Hey Greg.... I have no idea whether you know or not but how does the Highland compare to the TDR or Grenzstein? I found the TDR to be not so tough (after I got out of Montana) but the Grenzstein was a bitch! Just curious. I was in Scotland for singlespeed World Championships a few years ago and loved the country and the people.... oh, the Scotch too... can't forget that.

If only it weren't so incredibly expensive to do anything. I'll never forget getting 'left over' Fish n Chips (the place was closing) in Aviemore, which cost about 40 Euros for two people at the exchange rate then.

Cool! I'm looking forward to it.

I'm considering it in '14 but it depends when and how the Highland 400+ goes.

Alpinum... Thanks for the info. and your photos are great!

I saw this shoe at EuroBike, love the orange! I tried the Spez. Rime but the tread isn't deep enough (seem like they've fixed it on newer versions) and now they have the SWorks Trail too. I really like the Giro and the new SWorks. Currently trying to find a local shop that carries the Giro as I need a new shoe for nex t years adventures. As far a looks go.... Well, for me, as long as they look like a mountain bike SHOE and not a boot or a tennis shoe, they look pretty good. My biggest worry, these days, is function. They must be stiff enough for efficient, pain free pedaling (I use a carbon SWorks MTB shoe for normal riding/racing) but flexible enough for walking/hiking when necessary. As I'm primarily a singlespeeder, that happens more than for many others.

Hi Slava, I might be able to help and ride some. It just depends on what and when. I live between Munich and Salzburg by Rosenheim. I know the area quite well as I ride, run and hike all over. Let me know how I can help.

I'm looking at taking another run at the TDR... Probably in '15 or '16 which will make me either 53 or 54. I think I can pretty easily knock off 5-6 days if not more as I know so much more about the course and bikepacking now (the TDR last year was my first bikepacking trip). Since I finished, that's done... I just want to do a lot faster. Luckily, I've got other bikepacking challenges to fill the adventure bug till then.

Hey Marten, I might have to check it out. I'm in Bayern so it's not so far away.

I love my Exped medium air pillow. Tiny, light and quickly becoming one of the best parts of my sleep system.

Very cool! Thanks for sharing.

As has been mentioned, it's really tough to do professional quality work with a normal home sewing machine. Also, most people won't know some of the "tricks of the trade" that help make the jump from home builder to pro. Not that you can't make a nice bag, it probably won't be of the same quality is all. Lastly, most home builders won't spend the time sweating the small stuff either, I know as that's how I started.

Nice photos... thanks for sharing.

This is one of 2-3 I have on my '14 calendar. Curious how this compares in terms of availability of food/services to the TDR or the Grenzstein Trophy, also wondering if I should just plan to be wet for 3-4 days even though all the photos show sunshine. Last time I was in Scotland, it rained almost every day (not that I expected different weather).

Hey Ron... I never knew that you had to take it out to get the info. You might check just for grins. I just got a new card.... seems 8 gig is the smallest you can buy now in a micro card.... man, how technology moves!

As long as the 200 will hold that much data... my 705 won't, at least not as far as I know... plus, I actually like it split into the various days and can't get it to work on the 705.

Hi Ron, mine seems to work but I'm not sure why. I'll tell you how mine is set up.

In the Track Log Setup (eTrex Vista HCx) screen..
Wrap When Full is checked
Record Method - Auto
Interval - Normal
My Track Color is Green but that doesn't matter.

Then in Setup Data Card screen
Log Track to Data Card is checked.

Hope that helps and works.

Garmin could do a little better with their documentation on making the most of their products, that's for sure.

You're soooooo right! I have three different Garmin GPS enabled devices and I love them. However, their documentation and German "Customer Service" are unbelievably crappy! Glad I found this thread as I'm a week away from heading out on the GST (Grenzstein Trophy) and it's 1200 km. I've never actually been able to figure this out on my own.

Interestingly, thanks to you guys I just found all my GPX files from the TDR in '12. Thanks! It seems that I have, somehow, already set my eTrex Vista HCx up this way already.

Garmin could do a little better with their documentation on making the most of their products, that's for sure.

You're soooooo right! I have three different Garmin GPS enabled devices and I love them. However, their documentation and German "Customer Service" are unbelievably crappy! Glad I found this thread as I'm a week away from heading out on the GST (Grenzstein Trophy) and it's 1200 km. I've never actually been able to figure this out on my own.

This looks quite cool. Might be in for '14 if I can get the wife to say yes.

Don't know if I have responded to this before or not but I can't rave enough about how well my Geax Saguaros performed in all conditions.

Cues are fantastic and incredibly helpful especially if/when you have a computer/speedometer to work with.