Finally Home!

Veronica here-

Try as I might have, I just couldn't seem to get this post up until today. Between the finish line activities, shooting interviews, well-needed beers and showers, the awards, and the death-defying two flights it took to get us back home, there hasn't been a second to stop and breathe until this morning. (I think it's Tuesday?) I uploaded the rest of the "YouTube friendly" videos last night- anything that didn't make it will be cut into the DVD somewhere, promise. (Did I mention we're trying to get a DVD out in the middle of the rest of our hectic lives? Yeah. We're crazy like that.)

Anyway...

Just wanted to share a picture I took from the finish line and let you know there are more videos up on the YouTube channel. A special thanks goes out to all the riders, sponsors, and viewers at home- we couldn't have done this without you guys! (Oh, and thanks to big daddy John for the DQ as promised, and to the Annapolis sherriff that decided not to arrest us or kick us out of the hotel Saturday night at 2am for breaking noise curfew by singing Aha's "Take On Me" at the top of our lungs.)

Until the next adventure,

-V

p.s. If you decide you really miss hearing me ramble on and on after all this, you can always follow me on Twitter @ VeronicaInLA. *end shameless plug.*

The Return to Reality...

It's Monday afternoon post-RAAM and most, if not all of us have returned to our "normal" lives. This means sitting behind a desk, programming software, reading depositions, working for "The Mouse" or a whole host of other responsibilities.

The team has been bouncing around an email chain discussing how each individual's return to society has fared thus far and how much we already miss the grueling adventure we all just experienced. The following are Andrew Danly's words and I felt they had to be posted for all to see and read...

"The difficulty in fitting back into our regular lives measures the distance we left them behind last Saturday.

The airy dislocation invokes that of a returning soldier asked to punch a clock and accept 'the customer is always right.' Its a tall order given what we've done and how we did it.

It is extremely difficult to return to that person who was before. I do so only knowing I have made new friends who I admire greatly and hold hope many of us will join forces again in the cauldron of battle.

When we do, many things will require no words because we all know the feeling of sacrificing personal comfort, working as a team and pulling a 3000-mile-long rope as 'effing hard as possible.

It really says something that I can tell a cool story about each and every one of you.

If we do this again next year, I vow to bring the METAL in even heavier doses. I know you will show up ready to do anything to help the team. Knowing this team of warriors lies in wait, makes the task of becoming a peaceful civilian that much easier.

I thank you for that,

Andrew "Metal" Danly, Esq."

Thank you Andrew for your words and thank you to everyone for your time, your energy, your compassion, your commitment, and your friendship.

If you have anything you would like posted on the Blog or the YouTube channel that you'd like everyone to see, but don't have access, please send me an email or give me a call and I'd be happy to get it uploaded for you.

Humbly yours,

Hans Weichhart
Email: hans@hansweichhart.com
Phone: (818) 640-7454

We FINISHED!!!

Team ViaSat finishes the 2009 Race Across America at 9:29 a.m. EDT on Friday, June 26th. Official race time was 5 days, 15 hours, and 53 minutes. The team averaged 22.23 miles per hour as they trekked 3,021 miles across the United States from Oceanside, CA to Annapolis, MD.

This truly was an absolutely amazing race for all of us. On behalf of everyone involved, thank you to everyone who supported the team, the riders and the crew. Thank you for following us along the race via the web. Thank you to everyone who showed up at the finish line to be with us as we arrived in Annapolis, MD. Thank you to everyone who started the race with us in Oceanside, CA. We cannot say it enough: THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!

The 8 men that rode this race were:

Ken Larson
Jeremy Gustin
Larry Bice
Ryan Denner
Andrew Danly
Tobias Panek
Ralph Lambert
Greg Musser

They were supported by the following crew members every step of the way:

John Tyner (Crew Chief)
Barrie Adsett (Follow Crew)
Tim Sandy (Follow Crew)
Israel Sandoval (Follow Crew)
Dave Casterton (Follow Crew)
Matt Butler (Rider Vehicle Driver)
Matt Simpson (Rider Vehicle Driver)
Julie Morissette (Rider Vehicle Driver)
Ed Danly (Rider Vehicle Driver)
Carrie Panek (Hotel Support)
Veronica Flores (Media)
Veronica Acosta (Media)
Spencer Graves (Media)
Hans Weichhart (Media)

The festivities are still not over with as the closing banquet will be tomorrow night, so continue to check the Blog, Twitter, and our YouTube channel as more photos, videos, and updates get posted throughout the weekend.

Lastly, thank you to all of our sponsors for providing us with this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity:

ViaSat
Avis
Union Bank of California
Latham & Watkins LLP
Deloitte
Clif Bar
Wells Fargo
MD Logistics
KVH
Bank of America
Squadra
Sock Guy
Amigo Custom Screen Prints
Spinergy

We really could not have done this without your support and backing!

-Hans Weichhart

Good Morning Maryland!

Wow! What a non-stop adventure the last 48+ hours have been! After finally getting a chance to work the day shift Wednesday, Veronica and I paid for it dearly with a 7+ hour drive to the middle of West Virginia for the night to "rest", (er, morning,) as you can see from the shot above. We ended up getting in Thursday around 9am, spending an hour looking for a hotel that had enough rooms, only to go back and crash at the first one we had stopped at that didn't before but did an hour later. (Why am I feeling like this isn't making sense right now? Oh yeah, delirium. Sorry. Anyway...)

Thursday afternoon we peeled ourselves out of bed around 2:30pm and joined Ken and Jeremy for a roller coaster ride at the sunset, with 5 hours of non-stop 7% inclines and 9% descents around curvy mountain roads. The night shift took over around 10pm EST, and Andrew and Tobias really kicked some butt and powered our team ahead despite having some really tough climbs as well as getting lost or accidentally instructed off-course more than a few times. Unfortunately, you guys may have missed some of the night shift video feed- they too had curvy roads packed in with some of the tallest trees I've seen this side of the Mississippi, and our internet and satellite feed were down for more than a few hours... So Veronica and I took a quick little nappy. Time completely well spent. Hehe.

And now it is Friday morning. We haven't really slept more than 3-4 hours a "night" per 30 hour shift all week, and we haven't had a real meal (even including fast food stops!) in at least 3 days, but the Veronicas are still rocking and rolling. Why? Because we're crazy. Oh yeah- and because in less than 2 hours we will be done with this race and drinking a beer. Whoohoo!!!

Until the Finish Line,

-V

Photo Montages on YouTube

All of my photo montages have now been posted on the Team ViaSat YouTube channel. Be sure to check them out and comment.

See you at the finish line tomorrow!

-Hans Weichhart

Lambert & Musser Bring It Home...to West Virginia!

This may be the last of the rider shifts for Spencer and myself until we reach the finish line in Annapolis, MD. Ralph Lambert and Greg Musser have made an excellent pull through Ohio and West Virginia. They've dealt with freeway traffic, speeding semi-trucks, off roading excursions, and rising temperatures all while keeping their spirits up and a smile on their faces. Every rider on this race has done an absolutely amazing job and has so much to be proud of! Here's a look back at Lambert and Musser's ride...





-Hans Weichhart

Satellite Information

Have you been wondering what miracle of technology is bringing all of this wonderful media to you via the world wide web?


This little beauty keeps us streaming video, audio, and information to you live from coast to coast. Thank you to ViaSat and KVH for the hardware and software that makes all of this possible!

-Hans Weichhart