{"id":248384,"date":"2024-08-07T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-08-07T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=248384"},"modified":"2024-08-08T06:20:15","modified_gmt":"2024-08-08T06:20:15","slug":"fort-walker-civilian-bikes-2745-miles-from-alberta-canada-to-u-s-mexico-border","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=248384","title":{"rendered":"Fort Walker civilian bikes 2,745 miles from Alberta Canada to U.S. \u2013 Mexico border."},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n At over 2 miles in elevation, Boreas Pass, Colorado is one of the highest parts of the Tour Divide Robert Maple had to cross during his race.
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\n Robert Wells of Fort Walker, VA takes a break in the Rocky mountains during the Tour Divide race.
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\n Robert Wells in Banff, Alberta, Canada on June 14 2024, prior to starting the Tour Divide race.
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\n Robert Wells at the finish of the 2,450 mile Tour Divide bike race in Antelope Wells, New Mexico
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Fort Walker Va. \u2013 For 25 years, Robert Maple pushed pedals as his exercise, relaxation and escape. It was not until four years ago he discovered his passion for bike-packing\u2013 carrying food and supplies on your bicycle and heading into the wilderness. Maple competed in a bikepacking race from Harrisonburg, VA to Roanoke, VA and he was immediately convinced this was the hobby he had been searching for his whole life.<\/p>\n

Now, Maple, a Geographic Information Systems Program Manager based at Fort Walker, and his wife bike over 5,000 miles a year, participating in several in-state races throughout the calendar. \u00a0As one does in any enthusiast community, one learns about new things, topics and trends.\u00a0Through his bike-packing network, Maple caught wind of a mammoth challenge he couldn\u2019t ignore: The Tour Divide.<\/p>\n

Measuring an agonizing 2,745 miles and, in some places, featuring altitudes of over two miles, the Tour Divide is a brutal test of will along the Continental Divide through two Canadian provinces and five U.S. states. Riders are unsupported throughout the trek; that is to say, there are no follow vehicles, aid stations, or checkpoints; you have what you had when you began, and that is all. \u00a0All participants are required to have a GPS tracking device in case of emergencies, and to track their progress.<\/p>\n

Maple and all other riders departed from Banff, Alberta, Canada on June 14, 2024, and began the grueling journey south.\u00a0The distance, lack of supplies, and elements weren\u2019t the only perils on this trip; grizzly bears, gray wolves, and mountain lions all roam the central-north of the North American continent.<\/p>\n

\u201cI kept bear spray with me all the time,\u201d said Maple.\u00a0\u201cI tied my food high in trees at least 50 feet from my tent, because anyone who knows anything about camping knows you don\u2019t keep any food in your tent.\u201d<\/p>\n

When asked, \u2018What was the hardest part of this journey?\u2019, Maple said, \u201cPeople say this race is 80 percent physical and 90 percent psychological, which is obviously bad math, but honestly, the hardest part was trying to mentally plan your logistics. Where am I going to get my next food?\u00a0Where am I going to get my next water?\u00a0There was one day when I was down to just one Snickers bar and I was taking a tiny bite once an hour to conserve it.\u201d<\/p>\n

There were opportunities to refuel and repair along the way. The route involved towns and cities, many with much-needed bicycle repair shops. Maple said he replaced numerous sets of brake pads, his drive chain, rear tire, rear casette, and other parts along the trip.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve never been to Montana before,\u201d said Maple when asked about the most impressive thing he saw on the journey. \u201cI\u2019ve never felt so tiny and so alone in such an enormous space. People say they want to disconnect sometimes; this was truly disconnection.\u201d<\/p>\n

Montana was the beginning of the slow climb up the Rocky Mountains.\u00a0A brief canyon ride in Idaho, and Maple was in Wyoming climbing again. That was short-lived as most of that state\u2019s 410 miles were downhill, but Colorado was a new challenge altogether.\u00a0In Colorado, Maple faced the steepest inclines of his ride and the highest altitudes. Over the 510 Colorado miles, he crossed elevations of two miles on four separate occasions before beginning his descent into New Mexico; he had one significant climb and 700 miles between him and the finish.<\/p>\n

In the end, Maple and his titanium Bearclaw Beaux Jaxon bicycle dodged the last of the cacti and copious number of rattlesnakes and arrived in Antelope Wells at the U.S. – Mexico border on July 13, 2024, after 29 days, 4 hours and 46 minutes. Relieved, exhausted and overjoyed, he held his bicycle over his head for a picture at the end of the arduous adventure.<\/p>\n

Days later, back at Fort Walker, a well-rested Maple was asked if he ever planned to encounter this challenge again; he said, \u201cOh yeah, my wife and I are already planning to do it as a team; maybe in a couple of years.\u201d<\/p>\n

Established in 1941, Fort Walker is the Joint Force’s premier all-purpose, year-round training destination. Encompassing nearly 76,000 acres of diverse terrain, including a 27,000-acre live fire complex, Fort Walker is uniquely postured to meet training and range qualification requirements for full spectrum operations. Our professional staff prides itself on delivering quality service and stands ready to assist in your mission planning and execution. Fort Walker provides the best training and support… anywhere!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

1 \/ 4 Show Caption + Hide Caption \u2013 At over 2 miles in elevation, Boreas Pass, Colorado is one of the highest parts of the Tour Divide Robert Maple had to cross during his race. (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL 2 \/ 4 Show Caption + Hide Caption \u2013 Robert Wells of Fort […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":248386,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-248384","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/248384","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=248384"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/248384\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":248391,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/248384\/revisions\/248391"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/248386"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=248384"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=248384"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=248384"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}