So you want to Ride your bike across America! How do you do that???
Team Suicide Prevention is a group of amateur local cyclists in the Tulsa, Oklahoma area who will be racing in June’s Race Across America (RAAM). Our team of racers must cycle 3000 miles, night and day, continuously across 12 states, and climb over 170,000 vertical feet. So you might ask the question, “How do you do that"?”
Our Eight Person team will be divided into two four person teams with each team riding a twelve hour shift, either midnight to noon, or noon to midnight. During each twelve hour shift, the active rider on the road will perform an exchange every 30 minutes to leverage optimum performance and speed. Every 24 hours, the team will have to cover at least 349 miles with each rider contributing up to 50 miles of that total during their shift on the road. Bicycle fitness will be critical to success as each rider will be training over the next four months to be able to cycle approximately 450 miles over a nine day period.
Each rider brings their individual skills to contribute to the team’s success. The most common trait is the ability to prepare their bodies for extreme endurance. Another important trait is the ability to work together toward a common goal, the true definition of being a great teammate. We will be riding day and night, through rain, sun, extreme heat, wind, and perhaps snow in the mountains. Throughout this journey, we rely on our ability to encourage one another while also being cognizant of our own individual nutrition, recovery, and hydration requirements to deliver peak performance during our 3,000 mile journey. Just think about it, when was the last time you rode your bicycle throughout the night for nine straight days?
As individual riders with the strengths and talents that we bring to the team, we each have our own training plans to prepare for the Big Race. Every plan has a common objective, to enable us to Cross the Finish Line Together. The training plans will all include aspects of the plan illustrated below, A Base Phase, A Build Phase, A Peak Phase, and finally A Taper Phase. When we show up on the starting line for June 19th in Oceanside, California, Team Suicide Prevention will be ready to Race.
So you might ask, Why are we doing this? Together with our partners, The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, Hope Is Oxygen, The Coffee Bunker, and The Mental Health Association of Oklahoma, our goal is raising funds to support these crucial organizations in the forefront of suicide prevention and mental health awareness. Working together, we are restoring hope and saving lives.
We invite you to check out our website and encourage you to consider a tax deductible donation to assist us on this critical mission to help save lives. Your donation via our secure portal can be accessed by clicking below.
Thank You. Be Safe. Stay Safe.
cj
The Riders of Team Suicide Prevention. For information about each rider, check out our Team page.
