"In January of 1988 I was coming around a corner by Snoqualmie Pass on I-90 and hit black ice. I found myself in the middle of a 35 car pileup with a very twisted back. After various attempts of medical help through various doctors, I had to face reality that my dream of a career in bicycling, or even riding in any degree had been diminished in a matter of moments. I put the bike away and tried to do what I could to heal my back. I learned to live with constant pain; the worst being nine years after my accident - a month before my first child was born. I was having sharp back pain, which was different than the constant aching. I found myself flat on my back on the floor, trembling at the pain. My pain threshold is quite high, but couldn't help the tears that formed as the paramedics lifted me towards the ambulance. I began to heal upon my return home with the help of massage and chiropractic. I started working out with weights to gain some strength in my back. There were even some days without pain, which I hadn't experienced since the accident. I felt good enough to start riding again, first for 25 miles, then longer and longer. I rode STP (Seattle to Portland) with my brother. I did STP several more times and other centuries. Then I started thinking about going for more distance. My back, although not completely pain free, seemed to be cooperating, so I figured, why not."

Allen Larsen Ultracyclist of 2003 Dave Watkins photo

There's not an ultra rider among us who hasn't overcome obstacles of some sort, whether physical or emotional. This is the story of Allen Larsen (38), from Cle Elum, WA who was the strongest of the strong this year in winning RAAM.

"Allen is a devoted husband and father of two who lives in a town the size of a postage stamp."

Allen is a devoted husband and father of two who lives in a town "the size of a postage stamp." "I always tell people, hey, I'm self employed in a tiny town so I'll do whatever ya pay me to. I've built a recording studio and do audio/video engineering as my main gig, but also get into the wood shop to turn out some custom furniture once in a while. Whatever pays the bills. By the time I'd spent a couple of years of college, I realized that I didn't want to be tied down to being a math teacher which is what I was heading for. I went back home and started my own business making musical instrument flight cases. As I was also a musician, one thing led to another, and after going to recording school I built a recording studio. Twelve years later, here I am."

"I was very lucky to have a stable family to grow up in. Not too many people can say that these days. Since my father was 54 when I was born, my parents values were old school. I always wanted to do my best for them. My older brother is probably responsible for my competitive nature. If he could do it, then so could I. He's been on both my RAAM crews and I wouldn't want to do it without him."

Johnny Boswell photo

Allen hasn't been a career ultra rider. In fact he's been riding long only since 2000, when he won the Cannonball. "I had missed competing at anything for the years since my car accident, so I thought, 'let's just try this'. I showed up at the start line with literally nothing that would be considered training and had no idea if I'd even finish. I set a new course record for that 275 miler from Seattle to Spokane in 13:06 - over the Cascades and all!" He also won the S2S, another Seattle to Spokane race, just two weeks after the Cannonball. In 2001 he was first place at the Race Across Oregon. Allen had a great RAAM in 2002. He was the third place solo rider, won the Ian Sandbach Inspirational Award, was Rookie of the Year and the Mississippi River Prime winner.

"In training for RAAM, I used a well designed program that John Hughes put together that specifically addressed my goals. The program uses a variety of ride types in a constant cycle of overload and recovery. I trusted the plan and it proved itself true. After 2002, John told me to asses my 'limiting factors', which was pretty easy to do. I think anyone could have done that had they seen me; my neck and my butt. My neck gave out after the fourth night. These two problems alone probably cost me 10-12 hours of lost time. The saddle selection for '03 definitely worked better, but my neck gave out on the fourth night, again! That was quite a mental blow. I was way out in the lead and my neck was no better than last year despite all my strengthening efforts."

"When my neck gave out at the halfway point last year, we tried a number of odd methods to keep me going, including bungee cording my head to my butt, and numerous bar mounted supports. None were going to work for 1,500 miles, though. By Oklahoma, I'd had enough - I gave up. I threw my bike in the ditch and said, "That's it. I can't go another 1200 miles like this." My old high school math teacher, Jim, had an idea. "Just give me some time" he said. So, after some calming down, I reluctantly remounted and continued on, with the pain from the bungee increasing with every stroke. Jim fashioned a "traction contraption" out of duct tape, nylon cord, foam, and a surveyor's stick that he found in the ditch where we had stopped. That was a miracle from God. Upon seeing it in use, Jim thought, "Oh Lord, what have I done?" It resembled a medieval torture device more than a support to aid my progress. After five minutes of riding, I gave him the thumbs up. It didn't look too cool, but I was moving. It also served to show just how tough this race can be. This year's device was just an improvement over that prototype. It was lighter, had a quick release, and offered better mobility. It's still a miserable condition to ride through though."

Neck brace Dave Watkins photo

"It resembled a medieval torture device more than a support to aid my progress."

Allen had some interesting thoughts about the 2003 RAAM.

"At the start, I was concerned with Martin Lorenz and Fabio Biasiolo, but knew that Rob Kish could never be counted out. I just figured, if it came down to Rob and me, I should have enough speed. I was also curious about the rookies Baloh and Robic. I knew that no matter how strong they were, they were still rookies and RAAM would have something to say about that."

"I really didn't plan to be out front like that. I knew I had a better than average chance to win, but did not think it would be easy. I was surprised to find myself way out front. The day I broke away, I pushed a strong pace for 24 hours straight - not one stop. By the time I got to Santa Rosa, I was disoriented and a little delirious. I accused my crew of getting me lost. They assured me we were on route. I was thinking that this was too good to be true and that at any moment I'd wake up back by Pie Town. Being driven by competition, I found it difficult to stay motivated when there really wasn't any. I started thinking about the record but once my neck failed I stopped trying for that. I just turned off the gas and focused on holding my lead. The race became more of a mental, than physical challenge."

"While racing, my body is nothing more than an engine in need of fuel."

"While racing, my body is nothing more than an engine in need of fuel. I personally have chosen Hammer Nutrition products, as they are all natural and formulated specifically for endurance events. My crew tracks every calorie, ounce of water and milligram of sodium that goes into my system on my laptop. We've devised a rather comprehensive, easy to use spreadsheet just for these events. We know at any time, exactly where I'm at nutritionally. It's worked quite well."

"This year, I knew the desert on day one was going to be the hardest spot for me. I don't get much heat up north. At 115 degrees, I was drinking 60 oz/hr. Way more than I could absorb. I could recycle it and did, just short of Glamis. I got off the bike for three minutes to cool down. It worked and was surprised how much better I felt. I didn't want to stop at the next time station, I had to! I was dying, riding slow and just trying to survive. Once the sun went down, I improved steadily."

"In spite of my original plans, I found it difficult to stay on the bike late in the race when there was no real competition driving me to do so. It proved not to be an issue, but my mental state and lack of motivation is something that would definitely need to be overcome should I try again."

"As the race wore on, I never figured I had it in the bag. I thought that one wrong move and Kish would be right there. I've web watched him for years. He just keeps coming. He's like the terminator. Nothing stops him. With that in mind, I became quite paranoid. A data freak by birth, it was all my crew could do to feed me enough stats and probabilities along with the required calories to keep me appeased. We watched his every move until they finally convinced me that with a 200+ mile lead, and less than that for me to go, there was nothing he could do unless I crashed or stopped for an all day movie marathon."

"One wrong move and Kish would be right there. . . . Nothing stops him."

"Being a goal oriented person, I often think about what and how I'm going to tackle my next project. I also think a lot about family and friends; about how I'd like to spend more time with them after this RAAM craze is behind me. I enjoy spending time in prayer as well."

"My recovery from RAAM '03 was completely different than '02. I was feeling great and back on the bike in two weeks. Other than some tingling feet and a little fatigue, I was fine. '02 was the rough one. I pushed myself so far beyond what I was capable of on paper. I was in pretty bad shape. I'd lost about 15 lbs, and who knows how much rear end skin. It took me about eight months to get fully "back to normal". Let's just say that it's a good thing we already had two kids and didn't want anymore."

What's next? I'm thinking about the FC 508, and possibly RAAM '04 if the sponsorships pan out."

So far, "riding ultras has had both a positive and a negative affect on me. Positively, it's become a family thing. Even my five year old encourages and helps me. She wants to see her daddy win. I couldn't have asked for a more supportive wife and without her help it wouldn't have happened. On the negative side though, RAAM has literally consumed my life for the last two years. If I'm not training, I'm working on the bikes or doing sponsorship. No matter where I was, thoughts of RAAM were forefront in my mind. It's like working at home. You can't get away from it."

"I believe that I have been blessed by God with a talent that not too many people have. I consider it a privilege to be His ambassador. I worked very hard to win, but glad it's over (or is it?). I hope that my story will inspire others to get out and do something positive, regardless of their current condition."