2012 AZTR/300 Discussion Thread

[AZTtripper]

It would be great if we could all let Jill finish her adventure and post her story before we all give her a * or DQ. Let her do it out there.

Go, go Jill.

Of course she doing great and nothing can take that away from her. My only reason for posting was to give her intel if she should want to go back and pick up what she missed. Either way she has already made an incredible achievement. I wish her nothing but the best of luck.

[mbeardsl]

Didn't mean to offend, just curious how it worked in such a long race.

Clearly she's doing great!

[ScottM]

No worries.  The answer is: it depends.  We'll have to get some more details and wait until after she finishes.  I won't comment except to say the deviation is pretty minor in the scheme of things, and clearly she is making efforts to stay on course based on her turning right onto the wrong dirt roads later on.  I will need to review the cues and make sure things are good there -- she may be navigating w/o GPS.

For now, no doubt, she should keep pushing on to finish.  Good news is she is on AZT from here on out.  No more wilderness detours.

Just got a text from Aaron Boatman.  He's in Flagstaff.  He could only find Alkaline batteries for his SPOT, and is getting ~6 hours battery life with them.  So his last point is ~14 hours old.  He should be able to find lithium's in Flag.

He says, "I hate you for this course.  It tests my body with pain and my bike over and over.  Pretty lonely haven't seen a racer in 4 days."  I wonder if he knows he passed Fusco and Kee?  He is also getting close to Kurt Sandiforth, who is still on the AZT below the peaks.  He is likely running into some snow at this very moment.  Hopefully we see him cruise through there relatively soon, indicating the snow isn't too bad.

I compared Kurt S's Highline Trail time with Kurt R's from 2010.  Sandiforth was 45 minutes faster -- which is significant given that he is riding a slightly slower pace overall than Kurt R.  There has been a trail crew there for a month, so perhaps their efforts have made a big impact there.  Hard to say.

This is great to have so many folks in the full AZT crushing it out there.  Wish I were out there...

[mbeardsl]

Wow, that's a pretty close race for those 4 and fun to watch.

I wonder if Fusco and Kee know they have been passed.  Maybe they're seeing two tracks on the ground?

The hike through the GC should be interesting.

[Done]

I'm enjoying watching Mark Caminiti. He looks very strong this year!

[chachi]

Me too Toby!  Mark  C. is a quite unassuming type guy, he loves the sport and the competition he doesn't think of quitting no matter what is thrown in his path!? i.e.  a rattlesnake and a  centipede as big as a snake?!  Or a mouse dragging off his water tabs?  Luckily they didn't like them and missed his food stash! I agree he does seem stronger than 2010, I think he's approx a day quicker? maybe? He had changed his diet a couple mths before the race, no sugar no white flour etc. and it seems to have increased his staying power.  I encouraged (nagged) him to make that change after 2010 he ended up with twizzlers at the end of the 750.

He mentioned that he hasn't had to take any Ibuprophen yet.   Which is amazing, He said his feet and achilles were the only things hurting badly.  He was in good spirits and going to camp out near the Walmart so he could get batteries...his solar charger not working and the rechargeable batteries aren't holding charge.  He also lost handlebar light and made it into Payson with very little light on top of that!  Leila
(mark usually doesn't blog or even have a fb page so that is why i chirp in on the site every so often during the race 

[Done]

Thanks for the update, Leila. Mark is indeed the real deal. I was fortunate to cross paths with him several time on the CTR a couple of years ago. He always offered up encouraging words, and a huge heap of good vibes.

I hope that his feet and heels get better.

[mb]

Well, it’s the morning after and I am ready for a slap-up breakfast. The biggest thing I have learned over the past week is how much sleep factors into my recovery cycles. I know that the top athletes, who do these multi-day races, go without sleep, although that approach would simply be impossible for this plodder.  So, after deciding I wanted to get the last 100 miles in 2 days and not let it go into today, I planned a 60/40 mile split. After calling it a day at 1:30 AM on Thursday, I entered yesterday without proper recovery. The 1st 10 miles were great and I got a full supply of water, and an ice cold Coke from the good folks at the trailer park in Kelvin. Once I got to mile 18, in the middle of the heat of the day, I could not go on without a layup in the shade.  I threw my sleeping bag down and was asleep within 3 seconds. I’m acutely aware that these sudden and protracted stops drive the caring “dot” watchers crazy.  I had developed a severe bum rash and sitting in a position where I could climb efficiently was too painful to endure. I made a conscious, and as it turns out, wrong decision to not carry Brave Soldier. So, I was limited to hike-a-bike or standing climbing for the 13 miles and 3500' of elevation gain that lay in front of me. I knew it was going to be slow going and I also had to manage a low water supply for that amount of time, and I was 1/2 way through my last headlamp battery. Incidentally this section is one of the most spectacular mountain bike trails I have ever seen, and the ATA have done a phenomenal job with this trail.  With fresh legs and an unloaded bike, I could ride 99% of it, and I definitely want to return to do this one justice. The last 9 miles “down” seemed to take forever.  It’s a great classic, long decent with lots of somewhat technical interludes, which would be satisfying to clean in an unrestricted and un-fatigued condition.  I was out of water, out of any sort of timing and coordination. I was all over the place, and I kept bashing into stuff. I found myself celebrating every 1/10 mile.  I had calculated, given the circumstances that I would be in by 9 PM and eventually got in by 10:15 PM.  Tammy was there to welcome me at the finish with a smile, hugs, WATER,  Coke, beer and burritos.  A huge “THANK YOU” to Tammy, for her phenomenal support, understanding and patience over the past 4 months. My immediate words to her were “sorry, it was f$%^ng silly of me to have put both of us through this”.

[mikepro]

...  Pretty lonely haven't seen a racer in 4 days."  I wonder if he knows he passed Fusco and Kee?  ...

Pretty sure they're aware of each other by know.   Way to keep it interesting boys!

[ScottM]

I just dug into the code a bit to make the 750 course the 'featured' route.  Now we have placement, route mile on the ticker and raceflow for our 750 racers.

Looks like Aaron has teamed up with Kee and Fusco.  It almost sounded like he was going to take a day off in Flag, so it's great to see him back on the trail and with company.

Kurt Sandiforth has been moving slower than I would have expected.  He left Flagstaff @7pm last night.  Usually the ride from Flag to the South Rim is doable in a day, for someone of his abilities (he will probably still make it, but it will be late!).  He did lose an hour or so to a wrong turn in the plains of Kansas (near Tub Ranch, after Missouri Bill hill), but even after that seemed to not be moving too quickly for how fast the terrain is out there.

Oh, to be riding the AZT on a 70 degree day in Flagstaff today!

Finally, congrats to Mike B and the adventure racing duo of Paul and Karen for wrapping up the 300.  That concludes all the 300 racers that I know of, so I should have more final results soon.

[groundedkiwi]

Hi Leila,
I also bumped into Mark two days ago...on the Apache trail, just east of Tortilla Flat.  Sorry didnt get a pic, but he was pretty focused on moving along and I didnt want to bug him.  Gosh if I had known your name then I would have asked him for a smile for you!
Anyhow, he was saying how much tougher that 300 course was from a few years back.  I made sure he knew where to find water and he said he was real familiar with the area, so all looked good.  As I cycled away he yelled out that he was going for his second finish, so I've no doubt he'll make it!!
Take care,   Groundedkiwi

[mtbcast]

Mark Caminiti called in pushing up above Pine! Can't make out what he says he's climbing.
http://mtbcast.com/site2/category/azt12/feed/

[krefs]

Kurt Sandiforth has been moving slower than I would have expected.  He left Flagstaff @7pm last night.  Usually the ride from Flag to the South Rim is doable in a day, for someone of his abilities (he will probably still make it, but it will be late!).  He did lose an hour or so to a wrong turn in the plains of Kansas (near Tub Ranch, after Missouri Bill hill), but even after that seemed to not be moving too quickly for how fast the terrain is out there.

A few years ago when I was on this section, I battled an increasingly strong headwind that eventually had me going 4-5 mph for several hours. It finally let up after the sun set, but I remember doing the math in my head about how long it would take to get to Tusayan at 8 mph, then the wind would pick up even more and I'd do the math again, and again, and the number just grew frighteningly. I hope Kurt isn't dealing with that kind of wind!

[fastmtnbiker33w]

Finally finished the blog post.

http://fastmtnbiker33w.wordpress.com/2012/04/20/arizona-trail-race-300/

[THE LONG RANGER]

Nice work, Mike - thanks for representin' Denver!

[phil_rad]

Well, it’s the morning after and I am ready for a slap-up breakfast. The biggest thing I have learned over the past week is how much sleep factors into my recovery cycles. I know that the top athletes, who do these multi-day races, go without sleep, although that approach would simply be impossible for this plodder.  So, after deciding I wanted to get the last 100 miles in 2 days and not let it go into today, I planned a 60/40 mile split. After calling it a day at 1:30 AM on Thursday, I entered yesterday without proper recovery. The 1st 10 miles were great and I got a full supply of water, and an ice cold Coke from the good folks at the trailer park in Kelvin. Once I got to mile 18, in the middle of the heat of the day, I could not go on without a layup in the shade.  I threw my sleeping bag down and was asleep within 3 seconds. I’m acutely aware that these sudden and protracted stops drive the caring “dot” watchers crazy.  I had developed a severe bum rash and sitting in a position where I could climb efficiently was too painful to endure. I made a conscious, and as it turns out, wrong decision to not carry Brave Soldier. So, I was limited to hike-a-bike or standing climbing for the 13 miles and 3500' of elevation gain that lay in front of me. I knew it was going to be slow going and I also had to manage a low water supply for that amount of time, and I was 1/2 way through my last headlamp battery. Incidentally this section is one of the most spectacular mountain bike trails I have ever seen, and the ATA have done a phenomenal job with this trail.  With fresh legs and an unloaded bike, I could ride 99% of it, and I definitely want to return to do this one justice. The last 9 miles “down” seemed to take forever.  It’s a great classic, long decent with lots of somewhat technical interludes, which would be satisfying to clean in an unrestricted and un-fatigued condition.  I was out of water, out of any sort of timing and coordination. I was all over the place, and I kept bashing into stuff. I found myself celebrating every 1/10 mile.  I had calculated, given the circumstances that I would be in by 9 PM and eventually got in by 10:15 PM.  Tammy was there to welcome me at the finish with a smile, hugs, WATER,  Coke, beer and burritos.  A huge “THANK YOU” to Tammy, for her phenomenal support, understanding and patience over the past 4 months. My immediate words to her were “sorry, it was f$%^ng silly of me to have put both of us through this”.

Great ride Mike, way to gut it out. Thanks for sharring!

[ScottM]

The race is getting close!  The canyon hike could be the determining factor, with Kurt Sandiforth getting organized on the South Rim now, and Aaron Boatman about 2-3 hours out, now on the Coconino Rim Trail.  Fusco and Kee are not too far behind, either.

Good point on the wind, Kurt.  That sounds like a likely explanation -- too bad I didn't check any of the weather icons for wind speed/direction while he was out there.  Speaking of the weather icons, it is showing "smoke" on the South Rim.  I can't find any reference to a fire on the south rim.  I suppose it could be from a prescribed burn, or maybe just a goof in the weather layer.

Today will be very interesting to watch!

[ScottM]

Kurt is off the rim, and has hiked down half way!  Awesome.

Aaron is getting organized at the South Rim Village.  Without an early AM start it might be a little tricky to cross w/o camping.  He may be trying for permits now.  Seems like a Cottonwood permit is a good possibility.  We'll see what his dot does!

No doubt Marshal and Jill have sighed in relief as they reached the Mogollon Rim and much flatter ground.  A hearty congratulations to both of them for completing the Highline Trail, probably the hardest stretch of the route.

[ScottM]

Chad Brown is at the south rim and just ran into Aaron Boatman.  He said he was drinking a beer and was in great spirits.  He was taking his bike apart an hour ago, and is not planning to stop to camp in the canyon (one push).  He may very well catch Kurt, but we'll see.

Chad said the weather is perfect up there.

[chachi]

Thanks Groundedkiwi, I appreciate your kindness and I am sure Mark did as well!  Toby, the trail has really been torture to Mark's feet this time around...he is using clipless and walking in those shoes isn't helping!  He had a really tough time around the Pine/Geronimo portion of the AZT. yesterday evening he was really beat down...but today he sounds better and continues to move forward! so thanks again Mark really appreciates the kind words and support!  Leila