Friday

5PM I arrive with a van load of stuff. Volunteers swarm and setup begins.
8PM the 1st keg is tapped
10PM nervous energy all around as racers setup camp
11PM racer meeting
1130PM Peter arrives, leaves.
1150PM The last team signs in 11 teams total including 3 solo

Saturday

12AM Mass start up 477 with a pace vehicle. Brad Kee and Jay Curwen set a pace that knocks the socks off everyone else
12-6AM Erinna and I rotate shifts keeping the fire going, shooing away hunting dogs, cleaning up, and waiting for folks to roll in.
5:10 Clay comes back, done.
5:55 Brad Kee rolls in, goes right to the keg, drinks a beer, fills his water bottle with beer, switches to his daytime pack and is gone again for stage 2.
6:45 Cook and Broussard arrive and I get an idea of how the mortals are faring out there, Erinna and I contemplate pushing the DQ to 10AM.
6:55 Brown and Minton arrive. Mike's black and white bike got sprayed by a skunk.... but Mike didn't... and he was on the bike when it happened.
7:00 LaRoy and Kuntz get back
8:00 Bean and Ballentine roll in and announce they're done, they pack up, and go home.
8:30 Meek and Kranz get in and announce 'The map is wrong!!' uuuhhhh no it's not, dudes.
9:25 Grey/Lewis/Lattanzi arrive, we let them keep going.
By 1020 everyone that was continuing was out for stage 2
By lunch-time 6-10 groups of spectators and riders heading out for the day are hanging around the raging fire.
1:48PM Brad Kee arrives from stage 2 with 3 CP's and is back out for stage 3 in less than a half hour.
2:30 LaRoy and Kuntz, 2CP's and looking well-done.
2:50 Cook and Broussard arrive, Broussard: pale as a ghost. Cook decides to continue solo.
3:05 Curwen gets in, 3CP's and is allowed to continue. He looks at me like he's about to kick my ass.
4:20 Meek and Kranz get in looking like walking dead men. After about an hour I notice them in fashionable duds, and they say they're done.
4:25 Brown and Minton, 3 CP's Brown says it would be unsafe and unwise for him to continue, Minton continues solo.
4:59:45 Grey, Lewis, Lattanzi arrive.... cutoff had been moved to 5PM, they're happy as clams to continue.
5:50 Brad Kee arrives from stage 3 with 1 CP. He was looking a little haggard and had turned the rules afound in his head a little. I reread the most CP's in the least amount of time rule and is out for stage 4 in less than 10 minutes. I went to the start of the lap and when he came by I asked him how many laps he was planning on so I could send a volunteer out to count his laps, his reply: 'all of 'em'
7:25 Cook arrives 2CP's and is back out for stage 4 at 9PM
9:30 Curwen arrives with 3 CP's, hears of Brads super-human effort, and goes to sleep.
9:35 LaRoy and Kuntz get back with 2 CP's.
9:55 Minton arrives with a broken collarbone, but not ready to throw in the towel just yet.
10:59:45 Grey, Lewis, Lattanzi get in seconds before the 11PM cutoff.
5PM-Midnight the party was in full effect. Tons of visitors, we polish off the second 5 gal keg, light show, music, pizza, dogs everywhere, a visit from the Rangers....
10:30 Brad Kee returns with 6 laps under his belt, hangs around the keg for a while then passes out next to the fire.
10:40 Cook arrives with 1 lap.

Sunday

12:00 or so.... there were 4 left around the fire plus Brad asleep. I pull the plug on the generator and everyone abides by the lights-out.... Brad wakes up and asks to get him up at 4:30-5ish, the camp is quiet, and I finally get a few hours of real shut-eye, too.
2AM Erinna builds a blazing bonfire watches for about an hour, and gets back in bed.
4:30AM I get up, wake up Brad, He leaves for the final stage, the gravel road grinder, by 5:45.
6:45 Cook rolls out for the final stage.
7:00-12:00 Sunday Morning PARTY!!!! WOOOOO!!!!!
10:30 The rain starts
11:35 Brad rolls back in with about 200ish miles, 50K or so of climbing, in less than 36 hours.
1:25 Cook arrives, race is over with just 2 finishers.
2:30 Camp is clean, trucks are loaded, The FIRST 'The Most Horrible Thing Ever' is complete and an absolute success.

Thanks again to ALL the participants, the volunteers, and the friends and family. I can come up with some horribly fun events, but without you, it would be nothing. THANK YOU!!!!!

TMHTE Race Photos

 

Full Set of 2008 Images HERE