Live coverage from the August 17 bike race

Carl Yates, 68, is attempting to finish both bike and running races

Some of the riders to watch today include Carl Yates, a 68-year-old from Tahoe City, California who plans to compete in today's race and also the Leadville 100-mile run next Saturday.

Also in the field is Richard Feldman, 27, of Ketchum, Idaho who finished second last year and Charlie Hayes, 33, from Boulder, Colorado who was third.

The top returning women from last year include Michelle Grainger, 35, from Boulder, Colorado who was the second woman to finish last year and placed 56th overall. She is joined by Paulett Kirby, 36, from Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

7:26 a.m. local time: Mike Volk, 32, of Telluride, Colorado completed the first 14 miles--including an 800-foot elevation--in just under one hour to cross the checkpoint first with a 20-second lead on last year's runner up Feldman. Charlie Hayes is third, 1:15 back from Jones. As he passed the checkpoint, Hayes said, "Man, those guys went out really hard."

7:37 a.m. local time: Last year's winner, Russell Worley, was 10 minutes behind the leaders. Some speculation about mechanical or physical woes.

7:38 a.m. local time: Vicki Swart, a 31-year-old from San Francisco, just came through, the first woman to reach the 14-mile check point. Carole Sharp, 35, of Aspen was 30 seconds back.

Grainger is four minutes back in fifth among the women riders.

Tandem riders Bo Foreman and Peter Rigby repair their bike at mile 39.5

7:55 a.m. local time: The riders have now left the shores of Turquoise Lake, sitting at an elevation of 10,000 feet, and now face tougher trails. Over the next ten miles they will gain a total of 1,400 feet toward the top of Sugarloaf Mountain.

8:12 a.m. local time: At the fish hatchery, 23.5 miles into the course, the first rider through was Rick McDonald, 35, of Denver. Temperature is moving into the low 50s, and riders are expecting a warm and dry afternoon at the 50-mile point this afternoon. Volk is second, followed a minute back by Feldman.

8:25 a.m. local time: In the last 12 miles, Worley has gone from 60th place to about 30th place. He's working his way through the crowd with serious determination. There's a pack of about seven riders ahead of Worley and the group is drafting together on a rare stretch of pavement along Halfmoon Road. They are making good time and are closing on the leaders who are riding alone without the benefit of drafting.

8:39 a.m. local time: Carol Sharp is now the leader among women riders. In second is Vicki Swart of San Francisco.

8:44 a.m. local time: In third is Tonia Ralston, 25, of Jackson, Wyoming.

8:46 a.m. local time: Grainger has dropped back a bit, and may be suffering from asthma.

8:56 a.m. local time: McDonald has crossed mile 39.5 at Twin Lakes Dam--10 minutes ahead of Worley's 1995 course record. He is being matched by Volk, who arrived at the same time. Charlie Hayes is 4 minutes behind the pair while Feldman rounds out the top four at 6 minutes out.

Tonia Ralston receives flowers from last year's top woman, Laurie Brandt

Other news from the course: Yates, who is attempting both races, has made it through the 39.5-mile-point. "I feel okay, but I'll have to hike up the climb heading up," he said. He said he's not thinking of the bike and run as one event, but that he's going to concentrate on the bike race now and worry about next weekend's running race later.

The Foreman-Rigby tandem has had some trouble, but the riders are optimistic. "It's been quite an experience, but hey, we're having fun anyway," Foreman said. So far the pair's bike has suffered a flat, a bad tire tube found when replacing the tire, a bent fork, and most recently, a broken chain.

The top riders in each category seem to staying close together as they begin the climb to Columbine Mine. The heat has been rising all day, with current temperatures in the mid 70s. Without a cloud in the sky and low humidity, riders are drinking as much water as possible in the dry heat.

12:11 p.m. local time: Ralston still held the top women's position at the halfway point up at Columbine Mine as she starts her descent. Her time is on pace to be just outside Laurie Brandt's 1995 record of 8 hours, 52 minutes.

12:20 p.m. local time: Swart has passed the halfway point now, only 9 minutes behind Ralston, followed by Sharp, who is 11 minutes behind.

12:48 p.m. local time: Volk has pulled ahead of McDonald within the last 20 miles--up to the high point and back--to take a 10-minute lead at mile 60.5. He's currently matching Worley's 1995 course-record pace.

12:58 p.m. local time: Hayes is second at the mile-60.5 point, followed by McDonald who is 16 minutes behind the leader.

1:28 p.m. local time: Worley continues to gain on the leaders, moving to 19th place as he passes the 60.5 mile marker. Things are moving quickly and spectators are making the long trip to the finish line in downtown Leadville to catch the first finishers.

1:57 p.m. local time: Volk retains his lead to finish with a new course record of 7 hours, 22 minutes, 2 seconds (5 minutes, 53 seconds faster than Worley's 1995 mark).

2:16 p.m. local time: Hayes follows Volk at the finish line. Feldman follows nearly 10 minutes later at 2:26 p.m. to finish 3rd overall.

4:26 p.m. local time: Ralston has passed the finish line on Harrison Avenue with a time of 9 hours, 56 minutes, 16 seconds. First in a field of 42 women, she was ranked 71st overall. After she caught her breath, last year's top woman and course record-holder Laurie Brandt presented her with a bouquet of flowers.

Other news from the course: Yates and the tandem-riding duo Foreman and Rigby both reached the halfway point before the cutoff. Yates arrived with a time of 6 hours, 30 minutes while the tandem's time was 6 hours, 40 minutes.

The weather in Leadville has topped out at 72 degrees, with a few clouds providing some shelter from an otherwise dry, hot day. The next women finishers should be arriving soon.

4:37 p.m. local time: The second place woman, Grainger, arrived at the finish with a time of 10 hours, 7 minutes, 35 seconds with 33-year-old Ingrid Butts, of Park City, Utah following closely. Butts, who had trailed Ralston by 34 minutes at mile 60.5, had a strong finish where she gained 13 minutes on Ralston to complete the race with a time of 10 hours, 9 minutes, 45 seconds.

5:08 p.m. local time: Word has been received that both Yates (at 3:50 p.m. local time) and the hard-luck tandem duo Foreman and Rigby (at 3:45 p.m. local time) have passed the fish hatchery checkpoint (mile 76.5). With less than 23.5 miles to go, both bikes should complete the race in the next 20 to 30 minutes--well before the 6:30 p.m. cutoff time. If successful today, Yates will make a run at finishing both races August 24-25.

Official results

Jason Hickman, a writer from Bellingham, Washington, is filing live reports from the trail