2018 AZTR300/750 Planning Thread

[ScottM]

Ha!  Well, I've been planning on this event for almost a year, in talking with past participants and reading the 'AZT Racer Page', there was nothing about all these rules/requirements/deadlines/rider limits.   I just re-read the 'new' rules and there is still a lot of grey area.  Why not just make it absolutely NO support/water caches/trail magic for people treating it like a 'honest race'?  Why not set a specific rider limit?  Why not specify if a tracker is required or not?   Sounds like half the 'racers' stash stuff for themselves or have 'friends' that magically show up and aid the riders.   Really needs to be black and white or strip away the 'race' tagline and call it a general 'ride' and break it into finisher/non-finisher. 

What do you mean by the AZT Racer Page?  The facebook group?

The website has very clearly stated that there is a 74 person limit.  Again, I'm sorry you didn't sign up earlier.  The race only very recently filled.

As I explained earlier, the limit is to control the overall impact of the race.  And also to comply with the USFS 'no permit' group size limit.

[Dana Ernst]

Sounds like half the 'racers' stash stuff for themselves or have 'friends' that magically show up and aid the riders.

I sure hope that's not true!

[bmattingly]

I've done the event a few times and its awesome.  I've never experienced anyone stashing stuff for themselves or having drop offs while riding.  Scott has done a phenomenal job with his vision for this ride and tons of hard work to put it together.  Sometimes its hot in the desert sections and the water available is necessary.  If not I think it wouldn't be there.

Much gratitude for this event and the experiences within it!

[phatmike]

I've done the event a few times and its awesome.  I've never experienced anyone stashing stuff for themselves or having drop offs while riding.  Scott has done a phenomenal job with his vision for this ride and tons of hard work to put it together.  Sometimes its hot in the desert sections and the water available is necessary.  If not I think it wouldn't be there.

Much gratitude for this event and the experiences within it!

I'm not a bikepacking vet by any means, though I was able to complete the 300 last year, and I agree with the above. I will say that the rules even before the recent additions/clarifications were always clear to me even if not "black and white". Rider limit was always clear as well. It was even mentioned in this thread multiple times. Without going back to find it, I'm pretty sure it was even mentioned that waiting till the last week or two to sign up for the tracker might lead to disappointment.

I don't think anyone can say anything that would make the rules more clear than they already are. Just my opinion.

I also would like to extend my gratitude for those who work so hard to make this event possible. It's way up there in my list of cool things I've done, and I think we can all agree that the preservation of the race should be paramount to all those who decide to participate in it.

[gesose]

Hey Scott- just got “The Email”. So very excited. One thing, and I chose to post here for other’s sake.

In the email you mention “10) Make sure you have the latest (2018 rev1) GPX files!”. Can you confirm that rev1 is the first file you posted - maybe a week or so ago.  Or is this a newer one that supersedes the one I downloaded and pushed to my etrex? If memory serves me correctly the one I have is the first file you posted and is the same as the one that is currently posted. Sorry I can’t check what file I actually downloaded as I don’t have access to the computer that does all of my gps stuff.

Thanks!

[krefs]

One other note on water - High Jinks Ranch (http://www.highjinksranch.net/az-trail.html) is just a few hundred feet off the AZT below Oracle Ridge after you end up on the Cody Trails (https://goo.gl/maps/iDdxiwA5MJ42). They have a water spigot at their front gate for AZT users - that would be a great place to tank up if not heading into Oracle so as to not need to take more than a bit of water from the Tiger Mine water cache.

[Sonikphyr]

Is there a limit as to how many people can camp at the 300 start line? Do you prefer us in the campground or can we camp at the trail head parking lot area?
Thank you.

[dlskayak]

I love the fact that this event is available to a large group of people and what's it's done to promote Arizona and bike packing.  AZTR300 was my first bike packing experience in 2014 and I DNF.  I definitely learned a lot and finished the next year.  Excited for another run at this challenging course.  The entry fee is FREE and it's not promoted as a race rather a meeting of like minded people who want to challenge how fast and far one can ride.  Let's be kind to ScottM who has made this experience possible.  Use common sense and be courteous of others. Respect the fact that a lot of people are travelling from outside the area and should have the same advantages as the locals.  Can't see why much more needs to be said unless this is a race and we are paying for this event. Remember..... it's free and not an official race.  I for one will be riding as fast and long as I can.  Looking forward to the adventure!

[rhino]

@SM - Good job on the rule updates. Your AZTR energy is appreciated by me and my many others!

I wanted to offer an opinion/suggestion on the gates to riders outside of Arizona who may not be familiar.

short version - close all gates even if found open laying on the ground.

"-Gates.  There are a lot of them on the trail.  The general rule is: unless you can
  actually see another rider coming behind you, always close a gate you open.
  Do not assume people you were riding with are actually coming."

Some of the gates that will be encountered will not be much of a gate all. It might be some barb wire and a stick, and in very bad shape.  Some riders from other parts of the world are taught to: 'leave gates as you found them'.  An Arizona Rancher would never open a gate and leave it lay on the ground across the trail or road.  If a rancher wanted a gate to remain open, they open it and secure it back to the fence to remain open.

If you find a gate open when you arrive, please close it.

Many of you will soon find out why the gates are left open in the first place. Some of the gates are harder to close then actually riding the AZT. Some will zap all your energy just to get it open, then zap more energy to figure out how to get it closed again.

Grandma Helga closed all the gates, you can too.

[LandSharkBrian]

I have made a film about my experience: https://vimeo.com/217165619

Great!  Can't wait to give it a watch!

[LandSharkBrian]

BRIAN! Man that read made me kinda emotional in places.

And Ron, and Jakob, and all the other fine folks out there. What a great time.

Man I wish I was heading out this year again, but I'll have to settle for watching the dots. the trek to Pine is pretty rough, caught me by surprise for sure.

Highline.. phew, was some fun tech...  I was beat from the previous day though. And the climb out to the top of the rim lived up to it's hype. "They said it was supposed to be.."

This was the morning after we saw you:
https://youtu.be/xNkyrMeLFGc


GOOD RIDING TO ALL THOSE HEADING OUT THIS YEAR!

Marco!  Great to hear from you man!  Yeah, I sure wish I was headed out there too.  I may have to wedge in an ITT effort before it gets too bloody hot down south.  Maybe outfit my daughter's mtn bike a bit and do a two or three day-er anyway.

[ScottM]

In the email you mention “10) Make sure you have the latest (2018 rev1) GPX files!”. Can you confirm that rev1 is the first file you posted - maybe a week or so ago.  Or is this a newer one that supersedes the one I downloaded and pushed to my etrex? If memory serves me correctly the one I have is the first file you posted and is the same as the one that is currently posted. Sorry I can’t check what file I actually downloaded as I don’t have access to the computer that does all of my gps stuff.

Good question.  Any time I release a new version it'll get a new 'rev number' to avoid this confusion.  So rev1 is the current and only released as of now.

[ScottM]

Thanks for the support and gratitude, folks.  Getting this thing off the ground has been more challenging than usual this year, for a number of reasons.  Inevitably a small number of people are going to be unhappy and are going to behave badly toward me and the race.  I've accepted this as a part of putting the race on, but it does still suck.

[ScottM]

Is there a limit as to how many people can camp at the 300 start line? Do you prefer us in the campground or can we camp at the trail head parking lot area?
Thank you.

Campground is fine, but since the race is usually 50/50 split between 300/750 so there shouldn't be more than 74 people camping at the trailhead.  I would consider that the limit, but we should be well below that (even with spectators), so feel free to plan to camp there.

Thanks for asking.

[davew]

Ha!  Well, I've been planning on this event for almost a year, in talking with past participants and reading the 'AZT Racer Page', there was nothing about all these rules/requirements/deadlines/rider limits.   I just re-read the 'new' rules and there is still a lot of grey area.  Why not just make it absolutely NO support/water caches/trail magic for people treating it like a 'honest race'?  Why not set a specific rider limit?  Why not specify if a tracker is required or not?   Sounds like half the 'racers' stash stuff for themselves or have 'friends' that magically show up and aid the riders.   Really needs to be black and white or strip away the 'race' tagline and call it a general 'ride' and break it into finisher/non-finisher. 

I’ll take the bait.....

Maybe this is not the race for you. Everyone else has managed their prep, read the rules, researched what they needed to know, knew the registration dates and limits, more importantly, not lost the plot with a defamatory post accussing half the field of cheating

On top of all this, Im not sure I’d want to turn up to a start line having made the unqualified accusations you have. Luckily it’s an ITT for you

[aarond]

Another one chiming in to thank Scott for navigating all the red tape to put together a ride that complies with all the Forest Service, BLM and Arizona State rules.  Scott spends most of the year living in a Scamp trailer and putting this together is truly a labor of love. If you were unable to register before the ride filled up, if you are a slower rider consider starting the day before the grand depart, and if you are a fast rider, maybe start the day after.  Your friends and family will still be able to follow you online, you will still meet lots of other riders and your finish time will still appear in the results.  The current record on the Colorado Trail Race was set by Neil Beltchenko who started a day late and still passed almost everyone.
 If you appreciate the opportunity to partake in this amazing adventure which has NO ENTRY FEE, please consider making a donation via this link:  http://trackleaders.com/support

I just did, thanks again Scott!

[ScottM]

I just did, thanks again Scott!

Thanks, Aaron.  I know there a lot of people out there passionate about this trail and the unofficial challenge that the AZTR is, and that you are among them--the group that really gets it.

[gesose]

Hey all. Wondering if anyone wants to meet up for dinner tomorrow (Tuesday 4/3). I’m in Tucson acclimating (read waiting for my bike and eating Mexican food) and thought it might be cool to get a group together for a pre-race kickoff. I’m not familiar with Tucson eateries so hopefully a local can suggest something otherwise I’ll just end up where I ate tonight or someplace I find via Google. Let me know here or via DM if you are interested.

[schillingsworth]

And don't you all worry, Neil B will be getting to the start line!! I had the unfortunate re-aggravation of a pesky Achilles during a shakedown ride the other day, so I'm OUT for the 300. But, that gave me the chance to help another fella out. Go Neil!! See you all at PCL on Wednesday. Go get 'em!!

In short, Scott, you 'da man!!

[hanyo66]

Thanks for the support and gratitude, folks.  Getting this thing off the ground has been more challenging than usual this year, for a number of reasons.  Inevitably a small number of people are going to be unhappy and are going to behave badly toward me and the race.  I've accepted this as a part of putting the race on, but it does still suck.

Sorry to hear that Scott. We'll do our best to keep things clean up north and updating everyone on trail conditions when we can. Super thankful for all you do and putting on this awesome event.