There seem to be four kinds of racers out there:

1. Those who seek to push themselves as hard as they can, and who willingly force themselves to excel under self-imposed restrictions and limitations that increase the challenge. As such, the style of the race is often as important as the final finish time (although winning or placing well is still a major consideration).
2. Those who put athletic performance and finishing times above all else, and therefore don't worry much about style. People in this group often dabble in gray areas when it will give them an advantage or increase their odds of a fast finish. Generally highly competitive, they know the rules--but don't have a problem rationalizing minor deviations. They don't generally cheat outright though.
3. Those who race for the "experience." Finishing quickly isn't that important, nor is style. They do what feels good, which  means that they'll bend or break the rules to fit their current situation. To them the rules are "guidelines," and open to creative interpretation. People in this group sometimes slip into category 4--although only when the race is finished, after people accuse them of cutting corners.
4. Those who enter races because they want recognition and prestige. These guys will cheat, cut corners, and otherwise do whatever it takes to make themselves look "epic."

Of the four groups, the first seems to be the most common.

I've only used a trailer once, and it was awful. It make my bike feel like a semi-trailer, and riding up soft gravel inclines was stupidly hard. Even turning the whole rig around was a PITA. One reason I ride my bike is to feel liberated and agile--and the trailer made me feel clumsy, heavy, and awkward.

But lots of people use them, so they must work. Maybe rent one for a couple of days to see if you like it?

A couple of years ago, after taking many arrows from the "Do. Whatever." crowd, I cobbled this together:

http://tobygadd.blogspot.com/2012/05/ultra-racing-rules.html

And Dylan takes the win after an amazing sleepless final push!

Go Dylan! He has just gotten stronger and stronger this summer.

And they're off!

If anyone knows who Stefan_G is, can you let him know that the lost pants guy posted his name and address on this discussion. Thanks.

Did you follow the thread that he linked to? If so, you'll see that he doesn't actually have your pants--he was just referencing another discussion.

For kicks, I looked at the CTR Trackleaders website this morning. Am I to understand there are still racers on course...with this snow? It's been a month....maybe people just did not call in.

Lots of dots out there from people who abandoned the race. Hover or click on the dots to see how long it's has been since they were updated. Usually Scott deletes old dots, but he has been riding the CDT this summer, so he hasn't been behind his desk much.

What's with the critics? Whatever it's called, and whether it's loopy or not, it looks like a great ride through some beautiful country. Seems like a great race or tour. I'm looking forward to some trip reports!

His orange dot is suspiciously close to Clear Creek. A little swim to finish things off?

Thanks for the photo, Mark. Those are some tired-looking, but very happy, eyes!

An amazing accomplishment in so many ways. But I keep thinking of how lucky he is to see so much of Colorado in one summer. I hope that he's taking lots of photos--and that he isn't too tired to make some great memories!

Go Justin, go!

Great story, Michael. You've got it figured out--failure is actually success when you learn something from it. With a little better luck, you're going to make it happen next year!

I just noticed that Norb finished. Congrats Norb! Nice work!

Nice work Mark. Now to yo-yo the CTR next year?

SOMEBODY needs to do that. And Mark seems like a likely candidate!

At carvers eating with micheal Ackerman
Finished at 3ish
Nice
I am hurting but really happy with the finish

Triple crown !
I can't believe it

HUGE congrats, Mark. Amazing summer of riding. You've proven that even slow(ish) guys can do amazing things. Thanks for the inspiration!

Hi Guys, back in Salida. First time I walked (rode) away from a CTR. It is hard, I really love this race...it has become a passion.

Bummer to hear that you had to bail this year. Oh well, I think that everyone has to do it sooner or later. Getting across the finish line requires a healthy dose of luck, and luck never holds all the time!

Caminiti is impressive, he really knows how to take care of himself, and he is kind and helpful to all the other riders.

Just riding with Mark a few times on my first CTR was more instructional than reading pages and pages of blogs. His kindness, enthusiasm and eagerness to share his knowledge is awesome. I find it interesting that those who are the most successful are often those who seem most willing to share tips with others. Guys like Mark, Stefan, Kurt, Jefe, etc. contribute more than they might realize.

I'm guessing that someone closed the wrong one by accident.

Interesting race this year without the usual leaders, such as Jefe, Ethan, Jesse, etc. Good to see Mark C out there though. He seems to have just gotten stronger over the course of a huge summer.