Thursday Start

[DaNM]

Enough armchairing already, I gotta get this one off my mind in a big way, I`m heading out Thursday. Koski traverse route. Most likely drop into Nucla, but maybe not.
 Temps look favorable and partly cloudy. My start time will be when my belly is full and one of those clouds roll in the late afternoon.
 Been thinking about Marshall`s Fruita start and advice against it. I need a good place to park the camper figuring a loop is a loop. Have`nt seen nary in inch of the Paradox or Tab. Not a watering hole either, just a few bits of the Koko.
 Hopefully I can operate my Spot so you can track me. I just might turn it off here and there in the spirit of the race.
 This is intimidating enough for me that I need my own conditions to get underway, and cant be at the mercy of a date and time. Looks like Memorial day weekend, I will resist lap dances and report back.
 

[DaveH]

"This is intimidating enough for me that I need my own conditions to get underway"

Now that I understand!

Good luck, be safe out there.

[ScottM]

Wow, the forecast does look mighty tempting!  What do you want to bet it'll be 90+ for the 29th?

We'll get your SPOT figured out so we can armchair it ourselves!

Best of luck out there Dan...

[DaNM]

Thanks folks. Heading out for G.J. Probably scout "No Mas" a bit this afternoon. Got it all mapped out pretty good, I think. I`ll get the Spot up and running to pinpoint my start.
 We`ll see about the heat, but I would prefer an early start Thursday for a possible burger in Nucla Saturday night, I will try to skip that burger joint, but I`ll be realistic here.
Looking forward to the next few days and hopefully chalking up a 3.5 day successful loop. Maybe I`ll see you`all on the next one.
 Dan.

[ScottM]

Grand Loop Route tracker is up:

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

Show us some points out on No Mas, Dan!

[ScottM]

Dan is moving, starting about 9:30 MDT from Fruita.

75 degrees and overcast.  Looks to stay that way all day.

[Marshal]

Go Dan!!!!!!!


Why Fruita for me.....

be on dirt asap.......

my hotel in Fruita is going to let me do the 'fill out a from and park' thingy

and I plan to hit that very "convenient" 24/7 convenience store when/if I get all the way around to the Tab TH for a red bull(s) to get me down the  10 mile of flat/smooth pave back to Fruita...who knows might even hit pave when there is little/no traffic.........

[DaveH]

Well it it sure looking like Dan has great temps in the low elevations - but along with those cool temps is a ton of moisture.  He's made it to Dewey bridge (or the site of said bridge I should say) which means he's got most of the clay stuff behind him.  Well, until he gets over to the Eastern part of the Paradox...judging from the latest radar images he's looking at a big ol storm bearing down on him in the La Sals.  That's gotta make it hard to leave the relative safety of 128.

I recall a story from MC on one of his years on GL where he got pinned for awhile a bit before Tab creek.  Clay soils made forward motion impossible.

Ain't weather always the x-factor?  What is in store for the 29th??

Go Dan go!

[ScottM]

Yep, the forecast changed quite a bit overnight....into more serious rain for the next two days.

Good thing is the ground is so dry that hopefully it'll soak it up.  Hard to say though.  We've seen a lot of rain down here in AZ, and very cool temps (high was ~66 yesterday!).  I think it's headed to eastern Utah now.

Weather looks to be unsettled into next week...

[ScottM]

Uh oh!  Bailing!  50+ mph on I-70, headed back to Fruita....

[DaveH]

I'll bet this has something to do with it:



Looks rather wet everywhere on course except maybe the middle of the Paradox.  Ouch.

[DaNM]

Uncertainty would be the theme. So many factors to challenge ones mental and physical strengths.
 I took on a little rain and some serious heat. A little patience would have helped. So much food and so little desire to eat. I finally got some food down after laying on a picnic table for the night.
 I officially called it after passing by the Yellowjacket trail an hour or two after dark. Dewey offered familiarity, comfort and a safe thumbing spot that got me back home quickly for the holiday. The pace of the "easy part" was frustrating and an easy bail out was too inviting.
 What a great day of riding. Flowering cactus, a lone antelope, lots of birds and lizards, a snake after dark, I was too tired to say hello. One green lizard with orange was a highlight. Other then the donut hole of sun in Rabbit Valley the clouds made for a perfect day. Looking ahead to the Entrada climb and the La Sals looked very doable.
 Getting a quarter of the way through this loop drained me. I forgot to sit around doing nothing the week prior and some final mapping the night before did`nt help the anxiety level. Some day I will be back for this one but for now I have satisfied my curiosity.
 The best part of cycling is the potential to get better. This was a good early season ride. I tip my helmet to those who go for it and the creators of this Grand Loop.
 

[ScottM]

Congrats on giving it a go, Dan.  It's a big loop, and hard to get a handle on mentally. 

The best part of cycling is the potential to get better.

Definitely.

[ScottM]

Watching the weather the last two days, Dan?  They are calling for flash flood warnings today, meaning saturated soil ... possibly goopy mud on parts of the route.

[dream4est]

I just came back from trying a reverse route and was rained out. I left Moab late Thursday for a 35 mile pre- ride warm-up. I started from Fisher Creek and got in 69 miles Friday but rain stopped me at Westwater. Then Saturday rain stopped me after about 50 miles in Fruita. This morning it poured after raining all night so I called it. But I will see you guys Friday. I feel really strong, have a new bike and was on a 3:12:00 pace easily while eating and drinking and taking long breaks. Hopefully I can carry this momentum through the week and not get all hike-a-bonky like last year. I actually enjoyed myself this time and that is a first for me.

Mark

[ScottM]

Mark,

Wow, so you were trying a clockwise loop starting at Fisher Creek -- if you'd finished it you would have coasted back in to Moab upon finishing?

Did the rain stop you itself, or was it turning the route into goop?

A good warm-up for a second try Friday...

[dream4est]

Scott I felt the amount of rain that fell saturated the ground to the point of mud riding all day today. It was great to ride in the light rain Friday/Saturday when the ground was just tacky but I believe the desert was impassable today. And then it rained more here in Moab.

I was planning a victory coast into Moab. Just wanted to mix it up and try something different. The Koko is a nice ride going to Loma. But starting with fast people to pull you along on Friday will be a nice change to total solitude.

Conditions for Friday look to be 85 degrees and scattered showers. That would work for my non-desert skills, which seem to have a limit of about 87-88 degrees.

BTW Cottonwood creek was barely a dribble. Lets hope it is at least that much next Saturday or things will be tough after Dewey.

[DaNM]

yes I`ve been watching the weather, putting grass seed out. I hit a patch of mud wishing I  had`nt.  Good to see Mark is out on there raring to go. 
 The thought of a backwards loop crossed my mind, the common wind direction would be easterly and it was strong Wednesday, but Thursday there was actually had a tail wind, so who knows.
  I can ship my Spot  if someone could use it.