Team Bacchetta - 2008 RAAM Crew
2008 RAAM Crew Bio - Sara Kay Carrell
Name: Sara Kay Carrell, Crew Chief and mechanic
“Kids”:
Moonlight my 8yr old yellow Labrador; Bill, my 8yr old dutch rabbit (he owns the house, not me!); Biscuit, Squirrel, Piglet, Bandit, my guinea pigs; Diamond and Della, my chinchillas.
What Bacchetta do you ride/own?
TiAero, CarbonAero, Giro 26, and any other Bacchetta I want to ride that is begging to go for a ride at The Hub!
How many bikes do you own?
Uh….8…I think…I’ve lost count…10? if you count the two bikes that JS “technically” owns, but that I have put more miles on racing/riding than he has!
Where do you live?
Hays, Kansas (actually, Liebenthal, KS…a “booming” metropolis of Hays! Hah!)
Any athletic background?
I have not been off a bicycle since I was 2 ½ years old! And never had training wheels. I can run (but only if I HAVE to!), jump long and jump high, and ride a bike till the wheels fall off….but I can’t throw or hit a ball worth a damn!
Favorite or best achievement(s) on the bike or in other sports?
“Flying” in the long jump and triple jump during my track years of school; successful record crossing S-N Kansas 230 miles, which was my longest miles on a bike at that time; Sebring 2007 was a totally grand experience, too!!
Any future bike or other sporting goals?
Team (with Eric Johnson) W-E Kansas Record Fall 2008; Solo W-E Kansas Record Fall 2009; still debating a triathlon; Team RAAM (heck, it has to be easier than crewing RAAM!); a solo 500+ ultra race; self support tour on the Mickelson Trail; ah…so so so many!
Any Ultra crewing experience?
This will be my 4th RAAM and I have crewed for just about every ultra race JS has participated in! Hey, somebody has to bake the dang muffins!
Why did you accept the crewing position for JS’s Solo RAAM attempt? Uhhhh…..was I asked or told I was to be crew chief?!?! ;-) Ha! Who wouldn’t turn down either offer!
Anything intimidate you about crewing for JS’s Solo RAAM attempt?
The infamous “MUFFIN!!!. Or the point at which JS turns into the “Primma Donna” because we are playing too much ‘funeral’ music, or the speakers are too scratchy sounding, or there is sand all over where he wants to sit, or his legs are cramping……. And all the other quirks of RAAM, like taking showers in city parks in our underwear, or fitting two weeks of personal goods into one tiny bag, or fitting two weeks worth of personal goods of 6 crew into two little vans, or spending 9 days is JS’s Grand Caravan (someone bring a stretcher to put me on when we arrive at Annapolis! Dang those seats are the worst!); finding the crew members; all the crew getting along; getting the vans ready to drive to Oceanside; making sure I get to Oceanside with EVERYTHING; and on and on and on…….
Favorite quote or saying?
“I can smell the roses while I am running with them in my hand” Louis Armstrong
If JS screams “MUFFIN!!!” at you at 3 a.m. what would you do?
Holler back “YOU SHOULD HAVE EATEN IT WHEN I OFFERED IT TO YOU EARLIER!!!!!!”
If you have crewed for or raced with JS before do you have a fun experience that can be shared?!?
Oh, man. This is a hard one with so many crew experiences! Sometimes it is not the direct interaction with the racer during the race, but the interaction of the crew members that are also extremely entertaining! Unless you were there, nobody will ever understand what a sight we must have looked like in 2005 with Kellie and I half naked and showering in a city park together and CI puking in the bushes because of food poisoning, and three or four of the Crew guys showering under a solar shower (held up by our very own Pinto of course!) in their boxer shorts, with Phil and JS sharing an air mattress together in the back of the Ford F350……totally priceless……