TD'11 Race Discussion

[ComoDepot]

I brought both my Bikes to Colorado as hand luggage. I had a soft sided bag, no problems, my Mountain Bike has also been to Sri Lanka, France and Ireland. Ditto.

To keep below the weight limit I stripped the heavy items on nonchalantly threw the carry on bag they were in over my shoulder. Must have weighed 40lbs.

SWMBO has a solid case, but then a much smaller bike.

[AmyL]

To put the heat in perspective.  Yesterday was the hottest day on record for much of Texas (not just for June 26, but ever).  "The hottest temperatures in recorded history scorched large portions of the Texas Panhandle, Oklahoma Panhandle, and southwestern Kansas on Sunday. Amarillo hit 111°..."
http://www.wunderground.com/blog/JeffMasters/comment.html?entrynum=1832

When the northbound riders started on June 10th, the high temperature in Hachita Valley was 93.  As I write this, the temp at the Hachita weather station is 108.  Hard to wrap my head around that.
http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/getForecast?query=88040&sp=MHHRN5

Be careful out there.

[mikepro]

Zoomin' on some blue dots ...

EP hangin' in Hachita with 40-odd miles to go on the Lonely Highway and no one else around ... should make a nice late afternoon to evening ride.  Except for it's probably really, really hot out there right now.
Aidan H just left the Beav' Wk Ctr, with something like 205 miles to go
Robert G in Pinos Altos, or really close to it.
Eurotrain has been sittin' on top of Pie Town for a few hours, I think.  Must eatin' a lot of American Pie.

[DaveG]

Just curious - how hard would it be to have the maps show the original route in red and reroutes in a different color? I know reroutes come and go, but as I look at Deejay blazing what appears to be his own trail, I wonder if he is or isn't? I did see the post saying he was "ponying up for the main route" but what exactly does that mean? That he's on the original trail and skipping a reroute? Sorry if I've missed this discussion before.

[mikepro]

I did see the post saying he was "ponying up for the main route" but what exactly does that mean? That he's on the original trail and skipping a reroute? Sorry if I've missed this discussion before.

He's on the original route that's on the ACA maps for the GCMBR.  Every year, the TD Race follows the Cuba-to-Grants alternate that is shown on the ACA maps as well.  It is one of two allowed alternates within the race structure.  Check out the Rules section on the tourdivide.org website for more verbage on "allowed alternates".  It's not specific to 2011 reroutes in any way.  Yea, reading way back up-thread would help clarify the intent behind these allowed alternates.

Deejay is getting "cool points" in my book for following the original ACA route, and it still counts in terms of race position/finish.

[BD]

EP is around the clubhouse turn and headed for home. I hiked the CDT in 1994, and finished on that road. It is long, hot, and seems like Mexico will never crest the horizon. Must be a great feeling for him to know he is so close, to know that soon he can touch the fence, get of the bike, and stop riding.

[Taurian]

  Can you not show a leader board of the positions of all the riders who started the race.The board was  useless for showing the North bound riders.Maybe something to look at if you have two start points.

[lmc81224]

GO ETHAN!!  You're so close...  Race well fought, I hope the knee survives!  

[DaveG]

Deejay is getting "cool points" in my book for following the original ACA route, and it still counts in terms of race position/finish.

Add them to the stack he's earned for his hilarious mtbcasts and great attitude. Funny, humble, and a monster rider to boot!

Thanks for the background on the route he's on. I wasn't wondering about the intent of the reroutes as much as knowing how to tell where they are since there are so many. I find myself getting worried for folks when they diverge off of the red line. It's hard to know if they are having a problem, are lost, or on a reroute.

[krefs]

Hey all...I'm hanging out in Silver City for the week recovering and waiting for Caroline to make her way to AW. I had an awesome time on trail this year, but man, it was worlds tougher than my time two years ago. Ethan, Jefe, and I apparently beat the crap out of each other in the first 10 days, and then the awful heat down here knocked us (or at least Jefe and me) into pure survival mode. Yesterday morning when we left AW, it was 104 degrees at 10 am already, so anyone who can ride Silver City to AW at night will be far better off.

This afternoon I ran into Parker and Rob while driving back from a short hike near Pinos Altos with my sister. They were looking pretty good considering that they had run out of water a couple hours earlier. Parker's SPOT isn't able to lock into any satellites, so he's given up trying to use it, but he and Rob are planning on riding out of Silver City this evening and finishing tomorrow morning. They said that last night was the first time they'd really ridden any appreciable time in the dark, and they were chased by a mountain lion before reaching the Beaverhead Work Center!

Anyway, at least 5 of the 6 SoBo riders that have passed through the Gila have run out of food and/or water well before the end of the new singletrack section above Pinos Altos, so if anyone out there reads this and talks to riders yet to reach this section, strongly advise them to make sure they have ample supplies before tackling this last slow section of the course. In this heat, it's downright dangerous to push for several hours without water!

[Mathewsen]

Anyway, at least 5 of the 6 SoBo riders that have passed through the Gila have run out of food and/or water well before the end of the new singletrack section above Pinos Altos, so if anyone out there reads this and talks to riders yet to reach this section, strongly advise them to make sure they have ample supplies before tackling this last slow section of the course. In this heat, it's downright dangerous to push for several hours without water!

Thanks Kurt. We hope you're getting in some good 'active recovery' in Silver City. Great place to decompress.

Regarding water and the final push into Pinos Altos, thanks for the warning to riders. I would add there is water 2 miles or so off-route west on Hwy 35 at Lake Roberts Store. When this section was included, there was a spigot in the Sapillo campground that was 'supposed' to be active this summer, but alas, it didn't have the pump volume required. Anyway, my presumption was that all but the gonzo would need to re-up at Lake Roberts. It's 16 or so tough miles to P.A. Average times to Silver are about an hour longer than the old route, and no Mimbres Store to re-up. The Sapillo is a critical strategic point: carry on if you have *some* water, resupply off route if you don't. I hope those still to come play it smart. Thanks again.

[wookieone]

Yeah all, home sweet home. What a ride, didn't think I could do it, much less so fast. Stoked, is one word for it. It was good to ride with Kurt, seems we would end up together before some of the rough and tough stuff so it was often good timing. The day after day toll of riding so much was something to experience, it hurt sooo much. There were so many days were I couldn't walk, squat, clip out of my pedals, but I could still ride all day. Maybe that's determination, maybe it was adaptation. I have tons of respect for anyone who makes this ride all the way. No matter the speed, this is one tough mother and it deserves lots of respect. Hope everyone is safe and smart out there, keep it going, keep your head up, keep smiling. Jefe

[Mathewsen]

Jefe: You and Kurt killed it. Way to bury yourselves. Thanks for the show. Record breaking rides for overall and SS for sure. The essence of TD is rising from the ashes daily.

Enjoy the rest. Keep them legs elevated! How are your hands?

[Groundshine]

Check again on Deejay!  Looks like his spot is working again...

Glad to see Deejay still in it!  Looking forward to more of his MTBcasts.   His call in where he talks about the descent into Salida: "two wheels sliding ...while...in the aerobars position - sketch-o-rama..."  really brought the TD back for me...  (and for some strange reason, makes me want to race it again .)   

[lmc81224]

Ethan is about to finish...  What amazing athletes!  The Gunnison Valley REPRESENTING, 2 of top 3! 

Glad you're back safe Jefe...  An inspirational & spectacular effort!  A cold frothy cheers to you all...`Lisa

[6thElement]

Glad to see Deejay still in it!  Looking forward to more of his MTBcasts.   His call in where he talks about the descent into Salida: "two wheels sliding ...while...in the aerobars position - sketch-o-rama..."  really brought the TD back for me...  (and for some strange reason, makes me want to race it again .)   

It's amazing how rough the terrain can get while you're still willing to use the aerobars if setup properly once you're used to them. I'm still recuperating after my scratch but I did go for a little pedal on Saturday. Bike setup has gone from rigid geared to rigid SS, but my first instinct once underway was the desire to drop into the now missing aero's.

[brunch]

Great ride Kurt and JB! In the end the reroutes didn't mean anything (to us). It was tons of fun to watch!

[Mathewsen]

Ethan is about to finish...  What amazing athletes!  The Gunnison Valley REPRESENTING, 2 of top 3! 
An inspirational & spectacular effort!  A cold frothy cheers to you all...`Lisa

Is that comment straight outta Compton? Yep, outstanding rookie grand tour for Ethan: a guy known primarily for his extraordinary speed (at elevation).

really brought the TD back for me...  (and for some strange reason, makes me want to race it again .)

Not strange. It seems you had a pretty good overall TD`10 experience, loss of a neighbor notwithstanding.

Not that I've experienced it personally, but similar to the recollection of pain at childbirth, memory of pain/suffering in TD is directly tied to the overall experience. if it is overall positive, it's much easier to forget the pain over time and be ready to bury yourself again by the next season.

Great ride Kurt and JB! In the end the reroutes didn't mean anything (to us). It was tons of fun to watch!

Indeed. Some of the reroutes were damn hard! Another special year. I disagree that the experience will change TD forever, though. We have to look at the long term picture. Before long the northern half of the GDMBR will emerge from these late winter spells and into another NW drought and folks will be clamoring for soil moisture content--and perhaps to start a week earlier.

[Roland Sturm]

About two hours past Red Rock pass, I met Michael McCoy pulling his bob south (as, of course, recommended in the book). For those who don't know about him: He originally developed the route and wrote the book on it. Right now, he is touring towards Steamboat.

[KathyB]

Roland (northbound, in southern Montana) meets McCoy, who developed the route, touring southbound.