Apologies- One More......

Okay, yes, I said I was moving on. But something happened yesterday, and I realized that I actually had a few more things to say. So, here is an addendum, if you will, to my Trans Iowa posts.

Dan Hughes giving me a hug at the finish line of T.I.v13 Image courtesy of Christopher Rhodes

There were a few tidbits I realized I hadn't covered in my post-race "Epilogue" post a day or two ago. One was that, missing from all the hoopla over only having six riders finish, was how long it took them all to finish. 

We have never had a winner come in so late. Dennis Grelk, the winner of T.I.v7, used to have that honor when he pulled in to Grinnell at 8:40am that Sunday morning. However; that record was smashed by Dan Hughes as he arrived at 10:45 am, a full two hours plus after Dennis' winning time. Consider how different T.I.v12 was from 13. By the time Dan Hughes rolled up to the line at Miller Park, 21 finishers had crossed the line at Arbor Lake Park the previous year at Trans Iowa. A tale of two extremes for sure. Obviously, when I said that Dan finished in the toughest conditions we've had at Trans Iowa during a "finishable event", it is pretty obvious to see I am correct when you start comparing numbers.

If you are a numbers and stats geek, you can go to the Trans Iowa History site where I have updated all the pages for T.I.v13. This one takes you to the Results Page. You can navigate your way from there using the links in the right margin of that site.

Derek Henry had this made and gave it to me at the Pre-Race Meat-Up

I also was remiss in not mentioning the nice things folks did for me at T.I.v13 this year. I got this cool plaque to hang up made of wood and bits of license plates shown at the left here. Derek Henry got this for me down in Florida. I'll be hanging it up in a special place. Mark Johnson also brought me a cool "Grumpy Grind" coffee cup and a t-shirt with the Grumpy Grind rooster on it. Love it!  I also got a four pack of beer, a jersey, and a bunch of folks decided the t-shirt was actually pretty cool for T.I. this year and donated some cash to get one at the Pre-Race. By the way, since there were so many drops leading up to the event, I am going to put the remaining shirts up for sale soon. Stay tuned on that front. (Sorry, no size Large left!)

I wanted to share that one of the things I look forward to about any Trans Iowa is meeting my volunteers, and/or hanging out with MG in totally random places in Iowa. This year it was at CP#1, the Hogback Bridge, on the outskirts of Winterset,  at the head of that B Road before Checkpoint #2, Checkpoint #2, in Attica, and in Pella by the Walmart at the corner of Washington and 218th Ave. I would never, ever do anything like that normally, and really, who would? But there is something about Trans Iowa weekend and staying up all night goofing off in the country that I find appealing. Perhaps it is the days of my youth I am reliving when I would spend all night walking around my hometown of Charles City, Iowa with whomever would join me. I don't know, but it is one of my favorite aspects of Trans Iowa. I've spent the night in a lot of random places in 13 years of doing this, and I still like doing that. I know.......I'm weird. 

 I was pinged by my friend Ari yesterday and he remarked about how many great write ups that there are coming out of this version of Trans Iowa. He is completely right on with that observation. We had a back and forth on why we thought that was, but the fact is that this version of Trans Iowa has resulted in some great race reports. I suppose one might expect as much with the severe conditions and only having six finishers.

One of the best is from the winner, Dan Hughes. You can read it here. I don't say that because it is flattering to me and Trans Iowa, but because Dan nails what I have heard from many in the years of doing this. Dan puts it in a way that really is succinct and easily understood. If you have ever wondered about the "why" and the "what" that makes folks want to do this gravel road event, then read his report. Another really great report came from Sarah Cooper, who had to pull out due to hypothermia issues that she experienced late into the event. You can read her report here. It is a great read from the standpoint of not only her struggles, but pay particular attention to what she says about the convenience stores and the folks that rescue her in the end. Great stuff and another one of the things that makes me proud to be an Iowan and gives me hope in humanity during these trying times.

Those are two great reads from higher profile athletes, but there are many more that I have been gathering. One in particular from Kate Ankofski, a rookie rider that chose Trans Iowa as her first bicycle race, was especially touching for me. She wrote it up on Facebook, but I plan on pasting it, and others, to a page on the Trans Iowa site soon. I'll post an alert when that goes live.

I suppose there may be a few other tidbits of T.I.v13 stuff coming in the future, but I will reserve telling you about those in my "Friday News And Views" posts. This is really my last T.I.v13 post! Thank you for indulging me with one more of these.