All my respect for staying off FB, Dave. After my head and spine injuries are healed that's my plan as well. Can't wait!

Good heavens!  Did I miss something in this thread or elsewhere?  Are you willing to share a bit as to what happened?

All the best!

Joel

Thanks to those still posting here.  I refuse to trade my soul to Zuckerberg to access the FB group so I am in the dark other than watching dots and reading what is posted here.  I miss the old days when all the excitement was here.

Dave

+1

Our leaders have just crossed the CO/NM border.  It appears they stopped in Platoro for about four hours, then hit the road again around midnight.  Mike's spirit is getting ready to be chased by the dogs in Vallecitos - 70 miles in front.  It will reach Abiquiu around 11:30 this morning and Cuba (if my math is right) at 9:30 tonight.

Ulrich and Justinas have ridden an incredible race!!

On his IG account he says his hands are really messed up so  "Will quietly make my way to Mexico border.:

Oh man, what a shame!!  There's no doubt that, barring injury, he would have challenged for the win.  We've said it too many times in these forums, but it bears repeating:  The Tour Divide is a cruel mistress.

All the best!

Joel

Any news on Jens Van Roost? He's really been moving slow today. Looks like he's only covered about 40 miles today.

I have wondered the same thing.  I hope he's alright.

Thanks!  Speaking of weather, those coming through the Basin in the next couple of days have some pretty good chances of rain to deal with.  Significant chances of rain tomorrow (Tuesday) and Wednesday night into Thursday.  If a rider nearing/just leaving Pinedale wanted to test his/her mettle and pick up a few places, it might not hurt to consider a night ride through to maybe get in front of another potential sit-in-the-porta-potty situation.

I'm particularly following Matt Miller - I don't know him, but he lives just 90 minutes from me) - and he might be such a candidate.

All the best!

Joel

Justinas and Ulrich appear to have eaten in Del Norte and stopped at the Family Dollar before leaving town.  We probably don't need to remind them that they won't need the balloon until they've finished.   They will not have friendly winds today...gusty from the SW up to 25mph.  It will be a bit of a slog getting up the hill.

Meanwhile, forty-five miles ahead:
Mike's dot is just leaving Platoro (for some reason, he's been stopping at that cafe every year now).  Next stop, the CO/NM border.

I wasn't glued to the dots this weekend.  What happened to Jens?

I think Jens took a long rest (about 9 hours) in Salida.  Justinas stopped in Salida only long enough to eat/refuel, and I'm not sure Ulrich stopped at all, which is how he has caught back up.  Both leaders will have to stop in Del Norte at least long enough to resupply, because there's nothing certain from there (excepting maybe Platoro and Canon Plaza) until Abiquiu.

Just checked the seven-day weather forecasts in Abiquiu, Pie Town, and Silver City:

Basically 0% chance of rain with temps ranging from mid-80s to low-90s.  The winds won't be any help, but it appears we're going to have ourselves a finish!

"Exciting to the very end" is right!!

Mike Hall's dot just reached Del Norte and Justinas is 51 miles back with Ulrich another 10 miles behind him.  Mike's only big stop from here on out was about six hours in Pie Town.  The leaders will have to be within 50 miles of Mike's dot when it reaches there, have favorable weather, and be able to ride from Pie Town to the border, in order to have a chance to beat him.

But the gap is narrowing again...

Justinas has pulled a bit of a lead now and, at 55 miles from Salida, is just 60 miles behind Mike Hall's spirit dot.

The race for the record isn't over just yet.

Thank you for adding that correction.  I had Matthew Lee in my head when I was typing up my comment and meant Mike Hall.  Thanks also for your 2016 analysis.  A lot can happen in a week but an overnight setback seems really hard to overcome.  I'm enjoying following along one way or another.

You're welcome.  I'm dot-watching again for the first time since 2019.  I've forgotten how much I enjoy it!!

I just want to voice how wonderful I think it is that these three race leaders are hanging out in a port-o-potty probably laughing and making the most of the situation.  It's kind of the perfect spot since they're at almost the exact halfway point, they have more than likely kissed the course record goodbye (someone correct me if Lee had a long slowdown in the second half that might mean it could still be broken), and they are all riding a very fast and competitive race yet have a kindness and geniality about them where they can be competitors as well as pals!

samh,

They're actually chasing Mike Hall's 2016 record, and if I read the 2016 flow correctly, he only rested more than three hours twice...Montana High Country Lodge and Pie Town.  And from Pie Town, he rode pretty much straight to the border.  The leaders aren't THAT far behind, and with the pace they have now with a bit of tailwind, they'll pick up a couple of hours this evening.

The leaders have cleared Wamsutter and are taking advantage of a light tailwind.  Mike Hall's spirit is still a ways ahead, but this isn't as over as I thought it was this morning.

Getting more popcorn...

Well, the leaders seem to be moving forward at 7-10mph, so the ground may be firming up a bit, or they are into an area that got less rain.

They're moving again!!!

Thanks for posting that...a great photo!

Yeah, it might be too much now to catch Mike's dot, but if they have food and water, it means their bodies have had an extended (for them at least) recovery time.  Once they get going, they might show some significant pace.  We'll see...

This is very much like 2019, when a freak blizzard dropped something like 20" of snow around Steamboat Lake and many of the leaders got stuck at Brush Mountain Lodge.

I don't have IG...any chance of just posting the photo in here?  Many thanks if you can.

It appears that 2 of the 3 leaders have now moved .1 miles...maybe they are trying to get unstuck.

Hmmm...and there's a creek right there as well.  I wonder if it's flooded as well...

Yep, I quickly came to the same conclusion after seeing how slow their progress was last night.

Yeah I looked at Justinas' individual map early this morning and saw the signs of "I'm just creeping along" there for the last couple of hours.  What a shame for them after pushing so hard for an entire week.