For 2009 the route is bigger, better, longer, and made a bit easier in a few key spots. That does not mean this is an easy route ;)
There is some climbing involved – but probably not as much as TopoFusion is reporting. In confusing sections I used high resolution track data (1 sec interval) which tends to over-report total vert stats.
The TU page will be updated soon with GPS track data and a routesheet. For now you can get the full track data here.
We may have a SPOT tracking page for the event at trackleaders.com courtesy of Scott Morris and Matthew Lee. Please shoot an email my way if you’d like to use a SPOT unit for the event, they will be provided (pending sufficient demand). hairball.dh AT gmail DOT com.
Nice job Dave! Looks to be quite the route. I love all of the names, Pariah river,my favorite, lower Podunk Creek. Of course we’ll traverse the Harris Rim on the way to Harris spring followed by Harris Flat, too funny!
Yeap it does look like a rad route…
I plugged the route into google maps, found some food stops and made some calls.
Here are my results.
~60 miles – Red Coyote Grill in Virgin: 7:30am-4:30pm daily; 1 mile off route East on Hwy 9
~60 – Zion River Resort RV Store in Virgin: 8am-9pm daily ; 2 miles off route East on Hwy 9
~120 – Albertsons Store in Cedar City: 6am-11pm daily ; on route along with lots of other food and stores
~180 – Tod’s Country Store in Long Valley Junction: 6am-9:30pm daily ; on route
~260 – Clarke’s Country Market in Tropic : 7am-9pm (Sun 2pm-9pm) ; on route
~353 (Finish) – Burr Trail Outpost/Grill in Boulder : Outpost 8:30am-6pm daily, Grill 11:30am-9pm (Sat/Sun 7am-9pm)
Blair and I plan to have fun and finish…. He will carry a spot and I will update my map with some text ballons where I can submit txt messages over the airwaves.
http://juniper-solutions.com/epicrider/gps/TUR.php?w=900&h=600&zoom=7
Headed your way in 3 weeks and two days…
I didn’t see how far you guys and gals would be riding or how many stages this ride will be conducted in?
Major – as a self-supported route, the number of “stages” is up to the individual rider. If racing, ride as much as you can, stop when you must sleep/eat. If touring, whatever generates the most smiles. It’s completely up to the individual on how to approach it. I’d expect the range to be 4-10 days, slightly less taxing than the Colorado Trail Race.
That’s awesome Troy! Thanks for doing the legwork – and sharing the results. Here are a few things I can add.
Virgin: there are 2 restaurants just E of the highway crossing. They have ice cream :)
Cedar City: the Albertsons is where I stopped last year. Awesome restock option.
Navajo lake: I’ll be up there this weekend and will check out the lodge/store for info at racetime.
See you in 3 weeks…
How reliable is Coyote and Gould springs? After that it looks like there is water fairly often on the course…
T
Coyote spring is rock solid. Piped water into a stock tank. It is a bit limey though, I prefer to skip it. That was tough to pull off last year but this year the desert miles have been trimmed back a bit. Gould is gross, oil slicked sludge – emergency use only (if it’s not dry). I’ve got a list of waypoints, water holes and other info I’m working on – should have it up on the main site shortly.
On Navajo lodge: I talked to the owner Sunday, he said he will be open 8am to 8pm until mid-october, weather depending of course. Food is similar to gas station stuff. They also have hot showers and possibly will have lodging available – chances are good for a Sun evening…
Goulds is dry went by it on sun eve…
god forbid anybody having major bike things creeping up that early on but i’ll be at the shop in hurricane on friday that you guys well be riding