Here are my photos from Day 1 as well, from the Grand Depart and on the High Rockies Trail and Spray Lakes Road, and then the suspension bridge down at the southern end of High Rockies:

https://evilmoose.smugmug.com/Bikes/2018-Tour-Divide

Bikepacker did a bit of a collection of Tour Divide rigs here, if you're keen for photos: http://bikepacker.com/2017-tour-divide-rigs/

I liked her video she made of her ride in '15   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpFSFo_vVPQ

Thanks for the link Mike! That was a fun little video - and led me to discover her blog, where she posted just two days ago, about the trip ahead. Jill, I think you'll enjoy this, it was a captivating read. I'm definitely cheering her on now!  https://alexandherkrampus.wordpress.com/2017/07/02/banff-alberta-canada-2/

Alexandera Houchin set out from Banff on an ITT yesterday, it looks like she's making pretty good time - might be one to watch.

It looks like Trackleaders is suffering from Spot-delay again, nearly everyone isn't updating position. Not that I'm refreshing obsessively or anything.

That's right, you can see elapsed time by hitting any of their individual points.  Tanadog's comparison looks correct, so it appears JayP is riding just slower than Josh thus far.

Sounds like I need to check the stopped time # -- it may not be accurate for ITTs.  Route mile per day and avg speed, etc, appear to be right on.

Heya Scott - is there a gpx or description for the fire reroutes, or is it just the info shown on trackleaders? Asking for a racer who doesn't have a working phone out there.

Arthur Kopatsy dropped his spot at the bottom of Lynx Pass - when he realised and when back to retrieve it, he discovered it had been run over by a car and smashed.

Random race talk: It's a bad year to be a Jason, all three of them have scratched now. Same with Larry, they're both out now. 

Lee Craigie posted about a severe allergic reaction holding her up - she made an alpine start to ride over Union Pass this morning, but it looks like she got a lift south to Brush Mountain Lodge this afternoon. I hope her race isn't over. 

At least two of the top ten are dealing with broken bikes too - Kristin reported that "Arthur is challenged by a broken front shock, but he's going to push to Steamboat, get it fixed". Ben has a crack in his carbon frame now, but after finding nothing compatible/affordable in Breckenridge, it looks like he's pushing on!

A bit of a flashback here, but if anyone is interested in a photo gallery from the first couple of days of racing, I've got some photos up here: https://evilmoose.smugmug.com/Bikes/Tour-Divide-2017  - some photos from the start, and then I got photos of about 100 of the field as they rolled along Spray Lakes, a couple of hours into the race. Then there's just a few from Fernie/Galton Pass (plus there's a few of my kid and hanging out with friends - I'd have been more committed to photographing all the racers if I wasn't busy trying to keep him entertained too!)

I found out I can at least put down the commentary if not attach any photos.  So here we go for today June 14th:

The parties that were in Seeley and Holland Lakes over the past 24 hours have broken up now that the weather has cleared and are making their way slowly toward Ovando.

To play catch up the names will be listed in alpha order rather than time order. May I present to you:
Alex Cohen, 40, from Alberta Canada.
Colleen O'Neil, 26, of PA whose tracker went out for a while due to wetness from rain. She is the darling of the men's race due to her petite size and that they all admire how tough she is being on a SINGLE speed and nailing it. But a lady she is, all that sparkle on her helmet....it's nail polish!

David Troester, 67 of CA, He may look gruff but he is cynical, and funny and not at all your typical TDR rider. When he appeared and I asked to take his photo: "That'll cost ya $20!". I told him I'd wait. When he came into the Blackfoot Angler to use the restroom I told him it would cost him $20. He stopped. Blinked. and said I guess we're both paid off then! So I got my pictures!

Stand by for more!

Hey Angler, did you end up getting a photo of Ross too? He and Alex arrived around the same time I thought. Thanks for all the photos though - and for the webcam, I had fun stalking people yesterday!

He just posted this photo to one of the facebook groups

1.  Best coffee in Banff?  Have tried a few.  Curious what the locals think. 

I like Whitebark Cafe in Banff (although Wild Flour has been good too, and their food is delicious), and Rave Coffee in Canmore (opinion of ex-Melburnian Australian who's been living in Canmore for nigh on ten years and generally despairs about the coffee available in Canada)

Just sent you a message.

Jackie Bernardi is powering to the border with one last push! Looks like a 19 day+ change finish for her. Well done!

Beat that sneaky 20 day marker! 19 days 22 hours 19 minutes.

(Oh and Dave, the knee is feeling a lot better - the plan is next year for me. It looks like Jackie's set a pretty solid time for me to have a crack at.)

Thanks, had been following them. do they have a blog??

Chris has been posting shots from their ride on instagram @calstrin - but I know what they're up to because we met racing a couple of years ago and we follow each other on Strava, they've been uploading rides since they've been stopped.

Anyone know what's happened to the tandem (Laura & Chris Anderson/Alstrin) they seem to be off course and stationary??

Apparently the rear belt drive snapped on the tandem, and they're now stopped and waiting for a part.

Hey anyone know if there is a link to a thread where we could discuss Trans AM Race stuff and it wasn't OT?

Gah, you guys, we're not allowed to get a little excited about a Tour Divide champion from last year kicking ass in another endurance race this year? It's outrageous!

As for Tour Divide racing talk then - my Australian friend Jackie is kicking ass in the female race, but it looks like she's now the only female still racing. It's not quite the same as the strong female field of last year, which was a really exciting competition to watch. But I'm still watching Jackie leapfrog to and fro with the 20 day mark, and cheering for a sub-20 day finish.

And Kiwi Brian Alder and Aussie Gary P are both doing really well in the Rookie's field (after the unfortunate drops of a few other Aussie & Kiwi racers due to dodgy knees, illness and dog bites and such).

here you go...

http://www.bikepacking.net/forum/ultra-racing/trans-am-2016-race-discussion/msg84207/#msg84207

If you watch the videos on the Trans Am facebook page, after arriving at the finish Lael tells the story of her run-in with Steffen - it's worth listening to!

I was out wandering about on a bit of a three-day bikepacking tour between Canmore and Fernie, and we ended up running into a few of the riders who were sitting near the back of the pack. I kept forgetting to take photos, but ended up with a few.


DP! On the road towards Elkford. He mentioned he was David from Arizona, and I didn't put two and two together until he had gone.


David S, heading up towards Corbin.


David S, into the Flathead


Randy


John - without a tracker, who was supposed to be riding with Jean


A moose wanders away from the road on the train tracks to the left, as Michael R and co drew closer


Michael R and his riding companion, whose name I forget, and who doesn't seem to have a tracker.

I am also curious about this. What route have others taken in the past?  Any way using most dirt than pavement?

The highway is shortest, and has a huge shoulder, but no bike path - although there is a bike path between Canmore and Banff you can jump onto.

You can take the 1A for a quieter version of the same trip - trade off is that it has a much smaller shoulder, and traffic going just as fast.

It would be possible to get to Banff with a lot more off-road/gravel if you're happy with taking a really indirect route.  You could either head south from Calgary then ride some of the TD route northbound/cut through Powderface Trail/West Bragg; or you could head north and come into Banff via the Ghost area and Lake Minnewanka.  Both of these routes will not necessarily be fast, and there's potential for deadfall/flood damage. Check out Strava Heatmaps for an idea of what could be rideable though: http://labs.strava.com/heatmap/#9/-115.40314/51.11214/blue/bike