Georg, I have no idea if I'd do that again or not. I actually rode straight through the night that night, the final night, and on the 3rd-to-last night I only stopped for ~45 minutes. None of these were planned...it all just depends on how your body feels, what the weather is like (heat, wind), what the terrain is like, how much food remains, etc. On that big push I put in across ID and WY, my legs FINALLY started to feel good a week into the race, so I just wanted to take advantage of that. I managed to pass Jefe, but he caught me by the next night, and Ethan caught up a day and a half later after seemingly burying himself to close the gap. Luckily, my body recovered from the effort after a day.

I'm not sure riding through the night any time before the very end of the race is really going to gain much in terms of the overall race standings in the long run, but there are a few scenarios where I could see it being potentially beneficial for your own race. On the other hand, 36+ hours is a long time to push. Your pace will be considerably higher for the last part of that if you stop and sleep for even just a short time. So who knows...it'll be a big gamble no matter what.

Cool sounding race, especially the supported version for those so inclined! But the $250 for a self-supported solo race blows me away. That better be one dang good party at the end.

And for the record, Dave H's TransUtah route doesn't make it to Moab. It doesn't even come close, so you'd have to be creative and find your own way from Moab to over near Escalante. Then you could join his 380-mile route.

The night-time temperatures can vary wildly depending on where you end up when you need to sleep at night. I carry a 40-degree sleeping bag, a very light bivy, and a Thermarest pad that helps insulate me from the ground a bit. Last year I was quite cold almost every night in Montana, but if you're only sleeping for a few hours, that's alright, as long as you don't let your body waste energy and cut into recovery by shivering.

When looking at other peoples' setups, you must be mindful of how long their sleeping, how picky they are about trying to find relatively warm places to sleep, and how easily they get cold. These are all different for everyone, so a 30-degree bag will be fine for some, excessively warm for others, and not nearly enough for others yet. Sleep setups are also augmented by the other clothing one might carry, so just looking at sleep systems would not consider whether a rider carried an insulated jacket or anything else that might be worn at night. The only way you'll know what will work for you is to test out different combinations  fr yourself.

Tim, it's definitely an interesting debate with respect to more singletrack/AZT versus having a more doable/enjoyable route. The resupply options are a bit sparse at places already, and adding more trail would make it take longer to cross those sections and potentially eliminate a couple resupply options. It wouldn't make it anywhere near impossible, but it would clearly add to the challenge. Given the small number of riders who have completed the 750+ in one variant or another, it seems there's plenty of challenge as it is now!

This frame is such a sweet ride. It almost breaks my heart to sell it, but alas, it deserves a new home. And that being said, it now has a new home up in Evergreen. SOLD!

Frame bag is SOLD. Its new owner is sure to give it some extensive use...

I've got my 2009 Lenz Leviathan 4" travel medium 29er frame up for sale. These frames are handmade right here in Colorado! I bought this Lev at the end of 2009, rode it for ~10 months in 2010, and it's sadly been hanging on the wall ever since due to changes in sponsorship. I've been reluctant to sell this frame because of how spectacular it is, but I'm moving and it too needs to move on to a new home. The frame, one of the lightest Al 29er full suspension frames out there, is in very good condition. There are a few small dents on the gusset in front of the BB shell from rocks being kicked up, but other than that, there are only a few cosmetic scratches in the anodized finish.

For details on the frame and geometry, see http://lenzsport.com/detail.php?prodID=9 This is essentially the same frame as what I have except the chainstays on my frame are ~0.25" longer.

I'm asking $1200 for the frame with a Rock Shox Monarch R shock.

For $1300, I'll put on a 2010 Fox RP23 shock that was used for ~3 months earlier this season.

I also have a custom Revelate Designs frame bag that I'll throw in. It's in great shape and would run ~$150 new. I should have a couple spare derailleur hangers to throw in, too.

Too early to say on sleeping gear. If the weather is like last year, you could get by without any shelter, bivy, or even a sleeping bag really. Three years ago, it was rainy for the entire second day, and Mt Lemmon was a winter wonderland with 3-5" of fresh snow and overnight lows around 20. But in general, a 40 deg sleeping bag, a foam pad, and a lightweight bivy will do you well in most conditions. A tarp to throw over all that would be nice if it's actually raining.

If the high stuff is snowy (which it already is), I rode a Koko variant a few years ago that was pretty fun and avoided the La Sals. Head north out of Moab on the highway to the airport, then head northeast through Baby Steps and up to Yellow Cat Flat/Poison Strip (don't drink the water sitting in the old uranium mines). Then turn east on some 2-tracks toward Dome Plateau (Dome Mesa?), head down the east side on some very sandy trails toward Cave Spring (which was dry when I was there), and then continue descending east until you hit the KT at the east end of the Yellowjacket section. With all the sand on Dome Plateau, there'd be a lot of hiking if you rode this in the opposite direction. I did this in ~15.5 hours at a relatively relaxed but steady pace, although I skipped the singletrack in the last 10 miles and just rode the dirt road to Loma.

Throw on a pair of Panaracer Rampages (a reasonable 730 g/tire) and you'll be good to go. They work great tubeless, get mad traction with a loaded bike, will only be annoyingly slow climbing up Mt Lemmon, and are the ONLY tire that I've never sliced. I've never run them on the AZT, but I may well this time around if I decide to show up again, especially if the trails are dry and loose.

Steve, AWESOME! Have you considered a bigger loop using the West Highland Way and the Great Glen Way? This past summer, Matthew and I were dreaming of something like that with the Cairngorms included. Perhaps that'll be an endeavor for 2013...

My two cents:
1.) Tire pressure for TD? Depends on the volume of the tire you go with, but I ran ~35 psi and never worried about changing it unless some air leaked out. Wait, I recall Jefe and I both adding air to our tires at the gas station in Cuba before heading out onto all that pavement.

2.) GPS or maps or both? Maps and cues are fine as long as you can trust your computer to not die. Ever. If not, add a second computer or a GPS for backup.

3.) lights?  Fenix flashlight(s). I used one LD20 on the helmet. Jefe had one of those, as well as a single-AA light. I was very envious of his second light. I used the PT EOS II in 2009, and I'd say the LD20 was considerably better. I only changed batteries a few times and had many more lumens to work with. You just have to be creative with how you mount the Fenix lights.

It seems like racing on the AZT has become an annual thing for me. It'd be odd if I didn't do it this time around seeing as I'll be living a heck of a lot closer come January. It'd just be the 300 for me, though...I'll have one of those jobs now, reducing my flexibility a bit.

It was added to the official route (TourDivide only) for this year.  I haven't heard any good comments from fully loaded racers.

Who else racing the route has ridden it so far? It was still partially hidden under snow when most Southbounders went through in June, so it unfortunately wasn't used in this year's TD.

Yeah, this is an interesting pairing to watch. Jay knows exactly the pace and effort level his body can withstand (and given his 8-hour break last night, he may well be right near the limit). Craig, new to this realm of racing, looks to have unfortunately been hobbled. I nearly dropped out in WY in this year's TD, and I know Jefe was really, really suffering from similar connective tissue ailments and had similar thoughts of quitting for fear of more serious damage. It sure is a fine line...

I'm hoping to see Craig continue to push on at a more relaxed rate and enjoy himself. The weather here in Colorado is finally going to cool down a bit, and it'll start to feel like autumn in the mountains. Hopefully with good rest every night, his body may get a chance to heal up a bit.

Craig spent the night at the Angler Inn. Got there at 1am. He may also have been looking for a place to buy more tape for the achilles.

Saddle forward, cleats all the way back, and lots o' tape! That's what got me through Montana (and Idaho, Wyoming, and Colorado!).

Now I find out that our little Tour Divide story we've been telling our friends, actually caused the rides more harm than good. Sorry guys...maybe think of it this way...for the minor inconvenience you experienced, you actually made someone else super happy.

No no, don't get us wrong. That kind of cheering is awesome. That was actually Dave Bruno and I at that point...and I remember thinking, "whoa, how do these people know about the race?!" and smiling. It was a few days later, it felt like every couple hours there was someone that would stop along the route to cheer and take photos, and while some attention is great, it made us feel like jerks if we didn't stop to chat for a minute or two, but that, as Jefe pointed out, really pulls one out of the pedaling zen in which we hopefully had found ourselves. Perhaps the best solution to all this is to simply make sure that fans realize that riders may not want to stop, and if we know that fans realize this, we won't feel bad about waving and continuing on our way. And I think we'd also request that fans don't suddenly pull over in front of us like they want to steal our bikes :-)

I'm with Slow-Dave on the Spot stalking. You don't have to link your SPOT to TD, SPOT gives you your own private page if you want, just link your friends and be hidden to the scary stalkers out there like Bounce if you want. It's pretty simple in my opinion.

So if Jefe and I had turned our SPOTs off in Colorado, no one would have minded? It's a tough nut to crack - thousands of people online want to be virtual spectators, and we as riders tend to be fine with that, but the stalking thing is a bit of a drag. On the other hand, the SPOTs also do have some added advantages for riders since some bike shops, lodges, and other establishments follow along and will often be waiting and ready for incoming riders, whether it's during normal operating hours or not. Thus, going stealth would stand to impact both racers and virtual spectators. It's not as simple as leave it on or turn it off.

Bad news through official channels - Carson NF is closing to all public access as of tomorrow (Thursday) morning. This means essentially the entire GDMBR between the CO-NM border and the town just north of Vallecitos whose name escapes me right now will be closed.

http://nmfireinfo.wordpress.com/2011/06/29/carson-national-forest-to-enter-stage-3-fire-restrictions/

I agree completely with Jefe's comments. It was a bit unnerving to have so many fans out there, often driving past and then quickly swerving off the road and jumping out of their cars/trucks. Alarm bells always went off - is that a superfan or someone that's going to try to steal my bike? That being said, usually it was fun to have someone to chat with for a few minutes. It's also more than a little frustrating to have had a couple dozen or more fans I've never before met come out to cheer and chat, but according to the rules, I can't grab a DQ Blizzard with Caroline when she rolls through Silver City in a few days, although I know some other racers have been a bit lax with respect to that particular rule.