It was a cool, slightly-overcast morning in Logan, Utah, the weekend after Labor Day. None of us - cyclists, volunteers, ham radio operators, and legions of emergency medical personnel - expected the freezing rain and snow that would turn the 206-mile, 3-state, one-day Lotoja bike race into even more of a trial of willpower and endurance than it already is.
I was a volunteer at the Strawberry Canyon Feed Zone, located at this pullout. A friend (and fellow cacher) was a rider. The snow began not long after the first riders started arriving, soaked and shivering. We scavenged our cars, pulling handwarmers, emergency blankets and plastic ponchos out from first-aid kits. One volunteer had a small camp stove that we hurriedly set up. We pulled black garbage bags over riders for makeshift windbreakers against the 7-mile descent ahead. Cyclists huddled in our cars, with the heat up full blast. Emergency vehicles raced by on their way to the feed zone at Montpelier, Idaho, which, I'm told, was like a war zone full of hypothermic riders.
Of 1,000 riders, barely 400 made it to the finish line in Jackson, Wyoming. My geocaching friend, tengwa, was one of them!
I have volunteered for more than 15 Lotojas since then. Because of this experience, for every one, no matter what the weather report says, I have brought extra winter coats and gear, blankets, hand warmers, matches, trash bags and first aid supplies!
For other stories from cyclists, volunteers, and other survivors of this memorable race, see "Lotoja Legends, Battle Stories" on the Lotoja website.
Be careful on your way back after finding this geocache. The roadside is steep and the shoulder narrow. Don't fall into the path of passing cars!