Epilogue - GDMBR 2023

After a couple of easy days relaxing at Mike Buckley's "bike ranch" in Sierra Vista, AZ, it's time to reflect a bit on our experience over the last 5 weeks...  It's been an unforgettable and hugely enjoyable time- one that I feel incredibly fortunate to have had the opportunity to spend with an old friend, and to meet and share with a number of new friends!  We shared some really satisfying moments, as well as our share of difficult and trying days... There's nothing like sharing some serious "type II" fun to bond a group, knowing that in the end, we've been really privileged to share time the way we have. Everyone has faced challenges - both physical and mental, and we've each found ways to manage and surmount those challenges with the support, encouragement, and occasional shared suffering ;-) 

I'm personally really pleased with how well my body has held up, and I thank Norma for both her support, and for regularly reminding me to be conservative in making any number of decisions over the last 5 weeks and ride within myself :-). So... Here's a few final statistics and trivia points...

1. The Bike: The 'Fang rode flawlessly! No flats, no mechanicals, no problems. I replaced a chain at approximately 1500 miles in Salida, CO, but that was right on schedule as planned.  Both tires and brakes are going strong - a bit worn on the rear tire, but probably another 500-1000 miles to go. Brake pads look like they're barely worn at all - they are the original, stock Juin Tech pads ;-) The BXT carbon gravel frame from AliExpress -- rode superbly over everything, even with 35-40lbs of gear and food, and up to 7 liters of water on top of that!

2. The Course: While everyone we rode with started on June 9 at the "Tour Divide Race" grand depart in Banff, we all acknowledged early on that we were not interested in being fanatical about sticking to the prescribed route.  A few too many sections for my taste are clearly included just to be a pain in the ass, and I regularly railed about being routed up another "pointless pass" that was included not because it made sense getting from point A to point B, but because it was a dirt road someone at ACA and liked couldn't leave out!  Ultimately, we all followed the spirit of the GDMBR, but took a variety of liberties to plot alternative routes to avoid either mud, rediculous washboard gravel, climbs up streambeds (Koko Claims), any route with a snowstorm on it (Fleecer Ridge, Togwothee Pass, Union Pass), and dangerous heat.  This made the ride decidedly more doable, but still far from easy.  Ultimately my route totaled 2065 miles, and 93,725' of climbing over 5 weeks and 34 riding days. To put that into a bit more manageable perspective, that's just shy of 61 miles per riding day, with a bit more than  2750' of climbing each day, with almost all of it at altitude over 5000', and most of the last 3 weeks at 7,000-10,000' altitude. More than enough to be proud of at 64, and after celebrating that birthday on the most challenging day of the whole ride on Togwothee Pass :-). (Super thanks to the family who stopped with their RV on top of Togwothee Pass to pick me up and give me a 15 mile lift through the worst of the snow!).