5 mph.

After turning the corner toward Towne Pass Python stopped to switch to his climbing bike. While he was stopped Marko passed him. Python followed about 3 minutes behind but after the climbing started in earnest he succumbed to terrible leg cramps and fell back. This was the last we would see of Python or any other rider.

Towne pass is a 4956' peak at the top of a long climb that starts gently but then winds nearly straight up at a 13% grade at points. The west side of Town Pass presents spectacular views of Panimint Valley. The expansive view is similar in magnitude to what you would find at the Grand Canyon.

At one handoff point Marko changed his mind about what he wanted just before the handoff. Tim figured that even with a 20 yard head start he could catch Marko, so he quickly grabbed a water bottle out of the van and ran after him. Initially Tim was gaining on Marko but after about 200 yards Marko pulled away. We suspect Marko saw Tim coming after him and sped up, deciding that making Tim run for it was great sport.

Going up Towne pass, the leftover water in Marko's bottles started coming back hot. At that point we started chilling his drinks in the ice water cooler. Marko doesn't like ice in his drinks and this made it much easier for the crew as we didn't have to worry about having a steady supply of clean ice throughout the race.

Another challenge for the crew is picking turnouts while performing leapfrog support. Some areas don't have many good places to stop, so the crew must keep a sharp eye out for opportunities and be able to quickly slow down when they find a good spot. Most of the shoulders are gravel, dirt, or sand of varying depth so the driver has to be good at slowing quickly on the pavement, turning onto the shoulder, and hoping they don't get stuck in the sand when they attempt to reenter the highway.

Once coming up Towne Pass we pulled off the highway to wait for Marko and noticed a burning smell. We immediately realized we must have stopped on top of some dry brush that was cooking against our exhaust system. We quickly moved the van forward, jumped out, and closely inspected the area for fires, ready to stomp on anything that we had inadvertently ignited. Fortunately there was no flaming foliage to be found.

One of the secrets to riding a fast race is staying on the bike. Most riders won't stop to eat, sleep, or for some, go the "bathroom." Over the course of 508 miles Marko probably spent less than 20 minutes not rolling forward. A good crew will help this in that they will minimize the amount of time that's spent with necessary stops, such as flats, clothing changes, or getting gas at night. More on this later.

At the top of Towne pass Marko stopped and the crew descended upon him like he was in an Indy pit stop. We gave him a vest, arm warmers, fresh bottles, front and rear lights, a cap under his helmet, wiped him down, and stuffed his pockets full of food and supplements. The whole operation probably took about 90 seconds.

The descent down Towne Pass is a screaming twisting downhill that drops 5000 feet over 18 miles into Death Valley to Stovepipe Wells. A bicycle is much more nimble on twisting descents, able to take corners at speeds that no car can match. Going down Towne pass in daylight is a huge advantage to a rider in that they can go full speed and not have to slow down so their pace vehicle can keep up to light the road for them. In the 508 it's almost unheard of that a rider makes it all the way down Towne Pass before dark. We finally caught Marko after about 10 miles.

Official dark occurs at 6pm. We were about 12 miles from Furnace Creek at the time. From this point until morning at 7am we were required to pace directly behind Marko, lighting up the road and pulling up alongside only to do hand offs from the vehicle. The rider isn't allowed to continue without their pace vehicle so if we have to stop for any reason he has to wait for us. This makes for interesting and creative bathroom breaks for the crew.

Sleep doesn't come into play much for the riders, but managing sleep is an important element for the crew. It's easy for the crew to get caught up in the excitement of the race and all end up sleep deprived and unable to perform their duties. With a three person crew one member can sleep while the other two perform race duties.

Tim indicated that he could sleep while Joe and Jack still felt wide awake so at about 8pm he put in some ear plugs, lay across the back seat and promptly went out like a light. Every so often things would get loud and exciting such that Tim would wake up and check out the action. Each time he was promptly ordered by the other crew members to go back to sleep. We still felt good so our plan was for Tim to sleep until we reached the Baker time station where we would have to stop to get gas and then have him drive. It was important to have the driver be the one that was the most rested so that we didn't run over our rider. At about 4am, shortly before we reached Baker we woke Tim up. He had got about 8 hours of sleep, luxurious by any standard.

The ride through Death Valley presents a variety of impressive scenery. There are sand dunes, interesting plant and rock formations, and mountain peaks of every color in all directions. Watching the sun set in the valley is an incredible experience.

The winds through Death Valley were an experience of another sort. The wind alternated between headwinds and cross winds that were strong enough to knock several riders completely off their bikes. Adding in sand storms that felt like it was stripping off skin we definitely had payback for our first 200 miles. At some points the blowing sand was so fierce that riders had to shut their eyes and hope they didn't run into a ditch. One of the riders wapped a scarf around his entire head, leaving nothing but a bit of his glasses exposed. Marko told us how demoralizing it was to have these winds and we tried to provide some comfort in that everyone was experiencing the same thing.

The major landmark in Death Valley is Badwater at 282 feet below sea level. It's the lowest point in the western hemisphere. During the winter a small lake forms at the low point in the valley but the rest of the year it's a salty lake bed with views that draw photographers from all over the world. Since it was dark Marko didn't get to see Badwater, or any other part of Death Valley other than the road a few feet in front of him.

Throughout the race Marko was extremely worried about being caught by another rider. At the south end of Death Valley it's so dark and the air is so clear we would have been able to spot lights miles behind us. Throughout the rest of the race we kept straining behind us to see any approaching riders, but never saw a thing.

The way out of Death Valley involves a long, gradual climb up Jubilee Pass (1282'), a short downhill, a climb up Salsberry Pass (3315'), and then a descent to the time station in Shoshone.

One great thing about this race is the camaraderie among riders. Even though they're competitors, they're also friends and will watch out for each other. Support crews will frequently help out competing riders by offering food and water if needed, pacing the rider when conditions warrant, and cheering for competing riders just as enthusiastically as they do for their own.

On the way up Salsberry we were passed by Ostrich's support vehicle with two bikes on the back. It stopped alongside Marko for a few seconds, they exchanged some words and then it continued on. We found out later that Ostrich had DNF'd and had stopped alongside Marko to wish him luck before heading off.

At the top of Salsberry the entire team stopped for a much needed bathroom break. Marko asked us for the "vest with sleeves." We could only assume he meant a jacket. Marko bundled up and we all headed off into the cold and dark.

Death Valley is dark. It's really dark. The high mountains on all sides do a great job blocking what little light exists outside the valley. The only lights in the valley are the bike lights, car lights, and a million of stars overhead. We could clearly see every constellation above. I spent several minutes leaning out the passenger window star gazing.

While descending toward Shoshone we noticed the sky beyond the mountains was lit up. It looked like a dull fog hovering over the top of the mountains. Marko asked if we knew what it was and we figured it was Las Vegas, 60 miles away. Marko said, "Let's go to Vegas!" to which we replied that we'll follow him.

Managing vehicle fuel is extremely important for the 508. There are few gas stations along the way and fewer that have 24 hour pump service. Fueling the vehicle requires the pace vehicle and the rider to stop so the crew makes every attempt to minimize gas stops at night. The pace vehicle isn't very fuel efficient at 9mph into the wind so assumptions about range need to be adjusted. The common fuel stops are Trona during the first day and Baker during the night. Baker is the last reliable fuel stop before the finish, 120 miles away.

Approaching Baker we did the necessary calculations and realized we would probably make it to the end, but it would be very close. Reason and prudence dictated we get some gas at Baker to guarantee the vehicle's arrival at the finish. We would have to stop to switch drivers and we had a sizable lead so a very quick stop wouldn't hurt.

We stopped at an Arco for gas and here is where all the elements for a perfect storm conspired against us. This is the point in our story where we demonstrate what not to do.

Arco gas stations don't have traditional pay-at-the-pump. They have a central kiosk that takes either cash or ATM cards. They don't take credit cards. The procedure for getting gas involves selecting a pump, inserting an ATM card, typing a PIN, filling the tank, and then returning to the kiosk to select a pump for the receipt.

I was in charge of adding some gas while Tim and Jack took care of Marko. We didn't want to fill the tank because it would take too long and Marko was chomping at the bit to get moving.

While we filled the tank Marko called his wife in Slovenia on his cell where it was daytime. Ironically it was the only time we got a time split for the second place rider. His wife had read the split from the web cast and relayed it to us.

A few mistakes were made that compounded each other. We parked the van too far back so the pump barely reached the gas tank. I had to hold the handle in place to prevent it from getting pulled out of the tank. It was also so windy that I couldn't hear the gas flowing, and couldn't see the numbers on the pump.

We were all in a hurry.

I called to Jack and asked how much gas had gone in. Jack said, "twenty dollars". I figured that was more than enough, put away the pump, and rushed to the kiosk to get my receipt. We all jumped back in the van and continued on.

A few miles later Tim asked how much gas we put in the tank. Tim didn't know how much gas was in the tank before since he wasn't driving until then. I noticed that the gas gauge was a little more than 1/4 tank, exactly where it was before the "full up". The crew discussed the situation and first considered the possibility that the gas gauge might not have reset properly. We decided to stop Marko for a moment so we could restart the engine. He reluctantly agreed. After restarting the engine the gas gauge was reading at the same worryingly low level.

I pulled out the receipt and it showed a time stamp of about an hour before we got there. We realized what must have happened is I accidentally activated the wrong pump, and then got the receipt for the previous customer of that pump. I didn't notice because I couldn't see the gauge moving and couldn't hear anything over the wind. We did the math again and decided that we might have enough to make it to the finish, but it would be very close. The conversation involved comments such as, "It all depends on what it REALLY means by empty."

This is where the race got exciting.

We decided the only safe bet was to have Marko stop, leave him in the dark with a crew member, and head back the five miles to Baker to fill up for real. Marko would have nothing of that. Unbeknownst at the time to the crew, Marko had a similar experience in a previous race where he lost first place when the crew took 20 minutes to go back for gas. He was still worried about his competitors and didn't want to stop while we corrected our mistake.

We decided to keep going until daylight and then head to the nearest gas station. The route book said that there "might" be gas at Amboy but it wasn't guaranteed as the station doesn't have consistent hours. At that point Jack decided to get some sleep and I took a catnap in between feedings.

At some point during the night Marko stood up on the bike, bounced up and down to test the rear tire. He started pointing at the rear tire to indicate it was flat. Tim stopped the car and Jack was woken up by the commotion. Jack was instantly out of the vehicle with a spare wheel, had Marko's wheel replaced and adjusted before he even was awake enough to consciously realize what he was doing. He later commented on how he didn't remember much of what happened or why he was suddenly outside the car.

At about 7:00am we were greeted to a beautiful sunrise. The sheer beauty of the desert is sometimes forgotten during a race, but we're quickly reminded at sundown and sunrise. At this point we'd been racing for 24 hours straight and Marko had ridden about 420 miles.

One of the skills a crew and rider will develop is the ability to do things for the rider while moving. This may involve something simple like bottle handoffs, or more complex tasks such as light adjustments, helping the rider put on gloves or clothes, or stuffing their pockets full of food. It may also involve sticking your body completely out of the moving vehicle in order to take pictures, as demonstrated by Chris when he drove by.

Amboy is a private town on Route 66 that the owner attempted to sell on eBay for $1.9 million. When the highest bid was only $995,900 the owner, Walt Wilson, decided to take it off the market. After seeing Amboy in person I can say that $995k seems awfully high. When we reached Amboy we found the gas station closed and the town deserted.

We were only 40 miles from the finish when the low gas light came on. With an almost empty tank of gas we decided to not take any chances and head to Twenty Nine Palms and the nearest gas station two miles from the finish. We left Marko with extra food and water and took off with the windows closed, AC off, and cruise control set at 50mph.

At about 20 miles from the finish, we left Jack on the side of the road with a load of food and water. We continued on, figuring that if we ran out of gas we'd just stay there and wait for Marko. He would get one last load of food and water and finish the race without us. While it's customary for the crew to finish with the rider, the rules don't specify it's necessary. At this point the gas needle was resting firmly on the peg below the "E".

We turned the corner onto Twenty Nine Palms Highway and saw the gas station in the distance. I started to wonder at what point we could actually run out and just coast to the pump, but we finally made it! We got about 7 gallons, double checked the gauge and headed back to pick up Jack and Marko.

We got to Jack first, picked him up and continued back along the course for Marko. We found him alive and well shortly thereafter. Marko was thrilled that we could join him at the finish and at this point started hammering saying that he could smell the finish. Marko was smiling, in good spirits, and really moving well.

A support crew can't win the race for a rider, but they can easily lose it for them. We almost did this twice, once when we allowed Marko to miss the turn in Panamint Valley, and again in Baker when we rushed through a fill up. The real value in a crew isn't that they never make mistakes or encounter problems but in how they deal with problems to minimize the effect on the racer. We made some mistakes, all the crews do. We joked that Marko finished despite our best efforts.

Twenty Nine Palms Highway is a very busy road and the turn into the hotel can be a little tricky. Just as we started to move over to turn we saw the biggest monster truck we'd ever seen speeding towards us. It wasn't slowing down and it was obvious it was going to go around (or through) us one way or another. Marko was in front of our van and we decided the safest thing to do would be to just keep him centered in front of us as he crossed the highway and hope the truck didn't hit us.

The truck passed us on the right missing us by inches.

We continued on to finish in first place at 12:26 pm, 29:26 after we started. Marko was in fine humor at the finish. I wanted him to eat something and offered a pre-mixed bottle of Perpetuem. Marko's response was a big "blech!" I found some cans of soup that my wife had packed for us and used the motel coffee pot to warm it up.

After we all showered we headed to a local Chinese restaurant and we all ate a lot. The waiter was pretty surprised that we finished it all.

After dinner we headed back to the finish. Marko wanted to be around to greet the other riders as they arrived. One great thing about these races is that even after being up and on the bike for 36 hours riders will stay awake for each other to cheer them across the line. Marko was up until at least 8pm cheering riders. Just about every rider that crossed the line stayed there for many more hours to greet the next wave that arrived.

One thing I noticed was that as the day and night wore on the condition of finishing riders who deteriorated. The earliest groups of finishers were lucid and sure-footed when they got off their bikes. The later groups sometimes literally fell off their bikes and had trouble standing after crossing the line. The real heroes of the race are the ones who suffer through 40 or more hours of cycling and remain determined to finish.

The 2004 508 was a great experience. It's inspirational seeing the determination of the competitors out there. I learned a lot along the way, met a lot of great cyclists and participated in a race that I'll never forget. People asked me if I'll do this race next year. You bet I will! It still remains to be seen how many wheels I'll have under me when I do it.