Kurt Refsnider’s Record-Breaking Ride on the Grand Loop
Words by Kurt Refsnider
Kurt Refsnider is a seasoned bikepacker and adventurer who has explored wild public lands across the American West and around the globe. He’s the co-founder of Bikepacking Roots and a champion of self-supported exploration.
Back on the last weekend of May, while all the gravel enthusiasts were in Kansas for Unbound, I headed to the tiny town of Nucla, Colorado, near the Utah border. I went for a very different style of event called the Grand Loop Race, which delivers 370 miles of raw, rugged, and remote mountain biking among the region's forested plateaus and redrock canyons.
The Grand Loop Race was the original of the now-popular modern bikepacking races, getting its start in the early 2000s (read more about the history of the event here). This was my third time racing the Grand Loop, and as intimidating as the course is, the weather forecast was what had me particularly nervous with highs hitting triple digits in the desert sections of the route. Most of my planning energy for approximately 50 hours of racing was related to how hot it was going to be. I knew that managing the heat would be my biggest challenge, and I successfully managed it, finishing with a new course record despite the conditions. I'll share here my approach for dealing with that heat and a few other suggestions for preparing for hot events.
In self-supported events like the Grand Loop, racers are entirely on their own. There are no aid stations, no support crews, no water caches, just whatever publicly available services might be found along the route. In the case of the Grand Loop, that means just one resupply option 150 miles in and refilling on water from the sparse creeks, murky stock ponds, and the crunchy brown Colorado River. And if something goes wrong, which can happen so quickly in the heat, participants are still entirely on their own. That means the consequences of digging too deep in the heat or running out of water are all the more severe. And on the light-colored soils and oven-like drainages in this desert, it can feel considerably hotter. That can get scary very quickly when racing self-supported in a landscape with so little water.
Here's what my strategy looked like for this race:
Timing for Low Elevation Riding
I tried to pace my effort to minimize my time at low elevations during the hottest parts of the day. That meant pushing hard for the first 24 hours (sans sleep), the first half of which is at higher elevations, to get as far as possible through the subsequent low desert miles and hopefully start climbing to higher elevations before the heat of the second day. I was fortunate to be able to hit the hours-long and oven-like climb into the La Sal Mountains around 11 am. It was still hot, but not as oppressive or dangerous as it would have been a few hours later.
Cool Riding Gear
I opted for the coolest helmet possible and a light-colored shirt. I usually go for the Lazer Jackal KinetiCore helmet for mountain biking, but I decided on the Z1 KinetiCore for this race as it's the best-ventilated helmet I've ever used (from the combination of all the vents and the additional airflow allowed through the KinetiCore channels). And a light-colored short-sleeved T-shirt is what keeps me coolest in dry desert environments (white sun sleeves don't actually seem to help here).
Back Off in the Heat
I eased up considerably once it got hot that second afternoon when my Coros GPS topped out at 109 degrees F. A couple of hours later, that easier pace was literally as hard as I could even go until I cooled off later that night after sunset. Pushing hard in the heat makes one's core temperature climb so fast! One's body and heart also work harder in the heat as the body works to try to cool itself off.
Photo Credit: Gregg Dunham
Stay On Top of Hydration
I left Fruita with five liters of water, treated another five liters from the Colorado River, and got five more at a spring a few hours later. And I drank it all. That was 15 liters in 15 hours! That still wasn't enough, but it was all I could reasonably drink and carry.
Cool the Body
Whenever I had the chance that second afternoon, I'd dunk my shirt and gloves in water and wet my head. That may have only been twice, but it made a big difference. A cooling towel over my neck would have also helped, but I didn't want to use any of my precious water for that. In other race settings, ice vests or socks would be advantageous, but that's not possible in this sort of racing.
Get the Calories In
I know from experience how tough it is for me to eat in the heat, but it's more important than ever to get sufficient calories in the heat. I was aiming for 350+ calories per hour in this event (with ~⅔ of those from carbs), and I didn't want to fall behind in the heat. So, I carried a bunch of Gu Roctane Gels and Chews from the start for the hot second afternoon and added Roctane drink mix to my water. That was about all I could get down until it cooled off in the evening, and it did the trick.
Don’t Forget About Electrolytes
I lose a lot of salts in my sweat. It's rather ridiculous - if I wear a dark kit, I look like a zebra by the end of a hot ride. Beyond the Roctane drink mix, I added electrolyte tabs to my hydration bladder, carried a couple of little containers of SaltStick powder to add to my bottles, AND carried sodium chloride tablets, taking one per hour for most of the race and two per hour during that hot afternoon. That much salt might destroy some folks' stomachs, but mine tolerates it, and I know from experimentation that it's what I need to keep my muscles functioning well in the heat.
Choose Your Own Adventure
Other racers employed more conservative and relaxed strategies to help mitigate the heat. Some took siestas during the hottest time of the day and spent more time riding at night in cooler temperatures. I only slept for 45 minutes on the second night, so spending more time riding at night wasn't really an option for my approach. Some racers hung out in the Colorado River to help their bodies cool off.
In the end, everything worked out quite well for me - no cramping, no need to stop in the shade to cool down, and no scary moments. When the cooler evening temperatures arrived as the sun set, life got far more comfortable.
Photo Credit: Claire Cella
A few hours later, as my core cooled back down to normal operating temperatures, I was able to start pushing again, my power went up, and perceived exertion dropped. I had a great second night out as I neared the finish. By mid-morning, I rolled back into Nucla to take the win and set a new record of just over 49 hours, taking 4.5 hours off the old record in less-than-ideal conditions.
