He actually decided on Coconino Loop, rather than the 300.  Good choice with the temps.  Still a big gear, though...

Probably a good choice a couple of weeks ago it was still quite hot, temps are coming down though. We went 24 hours with out running the cooler just a couple of days ago, only running a couple of hours a day now. Highs for this weekend 95 however just a couple of weeks ago a guy had to be rescued off of the north end of the Catalina's http://www.tucsonmtb.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=5493

As for the big gear choice well he'll likely get to mix it up with a fair bit of walking might save the ass in the end.

I have been using this http://www.adventurecycling.org/store/index.cfm/product/154_76/terry-liberator-y-gel-saddle-for-men.cfm for over 10 years not the same one of course I think I am on my 4th.

It's a little more padding then some people like but it works for me.

For the AZT 300/750 we'll start a thread here to help coordinate shuttles. Last year one local picked up riders at the finish line the night before and then brought them back to his place for the night. Then he dropped them off at the start.

I had 2 guys from CA come to my place and drove down to the start with them so as to bring their van back to Tucson.

Having your rig at the finish might help with motivation, but having it here in Tucson makes life easier if you need to bail.

MadMax the only 750 finisher lives here and was able to hop in with the CA van as one of them was going to that start as well. I had offered to go to the finish and retrieve him as long as he paid for all of the gas. That was originally a back up plan to him just turning south and riding/hitching back thru Flag but he was running low on time so I went and got him.

The year before Mark C rode/hitched from the Utah finish line back to his place on the front range CO. Kurt R had a plan to meet friends at the finish line he only had 7 days to do 750 miles and get there on time to meet them talk about motivation.

The next event coming up here in AZ is the Coco 250 a loop out of Flag so the logistics are a lot easier. We have talked about putting together a set loop based out of Tucson but so far nothing specific has come of it. There are certainly ways to do one though.  

Tim

Can't see using a hammock in the desert not that there aren't trees sometimes but there are certainly a lot of places one just wouldn't work.

Tents are nice and there are some good light options but they all seem to be just a little too heavy for bikepacking.

In my experience on the AZT and sleeping on the ground in AZ in general you don't want to be out there when snakes are the most active. Planning a ride in the summer months better to hit the high country. Not only would the lower desert be crawling with snakes at night the sun would cook you all day. That's a no brainer I know please take my smart ass comment with a grain of salt.

I would have thought that the snake in the bag story was urban legend but it makes sense if you leave something lay for too long something will move in. Easy enough to deal with just don't leave your bed roll lay out for too long. Likely not an issue when bikepacking anyway. I do like to get the down bag out early though (so it has time to fluff back up) but I usually put in on a bush, hang it in a tree or just lay it on the bike so it's up off of the ground.

My bivy sack used to have a mesh screen on it but I cut it off to save weight and bulk. Mosquito's are pretty rare in the desert so I never used it much anyway.

As for scorpions same as snakes I can't see being out when they are the most active. I did get stung by one at home once not that big of a deal really. They do like to crawl under things during the day to get out of the sun but I have only once seen one while bikepacking.

Thanks Tim, sort of.  I am pretty aware of all the threads about lighting but was hoping to hear from people who (like you) have spent time on the trail at night on the AZT or CT and what worked for them. 

The Fenix sounds really interesting to me.  Lot's of models though.  Not real sure where to start with all that.

Ya you caught me in a smart ass moment.

Hope you can make the AZT this spring it's an amazing journey.

One more thing that I thought of when it comes to lights and the ones that I have experience with. It's not the number of lumen but the beam and how it hits the trail.

Obviously you need to be able to buy/replace the batts as you go. You'll want to travel light and make quick stops. So nothing fancy, I noticed that the Fenix in the review used a specialty batt but I think they make a AA version as well.

Lately I prefer the lithium batts as they are lighter and last longer as well as putting out more power. In my experience the C-stores almost always have them in AA but not always AAA.

Feel free to ask any AZT specific ? you might have. I'll do my best to answer, I enjoy sharing what I know about the AZT bike route. The only price is you have to put up with me being a smart ass.

I could just pull the standard bs and say look here http://www.bikepacking.net/category/reviews/lighting/

Also there have been several threads on this topic but I won't be the dick and just say look first ask second. Well ok maybe I will.

Just kidding this looks like a good review http://www.bikepacking.net/reviews/lighting/fenix-digital-p3d-q5-led-flashlight/ pretty sure I have seen several previous AZT riders using this or something like it.

I have 3 AAA Serfas lights one is an older version of this one http://www.serfas.com/product_details.asp?ID=294 that is great. Unfortunately they replaced it with this one and even though it is rated the same 200 Lumen the pattern is not the same and the light just doesn't seem as bright. I bought two of the new ones thinking to have them both on the bars and the old one on my helmet. It works but the new ones just don't seem to light up the trail as well as the old one.

I would say that the key thing is to have something that you can buy new batts for at any Circle K (local C-store) so AA or AAA I should think. Along with eating in restaurants you'll be getting every thing you need at Circle K.

I don't do a lot of night riding personally but there is no way that I can see making reasonable time with out some night riding. You don't need the same lumen numbers that you would for a 24 hour race IMO it's more about having enough light to keep moving. Also several sections of the AZT will put you in towns or on highways so you might look at some kind of light weight blinky and other reflective options. I have seen reflective tape in spots on rims to help with visibility.

Sorry about being a smart ass hope the rest helps some.

Tim

I use standard riser bars and just push the cables back out of the way. I have also seen people get the pack under the bars and cables. It's not that hard to work out. My bar harness is really simple just a sheet of cordura with two short straps and plastic buckles around the bars, then a top and side strap for holding the bag on. I also put a longer strap doubled around the bars and bag. I also have a strap on the bottom of the harness that goes thru the fork crown it's not supper tight but it keeps it from bouncing.

Hope that helps.

Tim

No pics either but this is what I have for 3 season use http://www.mountainhardwear.com/Phantom%E2%84%A2-32-%28Regular%29/OU8440_R,default,pd.html Packs down plenty small with compression sack nice and light well worth the price. I put mine in the seatpost bag along with a warm clothes layer and a light weight tarp.

I also have something similar to this http://www.kelty.com/p-483-celestial-55.aspx?category=sleeping-bags-pads for summer use. Mine is more of a fleece top but the bottom is a plain sheet like this one. I haven't used it much but did recently for a summer trip with rain highly likely. It made sense to go synthetic as we did get rained on. It packed into the same size compression sack but it must weigh about 1 pound more. For the rain I also brought my bigger 8x10 nylon tarp.

Also, Jandd Mountain Wedge 3, and the Jandd Tire Bag II.

Jandd gear is bomb proof for sure.

I've seen the SS hubs with the short stack that looks ok but what I would push for would be to go back to the fat chain that works with the old 8 speed. And then do a short stack for a 5 speed maybe. I just can't see the advantage of a whip thin chain, well not for an adventure bike anyway. The ultimate adventure drive train on a 29er 8 speed with 20/30 front 11/36 out back in XT level durability and weight. Sure there would be some big jumps on the cassette I would but them down in the smaller cogs. Say 36, 32, 28, 24, 18, 14, 11 hell I got there in 7. 

Sounds like you answered most of your own ?.

You may have to run some kind of chain keeper up front but I have seen it done with out one.

Not sure about 5 speed but I am sure as hell not interested in 10 speed.

Maybe at some point some one will come out with a new 8 speed (same chain as your SS) with a 12-36 cassette. Something reasonably light but durable marketed to the endurance crowd.

Boy that's gonna be a tough one. I used to take my 40lb border collie along on day rides. Back then I had a rack and milk crate on the bike and she would sit in there and ride when she was tired enough.

I have pulled a BOB some seems like it would be hard to keep the dog in it. All of the 2 wheel trailer options that seem to make sense for a dog would not work well off road.

Good Luck

Tim

I have an iMac running OS 10.5.8 and use Basecamp to load .gpx files onto before transferring them to my Garmin eTrex HCX GPS. Works beautifully. Garmin has come a long way to making GPS interfaces more friendly to us Mac folks.

Thanks we haven't pulled the plug yet but it's looking likely we will pick one up soon.

Sorry guys, this was my bad.  A few people were live, but two of the three were goofed up, preventing them from getting new data.  I've got them showing now.

And sometimes it's Scott's fault. Thanks for clearing things up. And now back to the blue dots.

A buddy of mine picked up the Mallets he needed something new anyway.

I should think they would work fine for the OP"s family ride.

But there's no way they would work as flats for DH.

Like the Time flats that I have they work ok for those times when you don't get clipped in but having now used grippy flats there's no comparisons.

Like Bart says the hybrids are a compromise.

Cfi this set up might work fine for you as Toby said maybe you should just try it.

On the other hand they do have a tendency to break. Looks like you could use those two straps and just strap the bag to the seat.

If everybody is doing something the same way there is likely a good reason. If you want to ride advanced single track there are several factors. Getting behind the seat has been pointed out even if you drop the rack and strap you pack to the seat it still looks a little big. Weight is the next big factor most of the riders I see are shooting for a minimal weight as this allows for more riding and less walking.

The seatpost bags carry gear well with very little added weight even if the rack doesn't break its extra weight that you don't really need to carry.

Hope these post have helped.

Tim

Getting the spot into track mode is pretty easy, but pretty easy to mess up. Once you are out there you may think it's working but unless they have a smart phone and bother to look they will never know. At some point they'll check in with some one and figure it out.

Blue dot watching is fun but still unpredictable. It's frustrating when you have people set to follow you and then your not there. Forgetting to reset every 24 hours has caused several riders to disappear from races here in AZ.

Wow full carbon should be sweet, yes some will say it's not the right bike but I should think Santa Cruz has it figured out, and they have a good warranty policy.

Just to be clear when you say large seat bag. There are two guys making the over sized seat bags meant for bikepacking. And they both make two sizes. I have the regular size and can fit a lot into it. As far as I know the largest one is meant more for winter. I thought I wanted the extra large one but my buddy with the Pivot pointed out that it would stick out too far behind the seat. The key thing being able to get behind the seat on the down hill sections just as you normally would.

Tim

Looks like a decent bike to me I had a Blur but sold it off to go 29. There was one at last years Coco ride. 6.64lbs that's not super light but you could do worse. A full Action Tec cog set would be pretty sweet should be fine with the DT Swiss steel freewheel. The shop guy had me convinced to go that route when I was building the Blur but I had already been sold on Chris King and they would chew up the light weight freewheel.

One thing I noticed looking at the frame it looks like you will have room for a frame bag under the shock. The other thing is it looks like you will have space to grab the frame above the shock, at the back end of the top tube. While this may not seem important to the average rider trust me it will be very handy when bikepacking. If you use a large seatpost bag (the most common setup) it's hard to grab the seat like you normally would. A buddy of mine bought a Pivot and the first thing he notice when bikepacking was that the shock got in the way when he went to grab ahead of the seat post. During this years AZT 300 I was out on Oracle Ridge doing some trail work. Kurt R was still out in front at that point and he stopped to talk with us for a second. I noticed he had the new Spearfish and asked how he liked it. His only complaint was that he didn't have a good place to grab the frame.

Best of luck with the new rig let us know how things come together. I would like to say I'll see you at the Coco but I may not be able to make it this year.

Tim

Looks like that XTR crank does use a 64 mm bolt pattern but It's a big jump from 20 to 34 not sure if it would work to go for that big of a jump 20 to 38 that is.

Yes you will want some kind of bash guard most people I know have the bash guard as a ring that replaces the old big ring. Why not just reuse your old 9 speed crank?

Actually that's a other good point about a 2x set up with the 34 and a bash guard you gain some ground clearance. Not sure about the CTR course but the Coco has one section dropping off of Williams Mountain there are lots of rock ledge steps. The AZT has some of these as well.

What kind of bike are you getting do you know what the BB height is?