Tour Divide

He has taken quite a few shortcuts, and missed some off-road sections.

So what's the point of him being 'in the race'?

Also seems to have pulled a bigger gap on Mike. Maybe he heard us talking?

God knows, but his time shouldn't stand for the mistakes/shortcuts he's taken.

His gap to mike isn't really relevant, he started a few days before the grand depart.

The point was more that Mike was going to catch him and now he is further away than when we mentioned this fact this morning. Nothing really to do with his position in the race. Of course Mike's not going to let anyone know who the mystery man is so it doesn't matter.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BG3RmF7D3Co/?taken-by=bikepackersmag&hl=en

Bit poor of them to out him categorically.

I was enjoying the speculation.

Maybe it's just a ruse...

I read the comments.

Apparently terry is using an older book on the divide route as his route guide. Hence the diversions from online race route.

How are Mike, Tom R and Greg M getting on? Trackleaders doesn't work well on my phone :(

Mike's smashing it even more. He's turned it back up and racing for finish.

I think there is an app?
Edit: website; http://bluedot.mobi
Edit edit: normal website works better than the blue dot one on my phone tbh.

Guy Martin, looking about as grubby as he is in his workshop

http://bikepackersmagazine.com/tour-divide-updates/

Cool, will check the app, just listed to Mike's call in, Greg posted something about the heat in Great Basin/Wyoming hit 43 or something and his haribo melted into a single blob...

Yeah, it was stupid hot last year too. All sweet stuff melted into a goo. Reeses peanut cakes became something resembling a dog with a bad tummy would do. Still tasted great tho.

read something about the incredibly high temperatures in AZ/NM at the moment, a lot of hikers got into trouble. The Gila will be pretty brutal in that heat, and hopefully no big fires (there were a few last year, but no diversions)

Mike's just had a 2ish hour rest, perhaps its his final sleep? 160 miles till Silver city then it look's downhill/flat from there all the way to Mexico.

6h30 stopped.

Yeah, probably final long stop.

From Pie Town, it's a long rolling stretch through the Gila Wilderness, then halfway across the Gila, there's Beaverhead Work Station, there's water there, after that it's really brutal terrain until Silver City, up, down, up, down, loose, sandy, rocky, washboard, switchbacks, hot, dry, probably thunder storms. Then the mandatory CDT alternate (hiking trail) which is lovely singletrack, but again, hard going. After Silver City, it's a road climb, a long stretch of dirt to Separ, then road all the way to the border.

I doubt he'll stop again. I didn't and I'm a lot slower than him.

How many hours roughly till he's done you think?

It took me 25 hours from Beaverhead Work Station to the border, no sleeps, just a diner meal in Silver City. I was gunning it all the way.

Update, from where he is right now, it took me 33 hours, no sleeps.

How much quicker he is than me, i have no idea, couple of mph maybe. so maybe he'll be done in 28-30 hours..

Given he's at 12 days ~20 hours now, he's gonna have to push hard to get in sub 14 days.

Takes so much longer off road. I have no idea of what average speeds people can do.
Thanks.

33h no sleeps is solid.

What happens when you get to the border?
I know it's a dead end right?

Yeah, terrain on this section varies loads too, where he is now, is fast, maybe 11-12 mph average.

Then beaverhead to silver city will be 6-8mph average, then silver city to the border 12-14 I guess

Last 60 miles are smooth tarmac, so should be pretty fast I was pushing 15-20mph I think for a lot of that (trying to outrun lightning storm that was ground striking too fucking close for comfort)

I did more than 33h! I had one 8 hour sleep in the whole of New Mexico. Had to be at the end to meet my cousin who was picking me up and she didn't have much time off work. Good motivation. I rode from Cuba to the border with about 2 hours sleep total, 500 miles in one hit after 18 days already.

I was destroyed. It was glorious.

There's a border post at the end, it's the least used US border post. The road does go through, but not many people carry on into the Chihuahua Desert.

A few of us got picked up by a local guy, spent the night at his ranch in Hachita (back up the route 40 miles) got drunk and stoned then my Cousin turned up in the morning and picked us up, we went for a drive to Bisbee and Tombstone (OK Corral) then Phoenix, and Flagstaff for a day, then flew back home, slept the WHOLE 9 hours flight.

Do people often get picked up?
Is there some guy who comes out to pick people up then?

Yeah I bet, I know how that feels. See many demons in the night?