July 2, 2005 – A radiant Catharina Berge received applause all the way along the crowded Atlantic City Boardwalk as she became the first woman to complete the solo Insight Race Across America since 2001.

For the Swedish RAAM rookie it was a beautiful moment and the end
of a journey that began several months before the race. “It’s kind
of hard to believe, but it feels like a dream come true. And the
fact that I am here without having suffered greatly, and that I’ve
been able to enjoy the whole race just feels like a blessing,”
beamed ‘Cat’ at the finish.

Berge went through some knee pain periodically through the race,
which her massage therapist worked out each time, and in the final
days her left hand swelled up and she was unable to change gears
properly. But to the 38 year-old veterinarian researcher, who
lives in Visalia, California, the outcome was never in doubt.
“There were no times when I thought ‘what am I doing here?’ I was
so determined that I would get here, I carried on regardless.”

One of the first things she did on arrival in Atlantic City was
slip into a pair of well-worn clogs. Asked if she had missed them,
she responded “There were times that I was thinking it will be
nice to return to normal.” It was 11 days since her feet had felt
shoes other than her cycling cleats.

Out on the road, Cat was one of the more sociable riders, and she
struck up a friendship with British rider Chris Hopkinson. “Every
time we passed, we took our 15 minutes (the maximum allotted time
in 24 hours that the same two riders can talk to one another). And
when he got Shermer’s Neck (a condition in which the neck muscles
can no longer support the weight of the head), I had a neck brace
for him. I am just so happy to see him still on the road, and I
was hoping he would be able to finish at the same time (as me),
because he really deserves the honors,” said Cat. She slept more
than Hopkinson, while he rode on into the night. After she awoke,
she would pass him, meaning they saw one another regularly.

As the first Solo woman since 2001, Cat Berge has attracted a lot
of attention from female cyclists, and she is willing to be a role
model. “I hope to inspire them. My idea is for women who have done
RAAM previously to take on a rookie woman in a two-woman team, and
then we would have a lot of all-women teams.” Although she plans
to remain involved with the Ultra-Cycling movement, Berge has no
plans for Solo RAAM in the immediate future. “It takes a lot of
dedication and expense, and a lot of focus on myself. I want to
work for others – I really enjoy working with other women and
other cyclists more.”