(Yeah I’ve got a lot of energy this morning. No training, maybe a hike later, and I really am not keen to start the days necessities of grading and laundry, ergo lots of posts. But that’s why this thing exists anyways.)

In the interest of hoping on the diy/enduro/curiakstyle race/ride bandwagon, I propose the Kaibab Monstercross 150 (estimate), for sometime this coming summer, perhaps early to mid June. A big, long day loop on the Kaibab upwarp, North of the Big Ditch.

Why monstercross? Cuz none of the singletrack is very technical, none of the climbs would be huge, and bike (and gearing!) selection would be tricky. It’d be interesting to design a course where the most advantageous bike would be a cross bike with 45cish tires. This might qualify, though I’d likely still run Nanos (as I plan to do for TI) for the comfort and reliability.

It’d use some of a gorgeous and scenic gravel and dirt roads to link the AZ trail and the Rainbow rim, two killer bits of singletrack. The full AZT from 89a to the park boundary is around 40 miles, the full Rainbow 18. One could easily use the Point Sublime and Quaking Aspen canyon roads to connect them. I don’t have a map of the area north of 89a, but there’s certainly a way to negotiate that, also. Perhaps I’ll pick up the Kaibab NFS map today, would be useful for…

Planning big training rides for the coming weekends. I’m seeing a ride up to Flag and on through the stage route to the Grand Canyon, stay the night, then come back via the western reaches of the south Kaibab and Prescott NFs. Right now snow makes some of this problematic, but a couple sunny weeks should sort that out. There’s got to be some excellent dirt grinding to be had. I’m counting on the altitude and hill climbing to work very much in my favor for TIv3. Yeah, the hills in Iowa can be hella steep, but as G-ted says, rarely more than a mile long. I ride a 6 mile climb on the way to work.