Battle Mountain 2019

Much better start than last year on many fronts:

1) We flew into San Fransisco instead of Vegas, we didn't sleep in a casino, I actually got some sleep.

2) The bike was actually where it was meant to be and was picked up all OK, unpacked from the crate and loaded into the 18ft long SUV. unloaded & repacked, repeat a few times until everything fit.

3)Beatiful drive from San Fransisco through wine country and then Eldorado National Forest

and then picnic lunch on Lake Tahoe:

( I can't get that image to rotate sorry)

4) Even got to the Big Chief to do some fettling and meet the Liverpool gang, Annecy, Adam Hari from Sydney and the Sprocket Rocket which looks veeeeeeeeery loooooooooooooooooong. Not sure how there's only space for 5 in there...

Sprocket Rocket. This is minus the nose and tail.

We'll go and register and have a snoop around the rest of the teams in the Civic Centre tomorrow...

BN: I am at the Battle Mountain Super 8 where the internets will shortly be clogged up with a hundred or more Young People doing Social Media.

GN: My room is at the right end of the building for the free wifi of the Scottish Restaurant next door to be within range.

Currently hiding under the bed until the heavy lifting crew have gone out to the course to wrestle with straw bales, board up the armco on the bridge and reassemble all the signs dismantled with infinite care by Battle Mountain Mike last year.  Then I can go to the Civic Center and point a camera at Things.

Latest from the front line: almost everyone is here except Mike Mowett and the Amminger tribe.  Liverpool are only fielding two riders, viz. Ken and Yasmin.  The Japanese entry failed tech inspection because they did not have redundant video systems, but have cut a small hole in the shell and installed one of Hans van Vugt's spare windscreens.  Almost full complement of riders and machines expected in qualifying tomorrow am with Andrew Sourk needing time out for minor repairs and recovery from the 36 hour drive from Michigan and Guillaume (Annecy) and Noah (London South Bank) choosing not to ride because Reasons.

That's if we run at all.  At the moment (22:30 local time) it's chucking down and doing the old thunder and lightning business 

Saturday:

Mooch around the Civic Centre in the morning taking photos of lots of very very nice looking bikes, all the result of thousands of hours on input from mostly student based outfits. Delft still leading the way (24 PSO's working on their bikes full time for a whole student year, each year starting from scratch), with Team Policumbent (Turin Uni) close behind with two bikes this year.  Sprocket Rocket is sharing the Big Chief with us and is a hugely impressive piece of engineering with 5 ex US-pro cyclists with thighs like tree trunks. Rear wheels are three Ultremo tyres side by side, fronts are 2 side by side.

Sprocket Rocket

Hans and Ellen's very, very well sorted machine. Many ceramic bearings resulting a near friction-free rear-drive configuration.

Delft

Adam Hari (Sydney)

Grrrrr can't fix upside down photos sorry, lots more to upload, but that'd do everyones's nut.

Out to Poo Lane (road leading to sewerage works) in the afternoon for more testing with the lid off and on, then evening meeting at the Civic Centre, before back to the Big Chief for full bike strip down to fix a front tyre rub issue. My heel is also catching on some protruding bolts but we need to wait for the hardware store to open tomorrow before we can get countersunk M3's (and full bike strip down again...). Thunder and lightening, very heavy rain from 10pm until 1am really taking the piss of our efforts to do all bike engineering outside in the parking lot of the Big Chief under a lean-to canopy with convenient rain holes.  Liverpool up all night filing, sanding, grinding bits off their trike until thier two big riders fit.

We're booked in for Heat 1 on the 2.5mile course in the morning.

Sleep better than last year but not perfect. Getting nervous now to run a machine that we've only done 30mph in, and has crashed lots.

ps The Scottish Restaurant is the colloquilism given to the popular fast food establishment frequented by the Obree team when they were here. (McDonalds)