2015 TD

[ABfolder]

And what megand forgot to add is that the little mountain town of Canmore near Banff -- the start of the Tour Divide for southbounders -- has had a number of deaths from wildlife attacks in recent years involving both bears and cougars. That's why the local race organizers there (as per my video link) are now making the carrying of bear spray mandatory. Come prepared!

[THE LONG RANGER]

Just don't spray yourself with your own bear spray. It happens. There was an unfortunate rider I was chatting with at Wise River that got themselves in the eye, after having the bear spray with them, right next to their bivy, with the safety, "off". They heard a rustle, grabbed the bear spray and - sprayed themselves in the eye (I may have the exact details incorrect, perhaps they'll chime in). Bear spray isn't the end all of being safe with bears - you gotta be comfortable with the idea of what you're doing and where you're going. It doesn't remove the risk associated with them.

I would suggest doing whatever you feel comfortable doing (bear spray, no bear spray), it's up to you.

Matt Lee had a great map of where the most bear-active places are - I've linked to it a coupla times on this forum, if you want to research that.

[ABfolder]

The maps are nice but I think the safest approach is to assume that you could encounter a black bear or grizzly -- or cougars -- along most of the northern route. BTW Bear spray will also work on defensive/aggressive moose, deer and elk not to mention (unhealthy) coyotes or wolves. One size fits all.

[THE LONG RANGER]

Eh, like I said: to each their own. We all have different levels of comfort, on a variety of different scenarios that could happen out there and a pretty low ceiling on how much you can pack. I'm sure to some people, going in these areas without a gun seems foolhardy. I certainly ran across enough folks who were carrying

I certainly respect your opinion as a good one to use, to decide what exactly to pack. No matter what it is, expect the unexpected Many who don't, find themselves unable to finish.

[ABfolder]

I would suggest doing whatever you feel comfortable doing (bear spray, no bear spray), it's up to you.

These days, when there's potentially 150+ riders out there on the route, I'd say that's a bit of a cavalier attitude. Local Search and Rescue now have that many butts to save/cover and that's asking a lot -- especially in Canada because we do it for free. Even if a TD rider activates the emergency button on their SPOT during an attack, the chances of anyone getting out there in time is virtually nil. But Search and Rescue will be forced to come out and recover the body -- putting themselves at risk while doing so (if they're flying in by helicopter in dicey weather or dealing with a bear guarding a fresh kill). My advice still stands: Learn how to use bear spray safely and carry it. Otherwise, you're putting the lives of other people at risk whether you realize it or not.

[THE LONG RANGER]

You know, it's a pretty cavalier race - outsiders look at it and think it's crazy. And in a sense, it is. You are taking risks. If any of you are not into that, seriously reconsider racing it.

I think it's important to realize that you can't mitigate all the dangers, although you can prepare for them. Simply *having* bear spray doesn't do that, although it could give one a false sense of security, which could be worse than not carrying any at all. But, educating yourself on wildlife in general, and making your own decision about things is certainly a good way to go.

If you've noticed, I'm not disagreeing with the idea of carrying bear spray. What I do disagree with, is the idea that bear spray makes riding 100% safe in bear country. It doesn't. What's your opinion?

I understand that danger of wildlife is a topic you feel deeply about. I can think of similar topics, and seeing people follow pretty dumb protocols when faced with them (ie: nothing). One topic local to me is backcountry travel in the wintertime in CO: avalanche danger. Some people just don't understand the risks. Some do, and are prepared with the proper equipment, but not the correct training. Some have the equipment, the training, and the experience, and they still get in trouble - there's no 100% safe way to do things. Sometimes things are just dangerous. Same, I would feel, with wildlife. In the end, we are all free to make our own decisions, aren't we not?

FYI many places do SAR for free - Colorado SAR and the SAR specific to Rocky Mountain National Park do not charge. They don't want you to NOT call them, because you're afraid that you'll have to make a decision between paying for help, or going it alone. I know RMNP's SAR gets called out almost every day in the summertime. There was a pretty weird instance in last year's TD - it's worth reviewing, if you're a potential TD '15er for sure, to learn what went down, and how it could have been perhaps, better handled.

[ABfolder]

You know, it's a pretty cavalier race - outsiders look at it and think it's crazy. And in a sense, it is. You are taking risks.

Cavalier race? I hardly think so. In fact, I believe it to be just the opposite. If it was cavalier, TD entrants wouldn't be spending hundreds of hours preparing  for it or spending the notable amount of money necessary for the lightest bikes and equipment (Forest Baker, for example, put his tally at $7,000 and that didn't include airfare two ways). They'd be hopping on $50 bikes found at garage sales and scrounging for used equipment and gearing up with whatever was cheaply available. That's cavalier. Riding without bear spray is also cavalier since it's been found to be virtually 100% effective if used properly: "Of all persons carrying sprays, 98% were uninjured by bears in close-range encounters. All bear-inflicted injuries associated with defensive spraying involved brown bears and were relatively minor (i.e., no hospitalization required.)". That comes from a paper titled "Efficacy of Bear Deterrent Spray in Alaska" (2008). I'd say those are pretty convincing stats.

With the increasing number of riders each year, far too many are showing up with little to no backcountry experience in the mountains. I'm not only concerned about the lack of bear spray in gear, I'm also seeing people who are riding in hypothermia-inducing conditions without adequate clothing and gear due to the TD standard of pushing the weight limit to the lowest extreme. That'll kill you just as effectively as an aggressive bear. When I read of people rolling into Ovando or Wise River who can barely stand up or hold a coffee cup due to the onset of hypothermia, I don't categorize that as risky, I say it's plain foolish because someone on the receiving end has to take care of them. Self-supported? No. My observation is that Ride the Divide has attracted too many competitors who don't fully comprehend the risks. I reckon you do -- but that doesn't apply equally across the board and you should know that yourself. 150+ riders nowadays -- some coming in from Europe and elsewhere -- is a completely different show than seven racers lining up in 2004. Thigpen's book [wrong, it was actually in Cordillera Vol 6 -- buy it and have a read] describes a chilled-to-the-core German biker asking him when the nearest town was coming up -- this was on Cabin Pass in the dark if memory serves me correctly. What the hell was he doing out there? That guy didn't even have basic navigation skills.

You can talk about risk all you want -- because you understand the consequences. But I'm guessing that at least 50% of the riders in that race don't have any clue at all of what the mountains can dish out in June.

[THE LONG RANGER]

You certainly have opinions, which is fine, but it seems that you're getting close to making judgment calls on others, which I don't think really is worth sharing on this forum. There's a lot I want to reply on your last post - some of the things you've said actually don't sit right with me (personally). But, it's silly to kinda get into it. Good luck getting prepared (everyone) and hope to see y'all on the trails,

[Christopher R. Bennett]

Time to lighten up the discussion a bit. From Cordillera Volume 5, courtesy of Michael Arenberg. Ollie Whalley was proof reading the Cordillera on our flight back from Tarawa and I heard some loud laughing from a few seats back. You'll see why ...

After crossing the rail road tracks near Blossburg (between Lincoln and Helena) I started up Priest Pass road when I suddenly and uncomfortably became aware of a peppery odor and taste in my mouth and nose. I had thought it a pretty smart idea to hook my bear spray on one of my aero bars using the looped plastic holder on the bear spray canister. It was easy to get off and readily available just in case. ...

My first reaction was to not only wonder what this odor was, but where it was coming from as it just did not register that I may have sprung a leak in my bear spray. After only a few seconds I knew it had to be my bear spray. I came to a quick stop and unclipped from my pedals, leaned over and looked closely at the canister. I saw a thread-like line of brown ooze on the container. I knew I had to get rid of the container so I grabbed it with my gloved right hand and tossed it down the hill. Problem solved, problem over, or so I thought.

A few minutes down the road, Mother Nature called (can you see where this is going?). So I stopped to take care of business, pulled down my bike shorts, did my duty and continued down the road. A few seconds later I started feeling this amazing sharp pain you know where, and you know from what. Seems that little brown ooze had got on my bike gloves which I did not take off to go to the bathroom.

The pain got worse and worse and I was in tears, yelling out loud obscenities that would make a sailor cringe. I had to stop, I had to do something. The only fluid I had left at this point was Gatorade, grape to be exact. I laid my bike down, grabbed a water bottle, pulled my shorts down and sprayed Gatorade everywhere down there! It did little to ease the pain so I just lay there on the side of the road, clutching myself (having taken my gloves off as I had figured it out by then) in so much agony my stomach tossed out its contents. I don’t know how long I lay there but after a while I knew I just had to get on the bike and deal with the pain. I was afraid someone might ride by and see me lying on the ground, clutching myself in a spot where you’re not supposed to be clutching yourself in public. So off I rode. Now I had another issue to deal with. A groin area soaked in sticky Gatorade. This was getting to be very unpleasant.

I also knew I had to drink as this had taken a lot out of me so I reached down and took my bite valve in my mouth and started drinking (can you see where this is going?). A few moments later, the burning pain in my you know where was matched by the same burning sensation on my lips! It just did not register that the bear spray had been spread over the front of my bike cockpit. Now my lips were on fire, along with that other area. When was this going to end? Getting to Helena I was able to wash off in the bike shop restroom and cleaned off the front of the bike. I did a good job of cleaning, except for one thing, which I would only find out the next day.

I was riding up another long pass and wanted to use my GoPro camera to get some footage. I did not want to stop so I put the camera on my aero bars and at one point I had to put a bolt that holds the cameras brace in place in my mouth as I was riding. Yep, you guessed it, the bolt had some residual bear spray on it and my mouth was, once again, on fire.

[Flinch]

Re lions, tigers, and bears - oh my!

As a person who loves massive firepower, I would m-u-c-h rather have bear spray than a gun in a bear encounter. Be sure to read Herrera's bear book. There are those who have faced a bear down, and those who have yet to clean their shorts. The first time it happened to me (long ago) I'm not sure who ran away the fastest, but (later) found out that is not the best plan. Funny ending to story: was tied to a nylon survey chain, and when I came up to the end at a full trot I was yanked backwards by the hand of Jesus! - thought for sure the bear got me! Not so funny part - landed on a yellow jacket nest.

By the way, bear spray is about 1/5th the strength of police Mace (Most people think it is stronger). Reason? Bears have a zillion more smell sensors and only 'need' a little OC to make them rethink things, relative to people. I was certified on OC spray use in my LEO days - which means being sprayed. Believe me, it gets your attention!

In 2013 I slept like the dead, even at Red Meadow Lake, except for one bear nightmare near Brooks Lake: had a 'bear sniffing around the tent' moment (dreaming) and woke up with my bear spray in hand, safety off!

One serious tip: Cougars, like most predatory cats, like to attack from the rear. Paste two fake eyes on the back of your helmet - cats do not like to attack a 'face'. Yep serious - mahouts and brush beaters in India do the same during tiger hunts. Cuts down on attacks big time. The tribes in Africa know not to turn their backs on big cats.

Anyway, agree with Long re accepting responsibility for the risk. Do all that you can to avoid, then have a plan to mitigate if crap hits the rotary air mover.

People of the Tour - have you ordered the new Cordillera yet?     No? For shame!   

[ABfolder]

Re lions, tigers, and bears - oh my!

One serious tip: Cougars, like most predatory cats, like to attack from the rear. Paste two fake eyes on the back of your helmet - cats do not like to attack a 'face'. Yep serious - mahouts and brush beaters in India do the same during tiger hunts. Cuts down on attacks big time. The tribes in Africa know not to turn their backs on big cats.

About a dozen years ago, someone in Edmonton was marketing an Authentic Cougar Protection Mask following those early examples: http://yagotta.ca/yagottanetwork/edmonton/cougarmask.htm . I bought a couple for use on Vancouver Island where the cat population is about the densest in North America. Selling prose on back of package: " I heard a 'click' 'click' sound from behind, and before I could turn around the 200 lb. Cougar was on my back, sinking his fangs into the back of my neck, knocking me to the ground. January 2001, The Edmonton Journal"

Yes, cougars do in fact normally attack from the rear -- and two bug eyes on the back of a helmet is a good idea, as is a handy canister of bear spray (kept away from your shorts, mouth, eyes and anywhere else with mucous membranes). The use of a Bear Cozy would prevent most leakage-from-rubbing/banging-around incidents like the one experienced by Chris. Don't like the idea of a mask or big bug eyes? Another option is a rear view mirror (but then that's weight added).

BTW I doubt that mask is still for sale even though an address is shown. The old website for them was www.cougarsafe.com and it's no longer active.

[Marshal]

ABfolder got me to re-thinking and refining my thoughts about bear spray, so naturally I bloged it up............

thanks ABfolder

[SlowRide]

On the bear-spray topic, here are some un-opinionated facts about fatal bear attacks in North America:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fatal_bear_attacks_in_North_America

and if you'll indulge me, here's a well put together article that organizes these facts logically with well cited sources for statistics:

http://bucktrack.blogspot.com/2011/02/bears-should-you-be-afraid.html

While experienced opinions are valuable, I would encourage people to formulate their own opinions about this bear spray topic after listening to those of others. Everyone's fears are different, and are important to the person having them. My point being that the bear-spray decision is a personal one, if it's going to make you sleep better, you should probably take it along regardless of the facts. The whole game we play out there is about risk management, this is just one more risk to manage, and in all honesty, statistically it's probably a whole lot less significant than many others on the divide, unless lightning strikes, or wait... bear attack is 69x less likely than lightning striking...

As a contrast I'd love to see a statistic about bear-spray attacks, i.e. - how many people are injured each year from carrying bear spray?

I'd also like to be clear that I am not advocating the carrying, or not carrying of bear spray. I'm simply trying to push the free thinkers agenda and make the dispassionate facts available. I understand both sides of the coin and make my own decisions on a case by case basis drawing on my own experiences from living, working, and recreating in grizzly/cougar country for decades.

The other bear safety topic I rarely see visited is that of the hanging of food. It seems like almost a taboo topic in bikepacking circles. If you're worried enough to carry bear spray, you'd better be hanging your food when you sleep. Relying on bear spray to get you out of an encounter instead of trying to prevent the encounter itself is foolhardy. But hanging food takes time.... and effort.... and this is a race.... and you're going to be tired... My point being, where do you draw the line for acceptable risk? That's what's at the heart of this bear spray issue and it's different for everyone. Most people won't end up hanging their food, accepting the risk of attracting bears while asleep because they have a defense, which to me personally is silly. Fears will drive men and women to do all sorts of things that are completely inconsistent, whatever you decide, my advice is to above all else... act consistently and be decisive. Those two virtues will see you through more questionable situations than you'd think.

[THE LONG RANGER]

Well said, SlowRide.

I do think ABfolder's worry that the actions of the few who are seen as reckless with their decisions will impact the many (hopefully, majority) of riders is one to think about, but it is not a new worry. I'm not signing up for this year's TD (freedom! wonderful freedom!) but that may be something the current crop of riders should discuss, in gentle-man/women/person terms. It's always a not so nice feeling to hear about someone needing to get help from outta the sticks - heh, I'm no stranger to that, too - if I recall

[ABfolder]

I like your style, Marshal -- and your blog (I've been following it for awhile). Looks like a good rig to try out.

Another trick that's worked in the past on the ground (with a hunter if I recall correctly): If you get knocked down and need to deploy the bear spray at VERY close range, jam it into the bear's throat and let 'er rip. Mucous membranes, again. It's the equivalent of putting a torch to their throat and lungs. A good portion of the spray should be directed away from you and contained (somewhat) compared to a blast to the bear's eyes/face.

Another noisemaker that's worked on bears and cougars is a mini airhorn http://www.amazon.com/SeaSense-Mini-Air-Horn-1-4oz/dp/B0019LZTKU which is also available at most Wallymarts (the marine goods section). The problem with them is that they aren't entirely reliable when it comes to the number of times they spew forth the loud blast. I like the larger marine airhorns that are primed with bike pumps myself -- but their size is a consideration on a lightweight bike rig (I used to double duty them while kayaking): http://reviews.canadiantire.ca/9045/0792712P/fox-40-fox-40-ecoblast-sport-rechargeable-air-horn-reviews/reviews.htm or http://www.attwoodmarine.com/store/product/ecoblast-rechargeable-air-horn---mini-pump .

Scenario: You're inside a tent or bivy and hear something snorting around outside and it ain't going away. Time to give a short blast from the mini airhorn. It also reportedly works on snapping dogs. Whistles don't have the same blasting OOMPHH as an airhorn. To use bear spray, you'd need to haul your butt out of the tent or open your bivy. Which might not be a great idea.

In case anyone's curious as to what that Cougar Mask looks like in detail, I'll try to get a decent photo of it tomorrow and post it.

I appreciate SlowRide's input on the topic, especially on the hanging of food. [Note that some locations will have metal food storage boxes available or bear poles or in a pinch you could use this without much ado: http://www.mec.ca/product/5020-583/ursack-s29-allwhite-bear-resistant-bag/ .] However, the fatality stats are not all that relevant because those only list the number of deaths, not attacks (or close calls, which aren't generally reported). Hikers, hunters, naturalists and mtn bikers don't necessarily report their usage of bear spray in the backcountry although they should. My other point is this: Riding through a well-known bear concentration area without bear spray not only puts you at risk but it also puts the bears at risk (of a certain death sentence) should they react violently to someone surprising them along a trail. This might not occur to any of you but that wilderness road/track that you're riding on is their living room, bedroom and dining room all rolled into one. They belong there -- you're merely an unwelcome, unexpected guest passing through. Whether you accept that or not, it's your responsibility to ensure that they don't get hunted down and killed because of some personal philosophy on what constitutes risk to YOU. Risk cuts both ways -- humans and bears can both end up as victims.

Race organizers in Canmore, Alberta -- and that covers both runners and mtn bikers -- are now making bear spray mandatory as of 2014. And they're doing that to protect both the human racers as well as the local wildlife who get shot if they react naturally to intruders. I'm not going to argue the point -- learn how to use bear spray properly and carry it. I had a quick look at the methods of carrying bear spray at the Grand Depart at the Banff YWCA this year and never saw one instance of proper stowage. Crazy Larry wasn't even carrying it properly and he's a local who should know better. I don't think I've ever heard of a hiker having problems with "bear spray attacks" -- it's mtn bikers who are bouncing the canisters around too much and having them leak. Marshal is stepping up to the plate and experimenting with a vest set-up. I'll be interested in hearing how that works out. I still like the Bear Cozy because it acts as a secondary layer of protection to the outside of the canister. (In a pinch, you could probably duplicate that with an old Nalgene bottle.) There's nothing stopping someone from using that idea in a compact fanny pack that holds a water bottle (sort of a mini version of what Marshal is trying out). Eszter mentioned stowing her spray in a feedbag which would also work (that's a relatively safe, protected location -- isolated away from constant bike frame vibration -- if you absolutely won't carry it on your body).

** ADD-ON ** After sleeping on the subject -- and mulling over SlowRide's entry -- I'd like to highlight something in numbers and colours/colors (we spell funny north of the border and add "u"s where Americans don't):

Speaking of north of the border: The grizzly population in B.C. = 15,000 with the Flathead the hottest hotspot in the entire province (in fact, Canada) http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/fw/wildlife/docs/Grizzly_Bear_Pop_Est_Report_Final_2012.pdf See page 5, Figure 1 for a colourful map of griz distribution and densities. That little dark blue blob in the extreme lower righthand corner -- 50-60 griz/1000km2 (the sizzlingest of hotspots) -- is the Flathead where 175 griz call home. North of there in the South Rockies, you can add another 305 griz. Bear in mind (sorry for the pun but I couldn't resist) that numbers of black bears aren't included in those totals. Cougars aren't either. Figure 2 of that report helps explain why there aren't more altercations between humans and grizzlies in the Flathead: the area is hunted so a smart grizzly avoids humans especially those with bear bangers that mimic gunfire. [But having said that, grizzlies are also known to be attracted to a hunter's shots in hopes of claiming a fresh elk, deer or moose kill.]

What's the situation in the lower 48? The grand total for griz everywhere south of the Canadian border is 1500 with roughly 800 bears in Montana and 600 in Wyoming. Colorado -- where SlowRide and Justin currently reside -- comes up empty or with possible strays only. Now I'm certainly not going to brush off hundreds of bears of any kind, but it's quite obvious that our cross-border viewpoints might be based on mathematics. Canadians who recreate in the mountains of southern B.C. -- and/or the adjoining national parks in Alberta -- simply have waaaay more bears to worry about. If we come across as concerned about safety, we have a good reason for it -- actually make that many, many good reasons for it.

If anyone of any sort was looking at a map that clearly highlighted a route hazard (whether hiking, biking, boating or driving), wouldn't it be a staightforward case of common sense to adequately prepare for it. Meditate on that dark blue blob of the Flathead and the adjoining green of the South Rockies for a few moments. I'm hoping that common sense prevails. I'll say it one last time: Come prepared!

[flyboy]

Hi all. I am gearing up for an attempt on the TD in 2015 after watching and lurking around here for 3 or 4 years now. I am just waiting for holiday confirmation before I throw my hat in the ring and punch off an L.O.I. In the mean time I am riding as much as work allows, building a new bike and generally gathering information.

As I said, I have been reading along here for a few years now and think I understand the rules, however, just looking at the "official TD rules" website and it appears to me that there have been some recent tweaking of the rules.

To Quote-
Advancing (forward) on the route by any means other than one's own pedal power is strictly prohibited. No drafting. Use of any type of air scoop or umbrella sail intended to harness wind power is also prohibited. TD is a solo challenge, however, racing in the company of other challengers is tolerated. Again, no drafting, and each rider must maintain separate gear. One complete survival kit per rider.

In the event of a serious mechanical that renders a bike unrideable, a rider may hitchhike[3] by motor vehicle in ANY direction to repair the problem. The location of the incident must be well documented by SPOT tracking or other GPS logger. A rider may also receive assistance returning back to the exact location of the breakdown to begin forward progress. Again, the entire incident, form breakdown to return to the route must be fully documented by GPS. Item 4 FAQs

The "serious mechanical" bit seems new in that you can travel in any direction to have your ride fixed, just as long as you return to the exact point where you accepted a lift. To confuse the issue slightly, Rule 4 endnote spells out travel off or back only. Not forward.
Forward for a fix, on the route is now ok? Is this new/correct?

Coming from a gentle, welcoming country like Australia, where we have no dangerous wildlife to speak of......the main thing scaring the tar out of me isn't the 2745 miles of trail but the prospect of bears....and thanks to ABFolder, now Cougars! Obviously the statistics speak volumes but I guess I will be educating myself, then packing for my fears on that account.  The unknown factor of bears, cougars, snow and high mountains plus indistinguishable food in US gas stations is all part of the adventure.

Anyway, hoping to add my name to the list soon.
Cheers
Dave

[tuhduhvuh]

Hi everyone,  hope this "topic" is okay here on this thread.   Last year there were a couple changes to the route  (the new section into Sparwood and the new section into Butte)

I think there were new "cues" posted for the section into Butte.  What about Sparwood?

I will admit that I barely used my cues at all,  they were simplified with mostly just re-supply info and some of the big climbs.  I simply followed my GPS,  which worked fine,  but someone mentioned that they used their cues as a bit of a boredom buster.   I was never bored last year.....  but I like the idea of having more detailed cues to read and "follow along".    

Will the ACA post an updated text file,  or would we see that posted here at the forum?   I know it's way early,  just doing some work on some little things, a bit at a time.  

Last year (2014) the first week of cold weather completely demoralized me emotionally and I (foolishly, in retrospect) dropped out in Butte.  Hope to not have that happen this year!    Though I don't really know how to "train" for that.  

I have a early am newspaper route that currently takes me about 2 hours (by bike) and it's been close to -40 C a few mornings,  and it's been fine!  I guess being able to simply BUNDLE UP and not having to carry the huge pile of clothes I'm wearing makes it a lot easier to dress for the cold.   I will certainly be really thinking hard about my gear choices for my next attempt.

But I'm already excited about it.

P.S.  just remembered this link to the new cues into Butte.   SO it's just the section into Sparwood  (which was fine by GPS, as I said,  just creating a bit of a "read along"  for interest sake)

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1iyXrTvW-9Ev5PBdRTN2N41C_QHs1clo-ZkFdDBZfja0/pubhtml


(if this question belongs somewhere else,  let me know and I'll repost it...)

[ABfolder]

Coming from a gentle, welcoming country like Australia, where we have no dangerous wildlife to speak of...

Dave

Crikey, Dave, you must live a sheltered life: http://www.hotelclub.com/blog/australias-top-animal-hazards/ . Besides jellyfish in your neck of the woods -- folks, they actually use chainlink fence swimming enclosures to keep those deadly pests out in Queensland -- you also have the disemboweling champions of the world, the cassowary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLXGSVGerT8 + https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YA58sS3x2Oo . I mention the latter because I had a male cassowary (with growing chicks -- the male is a Mr Mom and takes care of them) chase me around my car up at the birding hotspot of Mission Beach http://www.missionbeachcassowaries.com/ (note the cassowary deaths due to vehicle collisions on the map insert -- a fate they share with griz in the Canadian Rockies). And let's not even touch the subject of crocs up Queensland way. We got as far as the Daintree Rainforest on our wanderings while living and working in Oz for 5 years. Great place but I like Canada better -- at least when I'm not shovelling snow for 8 months of the year or thinking about trailside grizzly bears the other 4.

** Afterthought: The odds of seeing that male cassowary emerge from the bush 20 metres away from where I was standing -- with two youngsters behind him no less -- rates with winning the Lotto in terms of likelihood of happening. In fact, it easily trumps encountering a griz or cougar on the Tour Divide. Just because the odds of having an unexpected (life threatening) wildlife encounter are infinitesimally small, doesn't mean that it can't happen.

[dp]

ABfolder got me to re-thinking and refining my thoughts about bear spray, so naturally I bloged it up............

thanks ABfolder

Great blog Marshal.  I like the race vest idea (I think LongRanger uses an Ultimate Direction vest?).  Interestingly, I'd conceived a similar idea for carrying bear spray + Spot tracker + air horn (thank you ABfolder) + ID + sundries, and had started to experiment with my son's 2L Camelbak (sans water bladder) for that purpose.  I had initially hoped to go with no backpack whatsoever, but the convenience of access to such items is hard to ignore.  Then it crossed my mind that I could also use it to carry over-gloves and arm warmers, and hey why not use it for the long sleeve jersey and the wind shell and the ___ and the  ___...  You can see where this is headed.  I probably will adopt this idea, but am going to go with some other lightweight pack with more room (Inov-8 makes those as well) with strap pockets for bear spray and an air horn.  That will allow me to layer up or strip down without having to break into the bags on the bike.  May seem like a small thing, but small things add up.

-dp

[dp]

I think there were new "cues" posted for the section into Butte.  What about Sparwood?

Regarding the route out of Elkford, I put the question to Matt Lee a while back, and here is his response:

Howdy, there will be an update on this post winter solstice when discussions begin again. It will def. be the new TD route. Not sure if ACA will adopt or not. They are gun shy on my recs after the CA Flathead route I engineered (features an epic hike-a-bike). Here's the email that I sent to ACA about the Elkford reroute pre-race. A similar version was provided to all racers, however the rules were not amended on it pre-race. That late in the game I deal directly with riders by email.

Hello Folks,
Last summer (2013) the Fording River Mining Road (begins at mi 6 on ACA CA Map B) was washed out in a key cliffside section, described in GDMBR cues as:

mi11.2   km18   Come in immediately above water on a cliffside bench.

It was taken out by the flooded Fording River. From our reports, it has not yet been fixed. The road is maintained in a partnership by Teck Mining Co. and Tembec Timber (recently sold to Canfor). I have not been able to ascertain when the road will be repaired. Late last summer a few riders were able to ford the river to bypass the slide, but early season `14 riders will not be able to do this safely.

What to do? Hwy 43 straight into Sparwood has a decent shoulder, but is too dangerous / antithetical.

I've always wondered where goes the well-signed Josephine Falls Trail, "Elkford's most popular hiking trail" (according to this hiking guide). The trail is passed 2.4mi up the big 6mi paved Fording River Rd. climb out of Elkford. See the Gmap link below. If GDMBR riders exited Fording River Rd here, it would be far more pleasant than continuing 3.5 more paved miles east past the eyesore Greenhills Coal mining facility.

The trail conditions into the majestic 83ft waterfall are described as 'doubletrack'. Gmaps sat-view confirms this. The key navigational challenge for Tour Divide riders, being the first to execute a bypass, will be in connecting the Falls trail with the GDMBR dirt road described as, "This new road also goes right" in the below cue:

15.4   24.8   Curve L onto wider, unsigned, and potentially dustier road
(a sign identifying the road you’re coming off reads “Fording Rd.”)
This new road also goes R, but that would require a R-hand turn
of more than 90 degrees.

The local knowledge says there is a well signed connector trail that reads, "To Lost Lake", and that the connecting maneuver is simple.

We have drawn up polylines on a Gmap using the help of locals, and we plan to integrate the line into the TD`14 GPX file for navigation. Feel free to download these data as a KML from the Gmap if you want to share with GDMBR citizen riders. We have no cues yet, but there are numerous descriptions on the web for the J-Falls Trail. From there, it appears to be straightforward descent to where one rejoins the route at mi 15.4. We hope it's seamless. We think it will be a much higher quality route for future use, if it works out.

Gmap: https://www.google.com/maps/ms?msid=200334849650645495946.0004fa82b409b51e2c70d&msa=0&ll=50.007739,-114.88266&spn=0.288608,0.528717

Please let me know if you have questions.

Regards,
Matthew

So it sounds like Matthew will engage the whole 'routes & rules' discussion a bit closer to race day.  I bought the maps and cues (txt file), and am in the process of adapting them (the cues that is) to my own sinister purposes.  Having said that, a while back someone mentioned that the Canada portion of the GDMBR may be updated early in 2015, so there may be a new map on the horizon - and presumably, new cues to match.  In any event, make sure whatever cues you use follow the latest greatest ACA maps AND addenda when you line up at the start.

-dp