The Narrative:
When we provided our justification on the race entry form we stated ‘we will not challenge those at the Front of the Pack… as our competitive days are long gone… but we will have the most fun at the Back of the Pack’. Well, I am prophetic. As usual.

Going into the race we were convinced that we’d finish… as we have significant experience with the suffer factor and have spent countless hours roaming the great Southwest. Plus the hundreds of miles (ok, 1200+) that I’ve logged on the Colorado Trail gave me the confidence that I would endure. (Yeah, time to plug my SingleSpeeding on The Colorado Trail blog. cuz I’m proud of that massive dataset.)

But the weather threw everyone into a tailspin. Some fast dudes and dudettes made it deep into the race / trail before the weather became an issue… thus there were a fair number of finishers – like 35%. (The 2nd lowest in race history.) Others were hit at the midpoint of the race… creating a mind numbing decision of ‘walk & push or quit‘. Others, like us that roam at the back of the pack, were hit hard with snow / sleet / rain many miles short of the 1/2 way check point. And finishing, due to the long push and cuttoff times, became impossible. (AND… continuing on the trail after a missed cutoff IS NOT an option… race rules.) Yeah, it was a serious set of conditions for many of us. And when you roll with the adventure attitude vs the race attitude you must make decisions that are based in safety and not glory. That’s just the way it is.

A WARNING: this is a long blog post. I don’t expect anyone but The Founding Fathers to get through it. But Hell, I don’t want to go to work today. (I like staying at home while getting paid. It’s called a ‘benefit package’.)

just some thoughts to WASTE YOUR TIME

if grown men could cry… I’d tear up when:

• the weather forecast calls for wintery mix.. and the race director says… ‘looks like rain’
• at the edge of darkness it starts… snow, sleet, rain, snow, snow, sleet, rain
• you roll into the race with the best nutritional strategy… ice cream bars. AND the ice cream bars MELT one hour into the race.
• the hard edges of the trail are ‘churned’ up by a pack of snowmobiles, I mean snow machines – thus transforming a nice ride into a very strenuous ride. 
• but that’s OK, trails must be shared by all cool dudes and dudettes… and every single snow machiner greeted us with a wave and nice hello.
• we were told that the last 3 miles into check point 2 were a ‘nice’ road. then, when the chaffage was oozing, I realized the trail ain’t on the road and I’m still pushing… for 2 hours.

Arrowhead 135 – body movin from Judd Rohwer on Vimeo.

• if you are in it for the adventure, roll with gear and supplies for the ENTIRE adventure
• we were convinced that we’d finish around 24 to 30 hours. Thus we were out of food after 30 hours, check point 2. if the cutoff times weren’t an issue, we’d be cruising the trail with very little food… aside from the mandatory 3000 ‘survival’ calories.
• roll with 3 sets of gear. pick the best set based on the forecast right before the race
• warm weather gear, wet weather gear, cold weather gear
• use the bitch’n titanium racks to full potential. using a backpack for easy access ain’t justification for the unnecessary weight on the back. 
• poggies are awesome. but sweaty hands (not gloves) and rubber grips create major skin issues – blisters and split digits. 
• when bivy’d up – wet ain’t a way to survive. must figure out how to keep the sleeping bag dry, even when setting up the camp in the sleet.

• my complete gear list is embedded in this post… SnowBikePacking and the End of the World Party.
• Vasque SnowBurban Winter Boots – perfect. the feet stayed dry. Cold Weather performance proven in NM fatbike / snowbike trips.
• Woolrich wool pants – perfect, even in wet conditions
• Mountain Hardware rain jacket – not so perfect, worked on the Colorado Trail… massive thunderstorms. But not on the Arrowhead Trail… snow, sleet, rain.
• The North Face Inferno -20F sleeping bag. Terrible. It was a wet mass of crap. I had no option for another night on the trail. So, ditch’n this POS and looking for a new -20F bag.
• manufactured wool hat – not so perfect.
• Handmade wool hat – perfect
• Go Lite backpack – slightly stoopid choice when ‘wintry mix’ is on the forecast. I need water proof backpack and more dry sacks.
• roll with the Esbit – no need for white gas for a 60 hr (max) race. if you gotta melt snow (create water) you are outta the race and have time to wait on the slower melt rate of the Esbit. 

Yeah, we were prepared… for riding 24 to 30 hours in very cold conditions. We were not prepared, mentally, for pushing bikes through heavy snow. We have unmeasurable experience with the hike-a-bike lifestyle. So it’s not like we couldn’t handle a 70 mile walk through the snow. But our game plan, our strategy, did not provide for adequate time & food and mental energy to trudge through the snow for 24 to 36 hours. (Full Disclosure… our slow pace, at the back of the pack, put us ‘way out’ when bad conditions hit. And that’s our fault… for cruise’n at the back of the pack… but that’s how we roll.)

Yeah, it’s all about The Mental issues – it’s all about planning and expectations. Next year, we WILL BE better prepared, mentally, for any and all conditions… for a complete 60 hour effort.

3 Fundamental Tactical Errors:

• stopping before MelGeorges. Gotta get there on Day 1 to ensure options for Day 2 and Day 3
• relying on a 30 hr ‘race’ strategy and relying on resupply points
• not having a wet weather strategy – this includes appropriate overnight gear to survive NOT 1, BUT 2 or 3 nights in wet / cold weather. 

• patience. wait it out. if you have 60 hours, plan for 60 hours. conditions turn, both ways, good and bad.
• the right attitude. gotta have the right attitude. and that attitude is based on enduring ALL conditions for the 60 hours.
• pace for cutoff times WITH adequate MARGIN. can’t bivy up at 12am if there is a possibility of 20 to 30 to 40 to 50 miles of hike-a-bike. keep going until a time surplus is established
• roll with supplies for a 3 day adventure. yep, broken record… can’t rely on two small resupplies at check pt 1 & 2. we do this on the Colorado Trail. why on Earth did we roll with ’35’ miles of supplies and count on resupply points. that’s a rookie / juvenile approach to hardcore adventure riding. (Note: I didn’t say adventure racing… you get’n how we roll?)

• absolutely. I wish we could roll out today for attempt #2.
• we don’t leave unfinished business. we leave business on the table for another day. but we don’t leave unfinished business.
• Minnesotans are the best and we want to return to Minnesota. am I biased? probably. 
• but I’m a native Minnesotan – born in Hennepin County / Wayzata / Lake Minnetonka in 1973. I’m a semi native Colorado dude – moved from Minnesota in 1977. now I’m stuck working for The Man in New Mexico.

just some data and pics… if you’re really bored

The Route:

RED is our path, BLUE is the complete track.

The Road Trip:

We traveled the south route to International Falls
And traveled the north route home – to miss the big storms ripping through Iowa and Kansas and…

The Pictures… back of the pack style:

Arrowhead 135 – Jan 2013 from Judd Rohwer on Vimeo.

a subset of the pics:

and the question all are asking… why did The Judd grow a beard?

• because The Morale Chairman and The Lt Col made me?
• because I wanna get all the foxy mamas… as little Grace Bedelle explained to Abe Lincoln.
• “… All the ladies like whiskers”

and just some added info:

three final words:

solemn oath, dawg