WRIAD accomplished.

When I first read about the ride that is the White Rim In A Day, a 102 mile long loop through Utah's Canyonlands National Park, it caught my imagination as the right mix of difficulty, scenery and remoteness, and yet was regularly done so it was attainable by experienced and fit cyclists. 

It also fit into my goal of doing a 100 mile mountain bike ride, something that would nearly double my longest ride to date.  So plans were made and a date was set.  I put in some long rides, rode the SS a lot to improve overall power, and experimented with the right combo of supplements for sustained hard efforts.  A bike was built, a ride partner was found, and the days flew by.

And then I found myself driving along the highway with 'FFW' Dave pointed toward Moab.  Oh my.  Are we really doing this?  I had some doubts after my debacle with leg cramps on the Antelope Peak Challenge ride in Arizona.  That was only 60 miles albeit a hard 60 miles.  Still, I had a plan that, were it to fail, would leave me in a world of hurt in the middle of a lonely place.  Once you get into the White Rim a ways, you are pretty much committed.  I was concerned but the highway rushed on.

cuz ya gotta have a hat

My partner for this adventure was 'FFW' Dave, a well seasoned rider and all around good guy.  We had done some training rides together and had the same basic fitness and skills so our pace was very even.  That would hold true for the entire ride as we were never more than 100 yards apart, typically within 50' of each other for 103 miles and neither of us had to wait for the other.  We left So Cal after work in FFW's Magical Mystery Machine (well seasoned Saturn VUE) and hit St George at 02:00AM, grabbed a cheap but clean motel, and were back on the road by 08:00 AM.  Funny the things you talk about on road trips.  We swung from bikes, epic rides, the meaning of life, and cartoon/TV shows we loved as kids.  Just what was it that Hobo Kelly used to say into that looking glass?  In any case we both agreed that Felix the Cat rocked and the Master Cylinder was a great name for a villain.

WRIAD escape vehicle

It's a big desert out there

 I have been to Moab many times over the years so I knew the road and the town, but we had to get some supplies, drive to the park entrance and cache some water, then find camp at the end of a long dirt road.  We had decided to stage at the bottom of the Mineral Bottom switchbacks near the boat launch area and ride clockwise from there, climbing the 1000' foot gain early on in the dark, then riding into sunrise on the Mineral Road.  That was based on accounts I had read from other riders and avoided a big climb at the end of a long day.  I think it was a good plan although it turned out I had plenty of energy to get them done at the end of the ride, but who knew?  It would have been nice to camp up on the mesa for the views. 

Easter Jeep Week was spinning up in Moab so Jeepers were all over the place.  Cool.  I doubted we would see any of them on the White Rim though.  We hit up the City Market in town, grabbed a rotisserie chicken and chocolate milk for dinner and post ride recovery, then drove to the park entrance, cached some water and prepaid our $5.00 entrance fee per bike.  The ranger wished us luck and laughed just a bit as if to say, "silly, crazy mtn bikers".  We found our way to the river bottom area after winding down some pretty steep switchbacks.  This gave us a look at the opening 20 or so miles of road that would be the first leg of the next day.

Mineral Road

The Mineral switchbacks to the Green River

FFW

FFW, master tent builder.

A last quiet moment

Our home sweet home. Back yard landscaping by God

We set up camp down from the boat ramp area in a quiet spot and began checking over the gear and making the packs ready to go.  I was using my Osprey Talon 22 for the day and FFW had an Osprey Manta 30.  We both had two 100oz bladders and three bottles.  Add in food, tools, and some emergency stuff and we were packing heavy...likely 20+lb packs.  Ouch.  I did NOT want to be thirsty.  As well, the weather was changing and not for the better.  The temps had been in the mid 70s but now the ride day was to be 80+ and windy.  Oh marvelous.

Dave was on his Superfly 100 and I was on the new project Go-'Fish, a Salsa Spearfish with some Gucci but solid parts spec.  Both bikes were well suited to the task, but were we?  We dismembered the broiled chicken, then bat watched and star gazed next to the fire.  It was amazingly quiet out there.  I think we forget how quiet quiet can be.  City folks...bah!  The alarms were set for 04:00AM and we hit the tents with no small amount of apprehension of the next day.

We were rolling by 05:30 after some last minute "oops I forgot something" and a bathroom stop.  Pedaling out into the dark with our bike lights illuminating about 100 feet at a time, the Mineral Bottom switchbacks met us soon enough.  It is amazing how much the heavy packs weigh you down on a hill.  What felt OK just pedaling along a flat road was an anchor drag on that grade.  Still, we put those tight turns and the abrupt 1000' gain behind us and pedaled into the sunrise on the Mineral Road.  I think that was my favorite part of the ride.  Looking over at FFW as he rode beside me, the dawn gave light and shadow to the pastel hues of faded color, growing brighter and more vivid in the cool morning air.  It seemed quite surreal, all this.  And I was having a fine time.  We we actually doing this.

Magic time

We hit the highway to the park entrance, aware of the cows that looked ready to dash in front of the silly bike riders just to give us a scare.  Cow games!  Cows are such kidders.  Do they make party hats for cows?  But they were still waking up too so we were free of such merriment.  We tanked back up on water at the rangers booth and met another WRIAD-er from Colorado doing it solo.  Luck was wished all around and we rode over to the famed Shafer Switchbacks.  Oh my.  This is for real folks.  Once we drop down there, we are in up to our eyeballs in the White Rim.

Down there?

Really?  Down there?

Yes, down there.  And beyond.

It was about here that FFW's rear tire decided to be an airless tire.  FFW tried to make it seal by sheer willpower (and Stan's goo) but to no avail.  Stupid Small Block 8s.  WRIAD is no place for a racy, wimpy tire IMO.  Anyway, he fixed while I stripped clothing layers as the temps climbed a bit.

FFW can fix anything

We bottomed out and I have to say that it was here that I felt like I was in the game for real.  We were at a place where turning back would be a hard punt and we were 30 miles or so along.  Time to go.  The dirt and the miles sped by.  And it was grand.

We stopped only to mix some bottles of drink mix or take a very quick pic or two.  We intended to keep a 10mph average pace so there was little time for dawdling.  Lunch was at about 11:00 or 50ish miles.  Still to come was Murphy's Hogback at 60+ miles.  That was a suggested lunch stop and it would have been great, but when the dinner bell rings, you should answer.  We did not want to run a deficit energy wise.  The wind was a factor though.  It was a head wind or cross wind and was costing us energy and time.  I bet we were off one or two gears for 30 miles or so due to the wind, but it was what it was.  It did keep us cool.  I was wearing a long sleeve jersey from Alpinestars over a tank base layer and wool shorts.  It was a good set-up and I never had to change anything the rest of the day.

Mmmmm...Chunky Chicken spread and a salted nut bar from the dollar store.  I roll that way...cheap.

29ers rock WRIAD.  We had chosen wisely.

 

FFW sez':  "Hey grannygear...can we go already?"

The views never stopped for long.  Sometimes I had to say to myself, "hey dummy, look up!"

Canyonland's Stonehenge

We did some ups and downs and generally climbed for quite a few miles.  I kept wondering about Murphy's Hogback.  Had we already ridden it?  It seemed like a formidable obstacle in the reports I had read so that was unlikely.  It seemed like we should have been there by now, running around the 60+ mile mark.  Then we passed by a sign that said Murphy's Wash.  Oh?  And there it was.  The Hogback.  You have got to be kidding!  This pic does NOT do this over 20% grade justice.  Ride that?  Nope.  That would overdraw the leg bank and frankly, pushing the bike was just about as fast.  Not long, but 'wow!' steep.

Really?  What crazy person graded that road?

65 miles turned to 75 then 85.  The legs felt good and the supplements were treating me well.  I really struggle with leg cramps.  If I do not cramp, I can pedal long and strong.  So I was dropping three Endurolytes every hour and I had a light amount of Citrus Elete in my bladders.  I was mixing three bottles at a time from one of the bladders:  two were Fluid Performance drink mix and one was Clif Shot drink mix.  I have found that the Fluid Performance drink does a great job of supplying long term energy and I hardly needed to eat any solid foods.  It keeps depth in my legs, but it lacks a bit in electrolytes (as I found in Arizona).  So the third bottle of the three has the Clif Shot mix which I prize for the salty-ish goodness but does not fuel me as well as the Fluid.  They seem to get along in my stomach and I never had any bloating or upsets all day.  And not ONE CRAMP, even when trying for a trophy run at Hardscrabble Hill.   Yep...more walking.  No shame in that.

Soon enough we were in the home stretch as we dropped to river level, negotiated the sand traps of the last few miles, then hit camp.  I had one more swallow of water left and then I was empty.  great timing.  We actually ran into that young guy from Colorado about 10 miles from the end and invited him to our camp to stock up on water.  He had only 10oz left and several hours of riding left to get back up to Horse Thief campground.  He was a grateful lad, that one, when we filled his Camelbak.  Fare thee well, brother.  He was stoked to know that he had chewed the biggest part of the challenge off and had the bit well in his teeth and the end in sight.

We were in camp and happy to be there.

Near the end, FFW contemplates a long day, a good ride, and world peace

103 miles and 12.5 hours overall with 2 hours of that off the bike.  I had in mind a 12 hour time so we were right in there.  I was very grateful for all the gear that worked so well.  The Salsa Spearfish with the SRAM XX drivetrain and the Roval carbon wheels with Continental X King Protection tires was a smooth, fast, and efficient beast.  The Fluid Performance drink along with the Clif Shot mix, Elete, and Endurolytes kept the cramps away.  I expected to be pretty shattered by the day, but while I was weary, achey, and ready to stop pedaling, I had good energy at the end and legs that were still putting out the horsepower.  Sweet.  Thank you God.  You sustain me.

We ate what our tired bodies would handle, washed as best we could, and hit the sack in earnest with no 04:00 alarms this time.  The next day we broke camp and drove into Moab after grabbing our water cache.  Breakfast at the Jailhouse cafe and a long drive through snow flurries had us both satisfied and on edge, but we were headed home satiated by the experience.  We had drenched ourselves in and soaked up the red dirt of Canyonlands until our bodies and souls could not absorb any more and we were all the better for it.  FFW, you are a fine fellow and I would ride with you anywhere.

But not for a couple of days :)

More WRIAD thoughts to come as I reflect a bit and think of what is next for me.

The vacant stare of the zombie..or is he asleep?

"Yes waitress, I would like everything in column B, stat!"

"Well, it is a good start, anyway"

Headed home in 29* weather.  Utah is awesome.

Dancing with Cacti

It began with an email from KT the Man.  He was headed to Arizona for an endurance race and wanted to know if was interested.  I had followed some of the Arizona Endurance Series on the net for some time and I was eager to come down and do some grass roots racing through the prickly pear.  The Antelope Peak Challenge was a 115 or 65 mile loop on some new sections of the Arizona Trail.  I was not up to the long one, but I figured I could stretch and make the 65 mile version.  So, we were on!

The last two weeks leading up to the event were not friendly to me work schedule and weather wise.  Two straight weeks on call for work and the first rain of the season kept me to local loops, no long rides.  Still, it would have to do and I counted on all those recent hard SS rides to get me by.

I had to decide what bike to ride.  It was between the Epic 29er with the carbon wheels or the Carve SS I have been riding for a while now.  I was really liking the SS and since I was thinking about doing the WRIAD on an SS, I figured it would be good to see how this bike treated me over a longer, harder day.  So, the SS it was.  I had just received some new wheels that would have been sweet to roll on, but I did not have enough time to burn them in after installing them.  I have one rule above all when it comes to new gear/bike changes before a critical ride:  Never go into battle with an unproven weapon.  So I changed only one thing...the grips, stealing the most excellent Ergon GA-1 grips off the Blackbuck.  Those are the best I have found for SS work on long days.  I considered changing tires from the Geax TNT AKAs to some TNT Saguaros for extra grip in the desert conditions, but the pics I had seen of the trail made it look pretty smooth.  The AKAs are fast, good sized, and they were already on there.  SO, I went with the AKAs, something I regretted a bit later.

I also had a new hydration pack to try out.  It was much too big for the day's requirements, but it was light for its size and comfy to wear, so I figured I would give it a shot.  Osprey makes great stuff and I have loved owning the tried and true Talon 22.  This Escapist 30 was a bit bigger than the already big Talon 22 and was more suited for bike use, having tool organization features.

The morning came and we loaded the camping gear into KT the Man's adventure van and hit the road toward Tucson.  The drive is about 9 hours and we talked about bikes, clean diet changes, bikes, riding, job stuff, life issues, and bikes.  Soon enough we were across the border into AZ.

Rolling in to the camp area, we set up and prepped for the next day.  The trick was finding a cactus free zone to set up a tent.  Man, this is an unfriendly country.  Wearing sandals would be crazy around here.  I had a new GPS that I was breaking in, although I had tested it a bit before I left.  I would have liked to have proven it further, but it was either go with it or not go at all.  So I played with that a bit, checked over my pack set-up, and then hung around a communal fire pit, talking with some of the racers that were camping here.  Friendly banter and talk of the route and past rides ran their course and then it was time to hit the tent, enjoying the new inflatable camping pad I had bought last year.  Super comfy and packs small too.

I was awoken by the noise of the 115 miler folks leaving at 05:00 in the cold and dark.  Brrrrr.  It was cold enough at 06:30 when I rose to meet the morning.  KT the Man fired up his antique Coleman stove, the kind you have to fill with Coleman fuel and prime before you light it...have not seen one of those since I was a kid...and tea with some trail mix got me ready to roll.

GPS on...check...pack ready....check...last minute clothing decisions and we were off on the 'neutral start'.  However, the neutral start was decidedly un-neutral to SS riders.  Too fast for me right off and I dropped off the back into the stragglers.  The 6.5 miles of dirt road led us to a highway and then about 10 miles of pavement, uphill into a cold wind.  I pulled a lone lady along for a while till she dropped out of the draft and I ended up riding with 2 other guys on SS bikes all the way to the next turn onto the dirt.

Clothing layers were adjusted as the sun was making the 40-ish degree temps fade away.  It felt good to be on dirt again and the Arizona Trail began here.  I posed for a pic in front of the sign and did not realize until later that Antelope Peak, the distant point on the horizon, was our 'maypole' that meant the turnaround point of the race.  If I had seen that at this stage of the race I would have been...oh what is the word...oh yeah, 'dismayed'.

Dropping onto the trail I was reminded of that tire choice again, and I was already wishing I had opted to swap for the more aggressive Geax Saguaros.  The trail was off camber, loose, and covered with small broken rocks and cactus pieces.  Tons of switchbacks required a bit of tip-toeing to stay rubber up, but I was still catching and passing folks on geared FS bikes.  It was warming up and the miles crept by.  It was slow going but I was happy to have chosen the SS.  I was riding a lot more than I would have expected, pushing on the steeper, loose hill sections.  The Carve SS Pro was treating me well so far and I just dig the way it turns pedal input into rolling up the trail.  Singlespeeds are so cool and great singlespeeds are even cooler.

The sweeping vistas were tough to appreciate unless you stopped.  The trail was lined with more kinds of cactus then I had ever seen and it took all your concentration just to color between the lines.  Going off trail would have been very bad.

I was in the back of the pack and alone most of the time, but I would leap frog with a few guys over the course of the day.  I was feeling really strong and riding a lot of the winding trail-ups.  I also noted a bit of pre-cramping feeling in my quads and that worried me, so I began to push a bit more, leaving some money in the leg-bank.  Unfortunately, before the day was over I would end up overdrawn.  This section of the trail was pretty new and anything but buff and I was not always clear on the route, getting off course twice until the GPS and a bit of poking around and backtracking got me back on trail.  At one point I was at a cattle gate crossing and met up with two riders.  I had been looking at a distant peak, thinking that it could not be Antelope Peak as it was very far away and it was already 01:00.  Just then one of the riders pointed to the peak in question and told his buddy, "That is where we are going".  REALLY?  Oh jeepers!!!!

The backside of Antelope Peak...finally.

About, oh, 40 miles into the ride the leg cramps began to hit me.  I could not push hard, so I would dance on the pedals until I felt the legs going south, then I would push for a while...pedal...push, etc.  The sucky part was I was feeling really strong other than that.  My energy was great, my back felt great, the SS was working sweet, but I could not hit the GO button.  Sucks to be me.  Leg cramps are my Waterloo...always have been.

At about 50 miles it was 5:00 and I had about 45 minutes of daylight.  I had a head light with me, but the last section of trail was described as very hard to follow and that was in the daylight.  By now there were times I was having issues even walking.  I never absolutely locked up solid, but the threat was always just under the surface.  I was also pretty much out of water, having about three good swallows left.  I had gone through 100oz in the Osprey pack plus 5 small water bottles.

That was enough to sway me into taking the bail-out option at mile 60 or so.  The trail turned right and I stayed straight ahead on the dirt road to camp.  I was very grateful for that smooth piece of road...not flat, but if I died there at least I would be found before the buzzards got me.

I rolled in to camp just at dusk, signed in, and headed for dinner.  What a day.  The rest of the night we hung around the fire in our camp, sharing time with the locals and the event organizers as they waited for all the riders to come in.  The last 115 milers, two guys on singlespeeds, one nursing knee issues, came in at 10:30 at night having left at 05:00 that morning.  Oh man...that is a long day. 

The next morning we set out to ride the 24 Hours of the Old Pueblo course as KT the Man and Nicette, our lady of the group, were set to race the team 24 hour in a few weeks.  We rode about 12 miles of some of the flowiest, funnest singletrack in the desert.  SO THIS is where they hide the fun trail out here...right next to our camp site!  What a contrast to the previous day's trail!  Still, it is all good.  The trip was great, the company sweet, the ride was hard, and the deed was done. 

The Carve had been a perfect companion.  The tough Geax TNT casings never flinched on the rocks and the Geax sealant inside kept me flat free...I KNOW I ran over cactus many times.  The new Osprey pack was too big for this trip, but was never uncomfortable and had a pocket for everything.  The GPS was awesome to have and the new eTrex series from Garmin looks ready made for endurance nuts with the AA batts and easy to use features.  The Fluid endurance drink mix in the bottles kept me very well energized but even with Elete in the water reservoir, I still battled cramps.  Bummer.  One of these days I will figure that out.  In the meantime, thanks to the organizers and to the hard working folks who cut that Arizona Trail out of the desert.

I will be back.

S24O with JeffJ and Ted.

I am coming off of a week long vacation and had a night free to get out on another local overnighter, an S24O (Sub 24hour Overnighter).  The invite to JeffJ went out kinda late in the week, so we had to scramble to get him and his son, Ted, set-up.  But between his stuff, my stuff, and some good old garage engineering, we were loaded up and off.

I made a Blackburn rear rack work on the 29er by using some clamps onto the seat stays.  My REI 3 man tent went on that and the sleeping bags went into or onto the Osprey Talon 22 or Gregory Z22 packs.  I was using the Osprey Manta 25 this night, something, along with the Talon 22, I am evaluating for www.thecyclistsite.com.  I also was sleeping in the Topeak Bikamper tent to see how it works in the field.

We parked at a buddies house in the early evening and set out on our quest to a local campground that typically only sees thru hikers on the PCT as it is gated at the access road for cars, etc.  After our 6 or 8 miles of climbing on pavement and dirt, we were there.

The Osprey Talon 22, stuffed for all it is worth.

The Topeak Bikamper tent.

Home sweet home for the night.

MMMmmm...PB@J with Guava jelly from The Dominican republic.

It was a great trip and it showed that if you have the desire, you can bikepack without the expensive custom bags, even though they do make things awfully nice!  I am working on some new ideas in the area of budget bikepacking.  More on that soon.

S24O's rock.

Direct you tube link here.

Osprey Raptor packs

Lately I have been hydrating myself from some of these packs...

So far I have been enjoying the latest from the Hydraulic-Raptor series of packs from Osprey.  The Raptor 6 (on the right) is the baby bear and the Raptor 18 (on the left) is the poppa bear.  I think there are a few niggling things that needs to be addressed, but my fav so far is the Raptor 18.

The pack making experience of Osprey shines thru and I cant wait to get the 18 out on a big ride.  Last nights 2 hour ride showed it to be stable and well fitting.  The shove-it feature can swallow a ton of clothing.  Full test reports to come.