Surviving the Queen Stage & loose ends

Sunday is a big day – probably more like 110 miles as GPS routes always seem to underestimate actual mileage.  As you roll up to Starbucks Sun morning, keep some things in mind:

• Have a plan.   For those of us doing long events in the next month it’s perfect, for those coming out of the winter closet not so much.  Shortcuts explaned below.
• Sunrise is 7:42, sunset is 5:51.  This gives 10 hours of light with the 8AM start time.  I expect to take about 8 hours moving fast with few stops.  I’ll still be bringing a light. 
• Lights are recommended for anyone planning the full route
• If riding SS 2:1 (26er) is the minimum gearing recommendation. 
• We will be in some remote spots.  Be ready.
• Coyote spring is at mile 55.  It’s reliable and piped.  Lynda thinks it tastes bad though and shuts her gut down so be wary.

Shortcut options:  River Road bisects the first part of the “figure 8” twice.  River road makes a beeline N for town, this gives 2 points, one at mile 34, the other at 83, where you can exit the route and get back to town pretty quick.  Another option is when you exit Warner valley at mile 72.  It’s all pavement to town from here, about 10 miles.  Here’s a link to the Warner valley to town track and the River Road waypoints:

Camp Lynda Day 3 shortcut from Warner valley to town

Click this for the visual.  The red route is the Warner valley exit.

Loose ends/faq:

Q: how do I get the files onto my Garmin 705?

A: If you haven’t yet upgrade your 705 firmware to 2.60.  It handles track data much better than previous releases.  After that,  simply drag & drop the files to the garmin/gpx folder.  Disconnect from your PC and turn it on – settings->saved tracks->select the camp lynda file of interest, map setup->  pick an obvious color and set it to display on the map.  Click OK  and that should have you up and running.