Yes to everything except your map directions. Tiekel is on the left side of the highway as you are biking into Valdez, which is technically the Southeast, but the point is yes you may cross the highway there

It is possible to substitute members after sign up. We understand that things happen and sometimes riders need to be replaced. We ask that you let us know as soon as possible to ensure the best outcome, and we do offer this this on a per case-basis because we have hard cut off dates that we need for insurance and team bib printing