Angående Blanco finns följande på FB:
Alberto Blanco, a sentimental favorite of many RAAM fans, the man who in 2011 made it to Annapolis with the help of sheer will, stubbornness and duct tape; the man who just a couple of short days ago declared, “This is going to be war man and of course it’s going to come down to who can hurt and who can push themselves, you know?”, withdrew from RAAM this morning in Salome, Arizona after less than 24 hours in the race.
Although he was up in fourth when he reached Salome, in the end he faced that he wasn’t up to the effort.”I know now that I probably really didn’t have any business being here, “he admitted in a phone conversation this afternoon. “I’ve had a lot going on—too much going on personally. This past year, these past two years have been really tough, really stressful. Last year I was registered, but as RAAM got closer I could see it wasn’t going to work so I transferred to this year and things were looking better earlier but in the last few months it all the same again. But I still had to go. I honestly felt that I could compete and go hard and hang with those guys. And I could for a moment, but I couldn’t keep their pace. I was doing okay as far as staying on the bike. I wasn’t taking breaks and that’s the only reason I was able to be up there as far as I was. But in the end I was just really weak. I didn’t have the training and then the food wasn’t going down right. I was just really weak—really weak right from the beginning. I kept pushing the whole time but I was never in control. I was in a lot of trouble and then by the time that day broke I was even worse. We wondered could we try different food, could we try different hydration. And nothing worked. We had to pull the plug and DNF. I thought I would be able to pull it off just by being mentally strong and having a base—but it’s a race that you have to prepare for. There’s no half-ass in RAAM.” He concluded his revealing explanation by saying, “It’s so disappointing, not just for me but for the crew and the people that have supported me. But at the same time RAAM is wonderful, you can’t hide. You’ve got to come in prepared. It doesn’t matter how much you want it, if you’re not prepared you’re nowhere.”