Student to Race Across America

Hatfield student Katie Ford, 22, one of Team Durham’s fresher cyclists, is busy training for the race of her life.

Katie is a member of ‘Team Inspiration’, the first four-person female British-based team attempting to complete the annual 3,000 mile Race Across America (RAAM). Voted the toughest endurance event in the world by Outside Magazine, ahead of the Vendee Globe Around-the-world Sailing Race and the Hawaii Ironman Triathlon, RAAM is best described as an “ultra marathon cycling race”.

Starting in Oceanside, California on the 11th June and finishing in Annapolis, Maryland, the course runs through 14 states and climbs over 100,000 feet – roughly three and a half times the height of Mount Everest. On top of the gruelling course the conditions are extreme with unpredictable weather, triple Fahrenheit temperatures and road traffic having claimed the lives of two past participants.

Looking at the course terrain map and testimonials on the website it is fair to say that RAAM makes the Tour de France look like a gentle summer cycle. Participating teams ride nonstop, twenty-four hours a day in a relay format and typically cross the country in 6 to 9 days, averaging 350 to over 500 miles per day. This would be an admirable feat for anyone, but what makes Katie’s attempt even more courageous is that she suffers from epilepsy.

Epilepsy is the UK’s most common serious neurological condition and affects half a million people. For Katie her condition has had a serious impact on the course of her life; she suffered from regular epileptic fits during her childhood, but these were temporarily stopped after she underwent neurosurgery during her teens. Upon leaving school Katie joined the Police Force but had to resign due to police policy when her condition manifested itself again. Subsequently Katie lost her driving license and so turned to her bike to get around, “It was this that got me starting to think about raising awareness for epilepsy and trying to prove a point that the illness doesn’t cause its sufferers to lose their independence. I figured that RAAM was a pretty good way of proving the point.”

Incredibly this summer’s record making event could almost be described as a warm up. It marks the halfway point in Katie’s two-year preparation to attempt the race solo as Team Epilepsy Forward in 2009. In order to take part next year Katie must qualify by completing the team event this year in under nine days. By setting the record as the first British woman to complete RAAM on top of her team record Katie hopes to raise awareness and funds for Epilepsy and prove that you can still lead an independent life with the condition, “The best part about my bike is knowing no one can ever say I’m not allowed to ride – you should never let other people tell you what your limits are.”

You can keep track of Katie’s progress at www.teaminspiration.co.uk where you can also buy a mile of the race to raise money for the Bobby Moore Fund.