Tour Divide race discussion

[dream4est]

Congrats to Steamboat Johnny!!!
Jumping blue dots- nothing compares...
Enjoy it you deserve it.

[mtbcast]

TD14 Day 31 True Up! Tony Arroyos, Tanner Morgan, and Jason Snell all finish, a finish call from Sheila T, MTBCast represented on the signage from Separ, and we true up your calls!

http://mtbcast.com/site2/category/podcasts/

[Stickboy]

Congrats Jason Snell on a successful TD finish on a fixed gear.... Beers and steaks when you get home brother !!!     

 

[mtbcast]

TD14: Brett Wolf called in with his finish call!

http://mtbcast.com/site2/category/td14/

[JeffOYB]

Yay to Jason -- the Monster from Michigan!

First TD -- and on a Fixie, no less.

Amazing!

[pbarsom]

Paul Barsom here, just back home after a week of recovery/vacation in Silver City and Tucson with my bride of 30 years (we were married in Tucson and hadn't been there together since shortly after).  A sweet ending to an amazing experience.  I've finally gotten a chance to read through the discussion board, hear the call-ins and study the Trackleaders site.  Lots of thoughts about this event but I'll try to be as brief and circumspect as possible (not very, I'm afraid).

First, I want to thank all those involved with coordinating all aspects of this, especially Matt.  Finding the delicate balance between nurturing a "grassroots" event and keeping everything from disintegrating into chaos is nearly impossible, but finding that balance is what he's doing, and simply out of passion for the spirit of the event.  I feel fortunate to know such people.  This also includes Joe Polk, Crazy Larry, and many others, all the way to Dave, the janitor at the Calgary airport who was so supportive of me while I assembled my bike in the baggage claim area. 

I'm grateful for having had the chance to do this.  That feeling has continued unabated from long before arriving in Banff up to this moment and will continue.  Even when I became ill outside of Silverthorne and could hardly pedal the bike for a few days I felt lucky to be able to be riding on this gorgeous route, knowing I was under the watchful eye of friends, family, and the general TDR community.  It was an inspiring experience I'm fortunate to have had. Few people have the opportunity, especially the resources, to get to do this.  That was uppermost in my mind, even while climbing with my mouth hanging agape and only able to keep one eye open because of exhaustion.  I was also rarely lucky in having no serious mechanical/physical/mental/weather issues of any kind during the event, aside from the mess of the first week which we all shared.  While so many riders around me were nursing various afflictions through the race, my only issue was a head cold that plugged my sinuses for the last 9 days.  Unpleasant and tiring, sure, but manageable once I learned how to eat/drink/breathe/ride at 10k+ feet without fainting.  Nothing like the severe problems that so many of my fellow racers experienced. 

I learned a lot about riding from my fellow racers, despite my considerable experience as a mountain biker.  Just following the lines of the dozen or so riders ahead of me, first in the mud, then in the dust, I acquired new insights, not to mention the in-person information gleaned when I rode with them during the first two weeks, before becoming ill.  It was a privilege to ride with such talented, knowledgeable, and pleasant people.  In true MTB spirit, there was no sense that we were "competing", serious competitors though we were.

There is a lot of discussion this year, it turns out, about the ethics of this kind of racing, what un-supported and self-supported mean in the context of such an epic event, especially regarding re-supply.  Perhaps there might need to be some clarification as to what "commercial" means.  The opportunities to purchase food, etc. are various and there is no easy clarity distinguishing among different vendors and the situations that place them into, or keep them out of our paths on-route.  The following rule seems pretty clear to me.

"Any services utilized must always be commercially available to all challengers and not pre-arranged[1]. No private resupply, no private lodging."

The lodging part is clear.  What constitutes a commercial transaction, though, is tricky.  I was offered food, usually gratis, on several occasions by people on the route not associated with the TDR.  I refused all but one but did insist on paying for it, as it would have been available to any rider at my location and the transaction was therefore a "commercial" one.  I didn't actually need the food at the time but it seemed like an intelligent choice in case of a possible breakdown or other delay along what was going to be a pretty empty stretch.  This seemed like smart self-support to me, rather than a breach of the rules.  Any rider might have encountered this kind of opportunity, depending on locating and timing, just as they might any other along the route.  For some, not being at Canyon Plaza when the stand is open meant that opportunity wasn't available to them, to their detriment.  Does that mean that others shouldn't use the resource?  Clearly that's not the intention.  I think the emphasis of that rule is on "not pre-arranged" and "no private resupply".  Not all opportunities are equal along the route, of course, as those who get stuck in the mud on the same road that others easily traversed can attest.  I'll leave it to smarter people that I to sort all this out. 

I think I was the last person to see Andreas Fassbender before his accident out in the Divide Basin.  We stopped and chatted for a while as he told me of this, his second attempt to ride the GDMBR, this time NOBO, having crashed out of his previous SOBO attempt several years before.  The day before I had burped a lot of air out of my front tire on a descent and had just then rimmed-out crossing a cattle guard as Andreas came into view.  As we talked I squeezed the tire and mentioned I needed to put some air in it.  He immediately offered me his pump.  I had mine, of course, and could have refused.  But would I turn down such a kind offer from a venerable veteran of the route?  No.  It was an honor to use his pump.  It seemed to me more ethical to accept.

Finally, I want to congratulate every racer who started this event.  Just getting prepared enough to begin this is an accomplishment, and many who scratched did so through circumstances they couldn't control, despite meticulous preparation.  That I managed to finish in about the time I set as a goal I attribute as much to luck as to preparation and planning.  I'm not intending to do this event again, at least not at the moment.  But I wouldn't trade the experience of having done it for anything.  Like so many others, I feel transformed by it and will live life a little differently as a result.

With much gratitude,

Paul Barsom

[Flinch]

Hey Bill Peshka !
Just want to let you know that your two loyal dot stalkers congratulate you!  As someone,  ahem,  from your generation we know how much fun the ride was.  Way to go!

[THE LONG RANGER]

Nice writeup, Paul!

[Yogi the Barry]

Hopefully this is nothing more than an isolated incident, but thought I had to share, since some TD folks are still making their way thru our NM forests. 
-Barry

Subject: [CibolaTrailRangers] ATTENTION ALL FIELD GOING PERSONS!
 
Greetings,

You may have seen recent news reports about an injury to an employee of the Santa Fe NF.  Below is some additional information from USFS channels about the incident and good advice for all of us working in the field wherever we are.

Dan Benton
Friends of the Sandia Mountains
ATTENTION ALL FIELD GOING EMPLOYEES:
As most of you have heard, there was an incident on the Jemez Ranger District involving an explosive device that appears to have been deliberately placed at the base of an information sign.  The device was constructed with a mason jar and had what appeared to be a protruding  wick.  It was placed on the ground with no camouflaging material to conceal it from view.  When tapped with the boot of the individual, the device detonated.  Thankfully, the individual’s injuries were minor.  At present, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearm, and Explosives has taken the lead on the investigation.  No additional devices have been found on the Forest.
So what can you do to protect yourself?  First, stay vigilant and increase your “situational awareness.”  Look up, down, and all around.  If something appears “out of place” or “not quite right” (i.e. a suspicious looking object), do not disturb it!  Move away from the area and immediately contact law enforcement.  Second, work in pairs if possible so that a second person is right there in the event of an accident.  Finally, always have appropriate communication devices readily available and be sure to adhere to our Forest’s Check-Out and Check-In Program.

[MikeI]

Watching Tim Hinderman close on Banff - you're almost there, Nice Work !

[HappyWanderer]

Hello Everyone,

This is Valerie Kato.  I was pretty wiped out when I made my final call in to MTB cast and feeling a bit deflated after the excitement of finishing. I forgot to say a few things so I thought I would add them here.  I wanted to say thanks to everyone who helped to organize and manage this crazy race as it can't be easy trying to balance the need to have some rules and organization vs the desire to acknowledge each person's accomplishment of riding any part of this course during the extreme weather year. 

Also congratulations to all my fellow riders.  Stopping for a day in Lima to deflate my swollen legs and then trying to catch up meant I met so many of you..  I started listing names, but realized it would take up too much space.  I felt like I was among friends each time I managed to ride with someone for a few minutes or grab a meal at the same restaurant or camp near one of you.  In my opinion anyone who started out from Banff in the pouring rain and slush is an amazing cyclist, whether you ended in Antelope Wells or had to stop earlier.  I wish everyone the best of luck in future adventures and races.  I may have to start figuring out how to get time off to do a few more of these rides and races... I was honored to be included with people such as yourselves and would love to do more. 

[mtbcast]

TD14: Jessica Green called in with her finish call! She recaps her last few days including a crash! Hal Russell called in from Silver City! He and Gary arrived and are getting ready to head to the border! Gary Tucker called in from Silver City with Hal Russell! On the way down they headed to Lake Roberts but the store there was closed. And John Fairbairn called in with his finish call! He made it in with Brett and Jason.

http://mtbcast.com/site2/category/td14/

[mtbcast]

TD14 Day 32 True Up! Finish calls from Brett Wolf, Jessica Green, John Fairbairn, Hal Russell and Gary Taylor get repairs in Silver City, and we true up your calls!

http://mtbcast.com/site2/category/podcasts/

[salsola]

Riders on the course! 

Caught quick snaps of three fellas coming into Silver City tonight.  Jim Boland, Brad Crossley, and Dan Gravelle--- Gila proven! 

[bpeschka]

(quote)
Maybe I missed it...
How can we find the start date/time for the ITT riders. Seems that their time is reset to the Grand Depart (?). For example, am tracking Bill Peschka (my new hero - for all of us, ahem, more 'seasoned' riders). His spot tracks don't go back to Banff, thus can't tell start location/time.

Gracias!
(/quote)
My start was June 6, 6 am in Banff.  Somewhat coincidentally D-Day and H-Hour.  Thought I had an email exchange with Matt or someone when my start was inadvertently set to June 11.  Didn't much pay attention to the forum or trackleader statistics overall.  Too many opportunities for distraction when I got to town, as it was.

[Blackhound]

Rod Gemmell has finished and made it back to Phoenix.

[bpeschka]

Scott Picquet finished before sundown on Monday. Looks like he got caught in a massive thunderstorm for an hour or so halfway between Hachita and AW.

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk

[mtbcast]

TD14: Overnight / Morning - Jason Snell called in with his finish call! Piquet called in with his finish call! He recaps dislocating his kneecap and resetting it! And Tricia Toth called in from Grants!

http://mtbcast.com/site2/category/td14/

[SlowRide]

Congrats to Steamboat Johnny!!!
Jumping blue dots- nothing compares...
Enjoy it you deserve it.

Thanks Mark, great riding through the basin with you(I'll never forget the experience) and way to turn on your afterburner at Brush Mountain to jump ahead. Good luck on your upcoming CTR for the triple crown, I'll be watching!

[mtbcast]

TD14: Gary Tucker called in to say that he and Hal Russell have finished! And Bill Peschka called in with his finish call and recaps his ride!

http://mtbcast.com/site2/category/td14/