nearing Maryland after long jaunt across country...

Missouri to Indiana today....

The leader, Christoph Strasser, is leading heavily in Pennsylvania.

Most of the pack would roll into Indiana tonight after crossing the mighty mississippi and part of Illinois.

A lot of tail wind today propelled racers nicely, but the heat was certainly felt throughout.

pushing into Ohio tomorrow for leaders of the middle pack....

Adios to Kansas and show me Missouri....

All the riders looked and sounded in good shape riding through the last throes of Kansas' flat roads.. 

A tough challenge, voiced by a few riders at this point are the saddle sores, though a big thumbs up from Nico Valsesia represented the mood of most riders I saw today. 

Most would make it into Missouri by end end of the night. 

Let's hope they can sleep a bit before Illinois-

Kansas served up some wild weather today...

Clouds covered the sky at dawn and was only a prelude to hail, rain and extreme winds!   

Racers were blown side to side and hailed on to the point of pain to the hands and back.  Everyone endured and continued the long, flat road toward East Coast. 

Many took naps today and simply rested longer than usual in the middle of the pack. 

Italy's Alessandro Cole' said it best when he looked at me and said no stress, no stress.......

Southern Colorado and push into Kansas...

Beautiful blue skies today, but with some howling winds hindering the racers.

We shot and interviewed a few teams in Laveta, Colorado while they ate, rested and prepared for the next mountain pass through picturesque towns en route to the next time station in Trinidad, Co.

Kansas was the next state to play host for these intrepid bikers as many made it in, and the half-way point of the course coming tomorrow.

Hard to believe we are moving so fast!
Media team #2 is staying in Ulysses, Kansas downloading and editing today's work.

under a Colorado sky...

The desert was just a faint memory as racers rode up to over 10,000 ft through Wolf Creek Pass. Eight grueling miles to the summit with cold air and snow feathered mountains.

A swift downhill was the reward as they made some made it to the next time station 20 miles away. However, many will be climbing to the summit after the sun sets, and I can only imagine the temperature drop by then..

~ jayms

cool weather and beautiful scenery..

We shot the mid pack through Arizona and into Utah today. There was great cloud cover which shielded racers from the heat as they rolled into Mexican Hat, Utah and beyond.

The Navajo sandstone formations were a great backdrop to the riders as they paced through the Navajo Nation. a full night of riding ahead for some, and a well needed rest for others, as the race across America marches on....

-And our videographer Allison shot some great footage along the way today.

Arizona heatwave for Riders in RAAM...

it's been quite a day in Arizona with the sweltering heat. Some riders rolled through the night, some braved the sun, but surely all felt the challenge of riding in these conditions...

A pool was set up at the Congress AZ time station, where many riders dipped into for some brief sanctuary from the sun. Brett Walker was one who spent some nice downtime underwater

Day 2 in Arizona desert.

Riders ride through out the night when it's cool, but some go hard in mid-day sun while wearing ice vests and getting plenty of water from support crew...

5:47pm. Borrego Springs Ca

RAAM 2011

Great start to this 3000 mile race across the country today in Oceanside, Ca. Shooting tomorrow more racers at starting line, then onto Brawley, Ca and east to Maryland~

oh yeah, I'll be on the road for two weeks shooting the Race Across America. 3000 mile endurance bike race. stay tuned!

racers doing last minute tweaks for start of race tomorrow here in Oceanside ca., ending in Maryland. I'll be shooting the entire race on the road. follow my media team at http://raammedia2.blogspot.com/. ciao!

been on the road with SF band Alma Desnuda...