Dave,
Is it true that only 2 finished this year?

I'll say that day 1 was harder than I expected. Nancy and I bailed (well, it was more me than her) at Panguitch Lake. I was not in the condition I needed to be for this.

After all, anyone with 1/2 a functioning brain

Which describes no one who participates in this event.

Hah! you AZ guys get no sympathy from all the rest of us busting our a$$es in 34 degree ice rain in January/February to get ready to ride across the desert in April!

yeah, didn't expect much sympathy there...

I'm a little surprised at the almost unanimous acceptance to the October date and a ton of people have commented.

downside for desert dwellers is that October is the beginning of our riding season. Really tough to stay in the kind of shape needed for this during the AZ summer. So, we give up our advantage of riding all winter to be in shape for April.

Hey ho! I'm doing the 350 this, my first ultra racing. I am a bit clueless about what kind of lighting do people use aside from the dyno hub/k-lite combo. I don't seem to read many discussions about it other than in passing. I read someone uses a Fenix PD35 from the previous year's thread.

I checked their website and that unit seems like a good choice for me but how do you mount it in your helmet? Cable ties?

I'm not sure if I want to invest in a dynohub+lighting because of the cost associated with it if I ship to Canada.


Thanks,

D

dyno hub + light is definitely an investment. However, I found it to be invaluable on the 750. The constant source of electricity allowed me to ride as long as I wanted to into the night and charge a cache battery during the day. However, it is not really necessary for the 300.

For my 300 run this time, I'm planning to use a headlamp on lowish power and recharge it using a cache battery while sleeping. That should be fine for the 8ish hours of night riding I plan to do.

Very cool, Scott!  Thanks for all the work you put in over the years. 

Everyone else, prepare to get Schilling'd! 

So, without Scott as a filter, there is no one to stop John's crazy ideas. Though I will admit Jacob's Crosscut isn't THAT bad.

sold

The lava rock road stuff that begins after the nice singletrack after crossing the highway near ranger station is a soul sucking brutal joint.

Ah yes, Happy Jack. Probably my least favorite segment of the whole trail. Not the hardest - just the suckiest. They are working on re-routing that section, so one day it will not be the suckfest that it is today.

In other news. The last 2 750 riders are making a run for the border.

Keith T. is still on the AZT, now outside the park boundary almost to the East Rim Overlook. It'll be interesting to hear his experience up there.

It really sounds like a small minority of park employees seem to have an agenda. There's zero logic in their reasoning. Let's see, a handful or two of 'seasoned' bike riders pedal, hike, drag their bikes 650 miles to reach the South Rim, but that's not enough for them. They strap their steeds to their backs and trek across the Canyon to the North side. All of a sudden it's too 'dangerous' to ride on 12 miles of closed pavement? At least I think that's their argument. Lame doesn't begin to describe it. /rant. We may need to send in Grandma Helga.

And you't think the park service would be interested in making friends of people who share their general philosophy of exploring the great outdoors. It is really confounding.

Anyhow, the AZTR delivers as usual. Drama, stories, pain.

And look, there is Mark Caminiti finishing up. Huzzzah! And Keith Tomei, on that last 30 mile leg.

Hey all! I'm staring at my computer back at home, thinking my brain is now able to put together sentences, but I might have not yet have had enough coffee yet this morning. It was fun reading all the discussion from during the race - there are so many inspiring rides and stories on out on the trail. My own ride was an amazing experience - really fun overall until hitting Grand Canyon. The riding on the AZT is, as everyone knows, unrelentingly challenging, and this year more than ever, I was really enjoying the technical riding since it was so engaging. I pushed a comfortable pace for the 300, shared some great hours of riding with Neil and Kaitlyn each, and then followed their tracks into Picketpost.

Kaitlyn's ride was so spectacular to see first-hand - after all the energy she's put into past AZT race and time trial efforts only to be met by bad luck, everything came together for her on this one, and she stomped out one of the fastest rides ever in the 300, and with a smile! Her persistence and vision has proven to be a formidable combination. Although she and I aren't together any longer, we're still one another's biggest supporters, and her massive ride provided a deep well of inspiration for the remaining days of my ride.

North of Picketpost, I transitioned into pushing the pace on the most rideable sections and dialing it back and being patient on the more technical and unrideable terrain. The heat nearly melted me on the new dirt sections near Gold Canyon, but being off pavement and at the base of the cliffs at the edge of the Superstition Mountains was well worth the extra effort and time. Highline Trail is improving nicely, but it's still quite an adventure to traverse. And the 50-mile boulder field (as described by Cjell Mone a few years back) north of there was just as rocky as ever. (John Schilling: I said hello to all those rocks for you - they asked how you have been and when you're coming back for another visit!). By Mormon Lake, I was still feeling strong, so I continued to push the pace all the way into Flagstaff, quickly grabbed some food, and climbed into the night. I was excited to get out north of the Peaks to sleep that night, but as soon as the descent began, I couldn't keep myself on the trail despite feeling wide awake, so I had to stop. That was the first sign the lack of sleep was starting to really catch up with me.

After a few hours of sleep, I hit it out across the dirt roads and 2-tracks of the volcanic field, once again feeling strong, but the fatigue in my legs was becoming more obvious. I was eager to get to the Canyon, and after a quick stop at the post office in Grand Canyon Village to grab a pack, running shoes, and trekking poles, I found myself at the South Rim. The crossing was uneventful, but it was a struggle - one foot in front of the other, tired legs, a knee that was not happy with hiking downhill, and patience that was wearing thin. My running shoes were actually less comfortable with the heavy pack than were my cycling shoes, so gave up on the running shoes just a few miles into the hike. By the wee hours of the morning, my brain decided it was time to get creative and started spicing up the darkness with all sorts of strange hallucinations. I had been pushing the sleep deprivation envelope too far, apparently, and it got a little frightening at times as I neared the North Rim. The crossing took ~14 hours with just a few quick breaks along the way, but it felt like it could have taken days.

Back on the bike, I was weaving all over the road in the day's first light, trying to keep my eyes open and to not be too alarmed at my brain's growing dysfunction. I got frustrated with myself for letting things get that far and ignoring the early signs that I should have been sleeping more. But that internal dialogueseem and a steady stream of food seemed to wake me up, and before I knew it, I was blasting into Jacob Lake with a huge tailwind. Fresh cookies, coffee, and the thought of the trail's amazing final descent to the border got me excited again. And that last segment of AZT was delightful - my grin returned, I hammered as hard as I could, and by mid-day, I could see the end of the trail. A few tears flowed, I stopped to absorb the view, and then I dropped off Buckskin Mountain on what's got to be one of the sweetest sections of the entire AZT, wrapping up the 30-hour push from the Peaks to the Border.

It was a huge relief to finish, but having really enjoyed so many of the miles, I was somewhat sad to have things come to an end. My final ride time was 6 days, 6 hours, and 6 minutes according to Tim's race-starting clock, a rather beastly time as has been pointed out. This ride was so incredibly different than my 2010 through-ride - that year I knew so little about the trail, what to expect, if I could even survive the adventure, and so on. This time, it was all about controlling the controllable variables as carefully as possible and keeping my focus 100% on moving forward quickly and with a smile. And all that worked out - I had zero mechanicals, only one crash, only found my frustration growing a handful of times, and really enjoyed the experience. I'll share a bit more about my gear and all that jazz over on Instagram in the next few days, so check that out if you're so inclined. And thanks to all of for exuding so much positivity - I could feel it while I was out there!

And now I'm watching all the dots with all of y'all! Dusty's ride that just ended at the Utah border was so impressive - a huge congrats to him!

I don't have much to say more than everyone else about what an impressive ride that was. But I will mention that I thought you were bonkers when you said you were shooting for 6 days. Maybe not so much.

Glad you made it in one piece. Very interested to see your setup and such.

Nothing quite like standing out on top of Buckskin getting ready for the final descent. A weird mixture of "hell yeah" and "over already?".

BTW the trail is kinda rocky

lolz. understate much.

Bummer to make it so far and not finish. You need to come back for all the super fun sections after Jacob's Lake. It's a great way to finish.

some get slower.

like Jacob's Crosscut...

 

Pretty sure that's Max's little joke.

Yeah, that sounds like Max. Just be glad he's not racing naked...

I sure hope that's not true!

It is not true. Chummer is just spouting frustrated nonsense since he/she couldn't get it together - like everyone else. 

The civil tone of the other folks who responded to chummer is a pretty good reflection of the type of people I've met while doing these events. These folks are super cool and very chill. I think Dave had it right, this event is not right for that person.

Having arranged a few one day races, I have an idea how much work goes into it. AZTR is WAY more any of those and probably ten times the work. And the entry fee is still FREE. The opportunity to do a ride of this magnitude, and finish, is a big f'ing deal for an ordinary old guy like myself and, like many others, I'm grateful that Scott has gone through the effort to do this year after year.

So, for those who are in, revel in this amazing opportunity. It is a hell of a ride.

So excited and so nervous haha. Got the travel problem straightened out which makes me feel better about that near catastrophe.

Only thing I'm sketched out about right now is the GC portage - and only about permits, as I wasn't able to secure one for camping. We should be getting to the North Rim late afternoon / early evening on the 6th. Debating on whether or not to just drop down into the canyon and hike all throughout the night and the next morning until we're finally out, or to sleep on the rim and get up super early and get going. I'd like to drop straight into the canyon and hike as much as I can overnight but I fear that I'll need an extended rest / sleep at some point, and don't want to get into any altercations with a ranger and get told to turn around or worse, get fined (as I've seen some posts online, this happens quite a bit for people that try to sleep in the canyon without a permit).

I watched Jakob's video that he posted last night and looks like he camped right on the trail a couple miles below the north rim.

Last year Rhino and I had no problems getting permits for Bright Angel, Cottonwood, or North Rim (for obvious reasons). You should check when you get there. I'll bet you can get a permit.
Also, we saw VERY few people after Bright Angel.

Also I tether everything down with lanyards and Niteize S-Biner® Dual Carabiner Plastic #2
GPS, bar light, helmet light.
http://www.niteize.com/product/S-Biner-Plastic.asp

Seriously, secure your GPS with a lanyard. I've found my etrex dangling from my handlebars (thankfully) after going through heavy brush (like on Oracle Ridge). Would be VERY bad to lose that tool on the ride.

Fear of the unknown.  Living in Western Canada I do a fair amount of camping in bear country. I am familiar with what to do around bears and they are fairly predictable so I am never worried them.  I can sleep in my bear-burrito bivy like a baby.

Since I have rarely camped in the desert, I am a bit worried about the creepy crawlies and things that slither.  Should I be worried about creatures crawling on my face while I sleep in my bivy?  Do snakes snuggle up to you while sleeping?  I haven't seen any talk about this kind of thing on the forum especially compared to the bear talk on the Tour Divide forum so it makes me think my fears are unfounded. 

Can any experienced desert campers help set my mind at ease?  Thanks in advance!

https://andersonsoutside.blogspot.ca/

I had a similar concern about snakes, scorpions, etc when I first started sleeping in the desert. But in nearly 10 years here, have not had that happen and haven't heard of anyone else experiencing it. Now, if you leave food in your bivy - you are asking for trouble.

Youre technically not "allowed" to ride 67 while it's closed to the public now. I'm going to play dumb and ride it anyway.

When Rhino and I got our permits at the south rim the ranger dutifully informed us we couldn't take the road. We told her we'd just take the trail. That was what she wanted to hear.

Of course the north rim was absolutely buried under snow, so we ended up on the road - along with a couple of hikers. My Spot malfunctioned while I was riding in the park. Saw one pickup - who paid me no mind. ymmv.

I am very curious as to the logic of closing the road to bikes. Maybe it is an insurance thing? Bikers are likely to fall off their bikes? While hikers are just fine. Not that these sorts of rules have any kind of logic, but I'd love to hear the reasoning.

Anyone have experience with Peakrider HAB gear?

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/peakrider/peakrider-the-first-bike-carrying-system

No way you could do the canyon with that wide a load.

Which of course seems totally counterproductive to the underlying biking goal of increasing fitness.

So, there is the problem. If your goal is fitness, this is probably not the optimal way to get there. I felt like I was in top shape after the 750, then proceeded to hardly ride all summer.

If you goal is pushing your boundaries, seeing what your mind and body can do, going beyond your expectations of what you are capable of - then these "events" can get you there. As has been pointed out, these things can definitely put the hurt on you physically (and mentally).

However, I find that the overall experience to be amazingly rewarding. When you look back at the pain you endured, the times you refused to give in when you really just wanted to, the psychological demons you conquered, the weird mechanical issues you McGuyvered around, that time you stared down a mountain lion at dusk in the middle of nowhere, running out of water in the AZ desert, the sunrises and sunsets you pedaled through - well, it is worth losing a toenail or not being able to feel your fingers for a couple of weeks or whatever. The journey is truly the reward. 

BTW, I recommend that you start with a smaller event - like the AZT300.