Dallas Cyclist To Compete In Race Across America

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DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) --  Taking a 3,000 mile road trip in a car on back roads is a daunting thought. Now imagine doing that road trip on a bicycle -- and being given just 12 days to do it.

That's what the Race Across America is all about.

The Race Across America is exactly what its name advertises -- a 3,000 mile bike race, starting at the Pacific Ocean and ending at the Atlantic Ocean (Chesapeake Bay, to be more precise).

The race starts July 16 in Oceanside, Calif., and ends in Annapolis, Md. It traverses 3000 miles and includes more than 170,000 vertical feet of climbing.

Mother Nature will throw everything she can at the riders -- searing heat, bitter cold, strong headwinds and torrential rains.

No wonder that in the first 33 years of the annual race, about half of all entrants fail to finish -- and, unfortunately, two didn't make it out alive.

Among the 41 men and women trying to achieve the super-human feat this is Norm Hageman, 50, of Dallas.

Hageman says he's been preparing for this for years.

"In 17, 18 years, I've been commuting on my bike, so I've seen a little bit of everything," Hageman says. "But the challenge here is you're putting it all together. And the duration, whether it's 10 days, 11 days or 12 days, that's going into a realm that you don't practice."

"Outside" magazine has called the Race Across America the world's toughest race, and for good reason.

Those who wish to ride RAAM solo need to first complete a qualifying event -- a race covering hundreds of miles in a certain time frame -- to demonstrate to race organizers that one has the ability to compete in such a grueling race (RAAM also has relay divisions, which do not require any prequalifying).

Racers will need to average 250 miles a day just to make it in the 12-day time frame -- and that means spending as little time off the bike as possible.

In fact, elite RAAM racers have been known to ride upwards of 23 hours a day.

Hageman says he has a sleep strategy in place.

"Clearly the logic would be, start out with power naps. And once those no longer are sufficient, you start doing 60 to 90 minute time frames off the bike," Hageman says.

Hageman says his number-one goal is not to break any records, but just to finish.

"Number-one thing is to become part of that very small group that has finished within the defined time frame."

Speaking of records, the average speed record was set last year by Christoph Strasser of Austria.

He rode from Oceanside to Annapolis in just 7 days, 15 hours and 56 minutes. That works out to an average speed of 16.42 mph.

The race clock is live 24 hours a day, so any time the rider spends off the bike counts against his or her time.

And given the fact that the race is live 24 hours a day, racers will ride through the night, with a crew directly behind illuminating the road ahead with its headlights (by rule, racers are required to have a headlight and taillight on the bike, as well as reflective tape on the frame, wheels, crankset, etc.).

Speaking of crew, Hageman will have a crew of seven following him every step of the way, ensuring that he's properly motivated, fed and hydrated.

He says his crew will play an essential role during the race.

"The crew is huge -- absolutely huge in helping to catch those early indicators, whether it be nutrition, whether it be mental, or whether it be sleep."

With the crew members giving up their vacation time and family time to help him across the continent, Hageman says he owes it to them to perform well.

"Now I need to go ride," Hageman says. "I need to finish this thing. I need to honor those efforts."

Hageman's main sponsor is Plano Cycling and Fitness.

Hageman will have two bikes at his disposal -- a Specialized Roubaix and a Volagi Liscio.

Both bikes are spec'd with Shimano Ultegra drivetrains and hydraulic disc brakes -- the latter being a fairly new innovation in road bicycles.

The Volagi is geared for climbing, while the Specialized is geared for more even terrain.

The Volagi is also equipped with fenders, so Hageman will use that bike during periods of inclement weather.

As with most bikes used in the Race Across America, both bikes are equipped with aero bars -- handlebar extensions that clip on to the top of the regular drop-style handlebars that allow the racers to rest his or her forearms while riding.

One feature of note on the two bikes is that they have two different saddles. Hageman put a Brooks leather saddle on the Specialized, while the Volagi comes with its E7 Sync saddle.

Each saddle yields different pressure points, making it more comfortable to ride long distances.

The race begins at noon Pacific time (2:00 p.m. Central time), and racers will be sent off in one-minute intervals from the Oceanside Pier.

Racers will have exactly 288 hours (12 days) to reach the finish line -- women and men 60 years old and older will have an additional 21 hours (the timed portion actually ends 5.7 miles from the finish line; racers are given an escort through the busy streets of Annapolis the rest of the way and are all given 26 minutes in that last segment).

You can follow Hageman's progress during the race by clicking here -- look for racer #531 in the Solo Male 50-59 category.

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