Tour Divide 2021 Preparation & Planning

[Brad J.]

If the solution is not having to stop in Pinedale or Steamboat to replace a chain, in fact not having to stop at all to service the bike other than brake pads and possibly a flat, count me in. No lube/cleaning, maybe a dowse of water if it squeaks too much with dust.

The Gates lasts so much longer, you could easily do a yoyo before thinking about replacement. And if it fails- a spare is quite lightweight. The downside is that you have to carry the spare.

There are people that do the Divide on a single-speed, so what gears a person has seems a matter of what they want to claim. I've thought a lot about doing the Divide on a vintage bike right down to the 3-speed hub and waxed canvas bags, heck- its been done on a unicycle (yikes), but after a while I think about how hard enough it is to do with modern gear and so think about something else like dinner. So I'm not going to argue with anyone about what gears they do or do not want on the bike. But I can say this after riding Rohloff hubs for the last 15 years or so- being able to shift when you want to is really nice. As soon as the grade turns down- put it instantly in high gear and pedal lightly- the bike picks up speed sooner than you can do on a derailleur. The weight issue is gone if the belt is in play- so is the drag compared to modern 1:X drivetrains (so long as the Rohloff is broken in, which seems to take a good 1000 miles...), so it comes down to reliable shifting, not having to worry about rocks or mud snapping the derailleur mount or bending a cage... for me its peace of mind and the extra range of the gearing.

Very good point sir!

[treekiwi]

If the solution is not having to stop in Pinedale or Steamboat to replace a chain, in fact not having to stop at all to service the bike other than brake pads and possibly a flat, count me in. No lube/cleaning, maybe a dowse of water if it squeaks too much with dust.

The Gates lasts so much longer, you could easily do a yoyo before thinking about replacement. And if it fails- a spare is quite lightweight. The downside is that you have to carry the spare.

There are people that do the Divide on a single-speed, so what gears a person has seems a matter of what they want to claim. I've thought a lot about doing the Divide on a vintage bike right down to the 3-speed hub and waxed canvas bags, heck- its been done on a unicycle (yikes), but after a while I think about how hard enough it is to do with modern gear and so think about something else like dinner. So I'm not going to argue with anyone about what gears they do or do not want on the bike. But I can say this after riding Rohloff hubs for the last 15 years or so- being able to shift when you want to is really nice. As soon as the grade turns down- put it instantly in high gear and pedal lightly- the bike picks up speed sooner than you can do on a derailleur. The weight issue is gone if the belt is in play- so is the drag compared to modern 1:X drivetrains (so long as the Rohloff is broken in, which seems to take a good 1000 miles...), so it comes down to reliable shifting, not having to worry about rocks or mud snapping the derailleur mount or bending a cage... for me its peace of mind and the extra range of the gearing.

To each his own, I guess. I rode a Rohloff on a full suspension mtn tandem for a number of years, and the deal breaker was the grip shift. I really really hate them. Thumb shifters suit me much better. I'm gonna run a 1 x 12 Eagle. I used one on the the AZTR 750, and with once a day ceramic chain lube, the chain hardly even stretched during the race. Very dry I'll admit, but a chain switch should take less than 15 minutes, and I'd need a beer break by then anyway.🤣🤣

Sent from my SM-S102DL using Tapatalk

[Salubrious]

I recently had to get surgery on my thumbs for something called 'trigger finger'. Trust me it sucks. Prior to that operating thumb shifters was really painful.

What I like about twist grip shifters is you can grab a handful of gears and shift across the range instantly and without effort. I have the shifter integrated into the primary hand position on my handlebars.

But you are quite correct!!- to each his own.

[bakerjw]

Hey there Bon....
Hopefully this thread will get me motivated. I've not been on a bike in well over 2 months. I just can't get excited about it for some reason.
This is the first year that I've not ridden out of Banff in 5 years. I don't do the entire route, but I LOVE the Canadian portion of the route.

[bon]

Hey there Bon....
Hopefully this thread will get me motivated. I've not been on a bike in well over 2 months. I just can't get excited about it for some reason.
This is the first year that I've not ridden out of Banff in 5 years. I don't do the entire route, but I LOVE the Canadian portion of the route.

Hey there!! I've been in a similar boat - After completely tearing my hamstring off my pelvic bone in August, I was bedridden for most of 3 months. Just recently back to walking and starting off with extremely short rides. I recommend walking and snowshoeing to get your blood flowing if you don't have the spark to ride. It's a bummer that the race was off last June but just think of how much more special next June will be!! *If the border is open.
I'm currently rereading the Cordilleras, pulling out my gear and crossing my fingers for June. 200 days left until the Grand Depart!

[vmikee]

The rules on https://tourdivide.org/the_rules say a competitive time is 1.5x the course record. So, with Mike Hall?s sub 14 day record, that means the current men?s completion time to be considered competitive is now about or just under 21 days.

I see a lot of people still referencing 25-30 days (myself included) but wouldn?t that now be considered a touring pace? 🤔

What is the current age 55 and older record? Or what is the age for the masters/senior category?

Does anyone have a list of all the current records so we can see what the current competitive completion times would be?

🧐😊

[bakerjw]

Touring is often considered 90 miles per day or less.
Mike Hall killing the record a few years back brought the competitive time way down.

[woody]

What is the current age 55 and older record? Or what is the age for the masters/senior category?

Does anyone have a list of all the current records so we can see what the current competitive completion times would be?

🧐😊

I believe there are no categories for ages, but I am sure someone out there has stats on it.

Here is the a link of records, but not sure if it is up to date:
http://www.bikepacking.net/ultra-records/

[vmikee]

I believe there are no categories for ages, but I am sure someone out there has stats on it.

Here is the a link of records, but not sure if it is up to date:
http://www.bikepacking.net/ultra-records/

David Chirnside posted the Men's Master records in the Tour Divide Facebook group:

Over 50 record is Brian Alder in 16:10:35 (2016). Fastest over 50 finish was Greg Gleason Gleason in 2018 in 16:02:53 but in 2018 and had mandatory material detours, so no record.
Over 60 is Robert Orr 2015, 18:07:41.
Over 70 is Hal Russell from 2019 in 28:01:46.

So based on that, looks like I would be targeting under 24.6 days to be considered competitive in the Master's over 50 grouping.

[bon]

I believe there are no categories for ages, but I am sure someone out there has stats on it.

Here is the a link of records, but not sure if it is up to date:
http://www.bikepacking.net/ultra-records/

You are absolutely correct - there are no age categories. That's one of the things that makes the Tour Divide unique.

[bon]

I would love to hear from RD Matt regarding times. I note that the TD website currently has these times listed:
"There is no finish time cut-off, however, current convention considers a competitive Divide Route finish time as within approximately 50% of record time for men, and 30% of record time for women. Currently this = 27days (100mi/day) for men, and 31days (90mi/day) for women."

[Scatman]

With the idea that things will improve in regards to COVID, I wanted to share a link to my planning resources/aids for those who have started planning for June. It's never too early to start and you can never have enough data. https://oneofsevenproject.com/tour-divide-resource/. I wish I was able to ride again this year but it's not in the cards! Good luck to everyone who is.

[salsola]

6 months to go!  Is it too early to talk about snowpack?  Looking pretty light all across the route right now with the exception of the watershed near Indiana Pass and Summitville south of Del Norte. 

https://tinyurl.com/yd79gqyg

[bon]

6 months to go!  Is it too early to talk about snowpack?  Looking pretty light all across the route right now with the exception of the watershed near Indiana Pass and Summitville south of Del Norte. 

https://tinyurl.com/yd79gqyg

Definitely not too early IMHO! Thanks for sharing the link.

[Iowagriz]

La Nina supposed to hammer Montana.  Light snow so far, but could be a deep year. I'm looking to buy powder boards.

Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk

[bon]

La Nina supposed to hammer Montana.  Light snow so far, but could be a deep year. I'm looking to buy powder boards.

Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk

Never a dull moment! We will see soon enough with TD '21 dishes up. I will admit even though '19 was exciting through the CO snow, I'm hoping for a dry year.

[salsola]

I had a nice training ride yesterday outside of Silver City.  Rode the CDT alternate route northbound and back to Silver City on the pavement by Lake Roberts. 



Here's the entrance heading northbound (or terminus for you southbounders):


It is worth noting that the Gila National Forest has just closed the two track you see in the photo.  It is apparently a 1-year closure but it does impact that section of the TD route.  There isn't a physical barrier yet but it looked like they were constructing a gate.  Southbounders will approach that gate at considerable speed while descending the two track down to Meadow Creek.  Here's the signage posted near Meadow Creek:


and a map




Its unfortunate that they didn't qualify the closure to motorized vehicles only since that seems to be the resource issue they are trying to address.

[bon]

I had a nice training ride yesterday outside of Silver City.  Rode the CDT alternate route northbound and back to Silver City on the pavement by Lake Roberts. 



Here's the entrance heading northbound (or terminus for you southbounders):


It is worth noting that the Gila National Forest has just closed the two track you see in the photo.  It is apparently a 1-year closure but it does impact that section of the TD route.  There isn't a physical barrier yet but it looked like they were constructing a gate.  Southbounders will approach that gate at considerable speed while descending the two track down to Meadow Creek.  Here's the signage posted near Meadow Creek:


and a map




Its unfortunate that they didn't qualify the closure to motorized vehicles only since that seems to be the resource issue they are trying to address.

Thanks for sharing that info! Looks like a reroute is in order this June.

[Pampa]

David Chirnside posted the Men's Master records in the Tour Divide Facebook group:

Over 50 record is Brian Alder in 16:10:35 (2016). Fastest over 50 finish was Greg Gleason Gleason in 2018 in 16:02:53 but in 2018 and had mandatory material detours, so no record.
Over 60 is Robert Orr 2015, 18:07:41.
Over 70 is Hal Russell from 2019 in 28:01:46.

So based on that, looks like I would be targeting under 24.6 days to be considered competitive in the Master's over 50 grouping.

I saw that (the 50+ record of 16 days) and I wonder if that's a "Mike Hall-type" of record, meaning it's pretty far apart from 2nd, 3rd, etc, or if the top 3-5 50+ times are close to 16 days.

[kiwidave]

I saw that (the 50+ record of 16 days) and I wonder if that's a "Mike Hall-type" of record, meaning it's pretty far apart from 2nd, 3rd, etc, or if the top 3-5 50+ times are close to 16 days.

Yeah, it's a solid time with a big 2 day gap from Brian's record to next racer. 2nd fastest is Rob Orr's 18:07:41 in 2015 (also over 60 record) and 3rd fastest is Rob Davidson 18:10:53 in 2017.