June 21, 2004 – 75 minutes before the start, the mild ocean air of San
Diego was swept across the Bay by a thick blanket of cloud. Riders and
crew assembled hodgepodge, alone and in groups and teams. Media were
everywhere, scribbling down last-minute quotes or squeezing in a final
interview before these rugged individual set out to ride from San Diego to
the finish line, 2,959 miles away in Atlantic City, N.J.

The national flags blew hard as the national anthem resonated in the air
and hearts of everyone present. The riders, now lined up as if for the
start of the Kentucky Derby, were mostly stoic in appearance, their minds
far away. In the mountains, in the desert, in the heat, they envisioned
pain and suffering and called upon their inner strength to see them
through boldly, bravely and with the utmost of energy. The gathering crowd
was electric; the energy of the riders permeated the air.

Then the count down: three, two, one…and they were off! Horns blared,
people cheered and legs began to pump the first few rotations of an
unimaginable number to cross this nation.

The start of this year’s RAAM brought many surprises, the biggest one
being the unexpected withdrawal of Allen Larsen, last year’s champion and
2002 Rookie of the Year, and he simultaneously won the Ian Sandbach Award
presented to RAAM’s most inspirational rider. Shortly before Larsen
announced his withdrawal, Slovenia’s Valter Bonca was forced out of
competition due to injuries suffered in the Tour of Austria. Ultra
enthusiasts who were anxiously awaiting a showdown between Larsen, Bonca
(three time champion), Austrian Wolfgang Fasching, and four-time Slovenian
national road champion, Jure Robic. They will be treated to a new roster of
rookie and veteran racers all with equal chances to win the RAAM.
Competing in his 19th RAAM, three-time solo winner Rob Kish possesses the
patience and experience which could launch him ahead of his less seasoned
competitors.

As two-time RAAM champion Danny Chew said, “First Bonca, now Larsen, the
toughest race in the world, RAAM, is extracting its toll before it even
begins.”

At the start line, the race had boiled down to three obvious contenders and
various other riders who could ride above expectations and steal the show.
The main contenders are three-time champion, 49-year-old Kish, of Port
Orange,
Fla.; Robic (who recently rode 605 miles in a 24-hour drafting-permitted
race); and the world’s number one ultra rider, Wolfgang Fasching. The epic
battle may boil down to Fasching and Robic, but Kish is a sly and more than
able rider, who looked fantastic and extremely well prepared to race at
today’s start line.

A considerable long shot for the podium, James Rosar told me, “I’m in it
to win it!” and you just got to love that!!

Robic has a 25 minute lead early in the race. Kish is near the back of the
pack, but this will change. No one is currently suffering. Andy Lapkass is
in the middle of the pack and riding strong, as is upstart Tracey McKay.
As the riders gradually settle into their respective rhythms, we can
expect to see a lot of change to the shape of the race.

Latest Update:
Riding through Time Station Five – at Hope, Arizona – Slovenia’s Jure
Robic continued to attack the race with an early aggression similar to his
rookie year in 2003.

Riding at a pace that none of his rivals cared to match, Robic’s average
speed topped 20 mph as he pedaled out of California. Holding second place,
at one hour and three minutes was Mike Trevino from San Diego.

Wolfgang Fasching, the three-time winner from Austria, made a relatively
slow start and climbed up to third place at Time Station Two, but by the
fourth time station he had dropped back to ninth position.

Italy’s Dino Nico Valsesia, Pius Acherman of Switzerland, and David Haase
of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, have formed a loosely knit group spread out
over approximately 20 minutes.

Kish made a very sedate start, back among the tail-enders for the first
100 miles or so. But by Time Station Four, he was past the apparently
struggling Fasching, and into seventh.

San Francisco’s Andrew Otto appears to have found his rhythm in eighth
place.

Stay tuned to RAAM at
http://www.raceacrossamerica.org/raam2004/raceinformation.htm