Hi Lizzy we met at the bike shop in Moab recently. I hope u have a great race good luck !!
Mark

Casa Rivera's Taco Express in Oracle it's a fair bit off course but worth it.

The carne asada enchiladas at casa riveras are so good.
 

I used the regular ardent 2.25 29er tire on the rear in 2017 in the 300. It worked well and held up to abuse. The race tire I am not sure what would happen. For reference I used a bontrager xr4 up front it held up well too.

Mrp says no on any hub just like wolftooth. Problem solvers claims their spacers work with "all" front 15×100 front hubs 6 bolt only. However until someone actually experiments to see if the hub spacers match the hub bearing interface on the SON, assuming the kit fits a hub is pure speculation. Front hub failures are not anything to mess with. Have a qualified shop examine any conversion IMO that is not specifically designed for a certain hub.


https://www.mrpbike.com/better-boost-adapter-kits/

There is no boostinator kit available for the SON hub. The link above  clearly shows that 10 models are available and none fit the SON dynamo hub.

That's great news John sounds like it will be a blast in 2019.  Summerhaven food saved the day for me last year so going there on route good deal.

Start date has been changed.
April 18th
Also looks like a new webpage is being worked on:

http://topofusion.com/azt/race.php

Edit- looks like the start date was changed in july:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1331031780291249/permalink/1937590976301990/

Here are some pix of a prototype I have been testing:

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=2081179918879274&id=100009618588631

https://www.facebook.com/mark.caminiti.39/posts/2081179918879274?notif_id=1542157759212992&notif_t=feedback_reaction_generic

Text of my FB post :
"I have been working on a dropper post compatible seatbag for many years. Some have worked well others just okay. Now I have one that works better than I had hoped for. It is a harness for a small dry bag. One floating cam buckle strap does two jobs at once and is replaceable. It is the same exact bag I used earlier this year in the azt750 it now has the modifications I wanted and fixed the mistakes I made on the original harness prototype.
2oz - production will be higher
Super stable holds a good bit until it moves horizontally load in pix is 12" long has a tube and a thermorest neo air xl in there. I would say one more item could go in there the size of a tube. More on a hardtail. Thin items could also be added too tuna pouches for instance my example drybag has soom room to spare in there. I actually have the straps too tight in pix it can be used by sleep deprived bikepackers you dont have to nail the install to make it stable lol.
Clearance all day
Protects your ultralight or regular drybag from accidental tire hit.
Easy to access your drybag while on bike and retighten load.
This is the final prototype now it's on to production. Finally!"

My vision is something as simple and not much larger than a Bedrock Sinbad that could hold some light puffy items like a jacket and wind breaker without being too feature rich.

I am working on exactly that idea something bigger than the Sinbad but same weight.

Well imo the future is all dropper posts for trail bikes. So small bags of 5l or less capacity are what seems to work. I am working on one for racing that's gonna last more than one race and weighs very little say 3oz. It's a process learning to make something ultralight on industrials but I am very getting there.
I am hoping there will be a market for a bare bones race bag like this but we will see.

The TD and CTR have planning threads so we need one for the AZTR. I am a definite maybe for the 750 lol.

Beware of bikepacking equipment like shown in above link. That brand is not assembled with the correct industrial sewing machines for each move necessary. Using a normal lockstitch machine for webbing is not acceptable. You wouldnt buy a dog collar sewn without a bar tack machine and they cost $10 or less. Imo this brand looks nice but cuts corners in production.
 

looks like andrew is at mile 1720 slept since midnight after a long day. 1005 miles to go he is at about 9:03:00 which means he has about 4:09 to complete the final miles he is avg 190 plus near the record pace. he has a shot not a great one with the canadian ass kicker sections coming up. Andrew is fast though and doesnt stop much between towns not as fast as mike hall but moves more hours a day usually. It will be fun to watch him these next few days he is really doing well.

edit- its not going to be official if he beats mikes time since there was a fire detour, but none the less AK is throwing down like hardly anyone has ever before so lets enjoy his hardcore effort.

I had one of the most pathetic moving averages in the race last year, broke my dang neck basically on lava mtn, blew it a couple times, got to like 15th until everyone around me who was touring at that point got the hint I was racing and stepped it up a bit. Got 21st place and nearly a pr 22d12hr or so by just simply racing. with no game shermers neck and a fs bike with flat bar.
my point is i was racing. regardless of position or pace or situation. its a damn race. if i wanted to hit the divide on a town to town tour i would do that on my own. all that fake racing dilutes the real action.

I was in the azt750 earlier this season. Struggling to finish the 300 I was passed like i was going backwards by a female rider who was also in the 750. In the Gila canyons she had two male riders with her as her "pacers". neither was in the race one had been and had quit. it was a blatant rules violation she went by faster than the previous years 300 winner Pete Basinger had passed me in same spot when i was in 300 ITT mode starting 18 hrs early in 2017. She literally had race winner speed at the back of the pack. I straight called all three of them out in the Gila canyons. They shut up real quick. ScottM should have dqed her ass all day. he didnt and almost acted like my whisteblowing is the problem not the cheating. I believe that is the real issue here not the cheating but the inability of race directors to police it.

So here is what I propose. Next time i call someone out, it will include the knuckle sandwich at the end I always refrain from adding in. No one ever gets dqed since like 2010, so maybe we should start kicking ass out there on the drafters, beggars, route cutters, etc.

Just a thought. If you are out there and a cheater puts u down it hurts your feelings. maybe its time for some western justice out there.

Edit- i am friends with toby gadd. He was right imo about the rules issues we both saw cheating firsthand in the ctr.
No one wanted to listen i have tried to keep up that attitude but its like beating a dead horse.
It doesn't really make one not be a part of this like toby choose, but i can see why he would choose to walk away.
Integrity matters at the end of the day.

I actually met an awesome border patrol guy in 2014 on road up to red meadow pass. my knee was toast i was one legged riding going for a triple crown about to quit. the guy comes up out of nowhere. i say what u looking for? he says illegals sneak across at old crossing and take red meadow to hide from him- drug movers etc. he offers me a ride to polebridge. I turn him down super fast or my race is over in my mind but really now i see it was only 5 miles away lol.
I asked him about old crossing. he said it washed out in 89? its the canucks bridge they wouldnt replace it the us closed the crossing. they have sensors everywhere according to the guy as well as cameras so maybe they already know about mr beck and his adventure ?

edit- Same border patrol guy had worked at Antelope Wells with Tim the legendary officer who lives at antelope wells. He was very interested in race after hearing it went there. At end of 2015 race i asked Tim about this. Small world Tim said he worked at Roosville before. Tim gave me a ride to Deming in 2015 for beer and gas money. Great guy the ice cream man.

looks like 60 year old lantern rouge gary braun is up the road from Mark Beck in Polebridge stopped at schnaus cabin. SB vs NB up front two SS in the top four old dudes on adventures in the rear nice race we having here i am loving this!

Perhaps now Mark is going to take N Fork Road all the way to Columbia Falls, Different Drum!

thats what i would do. looks like a nice ride.

Mark Beck got lost and I believe is in polebridge. IMO he missed the turn to cabin pass after butts, took the wrong right, went all over the place, backtracked, crossed the border illegally at the old crossing with bridge out since 90 or so. now in polebridge the only town nearby with food.

Wow. i want to hear this story.

Good luck to all I am excited for you- there is nothing like a triple crown grand depart and the TD depart is special. I can hear crazy larry from colorado lol.