No seriously  . . . . The road through Vallecitos is 1/4 mile and in that distance you will meet at least 7 dogs off the leash and in the road. Two almost nailed me.  A friend from two years ago was bitten.  I talked to Matthew Lee last week (6 time winner of the race) and he said he was going to walk through town next time because the dogs run when you get off your bike. Speaking of dogs whenever I passed a herd of sheep in NM one of the dogs guarding the sheep would peel off and give chase. Again, if you stop they will too.  The dogs of NM was why I carried my bear spray in NM.

A piece of advice that worked for me:  You can download the cue sheets which appear on the Adventure Cycling maps for free into a word processing program.  Also, I bought the maps and got the changes which have accumulated since the last map printing.  I started 6 months early and combined the cues and the changes.  I also reviewed the route on google earth and added some information.  Also, I added some information that I got from on-line sources to my cue sheets.  The week before I left I printed out the final cue sheets in nice sized pieces that would fit nicely in my waterproof handlebar holder.  This allowed me to leave the maps in my pack.  Also, it was amazing that having seen the route from the google earth I often felt that I understood the route.  Make sure you download the cues to your phone, stick and send yourself an email with them attached. 

An example of a cue to add is "watch out for dogs" in Vallecitos, NM.

According to the bike shop in Silver City Jeff Sharp (home:575-436-7200; cell:575-574-7210) does shuttles in the area.  He lives near Hachita.  He might have some good advice as well.  The ride from El Paso is the most dangerous part of the trip.  If you can afford it (Bike Flights is cheap) ship your bike to Silver City bike shop.  They are accommodating in case you have any transit damage.  Then get Sharp to shuttle you to AW.

I did the Divide mid July-mid September solo this year.  One of the lesson I learned was that planning a daily distance can sometimes be self-defeating. My longest day was 125 miles and my shortest was 25. More than any other riding I have done, daily distance depends a great deal on the terrain, weather, mechanicals and road conditions, including accumulated feet of climbing.  I saw riders who bailed because they felt tied to a set distance until they could not do it. I saw riders who neglected their gear trying to make the miles and suffered breakdowns. What I found was that many days I felt I could continue on, but stopped and was grateful, especially when I saw the terrain the next day that I would have had to ride, tired and hungry.  I came over Boreas Pass out of Breckenridge soaking wet at 11,500 feet in 40 degree weather with a strong wind and rain. I could have done the 10 mile descent easily, but I was on the verge of hypothermia.  I stopped short on the miles got in my sleeping bag and warmed up. Sacrificing the miles that day might have saved me considering the treacherous descent.  Just saying  . . . be kind to your body and your equipment and they will get you through.

Many riders are planning to ride the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route this summer. Most are starting at different times, with different daily mileage and different starting points. However, there is a chance they may cross paths as they proceed north or south. In an effort to provide some backup, warnings of trail issues or to just share a meal, a Google group has been set up to share email addresses, cell phone numbers and Spot shared pages. This group is not designed as a substitution for the great sites about this ride and is not setup as a forum. You are receiving an email from this group because you have expressed an interest in riding this summer. If you would like to share your plans with this group and read about others, please respond to this email by contacting boglenn@nc.rr.com and I will send you a invitation to join the group.  As you get closer to your ride perhaps you can share information so riders can contact each other on route. This is not designed as a discussion forum but more as a way for riders to link up before or during the ride to share information about the trail and possibly find other riders who want to ride in a group for all or part of the ride.

I will be on the Divide in August -September leaving Banff on July 13th.  I am doing this as a tour and plan to do 50 miles a day.  I have heard from some other riders who are getting on the route at various times during July and August.  Given the varying speeds, break downs and other issues, it is likely that some of us might cross paths.  I am planning on doing some type of group so we can all connect by email or text as we move south in case of emergencies or just to share a meal.  If you have any interest, send me you email address and I will let you know as things progress.

Bo Glenn
boglenn@nc.rr.com

I am also in riding the Divide this summer.  I plan to do it as a tour with possibly 50-60 miles per day.  Last I checked there were some serious bear issues in Canada from Banff into Montana and the recommendation was to ride in groups.  I am therefore riding with an Adventure Cycling group from Banff to Whitefish, Montana through bear country. The tour stops in Whitefish and I plan to take off solo from there.  In talking with a rider who has done the race several times, he suggested for a tour the best time to leave from the north is mid July.  You avoid the snow and wet riding in the north and by the time you get to New Mexico the heat is letting up, the wild fires usually are over, and the Parks Service will not close access to the route.

There are several riders who I have emailed with who are leaving at different times with different daily riding plans.  I plan to do a spread sheet with names and emails and other data so we can keep in touch as we all head south.  It is likely that folks will overlap as some take a day off or have a forced layover.  If you want to share your information, I will put it in the spread sheet.

Bo Glenn

There is a you tube on the site somewhere by a guy who did the Divide on a Long Haul Trucker.  He seemed to have no trouble.  If I find it I will send the link.  A brother of a friend did it on a mountain frame but with no suspension front or back, pulling a trailer.  I think it depends on how fast you plan to do it.

I am riding the Divide starting with Adventure Cycling from Banff to Whitefish from July 12 - 21. http://www.adventurecycling.org/guided-tours/self-contained-tours/2014-great-divide-canada/  Once I get to Whitefish, I am planning to head south to Mexico.  Once I leave Whitefish, I plan to average around 50 miles per day with a target completion date around mid-September.  The Adventure Cycling plan was based on getting some riding in with a group through parts of Canada which were devastated with last summer's rain and also because of a claim that the bears are more of a problem in Canada. If you were riding from the border, perhaps we could meet at the time I will be crossing with Adventure Cycling and I would break off and continue on with a different group.

  

Check out Dupont Forest 11 miles from Brevard, NC.  80 miles of mt. bike trails rated from easy to difficult.  No fees and easy to get to.

To add a few more cents to the great discussion. . . I never had asthma until I went through a particularly stressful time, drank too much coffee, too much beer and gained too much weight.  Often I would eat and drink without regard to when I was going to sleep.  I developed exercise induced asthma.  My Dr. diagnosed it as caused by acid reflux.  When I lay down at night, some acidic contents in my stomach would come up and leak into the airway causing an inflammatory response.  He put me on an acid blocker (Protonix), asthma medication (Singulair) and an emergency Abuterol inhaler. Also, he had me raise the head of my bed 4 inches, stop drinking or eating 3 hours before bedtime and stop eating things that increased my indigestion.  It took some time for it all to settle down, but I have been symptom free for several years except when I rode the higher passes in Colorado where I had a return of symptoms.  While I had asthma, I would use the inhaler 20 minutes before races and it worked fine even though the race would include a swim in cold water.  (Having an asthma attack in the middle of the lake was no fun). 

I would do some more exploring on the cause of your onset of EIA.  It may be you can stop the process that makes you susceptible rather than just treating the symptoms. Good luck!

   

I am also interested in riding the divide next summer, 2014.  Also, I would like to do it as a tour with possibly 50-60 miles per day.  As you may know Adventure Cycling advised against the Banff to US border section this summer because of flooding which washed out some of the trail. I have seen photos taken by some riders who did the route anyway and I am confident the route took a considerable toll on their equipment, not to mention their bodies.  Last I checked there were some serious bear issues in Canada into Montana and the recommendation was to ride in groups.  I am therefore considering riding the original route from border to border and would be interested in meeting up with a group heading south in Roosville at least through bear country.  There is an airport in Kalispell MT which is 75 miles south of Roosville so that it should not be too difficult to hire a driver or ride to the start.  Also, in talking with a rider who has done the race several times, he suggested for a tour the best time to leave from the north is mid July.  You avoid the snow and wet riding in the north and by the time you get to New Mexico the heat is letting up, the wild fires usually are over, and the Parks Service will not close access to the route.