Hi everyone. I already posted about this in the ‘just conversation’ section but someone suggested I might be better off posting it here. So…
I thought some of you might be interested to hear about my plans to MUni the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route this summer. If you’re not familiar, the route is 2,745 miles long, mostly off pavement, and follows the Continental Divide as much as possible as it runs from Banff, Canada, to the Mexican border in New Mexico. I grew up riding unicycles, but until recently, hadn’t been on one in about 13 years! I know there’s a wealth of knowledge amongst everyone here and I’m excited to hear your thoughts on the ride and any suggestions you may have (especially about the seat!)
I’m blogging about the ride at my website, www.greatdivideride.com and am using the natural attention getting draw of the unicycle to raise awareness of human trafficking. Kids love the unicycle, and it’s proving to be a fun way to introduce them to a difficult topic (and to unicycling as well!). In addition, I’m trying to raise $10,000 for Polaris Project, a well respected anti-trafficking organization in Washington D.C. (it’d be great if all the unicyclists would represent!) I’m eager to hear what you all have to say and hope you follow along with what is sure to be an adventure! Anyone want to start placing bets on how many times I fall?
There’s also a great video from Gracie & Matt’s trip that Matt has up on Vimeo. I’m going to be hard pressed to be as entertaining as these two… http://vimeo.com/17852073
I think the most important training is to prepare my rear! This means working on getting my seat right and reducing my pack weight as much as possible. You can build muscle on the trail but you can’t build cushioning!
As far as physical training, right now I’m focused on preparing for a Marathon that I hope to run in the spring. I’m following my marathon training schedule and simply trying to get out on the muni when I can, and using it for my cross training. With the uni, I’m focused more on technique right now than distance. After the marathon, I’ll start ramping up the miles on the muni and start riding with a full pack; maybe do a few shakedown rides if I can fit them in. I don’t have a set schedule for uni training figured out yet, but when I do, I’ll put it up on the training page of my website
The longest ride I’ve done so far is 12 miles (on pavement). I know, that’s no where near what I’ll have to average on the route! I will say that, that was one of my first rides after my 13 year hiatus and I could have kept going!
In your thread in Just Conversation you were looking for sources for soft rubber. I don’t know if you’d be interested but we have about 400 pounds of 20 Shore A liquid silicone rubber that we need to do something with. It is off spec. It is a two part kit that hasn’t been mixed. I can get more specs to you if you wish.
400 lbs!? Wow! I actually used to work some with these two part silicones. My memory is a bit foggy on the hardness ratings… I’ll send you a PM with some questions in the next day or two, after I refresh my memory. Right now I have to get to bed so I can wake up to ride bright and early! Thanks for the lead!
His posts seem to be a few days behind the date that they hit the site (e.g. the post that went up today, 7/10, covers his riding on 7/4). So it seems he’s still going.
There are definitely significant segments of the Great Divide where coverage is spotty or non-existent; the lack of posting is consistent with him being on the trail as opposed to in town.
Greetings from Lincoln, MT! I’m almost 600 miles and 19 days into the trip now. My ankle is holding up well, but I have to wear a brace for now. The Canadian section was cold and wet, so far Montana has been sunny and hot. There’s another unicyclist out here riding the route as well! He passed me near the US / Canada border and last I heard, he’s about three days ahead.
Journal entries to the blog are uploaded when I come into town to resupply, and I schedule their publication so that only one entry posts per day. Having the delay allows for a more continuous flow of entries. For more pictures and some real-time updates (when service is available), I’m posting to the Facebook page for the ride and a little to twitter as well. You shouldn’t need an account to view either page:
I know there’s a wealth of knowledge amongst everyone here and I’m excited to hear your thoughts on the ride and any suggestions you may have (especially about the seat!)