Tour Divide 2010

[redtabby]

So what does that mean for 2011? Would a UK racer with years of mud / foul weather (ie "summer") riding have the edge?

SSP

If parts of the route get above average snowfall during La Nina years, then it might not be a great year to try and set new course records.  On the other hand, racers who are fast pushing their bikes up, over and down snow covered mountain passes might have a competitive edge   Early on in this thread, Matt pointed out the weather resources at TourDivide.Org which include links to places where relevant historical data are kept for snowfall, snow  cover, etc. 

[patrickTsai]

here are my pics: http://picasaweb.google.com/tsai.patrick.82/TourDivide2010#

[trebor]

Great pictures, Patrick. Thanks!

[phil_rad]

here are my pics: http://picasaweb.google.com/tsai.patrick.82/TourDivide2010#

Hey Patrick! Great pictures! Thanks for posting them.

Ciao!

Phil

[Singlespeedpunk]

So where did the International races fly out from? I am guessing Tucson or Phoenix but both are pretty poorly served by flights to the UK and pretty expensive too! Catch a short flight to a main hub then pick up the pond-hopper?

SSP

[Fettis]

El Paso in my case. Spent a long day hanging around airports due to lengthy connections in Denver and Chicago (United Airlines). On the plus side I got the flights with air miles so just had to pay the taxes. Watch out though, the ladrones at United might charge you $200 to carry a bike. The check in staff did not ask me to pay - the bike was boxed and my total baggage was well within normal limits. There are direct flights from Pheonix to UK.

[phil_rad]

Lufthansa stuck me good for transporting my bike 150€ one way! 

A bike is "special" bagage now. 

[Done]

A bike is "special" bagage now. 

Looks like you can get one of these in a suitcase:
http://www.foldabikes.com/

Maybe the TD needs to add a FoldaBike category next year?

I'm just waiting for the airlines to add a bathroom charge...

[Blackhound]

I have usually paid nothing flying between UK and US.  Only time I nearly got caught was when I was returning from Denver via Philly overnighting there.  At Denver they considered it an internal flight and wanted $80 for the US leg.  They offered me a through flight but I said I had now made reservations in Philly and I got away with it 'this time'.

May depend on you fly with in the end, better keep an eye on the conditions.

[Rob Colliver]

I'm hoping Paul Howard is still watching these pages - your contributions to the TD reports were as great to read as your Waggon Wheel book.
Paul, I live on Hayling Island and am by chance getting my bag and tent from the guys at Open Spaces in Brighton... I'm wondering if you fancy a ride and a good chat about your unpublished experiences on the TD in the near future?
PM me on www.haylingtrailers@btclick.com please, it would be fun to swap stories - I have an idea for your next book!

[Aidan]

SSP - get a Greyhound and the US is your (sweaty, character-filled) oyster. I took a bus from Lordsburg to LA for less than $100.

The flight from London to Calgary, returning from LA was £530. Air Canada wanted £30 for the bike outbound and United wanted $200. I have since complained to United but no response yet. It's outrageous and prices them out of the running for flying with a bike.

[multisportscott]

When we toured the route last year we flew out of Tucson to LA on our way home to NZ.
The guy at the check in on our flight was an absolute arse!! This was a United flight BUT part of our International ticket so the bikes should have travelled for free as far as we and Air New Zealand were concerned.
We checked or luggage in and before being handed our boarding passes the arse asked how we were paying the $400 for the bikes!!! LONG story short, Air New Zealand sorted it out for us. This guy's attitude was unbelievable.
I am sure if we were flying with golf clubs it would have been ok!
BTW we caught a shuttle from AW to Tuscon. They fitted our bikes, loaded, into the trailer.

[Spoonie]

Did you sort any specific medical/travellers insurance Scott? or just used normal travel insurance? I'm thinking that TDR being a "race" of sorts, regardless if you're racing it or not might nullify normal travel insurance...

Cheers
Craig

[multisportscott]

Hey Craig, no we travelled on "normal" travel insurance. It was actually just Westpac Bank travel insurance. I called to check if "dirt road" cycle touring would be covered. After a long conversation the only thing they were worried about was ensuring that I was aware that the bikes were NOT covered whilst riding.
We did not race it so can't comment on that side. Our insurance policy did however clearly state the racing, other than on foot, was not covered.
Of course the TDR is not a "race"!!!!

[Singlespeedpunk]

SSP - get a Greyhound and the US is your (sweaty, character-filled) oyster. I took a bus from Lordsburg to LA for less than $100.

The flight from London to Calgary, returning from LA was £530. Air Canada wanted £30 for the bike outbound and United wanted $200. I have since complained to United but no response yet. It's outrageous and prices them out of the running for flying with a bike.

Thanks for the info, on my other trips to the US friends out there have steered me away from the Greyhound! I think it sounds interesting (in the same way that the 1810 from London to Edinburgh with a bunch of stressed commuters and drunk Scots can be interesting!)

American Airlines wanted $200 flying out of Denver with the bike bag but I was rescued by 5 marines with rifles who wanted a look inside and told the check-in person to move back in no uncertain terms! They figured I was going to be shot so not bothered about the surcharge! (This was Oct 2001 and the marines were very nice about it and appologised for making me unpack it all!) I might look into flights from Denver again and I will have a friend living out there then and its a cool city.

How frequent are the shuttles from AW? Is there only one to Tucson?

SSP

[Spoonie]

Means getting back up there, but flying internationally out from Calgary with a bike bag with Air Can was the least pain I've ever had.  They did charge me $200CAD I think, but didn't weigh it, check through was no hassle...  I guess you're still flying international to get back up there? is is Canadia considered domestic?

Did people book a return ticket before they flew in, or wait untill they finished to book return flights back to their home lands? (international)

Cheers
Craig - wondering if I should move to the "beginners thread" with the questions...

[DiDaDunlop]

"(in the same way that the 1810 from London to Edinburgh with a bunch of stressed commuters and drunk Scots can be interesting!)"


Hehehe did that a few times. Enjoyable!

[chrisx]

land transport in US.  Amtrak http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer/Page/1237608344114/1237405732511
is bike friendly.  on a train your not trapped next to a drunk, move about the train.  They charge between $5 and $20, depends who is working. Portland $5, used box, bike arrives safe to San Diego.  Seattle wants $15.  Vancouver BC, $0, thanks, they gave back the same box I brought in.  So Cal $20.  Official policy, $15 new box, $5 handling fee used box. No smashed parts.  Tickets are much cheaper purchased well in advanced.  Inquire about multiple on again off again stops.  They even have whistle stops at remote places, if arranged far in advance.
Grey Hound smashes derailleurs don't recommend it. 

[Jilleo]

Some of the people on this forum are already members of Adventure Cycling, but I wanted to share the cover of the August issue of Adventure Cyclist magazine for those who aren't.

The cover decision was an interesting process. I wasn't involved at all in the early stages, but thought we were going with a shot from Mexico to go with a story by Cass Gilbert. Then the editor decided he wanted to go with one of Aaron Teasdale's Tour Divide shots, and the art director picked out this close-up of Dave Blumenthal before he knew who it was in the photo. He showed it to me, and I said, "Well, here is the situation ... " Then followed the painstaking process of deciding whether to use it, including gathering the input of everyone in the office and members of Dave's family. In the end, we decided that this image conveyed all the passion and enthusiasm that Dave embodied, and putting him on the cover of the magazine would be a fitting tribute to his life.

The last page includes a short piece on Dave, to further explain the cover. There isn't a full article about the Tour Divide, as the race itself is something AC doesn't cover (since it's a magazine geared toward recreational bicycle travel, not racing.) But I did manage to get in this short bio about Dave. I really wish I had more time and space to spend on a full profile. Dave led a fascinating life, and seemed to touch a lot of people.

Anyway, if you are not an ACA member, but are interested in a copy of the magazine, e-mail me at jhomer@adventurecycling.org and I'll see what I can do about sending you one. We are printing a bunch extra to take with us to Interbike, so you can also pick up a copy if you are going to be there.

- Jill Homer



>

[Majcolo]

It's a perfect tribute.