Route conditions, Racer’s Rigs and some pre-race podcasts ...

A little over a day to go and 141 riders are lining up for the Grand Depart from Banff (SOBO), with 5 more starting in Antelope Wells heading Northbound (NOBO). Michael Grosso is making good progress with his early NOBO ITT and is about to hit a few hours of snowy/muddy hike-a-bike on Brazos Ridge, before facing the unknown snowfall on Indiana Pass on Friday.

The route is clear through Canada and Montana, with just a little bit of hike-a-bike over the top of Red Meadow Pass. Richmond Peak is clear which is a big relief for those who know how treacherous that can be in the snow.

There may still be some snow on Brooks Lake Rd coming off Togwotee Pass in Wyoming, and the at the top of the Union Pass area for the first few riders.

Damian van Loon posted this of Togwotee Pass yesterday as he rode through on the TransAm:

The big unknown is Colorado, which has had massive snowfall this season. The big three passes to consider there are Boreas Pass out of Breckenridge, Marshall Pass out of Salida, and Indiana Pass out of Del Norte. (Ute Pass and Lynx Pass are clear).

Grace Ragland posted this pic of Marshall Pass yesterday:

The annual Racer Rigs profiles are up on Bikepacking.com. Sit back and spend a some minutes checking out how nearly 80 of the racers are setup for the challenge.

https://bikepacking.com/bikes/tour-divide-rigs-2019/

For those who listen to podcasts, Ross Burrage (racing single speed this year) has posted up his two latest interviews with Lael Wilcox and Josh Kato on his The Hidden Athlete podcast.

https://www.spreaker.com/user/thehiddenathletepodcast/final-lael-wilcox

https://www.spreaker.com/user/thehiddenathletepodcast/final-josh-kato