This year had the same, curtailed route as last year, but this year was apparently substantially harder with the headwinds. My "adjusted" time last year after subtracting my bonus ride around the Twin Lakes in Mammoth was around 11 hrs 12 min. I was 12 min. faster last year even with the 50.6 min (net) spent on my Twin Lakes detour (an extra 5.9 miles and 724'). It basically took me an extra hour to get from Benton to the finish compared to my time for that segment in 2015. There were fewer starters than ever at 6AM. George and Lori (Rev tandem) split the field apart during the loop south of Bishop well before we crossed the 395 to Round Valley, and I basically rode solo from there on until Benton, when TJ worked with me and then carried me for about 14 miles, and then waited for me at the closed store in Chalfant Valley where there was cool water from a hose that helped me recover some. Then, leaving the store, JJ helped me (Julian Schafer from Las Vegas) for 3 miles until we came upon a SAG vehicle when he stopped with some others for ice. I rode on by because there was a roller ahead to climb and I was afraid I would get dropped. They caught me a little after the downhill on the other side of the roller; I slowed down some and then grabbed their wheel as they went by and held on. I managed to contribute a little at times, but JJ in particular was gracious in holding up when he started to pull too hard for me to keep up. When I was not taking a turn, I stayed at the back because I was not steady in my riding. We finished together, and I very much appreciated the pulls by TJ, Pete, JJ, and Tom (Mac or Storelli? IDK!) all of which helped drag me in the last 8 miles. I basically finished in a 4-way tie for third place in the standings with TJ, Pete and JJ: http://georesults.racemine.com/Planet-Ultra/events/2016/Eastern-Sierra-Double-2016/results Great pictures from the ride on Vic Cooper's FB album: https://www.facebook.com/victor.cooper/media_set?set=a.10207784866952509&type=3&pnref=story Nonsense for my own info: Total stopped time for rest or aid: 29:18 (through Benton, 18:52) Unlike the Garmin, which is attached to the bike, the RWGPS app on the iPhone includes as "moving time" the time I am walking around at a rest stop when I'm actually off the bike because I AM MOVING. So, for this ride, my total stopped time was actually understated by 3:07, which, in turn, overstates my "moving time" by the same amount and thus slightly understates my average speed when moving. No way around this if I carry the phone around with me when I'm stopped. I was suffering dehydration and maybe the beginnings of heat stroke soon as I was leaving Benton. I was a little dizzy, and thought at first it was low blood sugar (i.e., a bonk). But I took 2 GU's and I began to get a stomach cramp. I began drinking a lot of water, and basically ran out in 10 miles and rationed my last third of a bottle. (My CamelBak's bladder and hose were messed up, and I thought it was empty when actually there was a fair amount of water left.) The dizziness got worse and I told TJ to go ahead on his own and make what time he could. I had to stop soon afterwards, about 4 miles before the water drop in Chalfant Valley, where there was cool water available from the hose. Segments after Benton-- > 14 miles at 17 mph leaving Benton [169.4, -0.8% (155.4-166.8, -1.0%, 11.5 mi @ 17.7 mph)] > 3 mi at 11.7 mph (@ 169.4); 3:56 (3:36) stopped time @ Petroglyph Rd (172.4) then, a slight negative grade for about 1.5 miles (-2.6%); avg 16.2 mph solo > then, 2.1 mi (-0.5% avg grade) at only 11.2 mph to the closed store in Chalfant Valley (176.2) - stopped for 6:30 (6:18)! > rolled out slow waiting for JJ and apparently stopped for 2 seconds regrouping with with at 176.7 (0.5 mi) > SAG vehicle at mile 178.9 (12 seconds stop to suggest to SAG driver to go back to Benton to advise riders of water drop in Chalfant Valley) > overtaken by group at mile 182 (6 seconds stopped?) Last 7.9 miles as part of a group of 5 that finished together: -0.1% avg grade; 14.7 mph avg speed (30 seconds stopped, 22 of which was at a signal where we turned onto US-395) SAG stops (recorded "stopped time" in perins): 29:18 total (even with my "melt down" after Benton, this compares favorably with 33:31 at the rest stops that I computed for last year when I was much faster overall. Crowley Lake Park: 2:14 (1:52) Crestview rest station: 4:16 (2:49) Lee Vining (lunch): 7:06 (6:34) [followed by a 1.5 mile (6:34) waste-of-time meander to visitor's center] Sagehen Summit: 0:42 Benton: 4:34 (4:20) Total stopped time at rest stops through Benton: 18:52