Have you seen the RAAM Vans?

Over the next several days you will begin to see vehicles covered in stickers and decals, some even with speakers attached to the roof of the vehicles.  You may ask yourself what is going on?, but have no fear! These are the RAAM vans! They are the support vehicles for the participants of Race Across America (RAAM) and Race Across the West (RAW) and will be traveling with the riders as they make their way from Oceanside, CA to their final destinations of either Annapolis, MD or Durango, CO. The support vehicles carry the food, water, gear, and tool kits for the athletes, so that they don't have to worry about anything except riding as fast as they can to the finish line. For the safety of the riders, the vehicles are required to be clearly marked with the team's name, participation number, event decals, etc.

RAAM draws in some of the toughest endurance bicyclists from around the world, with 17 different countries represented by individuals and teams participating in the event.  The cyclists are traveling to Oceanside from as far away as Samoa, Russia, Japan, and India; and as close as Encinitas, California.

Featured in the image to the left is solo cyclist Nicole Reist and her support team from Switzerland and Austria who are excitingly preparing for the race to begin. Their support vehicle is decked out with multiple flags of Switzerland, along with two speakers on top of the car ready to play her favorite music to keep her motivated during the race. This is Reist's first time participating in the event and she will be racing alongside fellow female solo cyclists Juliana Buhring (GER) and 6-time RAAM winner Seana Hogan (USA). Click here to see the official Race Roster listing all of the athletes and the countries they represent.

If you are interested in learning more about this year's participants, press conferences will be held on Monday, June 13th at 9:30am for the RAW athletes and 10:15am for the RAAM solo racers.  The final press conference featuring the RAAM team riders will be held on Thursday, June 16th at 10:30am.  All press conferences will be held within the Oceanside Pier Plaza.

Race Across America (RAAM) and Race Across the West (RAW) will officially kick-off on June 14th and June 18th, 2016.

Oceanside visitors and locals are welcome to gather at the Oceanside Pier on June 14th at 12pm and June 18th at 12pm to cheer on and wave goodbye to the 316 participating athletes as they begin their journey towards the East. RAAM solo riders and all RAW participants will be departing on June 14th. RAAM team riders will be departing on June 18th.

Race Across America (RAAM) is a 3,000-mile coast-to-coast race across the United States. RAAM is widely recognized as the world's toughest endurance bicycle race. The Race Across the West (RAW) is one of the world's top RAAM Qualifying events from Oceanside, CA to Durango, CO; 860 miles across the rugged American West.

Click here to learn more about Race Across America (RAAM) and Race Across the West (RAW)

 

 

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