Tales of PBP 2007
It was a dark and stormy night … rain and northerly crosswinds added
extra challenge for the 2007 PBP riders. So much extra challenge that almost
one in three riders abandoned the route or did not return to Paris in time.
The finishing percentage
was much higher for the hardy, wet experienced riders from the Pacific
Northwest. Here are some of the stories on how they did it.
Thus far we have reports from:
David Kamp was the first
to report.
84 hour start put me at a disadvantage in trying to get to Loudeac "on time".
Was I that slow or was it the conditions, or both? I seemed to be sluggish on
the ascents and low on energy. … a sudden jolt of
"closing time fever" got me to Dreux, then onward on a 20 min sleep break
(more like comatose collapse) and a desperate push to the finish, which
happily occurred at 83:59. That's cutting it close, don't you think?
John Kramer starts his blog story
Joel Metz emailed ORRando "im subtitling this years narrative "the rone van vlaanderen called – it wants its weather back"
the more i reflect on it, the happier i am with this years performance - i rode smoother and faster, never once had a problem with bonking or starting to fall asleep on the bike. stopped more, chatted more, slept slightly less but more intelligently - generally acheived all of my goals, including the primary one, of course, which was to make it back to paris in anything under 90 hours.
Joel also took many photos over the ride.
Phillipe Andre emailed in his report. He starts the tale with This ride couldn't be more different than the 2003 version. How many riders decide to ride PBP on the Sunday before registration?
Sal Ortega rode his first 1200K and got his money's worth – his official time was 89:55! His tale of the ride conveys the adrenaline he felt.
Vincnet Sikorsk shares a very physical journal of PBP, "This is too good to be real, this is a dream. I must be passed out in a ditch or in a coma in some hospital. I bite the inside of my cheek, yea that hurts, but I could dream that also."
Eric Ahlvin provided an unabridged version of his PBP blog entry. This story has lots of detail. Settle in for a long read.