2021 AZTR

[ScottM]

Received a text from Timon, 6:30a start, 9:22p finish. So, 38h 52m (1d 14h 52m)

Congrats Timon!  I'm really happy to see what's possible out there being taken to another level.  When I originally conceived of this race that was exactly the idea.  There's only been a few leaps in what's possible, and this is definitely one of those.  Very exciting.

Bummer on the missed two miles, but what is important here is that it can be done.  Jersey pocket isn't the ideal place for a SPOT --get it away from you and pointing up, somehow.  5 min is what most people use, too.

Kurt?  You're up.  If tradition holds it won't be long until the record is back in your hands!

Jefe!  Great ride, amigo.  SS record and faster than my best effort out there.  Congrats.

Too much mud/snow for Ian in the 800.  That might change in a few days after this high pressure ridge is done baking the four corners region.  He's going to come back later to finish it.

[timon.fish]

Like I told John I was worried something like that would happen once the gps trail ended.  Used signage and the routes on mtbproject and the azt trail app to stay on course and double check, but unfortunately they're not up to date with trackleaders and the latest changes.   Oh well, it's a bummer but I'm not too disappointed.  My full route upload is on strava, since trackleaders and my spot didn't communicate well.  Definitely had some other hiccups but as far as I know I caught them and was able to backtrack.

Noted on spot recommendations.  I'll have to upgrade my plan thing and find a better spot on the bike for next time.  I know my friends and family were pulling their hair out wondering why updates were so few and far between.

Huge congrats Timon on a historic ride, particularly for a rookie run. Be curious your thoughts of where, if anywhere you could make improvements on this already superhuman effort now that you know the course front to end.

ahhh...this is what causes me to lose sleep.  I think about all the things I did wrong or could do better/faster/more efficiently, and little about what went right.  There's always time to shave somewhere.  With that said, it's still fun to theorize....

• I think most of it is course knowledge and obviously importing the correct gpx track.  I burned up a lot of time (especially at night) pulling out my phone, clicking the gps locate thing, zooming in and making sure I was where I was supposed to be. All those little 30-60sec stops add up.  I think consistently moving forward is one of the biggest keys to fast bikepacking, though I kind of wonder if lots of little micro-rests are beneficial in some way to staying fresher.  I did a little out and back on pavement after I-10 where the azt does the bike detour, was confused where I should go and it took 5mins to figure out.  Two more little out and backs on Redington pass Rd, because it was really difficult to follow the 4wd roads at night when they constantly split and come back together, and then split and don't come back together....etc.  Course knowledge on top of the gps is even better, because it's so much easier to rip through intersections and trailheads without even slowing down and looking to see if you need to take a hard/soft left/right, hop on the dirt road or find the single track on the other side of the road or whatever the situation is.
• I flatted the rear sidewall early the second day.  Spent about 20mins changing it to be absolutely sure anything sharp was out of the tire casing and the tube wasn't going to push through the sidewall and I wasn't going to flat it again a couple mins later or pinch flat it from running too low pressure.
• Took too much food.  I pulled almost 4k calories off my bike at the end, which is roughly 3lbs.  That's kind of a lot to drag all that way.  Was thinking anywhere from 40-48hrs, and didn't want to come up short on calories.  I'd probably do less total calories, and more of the liquid/mix variety.  Couldn't tolerate chewing anything substantial in the heat.
• Weather and risk dependent, one could theoretically ditched the down pants/jacket and warm gloves...which means one less bike bag and less weight there as well.  I used the gloves for 20mins after I got my hands wet, and didn't need the puffies.  But similar to taking too much food, better to have and not need than need and not have.  Especially for potential injuries and whatnot at weird times, far from trailheads.
• Would take more water up Mt Lemmon and less down.  Ran out at the beginning of the road climb which wasn't ideal.  Then filtered from the stream at the top and carried that probably 40+ miles and barely used any of it.
• I attempted a couple trail naps, but failed.  Plan was to go until early day two and if timing allowed pass out for 30mins or so when the weather was nice as a little refresher.  Laid down in a wash and after 20mins I was still wide awake so cut my losses and kept moving.  Did a similar thing at the bottom of picket post.  It was 4:45pm and that whole canyon was getting cooked by the sun and I could tell my core temp was super high.  Figured it'd be best to wait for 45mins and let the shadows grow and end up riding more in the dark than potentially dealing with heatstroke going up there.  Tried to sleep but no luck after 20mins so I sat there for another 10mins in the shade and then continued on.  Even without sleep those instances weren't complete losses though.....energy seemed to feel better after being off my feet for a bit.
• Carried 6 AA batteries that I didn't use.
• Kurt told me specifically not to go out too hard, then I probably went out too hard.  It's just too easy to do when you're tapered and at lower elevations and conditions are good.  Should've saved more of that energy for Redington pass and Mt Lemmon climb

I think sub 37hrs is possible, potentially even 36 if you go super risky on gear choices.

[Adam Alphabet]

Like I told John I was worried something like that would happen once the gps trail ended.  Used signage and the routes on mtbproject and the azt trail app to stay on course and double check, but unfortunately they're not up to date with trackleaders and the latest changes.   Oh well, it's a bummer but I'm not too disappointed.  My full route upload is on strava, since trackleaders and my spot didn't communicate well.  Definitely had some other hiccups but as far as I know I caught them and was able to backtrack.

Noted on spot recommendations.  I'll have to upgrade my plan thing and find a better spot on the bike for next time.  I know my friends and family were pulling their hair out wondering why updates were so few and far between.
ahhh...this is what causes me to lose sleep.  I think about all the things I did wrong or could do better/faster/more efficiently, and little about what went right.  There's always time to shave somewhere.  With that said, it's still fun to theorize....

• I think most of it is course knowledge and obviously importing the correct gpx track.  I burned up a lot of time (especially at night) pulling out my phone, clicking the gps locate thing, zooming in and making sure I was where I was supposed to be. All those little 30-60sec stops add up.  I think consistently moving forward is one of the biggest keys to fast bikepacking, though I kind of wonder if lots of little micro-rests are beneficial in some way to staying fresher.  I did a little out and back on pavement after I-10 where the azt does the bike detour, was confused where I should go and it took 5mins to figure out.  Two more little out and backs on Redington pass Rd, because it was really difficult to follow the 4wd roads at night when they constantly split and come back together, and then split and don't come back together....etc.  Course knowledge on top of the gps is even better, because it's so much easier to rip through intersections and trailheads without even slowing down and looking to see if you need to take a hard/soft left/right, hop on the dirt road or find the single track on the other side of the road or whatever the situation is.
• I flatted the rear sidewall early the second day.  Spent about 20mins changing it to be absolutely sure anything sharp was out of the tire casing and the tube wasn't going to push through the sidewall and I wasn't going to flat it again a couple mins later or pinch flat it from running too low pressure.
• Took too much food.  I pulled almost 4k calories off my bike at the end, which is roughly 3lbs.  That's kind of a lot to drag all that way.  Was thinking anywhere from 40-48hrs, and didn't want to come up short on calories.  I'd probably do less total calories, and more of the liquid/mix variety.  Couldn't tolerate chewing anything substantial in the heat.
• Weather and risk dependent, one could theoretically ditched the down pants/jacket and warm gloves...which means one less bike bag and less weight there as well.  I used the gloves for 20mins after I got my hands wet, and didn't need the puffies.  But similar to taking too much food, better to have and not need than need and not have.  Especially for potential injuries and whatnot at weird times, far from trailheads.
• Would take more water up Mt Lemmon and less down.  Ran out at the beginning of the road climb which wasn't ideal.  Then filtered from the stream at the top and carried that probably 40+ miles and barely used any of it.
• I attempted a couple trail naps, but failed.  Plan was to go until early day two and if timing allowed pass out for 30mins or so when the weather was nice as a little refresher.  Laid down in a wash and after 20mins I was still wide awake so cut my losses and kept moving.  Did a similar thing at the bottom of picket post.  It was 4:45pm and that whole canyon was getting cooked by the sun and I could tell my core temp was super high.  Figured it'd be best to wait for 45mins and let the shadows grow and end up riding more in the dark than potentially dealing with heatstroke going up there.  Tried to sleep but no luck after 20mins so I sat there for another 10mins in the shade and then continued on.  Even without sleep those instances weren't complete losses though.....energy seemed to feel better after being off my feet for a bit.
• Carried 6 AA batteries that I didn't use.
• Kurt told me specifically not to go out too hard, then I probably went out too hard.  It's just too easy to do when you're tapered and at lower elevations and conditions are good.  Should've saved more of that energy for Redington pass and Mt Lemmon climb

I think sub 37hrs is possible, potentially even 36 if you go super risky on gear choices.

Very detailed Timon. If you decide to come back it'll be exciting to see you make those adjustments and raise the bar further. Those sleepless nights pondering can be very strong motivators. I always said doing these courses twice is really the way to test yourself. The first time through you're going on hypothetical plans. The second time through after tires have been on trail you know what to expect and can clean up your inefficiencies.

Not that we're in the same league but my GPS failed on me at 100 miles in, just past Highway 10 approaching Colossal Cave the first time I rode the 300, which was also my first bikepacking race. I had a goal of sub 3 days and came in at 3d 1h 47 min, that was hard, but I had some work to do and some things to work on.

That was a very strong motivator to review and clean up now that I knew the course. Two GPS's, gear totally reviewed and trimmed down, tried not to stop too much, kept moving forward, tripped balls and took off 8 hours in my first ever single speed race the next year, that felt good.

Hope to see you back out there at some point. Until then, celebrate your effort. As Scott mentioned, this really was a leap in what is possible on that course and we're all super pumped for you.

[Joaz]

Does anyone know who Alexis Rose really is? She's making some good time into Kentucky Camp.

[phatmike]

Does anyone know who Alexis Rose really is? She's making some good time into Kentucky Camp.

No idea lol. Love that show though.

Seriously though, I mean I get it if you don't want to be super public about riding the route - but it kinda stinks for the people who are watching. And yeah, she is riding strong. This is definitely the year of the pseudonym on the AZT.

[Joaz]

No idea lol. Love that show though.

Seriously though, I mean I get it if you don't want to be super public about riding the route - but it kinda stinks for the people who are watching. And yeah, she is riding strong. This is definitely the year of the pseudonym on the AZT.

This is the best of the pseudonyms, in my opinion! That show is hilarious! Hope she stays hydrated and keeps the pace that's comfortable in this heat.

[schillingsworth]

It's better than Alexis Re-loaded, isn't it??

[schillingsworth]

Looks like Jeremy may have been able to mostly ride the trail around Mormon Lake, he seemed to get through there ok, not many slow pings. Katie did report some post-holing through snow near General Springs Cabin on the Fred Haught portion of AZT, she's still truckin' along. Go, go, 800 riders, GO!!

[taprider]

This is the best of the pseudonyms, in my opinion! That show is hilarious! Hope she stays hydrated and keeps the pace that's comfortable in this heat.

is Alexis Rose a play on Axle Rose?

Probably not, since Trackleaders says she is form Schitts Creek, Ontario

[phatmike]

It's better than Alexis Re-loaded, isn't it??

 

[taprider]

what happened to Alexis Rose?

[ScottM]

what happened to Alexis Rose?

You can find out on Netflix by watching the many seasons of Schitt's Creek! 

It's a scratch for this Alexis Rose.  Pretty darn hot out there this week.

[phatmike]

It's a scratch for this Alexis Rose.  Pretty darn hot out there this week.

Eww David!! That really stinks, she was cruising out there again.

[phatmike]

Bryan off to a speedy start. Hopefully Rob is OK out there...

[bmattingly]

For the 800 mile riders It was pretty hot over the weekend.  Still plenty of snow on the rim from Blueridge to Mormon Lake in shaddy spots.  I imagine they rode through some pretty muddy or soft trail sections at times.  Pretty dry around Flagstaff.  How many full AZT riders are out there??

[phatmike]

For the 800 mile riders It was pretty hot over the weekend.  Still plenty of snow on the rim from Blueridge to Mormon Lake in shaddy spots.  I imagine they rode through some pretty muddy or soft trail sections at times.  Pretty dry around Flagstaff.  How many full AZT riders are out there??

Three total on route at the moment on the tracker. One approaching the GC, one just got into Flagstaff proper, and one battling the Canelos after starting yesterday.

[schillingsworth]

We have our first rider at the South Rim!! My guess is he waits until tomorrow to drop in based on how he's been riding so far, i.e Early-ish nights.

[phatmike]

We have our first rider at the South Rim!! My guess is he waits until tomorrow to drop in based on how he's been riding so far, i.e Early-ish nights.

I don't know he just pinged again.... he's either getting a really good look or dropping in!

[schillingsworth]

I see that!! Guess we'll find out shortly.

EDIT: He's going down!!

[Adam Alphabet]

I see that!! Guess we'll find out shortly.

EDIT: He's going down!!

Woo! Into the night! Get it Jeremy!