Chad's AZT 300

[ScottM]

I dropped Mr. Chad Brown off at Parker Lake this morning.  He's riding the Arizona Trail 300 route and possibly more.  The race doesn't start for another week, but you can start any time you want.

Here he is, locked, loaded and ready to roll.  A minimally light setup to complement his light bike.







I rolled,







and hiked,







with him for the first few miles.  Temperatures were perfect - 60's and a light breeze.  Even a few clouds to block the sun every now and again.







He commented several times about how light his bike was, and how easy it was to carry / push it.  "I really love this light singlespeed thing, so easy to hike!"







There's no shortage of hike-a-bike out in them thar Canelo Hills, so I guess that's a good thing.  I was impressed by what he was able to ride (I rode only marginally more than him with my unloaded geared bike), handling his singlespeed like a pro.

He did run into a little mishap though...







Sidewall gash killed his tubeless front tire.  A flat at mile ~5 is not a good way to start a 300+ mile trek.  He had to tube it, losing his low pressure advantage on the rigid fork.  He was taking it all in stride, though, keeping positive and perhaps letting it set a more mellow mood for the day.







I was surprised to find a few blooming claret cup cacti this early in the year.  It's spring!

Eventually I decided to turn around, knowing I had quite a ride just to get back to the car.  We fiddled with his SPOT for a minute, thinking it didn't seem to be in tracking mode.  Looking at the tracker now, it definitely is not.  I'm only getting his OK messages so far, and it's been a while.  Hopefully when he takes his first break he'll get it all set in tracking mode.

Otherwise, it's a beautiful day to be out on the trail.  Couldn't ask for better temperatures, but the wind is picking up again.  It was out of the southwest as I rode back, which is semi-favorable for him.  Actually the wind is of little consequence on the AZT, but right now he's likely on Salero Road, where it could be affecting things.

I'll keep watching his tracker.  I may hear from him on the phone as he reaches town and will post updates here.  Stay tuned.

[ScottM]

Here is the link to his tracking page which will (hopefully) soon show more data for him:

http://topofusion.com/tracker-azt.php

[Pivvay]

Sweet. Looking forward to watching his ride and being out there myself shortly

[ScottM]

Wish I had more to report on Mr. Chad.  Still haven't received a point for 10 hours now.  No reason to worry - he didn't have it working when I rode with him and he doesn't have it working now.  I'll bet he'll get it figured out by morning and we'll start seeing points roll in.

If anything I'll bet this is a sign that he's rolling along at a good clip and too busy riding to fiddle with the SPOT.

[Pivvay]

Yea if he knows to turn it off "every night" then hopefully he'll get it back on in tracking in the AM.

Basically I start with it off, turn it on, then hold down the ok/check button for like 5 seconds until the light changes. That always gets me into tracking mode without issue. The key is to start with it off if it's been in any other mode.

[ScottM]

Yep, he knows to reset it every 24 hours (he has Matt Lee's SPOT instruction sheet).  Thanks for the tip on tracking.  I think he's trying to do an OK first, which is not the thing to do it seems.

[Pivvay]

Either way I'm sure he's having fun if he hasn't stopped to push the OK button. And that's what we like!

[sherpaxc]

Is that the new Lynsky ti bike?  Any idea what gearing he is running?  Man, what a slim set-up he's got on there.  I'd be interested to hear what he is carrying.  It's interesting to see the different set-ups people carry based on experience and terrain. 

Thanks for the updates.  Positive vibes to Chad and good luck to all the 300 racers coming up!  I'm going to try my darndest to make it out to the trail next year. 

[Pivvay]

His setup is on facebook. He's running 32x20 or 32x21 for gearing.

[ScottM]

I heard from Chad's girlfriend that he made it to Madera Canyon some time last night.  He must be ignoring the SPOT.  Oh well.

I'm not sure if the Lynsky is Ti.  Based on the weight of his whole setup, I'd guess so.  Gearing was 32x20.  He wished he had been able to find a 21 to go a bit easier.

[Pivvay]

Oh yea the Lynsky is definitely ti.

From FB:
29 pounds total: bike, sleeping bag, hammock, bivy, pad, and two full water bottles. Osprey bag on counter=20 pounds with 100 oz h2o and rest of gear.

Some of the gear in the bag includes: SPOT, camera, first aid, toiletries (soap, toothbrush, etc), 2 tubes, bike parts and junk, 30 sport legs, nano with classical music, cue sheets, knife, sunscreen and 20 SPF chapstick, extra shirts and shorts, knee/leg warmers, wool jacket, rain jacket, 1000 calories of food, 2 lights (handlebar and helmet), spare batteries for GPS/lights, and a picture of my family.

[bigworm]

Is that the new Lynsky ti bike?  Any idea what gearing he is running?  Man, what a slim set-up he's got on there.  I'd be interested to hear what he is carrying.  It's interesting to see the different set-ups people carry based on experience and terrain. 

Thanks for the updates.  Positive vibes to Chad and good luck to all the 300 racers coming up!  I'm going to try my darndest to make it out to the trail next year. 

Here is the link to his bike set-up. The with the pink CK looks nice to. http://chadfbrown.blogspot.com/2009/03/new-rigid-ss.html

[ScottM]

Chad called from Tucson.  He had to detour a bit into town to buy some slime tubes from Performance Bike.  He didn't say if he had any other flats (beyond the one I witnessed) or not.

"Canelo Hills are pretty brutal.... I think that's all I have to say."

He plans to eat and head up to Redington to sleep tonight.  He got some good sleep last night in the Santa Rita mountains, so is definitely on a more relaxed pace than his previous runs at the 300.  Hopefully this does well for him.  He's looking at some 10,000 feet of climbing over the next 30 miles as he climbs Mt. Lemmon.  He'll click off a few thousand feet before dark, then do the bulk of it tomorrow.  I'd expect him to make it to Oracle by tomorrow afternoon/evening.

I didn't actually talk to him, so I don't know if he just gave up on his SPOT.  But he didn't mention it, so I'm assuming so.  Still no new points.

[Pivvay]

Where is the Performance (or another bike shop) Scott? Just in case...

[ScottM]

The cues tell everyone that Broadway Bikes is 2-3 miles off route on Broadway at Sarnoff.  http://broadwaybicycles.com/ 

They close at 4 on Sunday (it's 6 on Sat), so Chad had to ride a little further down Broadway to Performance.

[Pivvay]

Gracias. I haven't read through the 2009 cues yet and my memory isn't that good

Curious if the snow will follow me, I'm watching it come down at my house yet another day in April!

[ScottM]

We could use some snow or at least rain.  Canelo Hills are very dry and loose.  Likely all we'll get is wind from these next rounds of storms.

[ScottM]

I talked to Chad briefly and we got his SPOT into tracking mode.  We're getting points now -- he's just topped out at the top of the Redington climb.  63 degrees and zero wind right now in Tucson.  A beautifully warm night.

[PirateGirl]

I'm on the NE side of town, and the winds started up early this morning. When I left my house a little after 7 AM they were insane. Hopefully it calms down soon.

[ScottM]

Yep, already windy and getting warm fast, too.  75 at my house and climbing. 

Tracking is working fairly well now.  He's on the AZT at Redington, and just crossing Redington road to begin some nice ridgeline riding.