I wanted 10 hours of daylight to do this adventure comfortably. Being late September, the days were getting shorter.
I got started an hour later than I planned, so my first goal was to make 25 miles under 4 hours.
The route climbs for most of the first 10 miles. I hit 25 miles just under 4 hours where Southern Crossing Trail meets Hwy. 337.
That half felt like a race. I had only stopped a couple of times for a quick break.
At that point, I knew I had sufficient time and I could back off the pace and enjoy the ride. When I did, I felt like I could keep it up all day.
I hadn't premapped my route for this trip, so I was estimating my total distance mentally as I went.
I added extra loops in the Oak Flat area. I meant to go over Bear Scat, but actually went over Poker Chip/Meadow Single Track.
I hit 50 miles at the Coyote Split on Coyote Trail at less than 8 hours. I new I would have over 50 by the end.
My odometer reading was 54.5 when I got back to my car. I rode back and forth on FR462 until I got to 55 miles.
I felt great and would have gone for 60 miles had there been another trail that didn't climb.
This was a personal record for me. The GPS tracklog showed 53, but it tends to read short.
The total time was 8:35 hours. Total climb was ~6000 feet according to the software. It was probably less that that.
I was 72 at the time of this ride. I challenge you to give it a try. It was a great adventure!
