The first comment I have about the vehicle support for the bike ride is that we are lucky to have it. In the early years of this "event", we'd drive the route before the start and stash water bottles and food behind shrubs along the way. Then, if it hadn't been eaten by rodents, we'd enjoy warm water and gooey power bars while sitting on the ground by the side of the road. So a sincere thanks to those who have volunteered to drive a support vehicle from stop to stop, all night and day.

Here are some important points about support during the bike ride.

The support vehicles are there to carry supplies, not you. If you are thinking that you'll ride as far as you can, and then get a lift, you need to rethink your training or your participation or both. You should be planning to finish the bike ride. The support vehicles can carry you and your bike in case of a problem, but they are not shuttles.

Space for gear will be limited. Later we'll work out logistics for cars and gear, but we may leave some hiking-only stuff in Lone Pine, and we may leave cars in Badwater. The support vehicles will carry: common food and supplies for the bike ride, sleeping bags or blankets, pads, and pillows for the sleep spot, and one bag per person with your personal gear. Depending on the number of people and cars, this may be a single grocery bag per person to carry your extra food, tools, clothing, sunscreen, etc. Since space will be limited, don't bring more than you need thinking others will want to share. If you need five powerbars, don't bring a box of 12. There will be a cooler with ice, so if you want to bring something that must be kept cool, let me know beforehand so we can make sure there is room.

Here is a gear list . You might not want all of this stuff, but it's a place to start. Please send me your suggestions, especially if you've done this ride before. I'll add them to the list.

In order to make the support tasks as easy as possible for the drivers, support stops will be arranged at regular intervals. Except in the case of problems, they won't be stopping when they see you on the road. Rather, they'll drive up ahead to a convenient location and wait for all riders to pass before moving on to the next location. If you are an especially fast rider, you may want to be careful that you don't get too far ahead and pass a support stop before the vehicle gets there.

I've posted a map of approximate/suggested locations of support stops. These may change during the ride, at the discretion of the drivers, but it should give you some idea of where and when to expect support stops.

As always, I welcome your comments,