Got back on Friday, just before midnight. I rode from Banff in Canada to Salida in Colorado in 20 easy days, with some short days and one complete day off in Butte, too. My plans to wake up and start pedaling early flew out of the window right from the start;) Usually, I started some time between 7:00am and 9:00am local time. I based it on how hard and how much climbing I had ahead of me that day. The goal became to cycle close to or over 100 miles. Plus, time-wise I tried to spend about 8 to 10 hours in a saddle.
As 2 years ago, I again finished my Divide adventures in Colorado. This time it was unintended. I felt the three weeks spent mountain biking on the GDMTBR were about enough. Besides, Colorado is so hard to pass through too fast: good food and coffee, nice bike shops to hang around, plenty of fellow cyclists. Despite eating all the time, I returned home 10 pounds lighter, 167 lbs which is closer to my optimal weight.
Salsa Fargo performed perfectly. This bike was created to eat up miles on a route like this. First of all, in my mind 29″ wheeled mountain bike is the future of off-road touring. There is no way, I will go back to anything smaller. The rolling efficiency of two-niners allows for faster and more comfortable riding. I had no mishaps whatsoever!!! I only did one tune-up in the Outdoorsman bike shop in Butte. Just to clean up drive-train and re-adjust shifting for cable stretching. The combo of Salsa dropbars and Syntace aerobars was a winner, too. Not a slightest trace of pain in my wrists, unlike in 2007 with flat bars and Ergon grips. No flats either!!! I think my Slime tubes might have been an overkill though. WTB Nanoraptor tires had plenty of grip on this route. The only complaint: the rear tire was getting worn out a bit too fast, after almost 2,000 miles. Not sure if this is normal. Epic Designs bags carried all of my equipment and distributed it properly and held up fairly well in rain.
For now, I started uploading pictures to my Flickr photostream and you can also see my GPS logs over at Garmin Connect (if that doesn’t take you directly to my activities just search for the username: “richdrogpa”). At Garmin website, you can see my daily routes mapped out and HR, elevation and speed data plotted over time.
Just a random picture from a pile of many I’m going through right now in Photoshop Lightroom ready to be posted in the next few days… This one is not far away from Red Rock Lakes in Montana, near Idaho border. I had plenty of rain this year. This one caught me later, twice, with some decent sized hailstorm, too;) More updates with photos coming up…
Just to keep myself reminding of what will be an amazing documentary. Thanks to Mike Dion and Hunter Weeks. You guys rock for piecing this production together!!!
As for my Tour Divide plans: I’m counting the days down: 12 TO GO!!! Equipment is 90% finalized; flight tickets, Calgary-to-Banff transfer and 1st night hostel (YWCA) are set. I will take a few more test rides and pack my bike next week.
In 2007, I easily averaged 80-90 miles of riding in a day. That was with a heavier equipment and not a very strict “waking-up” record;) My old Cannondale F400 and Salsa Fargo weigh about the same. But I will carry less stuff for sure this time. Moreover, my stuff will be distributed better (inside a frame bag vs. on a rear rack), I will have aerobars for more relaxing body position and Salsa is a 29″ bike with bigger wheels and just better fit overall. I will also “try” to get rolling by 6:00am every day. Plus, I used to hang in towns and cities too long which I can cut shorter now without stressing myself much…
Preparation-wise, in the last year I had more base miles under my belt (over 2,000) and was about 8 lbs lighter. This year is a bit different. I didn’t get as much opportunity to ride but I was still active. In the first few days, I will take it easier and let my joints and tendons get used to the daily stress of big mile riding. I’m planning to average between 100-120 miles per day (or about 10-12 hours in a saddle). The most important things is not to over-stress my body and cause early injuries, knees mostly. The rest will be fine. Anyways, this ride is much more about mental grittiness and positive mindset than anything else.
My goal is to finish in less than 34 days which is about twice the current route record. Also, my flight back to NYC is on August 21st;) I’m loosely shooting for doing it a bit faster: around 28-30 days. I will definitely know better after the first week, where my “fast-touring” legs will be. I still want to have fun doing it, take some decent pictures and videos and see the complete route. So, the crossing of the Marshall pass above Salida will be a ride into an unknown;) But my ultimate goal for 2009 is TO FINISH THE TOUR DIVIDE!!!
PS: And I certainly hope for better weather. This rain has to stop one day, for crying out loud!!!
My Salsa Fargo has been put through paces in the past couple of weeks. Awesome ride!!! Really love it. After I exchanged my stem from 105deg/90mm to a longer one (90deg/110mm) it feels just perfect. Still waiting for my frame bag from Eric @ Epic Designs (end of June) and Oval Concepts clip-on aerobars (A710 Classic; early next week).
The frame bag is a part of a more streamlined packing setup. It offers better weight distribution, lower center of gravity, narrower profile as opposed to panniers with a rack, and it’s lighter. Plus, I will tie up a small OR waterproof dry bag (stuffed with a sleeping bag) on the bottom side of my Oval Concepts clip-ons. Re. the aerobars: I was undecided but I’m actually enjoying riding with my fore-arms rested on top of dropbars and think they will offer me more positions to rest my upper body when riding for 8 to 12 hours a day. Just need to set them up properly.
Otherwise, I think I’m set. We’ll take as little stuff as possible. Even less than in 2007. (Below is a pic of my loaded F400 Cannondale from the Great Divide Tour.) I won’t necessarily be “race ultralight” but certainly “fast-tour ultralight”. It should be fun;)
Will post some pictures as soon as we’ll get some sun here in NYC. This must be the wettest June in the last 10-20 years:( Just caught a glimpse of a weatherman crying on a local TV;)
After many months of my absence on the blog, I’m quickly stopping by to let everyone know that I’m hitting the Great Divide route again. I was looking to race it this year but due to my minimal preparation, it would be futile. I just don’t have enough miles in my legs to do it so fast.
So, instead I will fast-tour it again. Hopefully, I will do the complete route, leaving out maybe only 15, or so miles, starting in Canmore, Alberta and lugging my ass all the way to Antelope Wells, NM. Have 34-35 days to do about 2,700 miles. I’m really looking forward to it and cannot wait to hit the trail on July 15th, 2009…
Equipment-wise, I have retired my trusty Cannondale F400 that served me so well during my Himalayan roundtrip in 2006 and upgraded to Salsa Fargo (pictures coming up), my first 29″ bike that was designed for eating miles on routes like the Great Divide. Plus, with Epic Designs seatpost and frame bags, it should make for a lightning fast touring setup;) In addition, I will try to record GPS and HR data of the ride using Garmin Edge 305 cycling computer that I have been using for the past year on my road rides around NYC area.
Welcome to my blog where I share outdoor adventures, travel experiences and random musings from home and faraway places alike... My current plans: 1. [Summer-Fall 2010] Vagabonding alongside the Silk Route: It’ll be me, my bike and wide-open spaces of Western China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan for 2-3 months... 2. [2011 or 2012] Motorbiking from Alaska to Patagonia: Just started thinking about it. Plan: Find a used thumper and hit back roads exploring this classic route all the way from the Deadhorse in Prudhoe Bay, U.S. to Ushuaia in Tierra del Fuego, Argentina. Plus, practice and improve my Spanish, too...
