epic 100 - tucson

czb said:

gonna ride oct 22 epic 100. starts 4 am oct 22 in/near oracle, AZ not
sure where that is. eventually to copper creek road, bunker hill, san
pedro river crossing and so on. as i am from virginia can anyone
comment on this area? i ride 10 or so times a year 100 miles SW of
tucson along ajo mnt range and organ pipe, but i have not idea what
this route has to offer. any thoughts, ideas? perhaps some of you
have done this race and can make tire, frame recomendations.

thanks

S L I M E ! ! ! Weight won't stop you, but punctured tubes will.

You're insane, but it sounds like fun. Good luck.

--
o-o-o-o Ride-A-Lot o-o-o-o
www.schnauzers.ws

I did the Sole Ride last year but I DNF'd. It was my first attempt at
an offroad century and it kicked my ass.

The first hike-a-bike section is probably ridable except for the fact
that there are too many people carrying their rides up in the dark at
4am. The dirt roads aren't too bad and the trail-finding is fairly
easy.

Around sunrise (which should put you close to the 2nd aid station I
believe) there is a portion of the route that comprises A LOT of sand
through a couple of washes. If you can stay close to the front and find
untracked sand, you'd be alright, otherwise, it is churned all to hell.
Yeah, I speak from experience. I think I took a couple of diggers at
that point. At this point I was mid-pack but it was well strung out. I
saw very few riders.

I found the Copper Creek climb to be the most difficult part but not
for technical reasons or due to the grade. It was about that point that
I figured I probably ate too much at the aid station or not enough as I
was riding. I just didn't feel much like riding at that point. On the
downhill side, I recovered a bit, so it wasn't too bad.

The remainder of the ride is mostly rolling dirt roads in varying
degrees of smoothness. I gave it up 75 miles in at the last aid
station. The volunteers said the last 25 miles may be the most
difficult part of the course as you go up the AZ Trail. I can't concur
since I didn't speak to many others afterward. Just had a few beers,
picked up my lights, and ate a bunch of food and went back to the cabin
to crash.

As for frame choices I'd say a geared hard-tail would be your best bet.
Full suspension like I was riding felt a lot like overkill for most
parts. A few on SS seemed to do just fine. I believe a couple were
riding fully rigid, but unless you can tolerate miles of washboard
roads, I wouldn't recommend it. As for tires, I ran Continental
Vertical Pros on both ends. Might use something with less side-knob
though since the conditions were dry and packed, except for the sand.

A good (i.e. bright) light system would be worth your while. I was
running a bar-mounted HID with a helmet-mounted halogen backup in my
pack. You can drop off the lights at one of the aid stations so it
can't hurt to have an extra.

Most of all, the people were the best part. The dinner the night before
is pretty decent, more for meeting all the others riding the 100 miles
than the food itself. Epic Rides puts together a good time and well
organized show. I know there were people out there to "race" but most I
encountered made it feel like a large group ride.

John Spann

Ride-A-Lot said:

czb said:

gonna ride oct 22 epic 100. starts 4 am oct 22 in/near oracle, AZ not
sure where that is. eventually to copper creek road, bunker hill, san
pedro river crossing and so on. as i am from virginia can anyone
comment on this area? i ride 10 or so times a year 100 miles SW of
tucson along ajo mnt range and organ pipe, but i have not idea what
this route has to offer. any thoughts, ideas? perhaps some of you
have done this race and can make tire, frame recomendations.

thanks

S L I M E ! ! ! Weight won't stop you, but punctured tubes will.

You're insane, but it sounds like fun. Good luck.

--
o-o-o-o Ride-A-Lot o-o-o-o
www.schnauzers.ws

this is terrific help. i am very thankful. just did shenandoah
mountain 100 and the wilderness 101 and in both cases two of your
observations were so true: if you are not up front, the trail wear and
tear leaves you really in a bind, and yet the energy needed to stay up
there can just crush you. and also, the people are incredible. hoping
i can succeed. again, thanks so much.

Umm..I meant "Soul" Ride. I was looking at the Sole Run portion of the
weekend. I definitely meant no disrespect to the organization.

One of those times when you're *trying* to listen to your boss but keep
typing...sorry Mr. Sadow.