HOTS UPDATE 120 HOURS: 5 days in the water park is not as much fun as it sounds
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there could not have been any more joyous group of people on earth to see the sun rise this morning
than what is left of the hotties.
after the mayhem last night we expected to see a mass exodus of the surviving hotties…
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we only lost two more.
i will give the survivors credit for this much;
they are tough and determined!
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78 battered warriors walk and run on into what is expected to be another day of storms.
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at the front of the pack,
crystal and ken crossed the booneville roller coaster heading into lynchburg
and were saved by the darkness from realizing what a deep valley they were in.
the only way out of lynchburg is to climb a monster hill….
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seriously.
you have several to choose from,
but every way out is a long and difficult climb.
and the hots course out of lynchburg might take the hardest possible one.
i bet ken and crystal would attest to that possibility.
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after that it is a fairly easy run through brandon and on down to cross the elk river.
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the climb out of the elk river valley probably felt like nothing
after everything they have been through
at the top they went through the tiny community of harmony and continued on towards winchester.
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check in found them one mile from a dollar general
that is going to look like an oasis after the long night with nothing!
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their effort during the night put them in great position.
they are not only 32 miles ahead,
but between them and their nearest pursuer
lie chestnut ridge, the booneville roller coaster, and tanyard hill.
not going to be easy to make up ground on those!
addison hendricks must have had a difficult night,
as he has dropped well off the pace,
leaving kyle dudley alone in he third spot.
just about to start up chestnut ridge.
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i dont think he will be alone for long.
the tough aussie stephen redfern had closed within 3 miles and was just leaving petersburg at checkin….
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smart money says he catches kyle before the top of chestnut ridge.
even money says they team up for the next stretch.
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it is interesting to watch how the leaderboard is shaking out
as we move into the decisive stages of the race.
there has been a lot of change at the top over the past 5 days
and it looks like some new people are going to make a name for themselves before this is over.
but the grizzled old warriors…
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the old guys that just rode steady thru all the fireworks early on;
those names seem to be gradually working their way up.
this is a physically demanding game.
but experience, and the mental game still count for a lot.
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so we are settling in for the day.
anyone that knows tennesee geography knows what the leaders are heading towards today.
you may not yet know the exact route,
but there is a monster between them and their destination.
a monster with no easy way across.
western mountains might boast of impressive elevations at the top.
but the measure of a climb is how many feet between the bottom and the top,
and how steep the grade to get there….
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the cumberland escarpment takes a back seat to no mountain.
it has been a barrier since the first humans passed this way,
and found it almost impenetrable.
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the hotties have seen a lot of challenges,
but the hardest part is yet to come.
Categories: HOTS 2025