Mountain Bike skills = ZERO...but I want to ride the Great Divide!

[raygunner]

I think I was geeking out on some Moots stuff when I came to the realization that I want to ride the Great Divide!

http://www.adventurecycling.org/routes/greatdivide.cfm

I like riding, I've done some touring, I'm in pretty good shape and I'd like to see the country...except my mountain bike skills are nil. I did I have a Trek MTB back in the day but that's about it!

Is doing the ride in segments a good way to go or do you have to just go all out, quit your job & ride!

Any advice or experiences you'd care to share?

I think I need an excuse to buy a Moots 29er and I think I found it!

[rice rocket]

If you've got Netflix, watch the documentary (appropriately called Ride the Divide).

Edit: It's on Amazon instant video too, or you can buy the Bluray too.

[raygunner]

Oh great...I have a paper that was due two days ago AND Game of Thrones to catch up on!

But I'll have to check it out..thanks!

PS - Death to King Joffrey!

[Louis]

Looks like one heck of a great ride, and if it turns you on I'd say go for it.

But does one have to haul a BOB (or other such thing)? IMO that takes a significant amount of the fun out of it. It's great to be self-sufficient, especially for that sort of route, but it's also fun to ride a bike the way Karl Drais intended it to be, and lugging that stuff on a trailer ain't my vision of "freedom" on a bike.

http://www.adventurecycling.org/routes/images/great_divide_img1.jpg

[Jack Brunk]

Buy the Moots, ride the heck out of the trails in your state, once you do that spend 48-72 hours constantly trail riding and then sign up for the next year divide. I know 3 guys who busted their ass training countless hours only to DNF after only 6 days. It's a beast. You need to treat it as such.
I believe the big fella mod is thinking of doing it. Ask him how his training is coming.

JB

[MattTuck]

My buddy just finished the great divide last fall. Did it from Banff canada to the Mexican border.

This was not the race, which is an organized event along the great divide route.

If you intend to do the race, I think you need to train hard for it. If you intend to do the route at your own pace, make sure you have lots of vacation time built up.


I wouldn't do it in sections, but that's just me. would be very anticlimactic.

[raygunner]

Yeah, no race for me, just ride.

During vacations I've been working in segments, all West Coast as of now, of Adventure Cycling mapped touring. This early fall I'm planning on doing Vancouver to Portland but after that I'd like to branch out which why I saw the Great Divide!

I think segments are the only way to do it, at least with my schedule. I do have generous vacations but not enough to do the whole thing.

So we'll see...I'll have to start with the documentary! Thanks!

[Mr Cabletwitch]

I'm reading a book about the race right now and the guy that wrote it didnt have much mtb experience at all and he finished. I think alot of the route is pretty tame. And once you get to anything technical you will probably be fine.

the divide race is one of those things on my bucket list if I ever manage to get my company to a point that I can dedicate that kind of time and once my son gets a lot older

[gdw]

Actually start here:
http://www.bikepacking.net/forum/index.php?PHPSESSID=1c838b58e79e474f5327726b6d1c82 38;www
The forums are an excellent source of information and many of the members have extensive bikepacking experience. Quite a few have raced or ridden the Divide and are more than willing to answer your questions. There's only one Paceline member that I'm aware of who has completed the race and unfortunately he rarely posts here anymore.

[Louis]

Actually start here:
http://www.bikepacking.net/forum/index.php?PHPSESSID=1c838b58e79e474f5327726b6d1c82 38;www


Cool site. This looks like it could be a lot of fun. (I mean in general, not just that particular trail.)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v64/chuckc71/Sheltowee/100_1992.jpg

[Louis]

http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii152/julesdoesthemiddleeast/End%20of%2011%20beginning%20of%2012/1.jpg

[Jack Brunk]

Some of us on this site have done races etc. that you can only finish because it's in your DNA. The only way to know your boundaries is to exceed them. Mental fortitude is your guiding light. **** i did stuff today that was way outside my comfort zone but I left my family a great insurance policy.

[Steve in SLO]

Hmmm...a Black Sheep, a Dogfish and a blue hospital rag covering your plate.
Jack, I think you're my kind of guy.

[carlucci1106]

I have mentioned in a thread that I am just off the Route in Grants, New Mexico, following a very greuling section of the trail. I have hosted participants in my hotel, my home, and drove people around when needed. I hope some day to be an official outpost, since I am one of very few people with a repair stand, tools etc. here in town.

From what I have learned, the trails are not overly technical as a general rule. There are ways around singletrack sections (alt routes), but I think I would get bored if it was always like the section I rode (about 25m).

The couple I spent the most time with had quit their jobs, left their home, and didn't know where they were planning to move after. all they knew was that they were slated to meet a relative at the Mexico border a certain weekend.

You have to be prepared for most anything. They had some kind of skirmish where it required someone to fly out of Montana somewhere temporarily, and then return to the route.

If you want to do part of the route, the couple said that the most scenic parts were in Montana, and the most challenging portions were right around my house in NEw Mexico. After you leave my town there is only one town in about 350m to the end. In other words, give me a shout if you need anything. ;)

[William]

I started this thread with the Divide in mind.....

http://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=100970&highlight=bikepacking








William