Well that gave me a great chuckle (maybe seeing the piccie again was off topic), and thanks for the replies – the silica sack is a great idea.

The solution of a cycling sock has now turned into my solution of using a soft sunglasses bag – it is silky and has a drawstring and weighs bugger all.

Tested it yesterday on a 90 miler and got some good piccies. It tucks in one of the feedbags perfectly!

I just need to learn about SIM cards that let your telephone work in the USA and the tech side of the race is wrapped up.

5000 miles of trail fun really means bibs over so I can get to the bushes – its the new fashion!

Really.

The race has not bothered with a website; its a bit of an underground race, so Mr Google does not know much about it.
Mr Facebook has a page – type in American Trail Race 5000 and take a peek, or check out my blog – the adventures of Rob Colliver.

One shirt, one pair of socks, one pair of shorts, no backpack and lots of high quality gas station food.
Oh, and 350,000′ of climbing thrown in. That about 12 Everests!

There is another Brit on the start sheet – welcome to Rod Gemmell.

Been busy with loads of rides recently – to and then around Cannock, up to Wales and back, a ride out to Winchester and a SDW.

We did the traditional steady Easter South Downs Mountain Bike Club ride toda and met in a pub near Goodwood and bimbled on the downs for the day.

Good fun to ride and chat rather than work up every hill!

I’ve just seen an article in Outsideonline magazine by Juliana Buhring about Mike’s last race and it is a wonderful insight into the man.
I only met him a couple of times, and Juliana is right – he really did inspire us to do more on our bikes.
https://www.outsideonline.com/2173576/mike-hall-man-who-inspired-world-cyclists?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=facebookpost

Did the thin white line on Saturday – its pretty near perfect; dew on the ground until QECP, the only slippage was up Mercury, flints behaved themselves, walkers and other riders opened gates, the trains worked to get me home.
Doing it the other way at the end of the month.

Having spent a fair amount of time on a turbo trainer, I suggest dropping out the rear wheel of your mountain bike and fitting your 700c std roadbike wheel (with TT tyre) and voila, you have the perfect position!
I kept a road bike for years on the trainer and fettled with the position of bars, stems, seats etc, even went as far as fitting aero bars to mimic the mountain bike.
Just swapping wheels is the best solution in my book.

Hi again – sorry I didn’t fill in enough details re carbs…. of course you stick them in every 20 minutes (or at least, thats what I do, just one or two mouthfulls each time); the plan is to look for things that happen to be high in protein – everything proteiney is also carby! On the go I do protein bars, chocolate milk, eggy things and cheese. Its a real bugger that I can’t eat nuts.

If you want to know more, check out my blog, I had been planning a list of things I have eaten to keep the pedals going round after this weeks 4 day ride to Wales and back. Type ‘the adventures of Rob Colliver’.

I really don’t think that it matters too much what you eat on a short race, but if you go too hard and get into the puke zone, calm it all down again with anything gingery.

This is a little off topic now (how hard to push in an endurance race) but you can’t push the output of you have no input.

Off to climb a mountain on a loaded bike.

I tend to put zero effort into the climbs, work hardish on the flat and blast the downhills. I take a 20 minute nap when I think I might fall off the bike. Keep shoving in the protein at every chance – the carbs will take care of themselves. This worked for the SDW double double and has made me more efficient on long rides ever since.
On an organised race, it has to feel better to overtake folk in the final third, than being overtaken, so go out slow and enjoy reeling them in.

Milwaukee. Staffproof.

There are lovers and haters of most bikes/parts in the world – I just select what works for me.
The Lauf has done loads of rides with me, and I will be using it on the American Trail Race 5000 this June from the Atlantic to the Pacific coast via great places such as the home of Jack Daniels, through Arches national park and Moab. Its an off road race and the first bike shop on the course is 3000 miles in.
I want a reliable rig, so the Lauf goes with me.
It smooths out washboard, small hits and small rocks…. it is hopeless with taking air and thrashing around BPW.
Follow its progress by checking out The Adventures of Rob Colliver blog. I won’t put up a link to it, but feel free to check the site.

They certainly get you noticed.

And it is a comfey ride too.

I have two pairs of Endura – one pairs arms were slightly too long and bashed the back of my helmet….. a pair of sidecutters shortened them and they are both really comfey and I forget I’m wearing them.
I did actually get into the tent a couple of weeks back (1030 at night) after a good long ride, then realised I was wearing them when I lay’d down.

That is comfortable!

Time somebody took a crack at the double double again.

Time flies – this was ages ago now, but the course remains the same.

Ride down to the start, ride home?

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/south-downs-way-double-double-ride-is-go

Yep, Ned. Just on the banks of the Elk river where we go to drink a cold Kokanee and watch the ghostrider appear in the summer sunset on Hosmer. Home is in the Annex.

Love mine – winter or summer. Its a climber, a not bad downer and an awesome go anywhere (especially the pub) bike.

Sweepy -its done. Please say its not ugly. I’ll send an email to the Kermode company and ask them to start a gallery!

Hi Sweepy – I never noticed there are no piccies on their site, but I did just go to the shop and drool over them….
I have not mastered putting piccies up on STW so will put a couple on my blog tonight.
https://robcolliveradventures.wordpress.com/blog/
I would have emailed you but can’t get your details. Sorry.

http://www.bikedowns.co.uk/
is the place for info regarding tap locations, road crossings, elevation etc.

I’ve done it unsupported and supported.
West to east is easier if you have the prevailing wind.
East to west gets easier in terms of getting the relentless climbing done whilst you are fresher.
If there are four of you, you could do a leg each and see if you can sneak in under 55 hours!

I have one of these – it climbs better (needs less skill) than my Tallboy LT and weighs 23.6 lbs.
It does not descend quite as well.

http://www.kermodebikes.com/specs.html

Tallboy. Mine knows the way all by itself. Its not fast though, never beaten 10.5 hours for a single.

I’ve been in the Endura MT500 for most of the winter, and I did some rides down a negative 15 (with a down jacket underneath), some rides in the wind, some rides in circles where the rain has been at my front, sides and rear and I can safely say this is not a bad jacket.

I can get the zips up and down with thick gloves on, the only thing I would like would be bigger wrist closure flaps so I can grab the tabs easier when I’m doing the ‘pit vents.

The hood is slow to roll up so I tuck it inside the jacket and leave it unrolled.

Oh, it also breathes as well as my last couple of eVent jackets!

Hi Pedalhead – the double is on my list as a training ride for the American Trail Race I’m doing in June… I’ve done SDW to death, so maybe we can meet up for a bit of Ridgeway action when the trails start to dry?

Baa Baa is only 59’climbing per mile. South Downs Way is 120’/ mile (though only 100 miles). American Trail Race is 69′ / mile and on mountain bikes, and 5000 miles – and we get to ride Moab on the way!

I think I want a road bike. This looks fun.

Stats for resupply for the race are up on the blog – there are more McDonalds, Subways, 7/11’s, diners etc than I thought, but so far, only three bike shops in 5100 miles.

Next blog post is up. It was going to be about all the eateries on the course, but Im only 4300 miles into the planning so that will have to wait.

I did have a chat with the marketing guys from USE tonight and they suggested I shared todays training session and why I did it, so please feel free to read it here.
https://robcolliveradventures.wordpress.com/blog/

Its not suffering – really!

There was a lad who did TD this year and seemed to dislike the experience intently; I can’t wait for 1st of June- the whole 38 days should be a superb adventure.
Just imagine getting 3000 miles into a race, then being on the slickrock trails in Moab.

How can it get better?

Sorry – I’m so wrapped up in it I didn’t explain the title – its the American Trail Race.
It is an off road race from North Carolina to Oregon with the same rules as the Tour Divide.

My goal is 38 days of 16 hours a day of riding. 348,000 feet of climbing too.

If you want to read about my preparation so far, check out

https://robcolliveradventures.wordpress.com/blog/

I ride on Kingley Vale, but am in Canada at present and I can’t see the picture (it shows a ‘no entry’ sign).

Though I’m not sure that mountain bikers all want to stop for coffee in the same way that roadies can’t ride past a shop selling cakes and coffee.

Dreaming of home rides in the sun and not shivering in minus 20 that we have here….

In the spirit of ‘there is no perfect bike for bikepacking’ and ‘use whatever you feel like’, here is my setup from 2016 Tour Divide.
I will be using it again for this years 5100 miler American Trail Race from North Carolina to Oregon. The only change will be that I will carry a telephone, so am modding the power system to let me charge an extra device.

I tend to watch ‘Once more with Feeling’. That will get me through the final 40 minutes of a TT session everytime.

Wow – what a great article- thanks for sharing.

I was talked into doing a bit of blogging regarding doing hour sessions on the turbo when I bumped into a guy in a chippy on my way to a race a few weeks ago.
There are a couple of entries showing what I do when I’m “time crunched” in the Blog section of :_

Home

Quite a few TD riders get issues – the general advice is to dremmel the shoes so the cleat is even further back than the slot currently allows and lower the saddle. It makes your quads work hard for a few days whilst you achilles repairs.

We won’t get negative 15 till the weekend here in Fernie – it was -30 this morning…. no skiing and no biking either. No uncovered skin or it will go white in a couple of minutes.
We will get four days of snow from the weekend to make up for the cold.

Thanks Griz.

Fernie does it again – we were even getting face shots on Emily’s run today – the storms just keep rolling in and yesterdays dumped 25cms of dry powder. Shame I’m in a hotel rather than my cabin – its not working out keeping the fattie in the room so no biking before playing for me for a couple of weeks. I need to get some riding in soon or I’ll go mad.

Great little vid – they just had 30cms in the last day…. good job I’m going that way to help trash it all tomorrow.

I was that dumbass camping the night before, Dogsby – it was pretty damp camping, but still fun. I rode round with a pal and we both came away saying we should do more fun events like this.
Its all good preparation for the ATR next June.

I’m there for 7 weeks, so the next system will roll in and the Griz will do his thing for us.
It does get cold in Fernie sometimes, but that is why there is a turbo trainer in the basement!

Just seen this thread – I’m off to Fernie for a while on Tuesday to get some good old Fernie face shots. Going to ride the fattie every morning before heading to the hill thanks to a brand new MaxxD light from USE. Thank you USE.

Dexter II’s last me approx six months – they are superb. I’ve used them on two Tour Divides and that means wearing them for 16+ hours a day for 3 weeks!

I’ve just got a pair of Deluge II’s (winter gloves) and they have told me the lining is so well sewn in that you can pull them on and off with wet/sweaty hands without them turning inside out as you remove them….. I’ll report back on Monday – I’m about to ride them to Salisbury plain for the SPAM challenge.