Similar to Joey, I wouldn't want to advocate a particular game plan for someone else, such as making it to Silverton in time to resupply on day one. I mostly chimed in because there was lots of discussion of this back in 2013 and the consensus was that only the fastest, gunning for the record types were going to make it to Silverton. I just wanted to point out that many normal people made it there before or close after the store closed. It's a move I might try if I race this summer.

I wouldn't even think about making Silverton on Day 1 unless you're really quite experienced at high, high country loaded bikepacking, hike-a-bike, and going really fast at the same time.  I live here and ride that section of trail quite a bit, and am no slouch when it comes to moving quickly, but I simply packed four days of food from the get-go.  Not having to worry was completely worth it.  And for the record, I did NOT make it to Silverton by the time the grocery closed... seems to be a theme for me, regardless of direction!

Interesting. I wouldn't want to give someone strong advice that they could make it to Silverton before the store closes either, but I feel like a lot of people (at least 10-15) made it there in time to shop in 2013. I leap frogged back and forth with you and Danny on this portion and made it to Silverton just after 9 pm. I was doing a very conservative run through the Durango to BV portion as it was all new trail to me and so I carried more than enough food to get to BV from the start. I would be really tempted to run light if I do it again and commit to a Silverton re-supply. I'm pretty sure dropping all that food weight could get me there in time and with less effort!

BTW - Marie this is Ben (so you have a point of comparison). You should do the race from Durango to Denver with the group! I think it's nice to get the big push out of the way early. Plus, you won't have Tyson on standby for days deciding when he should drop everything and drive 8+ hrs to pick you up.

Hey, this is Ben Gannon checking in with my final assessment of the ride.

I finished last night (Fri 7/26) at 9:22 pm. From trackleaders it looks like I came in between Pete Basinger and Aaron Johnson.

I had a great time and felt like I got really strong near the end of the race. I went spotless because I didn't get a chance to train for the race due to work-related travel this summer and knew I wouldn't be in "contention for the win" (yeah right, who can even compete with those guys) or even that I could throw down anything near a race-worthy time. My mindset was to do a fast and efficient tour to try and finish in the week I was able to get off of work.

1) Kit: I've toured parts of the CT with traditional bikepacking setups (framebag, big seatbag, and big handlebar bag) and while I enjoyed the experience I hated the riding. I'm a small guy (5'6" 125lbs) and having that much weight both high and towards the ends made my bike handle like crap (tippy, awkward to turn, awkward to do step-ups or step-downs). I designed my bags this year around getting my weight low and centered to maximize ride quality...because the point of doing the CTR is to enjoy riding the trail! It worked. I kept the bike simple (BB7s, XC32 coil-sprung fork, 1x9 drivetrain, square taper cranks, platform pedals...probably the cheapest bike in the whole race) and didn't have any mechanicals.

2) Trail: I'm an optimist so I had pictured in my head that the southern half of the trail would be awesome, buff singletrack even though I had read tons of accounts that it wasn't. The southern half of the trail was hard, but not impossible, and some sections were actually easier than I had heard (Sargents Mesa is bad, but not that bad). The hardest part about the Durango start was the immediate elevation gain. I really felt the altitude. It might be harder in the northbound direction for this reason alone. The northern half of the trail has some of the best biking segments (Leadville, Buffalo Creek) but it also has some serious slogs (Searl and Kokomo, 10 Mile, Georgia Pass). It was interesting to see how some sections I knew from the other direction and thought would suck, weren't that bad, and some that I thought would be easy, were actually pretty tough.

3) People: Where were they? I barely saw anyone on the trail after the first day and when I did it was usually just a short, awkward acknowledgement of each other's presence (though I'm sure I didn't help this at all either). If I do the race again I'm definitely going to try to find a ride buddy with a similar time goal in mind. I definitely prefer a social bike tour compared to the race atmosphere.

4) Sleep: I slept every night and for at least 6 hours. I'm pretty sure I passed everyone back the next day who passed me in the middle of the night while I was sleeping and I don't think anyone who rode through the night looked like they were having a good time the next day. I know some people might deal well without sleep, but my personal experience and observations suggest that you should sleep during the race...unless you're one of the top dawgs.

5) Weather: The one time I got really down during the race was on Thursday evening. I had just passed Hwy 9 at around 3pm when it started to rain. I welcomed the rain because it had been really hot coming down Gold Hill and I thought a good afternoon thunderstorm would cool things off. Four hours later, when it finally stopped raining, I was cold, tired, and behind my pace for the day. Using pure will-power alone I slogged my way up-and-over the slippery roots of Georgia Pass and re-collected myself over a thawed frozen burrito at the bottom by Guernsey Creek. I convinced myself to keep going to Kenosha Pass and pushed at least half of what should be a bikeable ascent. Halfway to Kenosha, some dude on an Ibis Mojo passed me like a total badass carrying almost nothing with him (gastank and small backpack?). I was destroyed physically and mentally. Sleep saved me. On Friday I awoke feeling fresh, and then pushed all the way to Waterton with only a 57 minute stay in the Taryall Penalty Box. I'm lucky to have outrun as many storms as I did because I wouldn't have kept the pace I did if had been stormed on like this every day.   

Will I do the race again next year? I'm not sure. I know I could go a lot faster if I got some on-the-bike training and kicked it up to race pace, but I'm not sure I have the ability to deprive myself of enough sleep to ride with the big boys. We'll see what I feel like next summer.

Thanks to Stefan and all the other people who made this event happen. I had an awesome first CTR. Also, congrats to Jefe and Jesse for destroying us all. Now to obsessively watch Teresa Garcia's pink dot...

- Ben

Hey Everyone,

A few things here from a first time poster and CTR newbie. First of all, I donated $50 to CTF today. Maybe a bit weak, but at least I'm doing my part.

Second, Toby Gadd was nice enough to give me his "Distances and Services" sheet referenced in his blog. I have reversed the course, checked the mileage against the new CT Databook with the new detours, and got permission from Toby to share it here.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Auo-YhxH18-ddDlQU1hQTHhVeW9CU05mZHU2dUYxTlE#gid=0

Anyone can edit this version, so please don't change anything unless you see an error or have information to add. It would be great if people were able to contribute to this (services available, latest open/close times, etc). This is a big help to those of us who haven't done this thing before!

See you all soon and very early.

Thanks for posting. I noticed the Leadville Safeway is listed as opening at 12:00am. That looked fishy to me. Google says 7am.

+ 1 for the CTR, no SPOT

Also, looking for any creative/convoluted rideshare options from Fort Collins to Durango for myself and my girlfriend (also doing the race). Ideally, we would leave around 8am on Saturday 7/20 to get there in time to relax before the race. We're also willing to leave Friday night if that works better for you.

Option 1: Drive my 5sp manual Subaru Forester. We have room for you AND your designated driver to get my car back to Fort Collins. Your designated driver can rally it all over SW Colorado for up to two weeks as long as they bring it back to Fort Collins.

Option 2: Are you already driving your vehicle to Durango? We'll pay for ALL your gas to Durango and buy you some good beer (to be consumed after the drive) if you let us tag along.

Option 3: Are you, or someone you love, in Durango but want to be in Fort Collins? Drive my car back to Fort Collins.