No one could contemplate
the amount and quality of the stress that was
to be experienced on the 8th June – the
day the race started.
The night prior to
the race Batty Beaver (Nicola) and I were unable
to stay at the hotel which had been booked
and consequently our stress levels began to
rise as we were busy preparing for the start
of the race so the last minute change of plan
was somewhat inconvenient. Luckily Batty’s
uncle kindly put us up for the night as he lived
just a few miles away from the RV park. I had
not eaten since lunchtime so was lucky enough
to be given some tasty food which I enjoyed in
the comfort of an American household – Tony
Hawkes old house in fact! - with a glass of vino
(shhh, don’t tell Donna!). As we arrived
at the house Batty’s 11yr old cousin promptly
told me that their pet snake has escaped a few
weeks earlier so naturally I was on edge – I
did not fly thousands of miles to meet my death
with a pet snake, I would much prefer to go out
in style given the choice! Anyway, the wine and
surroundings helped us to relax as we were a
little apprehensive and wound up. In the end
it worked out perfectly as we had a great night
sleep and Batty got to spend some much needed
time with her family.
The morning of the
race Batty’s uncle
dropped us off at the RV Park after a yummy breakfast
of bagels and cream cheese (with English tea,
which was decaf I might add!) and we had a short
crew meeting to discuss logistics. Everyone then
got to work preparing the RV and follow vehicle
for deployment and this, for me, was the turning
point in team dynamics and the development of
the individual.
As crew chiefs counted down the minutes to departure
everyone was feeling the pressure and to a certain
extent it could be argued that we were all a
little out of our comfort zones. We are all RAAM
virgins so the ins-and-outs of what is needed
were considerably sketchy and a lot of questions
were being fired into the air, sometimes without
any response. At times guidance was needed from
anyone offering it but with everyone busy concentrating
on their own tasks people were forced to take
decisions for themselves - which in hindsight
I think was a risk for the greater good. This
proactivity gave birth to a more confident crew
who now believe in their own abilities much more
than they perhaps did previously.
As the minutes ticked by stress and panic began
to increase at a rate unknown to man which I
found particularly interesting to witness. The
final few minutes before we set sail from the
RV park showed a solid crew working hard with
a shared goal. Focus was strong and everyone
combined forces to get things done. We left the
RV park in the follow vehicle as Jim cycled up
to the start line at Oceanside pier.
The start line was
buzzing with excitement and positive energy
thus stress levels amongst crew began to reduce.
It was at this point that I felt a great sense
of unity, an atmosphere of a global community
of riders and crews all taking part in this
amazing adventure, each with their own personal
reasons. My moment of awakening was quickly
interrupted by Pappa Bear who was acting as
Goldilock’s punkawalla following
him around with a sun-umbrella to keep him cool.
It was most amusing to see a huge brick-built
dude holding an umbrella for a small-toned dude.
As the crew began to relax, knowing that what
hasn’t been done now wont get done, I began
to see them reflecting on the final few minutes
at the RV park – they were articulating
the stress they had individually experienced.
This discussion was a great way to acknowledge
and digest the emotions that they had felt but
through sharing their experiences and opinions
on what had happened I began to see stress levels
being heightened again. I took a backseat at
this stage as I did not want to revisit the stress
I had previously felt at that time.
As Goldilock’s set off there was a great
feeling of awe for what he was about to do, and
a sense of solidarity amongst the crew. Batty
and Mumma Bear left in the follow vehicle for
their first shift and the rest of us went down
to the ocean to collect some Pacific water to
carry across country with us – a RAAM tradition.
Final goodbyes were said to the four-man team
travelling with us and we made our way back down
to the park to pick up the RV and set out on
the road.
Once on the road with
Oceanside behind us we cranked up the tunes
and had a good old sing-along to the iPod.
Mid song and dance to a bit of Johnny Cash
(Mick’s music, not mine!) in the back
of the RV it became apparent that we had taken
a wrong turn - a direct result of our lack of
concentration. Tension rose and we all quietened
down and focused on finding our way to the second
time-station. Sue and Catherine had a lie down
and I took the seat as the navigator. Unfortunately
I suffered badly from motion sickness and couldn’t
wait to stop and get some fresh air – although
this was not exactly the case as the air was
extremely hot. The temperature had risen by around
15 degrees and continued to rise for the rest
of the day.
Luckily for me a pit
stop came along quite quickly as the RV filled
with the fumes of burning tyres. As we stopped
and got out (and I was ready to barf!) the
air was filled with smoke – we
were literally smokinnnn’!!! The scenery,
however, was amazing by the way! Catherine, the
witchy woman with all the homeopathic remedies,
saved the day with a sickness tablet which was
amazing and completely cured me. Unfortunately
for the crew this meant lots more of my singing
out of tune for the remainder of the descent
into the desert.
The desert was a fantastic experience (although
I am now glad to be out of it, man is it big
and boring and samey after 2days). I filled my
camera with photos of the mountains and sand
devils (mini-tornados of sand).
When we arrived at
Brawley it was heading into the evening and
it was extremely hot. I was sweating like a
turkey in a desert-shaped oven, it wasn’t
pleasant, but it was great to see all the other
teams again and re-establish our connection with
the other riders. Mike and I wandered around
the RVs catching up other crews and I found it
particularly interesting that some teams were
the less friendly. Some showed little interest
in friendly conversation and I felt a great sense
of hostility and competitiveness from them towards
anyone not part of their in-group. It appeared
to me that some teams see the race as just that,
a race to be won, not an achievement to complete.
Each individual came into his or her own that
day, showing great initiative and the ability
to work collectively as one whole rather than
one part.
