After traveling nearly 2,700 miles through two countries and across four states, solo practitioner Jeffrey Tomassetti could see the finish line. The Mexican border was nearly within his reach.
In June, Tomassetti, a Florida Bar member from Fernandina Beach, began his journey down the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route, a stretch of unmarked back country terrain along the Continental Divide from Alberta, Canada, to Antelope Wells, New Mexico.
Once a year, the route, a creation of the Adventure Cycling Association, becomes the site of the Tour Divide, a nonstop, unsupported solo cycling race. Tomassetti, a practiced bicyclist, knew he was up to the challenge.
But just 16 miles away from his final destination, Tomassetti faced his first real obstacle of the race. A wild jackrabbit careened into his bike at 3 a.m., resulting in a broken bicycle, flattened rear tire, and bloodied elbows and knees.
Tomassetti was too close to be deterred, and after rebuilding his bike, he finished those final miles at 4 a.m. on July 3.
“I wanted to move along on a much larger scale than just a day out on a bike,” said Tomassetti, and the Great Divide Route — a trail he discovered in an issue of “Outside Magazine” — fit the bill.
“From the first day I read that article, it just seemed like swimming across the Atlantic, like this big thing, this big goal you could get ready for.”
He said the lengthy preparation was the most difficult part of his journey. “Once you’re at the starting line and you’ve got all your gear and you’re committed, you’re on your way and off you go,” he said.
He said his training as an attorney primed him for the trials ahead.
“These big journeys involve a physical element, but they also involve a huge mental focus and preparation element that we as lawyers are good at. We prepare for trial; we have to take a case that lasts for months or even years and stick with it,” he said.
“Instead of being at a desk doing all that, you’re out on board your bike, traveling through the wilderness,” he said.
Tomassetti’s preparation for the event focused on daily moderate exercise like rowing, yoga and bicycling. The 51-year-old participated in smaller rides and cycling events to help him build up stamina for the trail, which features 200,000 vertical feet, the equivalent to summiting Mount Everest seven times.
Despite his training, Tomassetti faced several challenges during his 22-day odyssey, including heavy snowfall and triple-digit temperatures.
Solo racing leaves everything under the power of the individual rider, so Tomassetti had to acquire and carry his own maps, food, tools and sleeping gear, and re-supplying could be difficult along the remote route.
“Every single day you’re traveling through what looks like the American West from the 1880s,” said Tomassetti. “You’re in old wagon tracks, and you’re going through a huge variety of terrain. I really felt like I was in some kind of John Wayne movie.”
Solitude and silence, too, contributed to that “Old West” feeling, and the quiet proved to be a welcome reprieve from the daily grind.
“It’s so nice to get away from the cellphones, away from the constant demands on your time that we all have, but lawyers have especially,” said Tomassetti.
On July 3, when Tomassetti crossed the finish line, he placed 22nd out of 90 participants. Unsupported races like the Tour Divide do not offer awards or trophies or even certificates of completion. Instead, he said, the reward is finishing, the joy of accomplishment.
It’s a feeling Tomassetti is concerned other attorneys won’t experience if they don’t leave their offices and begin pursuing their passions.
“You can take a month off of your law practice; nothing bad happens,” said Tomassetti. “People think they can’t do it, and they can. If you announce to your surroundings that you’re going to do something, then everyone from the judges down to your opposing counsel will make room for it,” he said.
“Lawyering’s great, but if you’ve got a passion, pursue it. If you want to go do inns of court in England, go do it. Don’t think of reasons you can’t do it,” he said.
“We have a lot more flexibility than we think we have in our lives.”
For Tomassetti, that flexibility means more races and more opportunities for experiences.
He recently spent a Saturday biking from Brooksville to Orlando, a shorter 171-mile route that took him 19 hours to complete.
Tomassetti also has his sights on the Grenzstein Trophy, a route that follows the line between old East Germany and old West Germany.