I almost kinda miss having Toby Gadd on this forum. What fun would be had if he were still around here. 

That is impressive.  A little surgery and he could do it as a woman too.

Or on a unicycle?

I am puzzled by the chain routing in this photo.  It appears that the lower part of the chain goes back up near the top part of the chainset. I have not seen this done before.  I can’t tell what’s going on because of all the mud, can somebody explain what’s going on?

I concur!!!

I think it's called chainsuck.

Pretty sure it's also called an e-bike.

Eszter, I'm not ever going to live that one down, huh? (That was a southern Phoenix routing from Queen Creek - Gilbert - Chandler - Phoenix via South Mountain)

It's not truly an AZ ride if gunfire isn't heard....

I just think it's funny because I was so freaked out then. Now, I'm like, 'Oh, gun. You don't even need a license to get one of those!'

Talk to John Schilling. I followed his route across PHX once and only passed one dude with a big semi-automatic looking gun guarding a dump with giant pigs. But other than that...

Most of the AZT is paralleled by some pretty quiet dirt and paved roads. You could ride the 750 route from the border, dump off at Parker Lake and ride to Sonoita, maybe take the trail until it gets nasty, hop on the pavement for a bit, and then get back on the trail 10 miles south of I-10 and ride smooth ST (well, smooth for AZ) all the way thru Hope Camp, then take the race route to Reddington, but stay on Reddington to the backside of Mt Lemmon and to San Manual. Get to Oracle from there and then ride out on the dirt roads past the 24-hours of Old Pueblo Course to Florence somehow. (My mental map is failing me here, Forence-Kelvin Hwy?)

From Florence, look at ScottM's Gila River Ramble loops, but you can loop back on some really cool back roads along the Gila River to Kelvin, then take the Florence-Kelvin 'Hwy' (it's dirt) back towards Oracle.

...Or get across Phoenix to the Black Canyon Trail. There's an old (defunct?) Arizona Endurance Series event that does a figure 8 on the trail and dirt roads. From what I understand, the trail is pretty smooth. I think the trail is on the order of 90 miles, so you could probably kill some time out there. That's definitely one of the warmer areas in the state that time of year.

If you're willing to go to Oregon, check this route out: http://www.bikepacking.net/routes/hot-sisters-hot-springs-route/

Lots of classic Oregon singletrack. Car-free roads. Lots of time feeling like you're in the middle of nowhere.

Dang! Nice work out there everyone! Watching Alice all summer long was a treat. So consistent throughout...with really fast times to boot.

And the boys this year...I have no words. Absolutely amazing.

Huge congrats to Elliot DuMont of Tucson. We often compare him to the cartoon tornado from Looneytoons that always has things flying out from it. But man, when he harnesses that energy, he flies. From cruising well behind the 20 day pace to finishing sub-19 is pretty awesome.

Looks like Seb and Beth are going to finish is a few hours, putting Beth ahead of the old women's record as well. What a year! So awesome to watch fast women blaze the route like that.

Looks like Lael is riding north. At this point she's 3/4 way back to Hachita. Jeez, will she ever stop? After no sleep last night to boot!

Current speed: 55.4 mph. She must have a killer tailwind.

Man, I leave cell reception and my computer for a few hours and THIS happens! Go Josh!

sleep when you're dead....a mandatory, auto-pause for shuteye is a great rule for long distance truckers- not ultra mtb racing.

Sleep deprivation is really pretty bad for your body. Adding mandatory rest periods would completely change up the racing...better? Worse? Who knows. But I think it would definitely lead to the sustainability of people doing these races for multiple years instead of the usual one-and-done. Maybe then we could increase the chances of more of the big names lining up in a single year.

JayP seems to be the only one who's been able to stack big effort after big effort year after year.

This is playing out very similarly to the Kurt/Jefe battle of yesteryear. Kurt leads leaving Pie Town. Jefe passes him while he's sleeping at the Beaverhead work station. They ride into Silver City together.

Then Kurt had gears and Jefe didn't, so he won it by a few hours...but this time...

Especially intriguing with JK there...I doubt they'd go for a three-way truce.

10 minute bonus for each slice of pie consumed? Seems fair to me.

Why does the Wamsutter route give an advantage (assuming no highway construction)?

From what I understand, the entire route this year is ~40 miles shorter than the 2012-2014 route, most of it being the Wamsutter reroute. The route cuts south far sooner and doesn't do those heinous zig-zags in the Basin anymore on the way to Rawlins.

Apparently they're building a giant wind farm on the road south of Rawlins. Last year, the construction people said they weren't going to let people through during construction hours but seemed to look the other way when the race came through. This year, they said they weren't going to let anyone through during the day, period. I guess the overall plan is to pave the road and build the farm...which I guess will lead to many years of the Wamsutter route/having it be the new 'official' route.

I don't think anyone would really mourn Rawlins no longer being a trail town...or the highway approach into it.

funny and great observation....whoever she is....she is killing it.  These front runners and all the others that attempt to do this have my utmost respect...they are full on badasses!!!

Lael is the type of gal who'll bikepack to Scott and I's place in Tucson with her partner Nicholas after spending 6+ months bike touring, go on a three hour ride with us the next day, run the Tucson Marathon the day after (after riding to the start the night before and combat camping behind a Walmart...or something of the sort), win her age group and get top 5 overall, and then head out bikepacking on the Arizona Trail towards Phoenix 24 hours later with a giant bottle of Sriracha in her framebag.

If there's someone who's going to take my record down, there is absolutely no one else in the world who I'd rather it be than her.

True badass.

That is true BUT Lael has had her own issues this year and a record run is going to require favorable conditions. But the real bummer is that the course always seems to be changing so how can you compare??
Perhaps with varying weather conditions and course changes, the focus should be on the placing and not the overall time.

Or we just appreciate each ride for what it was/is each year.

No doubt about it, Lael is crushing my record time, even with the ~6-7 hour advantage that the Wamsutter detour gives accounted for. She's trimming the fat off the time in all the right places...towns. And riding fast too. If she holds it together, she's going to make a great pink dot ghost to chase for future women. 

I'd like to raise a practical question at this juncture.

It is my understanding that the official rules of the Tour Divide (as much as an event of this sort can actually have official rules) state that there is to be no support for the riders. It is also my understanding that this has historically been interpreted quite strictly by the elite riders who are truly racing to win as "you can't even talk to a loved one on the phone".

My impression is that the elite racers who hope to win the race still hold to it, but that for most riders this whole event is much more about fun and enjoyment than about the podium (which doesn't actually exist). In the end winning this event is all about personal pride, sportsmanship and bragging rights, correct?

How many people truly care if the first to finish was communicating with loved ones during the event or not?
What is the current state of this rule and interpretation?

Back in the day of the GDMBR, the rule was no cell phones and people had to check-in via payphones. Still, even in this time of more 'pure' self-support, riders were still calling coaches and loved ones throughout the route.

I think that in the phase that cell phones were abundant, but not smart phones, one could make an argument against calling loved ones and having them check the tracker to see where the competition was or where the nearest bike shop was, but in the end, that 'service' was sort of available to anyone. And now that pretty much everyone has a smart phone, the point is moot.

The rules still state no visitation on course (unless someone lives in a town that the route goes through), but I don't think anyone expects anyone to do it without phone calls.

But yes, some people want to hold themselves to a 'higher' standard. Probably only a matter of time before someone tries to do the race carrying all the food they need from the beginning.

is she photo #2 in green vest? 
[keeping fingers crossed that I did get her photo.]

Yep.

Lael has the biggest smile!