I admittedly have little experience with this kind of challenge, but it seems to me that slicks, or some tires that are nearly slick in the middle with some knobs on the edges would be the best bet if you're planning on long days on pavement. If you wanted to save yourself the hassle of carrying full knobby trail tires, you could always mail them to yourself in antelope wells and pick them up at the post office. And if you think you'll need them again in utah, you can mail them ahead to yourself.

If you want to mail to Antelope Wells, the closest is Hachita.  Next closest would be Columbus, on the border to the East of Hachita (maybe 30 mi).

HACHITA
26 B ST
HACHITA, NM 88040-9800

800-ASK-USPS® (800-275-8777)
Mon-Fri
7:00am - 1:00pm
1:30pm - 3:30pm
Sat
9:00am - 12:00pm
Sun Closed

[Can I bring bear spray into the U.S.?]

I had heard somewhere that carrying bear spray across the US/Canada border was a problem.  Is that the case?  I will be northbound if that matters.

Here's what Customs and Border Patrol has to say about bear spray, including a mention of the Canadian rules:

{QUOTE}
Can I bring bear spray into the U.S.?

It is permissible to bring bear spray into the U.S., however, bear bangers (with explosive) are not permitted.

NOTE:  Bear repellent is not considered prohibited in Canada if the label of the container indicates specific use against animals only and pest control provisions are met. For more information visit Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA).
{END QUOTE}
from: https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/detail/a_id/878

This link leads to an "ERROR (404 NOT FOUND)" page on ridewithgps.com. Any chance you could remedy this? The KML file previously posted is not uploading correctly through ridewithgps.com either.

Try http://ridewithgps.com/routes and search from there.

Did you ever make it by the store to find out the hours?

Not yet, but an sure I or someone in the family will be by there over the holiday period.  Will post something when I find out.

Man, that's some tough weather. 55 today in Phoenix, coldest day of the year so far. Busy shoveling sunshine!! 

I know ... I just came back from a ride in the Phx area.  Almost had to put sleeves and knee warmers on.

At 8:45 Mountain it's -32f in Banff.  On the bright side, Elkford reports -12f ... much warmer.  Glad I'm not out on the trail right now. 

fwiw:

Would it be possible/helpful to get a 'sticky' message posted in this topic that contains the link to the goggle docs signup sheet.  Might eliminate a lot of postings asking where it is.  I assume you have to have some admin privilege to do this.

Thanks

But minus headwinds, I think a key to the AW-Silver City section is whether the Separ store is open for business.  If so cold water and snacks at mile 70 of 120.  If not --no big deal-- but one will need to lug a lot of water right from the start, especially if it’s hot.

Anyone know if the Separ store is open nowadays?

I stopped at Separ a year ago, December, and they seemed fine.  I've driven by a few times, since, and they've been in business.  I'm not sure I've ever seen them not in business.  I don't know what keeps them open, since there aren't any gas pumps.  They aren't a 24 hrs operation but I don't know the hours.  We may be passing thru there again in the next few weeks.  I'll see if I can find their hours.

When I stopped there last year, I found a working water faucet at the NW corner of the building.  I'm not sure I'd drink the water without letting it run for a while and/or treating it since it's hard to tell how long it's been sitting in those pipes.

I'm way out of synch with the mainstream here.  I will do a SoBo ride this year, but won't be there for the Grand Depart.  One of the things that attracted me to TD was the first sentence of the description over at TourDivide.com:  "Tour Divide ... Is a solo, self-supported ultra-cycling challenge ...".  Hardly the case if I'm launching into the wilds with 100+ of my new BFFs, at least not for me.

SoBo is attractive to me because I used to live 10 miles West of Hachita and work about 10 miles NW of the finish line.  A copper smelter, now gone, and an attendant company town.  Also, Antelope Wells is relatively convenient for pickup when it's over.  My wife can be there in a few hours from Phoenix when I eventually finish.

I forgot to ask him about the Gold Dust Trail, presume it is not part of the route this year.

I believe the GoldDust is required for the South Bounds, only.  It is reflected on the current track file.

It looks like Billy Rice Yo got his SPOT going while in Salida this morning.  He's tracking again...

This might need to be on a new topic, so mods feel free to move this. Does anyone have any experience with private passport expediting companies, like fastport? I only have 11 days to get a passport and can't take time off getting bike and gear sorted to drive to regional passport office in Seattle.

Opinions please on these services or are they a scam??

I can't speak specifically for FastPort, but we've used these type services in the past for passport and visas without problem. One we've used is PVS and we've sent our documentation to them in Arlington, VA.  They've always met their promised delivery dates.  As you're probably aware, they're not cheap, but in our case it was cheaper than driving from here in Phoenix to LA to stand in line.  pvsinternational.org

The turnaround is affected by how soon you get the docs to them and make sure they're complete so that you don't have to resubmit.

Good Luck ...

I've lost something...
how it works? I call a number (wich number?) and I leave a message for the podcast?
it was super funny for my wiffe at home...

When you're at MTBCast to listen to the podcast, click on Home.  At that page, you'll see the free number to call with reports.  Right next to the Donate to support MTBCast button ... Important!

I feel pretty dumb asking this but i wont be racing until 2015 and i am just not sure if i wanna ride a hardtail or full suspension if i ride a full suspension i wont have to buy a new bike but if i ride a hardtail i will have to buy a new bike. What is your guys' opinion i would reall appreciate it

Look at this year's start list in google docs and see what this year's entrants are riding.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AnV6xT65HkPRdFRTWGUyNTRnWGNrNkZsbVVPNTViNkE#gid=0

I was looking around on the forum, trying to discern what size of bear spray to order, and came across various info here that might be of interest.

It looks like 12 oz is what I'll look for.

Here are a few links, within this forum, that may be interesting to read:

I'm not trying to start a massive discussion on the merits of bear spray vs no bear spray, whether I should be carrying a .40 cal Glock, etc.   Just attempting to convey a little info I've not seen before.

Matthew Lee's bear map:
https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&oe=UTF8&t=h&msa=0&msid=200334849650645495946.00047e45e4239031f00c3&start=0&num=200&sll=46.7248,-112.807617&sspn=1.269004,2.221985&z=7

http://fwp.mt.gov/recreation/safety/wildlife/bears/bearSpray.html

http://fwp.mt.gov/recreation/safety/wildlife/bears/bearEncounter.html

Enjoy

I'll be racing TD in 2013

South Bound ITT, starting June 7th.

29" Surly Ogre
no suspensoin
2x10 gearing

I look forward to meeting each of you as you catch and pass me on the trail.  ;}

Bill Peschka
Chandler, AZ

I'm Bill, a long time watcher, minor contributor.  Have been a member for a year or so, just never introduced myself.  I'll be starting TD as an ITT on June 7.  Will be doing the LOI, entering myself in the roster spreadsheet, etc soon.

Am going on a 29" Surley Ogre, with a full set of Revelate bags.  Should be interesting.  I've done quite a bit of ultra distance road, but bikepacking has some new twists.  Suspect I'll be doing a lot of learning along the way.

I'm trying to understand all the components or layers involved in GPS'ing for bikepacking.  Specifically, I'm interested in Tour Divide, at this time but figure these concepts apply to most events of any scale.

My current plan is to buy a Garmin Etrex 30 which includes a simple basemap.

It seems that I then need

   a topographic map for the U.S.
   
   a route map for TD showing the path to follow, in my case.
   
Can someone, with definite knowledge help me confirm and quantify this?

Do I have to buy the $99 Garmin topo map or can I get this from Topofusion.

A question out of order ... where DOES Topofusion fit in here?  On their site, it looks like I might be able to get the topo maps free through them.

If so, it seems I could get by with the Basic, rather than Pro version.

Where do I get the route map data file for TD?

I've seen mention on the forum about limits on the number of data points that could be loaded for a route map.  Maybe specifically mentioning the Etrex 20 and 30.  Like 10,000 points.  In this regard, I've seen talk of dealing with the 10,000 data point limit by either compressing the data (removing some points) or breaking up the file into smaller files.  Also, an REI employee recently told me, no problem, you just use a bigger SD card.  So, I guess my question here is, if not compressing, can I use a big SD card or do I break things up into multiple files on separate cards. 

Thanks in advance,

Thanks to all for the input. 

I have a mesh pocket on top of my seatbag that seems to be a good spot to put the Spot Tracker.  I think I saw some other(s) mention this placement here on the forum.  It should have a good view of the sky and be removed from the GPS that may be on the bars.

It looks like Sheila got into Flagstaff around 3 am and is moving again as of about 20 minutes ago.