More thoughts on the Tour of Idaho

What worked. What didn’t. And what I forgot to say.

It’s been six weeks since we completed the Tour and I’m still unwinding the whole experience in my head. After my first post on our success, I realized some details were left out so started putting some of these thoughts into a draft. Rain kept me at home this weekend so it was a good opportunity to finish up the post.

Bike Setup

Jeff and I made very few changes in our gear and bike-related setup over what we ran in 2018. I added a Giant Loop Buck-in-roll tank bag and grip heaters. Jeff switched from Dunlop to GoldenTyre on the front and rear, added a nice Baja Designs headlight and had his rear shock re-sprung. I can’t think of any other notable updates or changes on the bikes. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

Tires

A little note about tires. Folks, these are your interface with the landscape. You can’t skimp on tires during the Tour. We both ran GoldenTyre GT216 Fatties on the front and GT333’s on the rear. Our rear tires were replaced in Salmon at the end of Day 5 with well over 1,000 covered but our front tires remained mounted for the entire duration. It was 2,050 miles to the finish and another 150 to where we were picked up. Think about that . . . 2,200 miles on a front tire. See below.

The Front Fork Seal

Ah yes. This issue plagued me just about the whole time. Prayers from the DJ didn’t even help. It was destined to be. Things like that typically drive me nuts. I had to just get over it and move on. Interestingly, my suspension actually improved a little as the oil level dropped but eventually it passed a damping threshold that was not good. The Moosehead Beer koozie cup that was deployed did its job and kept the oil off the caliper. Those were the stock seals and they lasted nearly 2,000 miles before one let me down. Not too bad in the overall scheme of things. Timing was just bad.

Suspension Plus rebuilt the forks, lowered the oil level, and adjusted the valving based on my feedback. I haven’t ridden it much, but can tell a difference. And . . . SealSavers were installed!

Riding Gear

My riding gear selection was nearly identical to what I used in 2018. I did get some new knee braces (Asterisk Carbon Cell) and took two pairs of the KUIU socks instead of one. Reluctantly (but luckily) one of my Klim stowaway jackets and a pair of the Klim Forecast pants were stuffed into my Kriega 10L rear fender bag. I wasn’t thrilled about the extra weight but I sure was glad to have them both at various times throughout the ride.

Everyone knows that I’m sold on Klim’s gear. It is the best stuff out there and lasts forever. The Dakar line is the most versatile and Martin’s recommendation to use it for the Tour is spot on. You’ll regret wearing vented gear on most mornings after Day 2. “Layers” is the keyword here. Plan accordingly.

One last shout out to Klim! Every 2020 Tour of Idaho finisher received a Klim Arsenal vest. I love mine and was thrilled to get another one. These guys support the sport and support the Tour. Use their gear.

Folks we met along the way . . .

I can think of at least one person we met each day that stuck with me for one reason or another. Some of them are included in the primary write up but I failed to mention some others.

Day 1: The owners of the Little Rock Cafe in McCammon are neat folks. They’re transplants from Illinois who have found a little niche to fill in southeastern Idaho. As with most business owners, they’ve had to adapt during the pandemic and seem to be doing a nice job of making it work. They rolled out the red carpet for the Hillbillies, feed us well, kept our water topped off and sent us on our way with a “hand pie” . . . couldn’t have asked for more. We were so impressed that we stopped there for dinner on our way back home after the Tour. Called ahead and they had it ready when we arrived. I’ll be back Chip!

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Day 3: It was around noon on Day 3 when Jeff and I were rolling down Trail Creek road into Ketchum, Hmmm. We see someone sitting on an orange bike in a parking area on the left. As we get closer, this person starts waiving at us so we pull over. It was Ben Tyler’s Son! He and his Dad had been watching our trackers so they knew when we’d be coming through town. We chatted for several minutes amidst the thick smoke in the valley. Very nice to see someone from back home and know that folks were watching our progress. Thanks!

Our destination on Day 3 was Smoky Bar Store. I went into the store when we arrived and found Kaylin. She said we’d arrived earlier than expected but got us setup for lodging, showers, and dinner. Staying there was an awesome experience and Kaylin made us feel welcome. Her hospitality was noteworthy.

Day 7: What a long day, but it ended nicely when we walked into the Three Rivers Resort just after 9pm. It was dark. Really dark, and we’d just covered over 200 miles traversing the Frank Church Wilderness. The new owners of the “Resort” usually close at 9pm but had stayed open, made sure we got what we needed for dinner and breakfast, loaned us a fan to use in the room, and let us know how to get in touch if we needed anything else. They were very interested in our adventure and I believe stopping at their establishment will become a routine matter for those attempting the Tour in the future.

Day 8: The first challenge point on Day 8 was being “manned” by a couple from Maryland. It was “their” tower for the next month or so and I think he was glad to see someone. The tower was off limits due to COVID but he came out and asked if we wanted some coffee. We explained what we were doing and he took a keen interest in the “technology” part of this adventure. He wanted to know how we mapped it all out and how our GPS devices were being utilized and was curious about the whole tracker thing and how that worked. The gentleman noted my accent and commented that I couldn’t be from around this area. True. I told him we were from Kentucky. “Ah!” he said, “that makes sense”.

We were so thrilled to arrive at Lochsa Lodge before dark. Ecstatic to say the least. After topping off the bikes, we checked in and headed to the store to stock up before eating dinner. An older guy with a dated long-sleeve riding jersey on asked if we were doing the TAT? Nope. “Oh, the BDR.” he said. Nope. “We’re doing the Tour of Idaho.” This guy lit up when he realized we’d just finished Day 8. He’s been following it online and understood what we’d just accomplished. It’s difficult to convey his level of enthusiasm. “Wow! You guys are kickass!” and several other “comments” were loudly conveyed. Memorable to say the least. Finally, we escaped to our cabins.

Day 9: This was one day that I really wanted to finish early. The end of the day was a beater. That Steven’s Peak stuff was no fun at that point in the tour. As was typical, my bike’s low fuel light was glowing when we finally made it to the Ryan Hotel in Wallace. Having the door opened for us and the following greeting we received from Donna upon arrival was a treat. What she has done with that Hotel is astounding. It’s a wonder that she welcomes in two filthy, worn out guys that have been on the trail for 9 days!

Day 10: As we rode up to Sundance Peak we spotted a truck parked on the left and noticed someone was up in the tower. The truck had Montana tags on it. Jeff and I both got out our phones to take some pictures and get in touch with the wives. An older man appeared along the top deck of the lookout and asked us how we were doing. Jeff explained that we’d just finished the Tour of Idaho. He started scurrying down the stairs. He’d spent some time talking with Stuart Schiff who finished a two days before we did and was intrigued with the whole “Tour of Idaho” concept. This was his 6th year manning this particular tower and had spent the previous 26 years in a tower down in the Clearwater National Forest. Jeff asked him to take some pictures of us and he obliged. It was important to him that all visitors sign a log so he ascended the stairs of the tower, retrieved the log and headed back down. We signed the log for him and started to leave but he wanted to show us a book that he just published about his years in the tower down on the Clearwater. It had that new book smell, the scent of ink and paper that is typical of a print shop. This guy would have talked to us until dark but we had to go. We’d just finished the most challenging adventure of our lives and needed to decompress. It was nice to close out the Tour with this one final encounter.

The Aftermath

Honestly, it took me about 3 weeks to get back to normal. Fortunately, my wrist was good within 3-4 days but my hands were a wreck. They were kinda numb, felt really fat, and didn’t work well. Typing seemed to help, and that was good as there were about 400 e-mails in my work inbox. This issue plagued me for every bit of 3 weeks and then gradually faded away.

A couple folks asked me how much weight I lost on the Tour. Surprisingly, little if any. My weight the day we left for Idaho was 188 lbs. and I’d been hovering just below 190 for about a month. My pre-Tour “training” began early in the summer and I’d been riding my bicycle outside (inside when wet) at least 5 days a week and keeping my weight in that range hadn’t been an issue. The morning after I returned, I got on the scales, and it settled at 189 lbs. but since then, it has climbed to 195 lbs. and is holding steady. I’m good with that.

As Martin notes, there are no cheering crowds, huge trophies, big payouts, or media-based notoriety when you complete the Tour of Idaho. However, you do realize that you’re a part of a small group of folks that understands what you experienced on the Tour. Other people are impressed, but only a rider that has completed it, or have made a deep run into the Tour, can really appreciate the undertaking. Our way of commemorating the accomplishment was custom graphics! Jeff worked with GrafixWorx in Crestwood, Kentucky to design Tour of Idaho backgrounds with our finisher numbers, #77 & #78.

My bike got some TLC over the past few weeks. Fresh tires, a thorough cleaning, rebuilt forks, and neat new graphics! The zipper on my Giant Loop Mojavi saddle bag has also been repaired. I ripped it on the morning of Day 8. My fault. Tried to stuff too much in there. The guys at Paige’s Shoe Repair in downtown Frankfort fixed me up for $6.25.

At this point, even with the bike ready to go, I’m not interested in riding it. Nope. I’ve ridden my 2-stroke a couple times and it feels like a mountain bike. Also, there is a TrailTech odometer on my 2-stroke. Somehow, I accidentally got it to a screen that showed total accumulated mileage. That odometer is probably 3+ years old. It showed 1,238 miles. In 3+ years. Hmmm . . . and we rode 2,050 miles in ten days.

See you on the trail!