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Show s page Tour of Canyontands looi I I A supplement to Tfw limeswndcfxnJert. : ' START yy FINISH JACOBS LADDER W This eight-mil- e (approximately) section of trail should serve to sort out some riders The Amasa Back Loop is one of those Moab rides that feels epic but takes less than half a day. In fact, some folks riding the trail this weekend will do the whole loop in a couple of hours. The first part of this ride is a 25-mi- early in the race. Cyclists whove been training on the road will likely le favorite among mountain bikers. entry-leve- out-pac- e other com- petitors along this aerobic stretch. Thats a good thing, because more aggressive riders will make their moves over the other side of Hurrah Pass. Most of the 700 feet or so of elevation riders will have gained from the start will drop out from under their tires l Following Kane Creek Road up to Hurrah Pass, the route is graded and smooth; drivers w ith little regard for their exhaust systems could take passenger cars up to the over the next couple of miles. pass. racers get down to river level, many will have exceeded 30 miles an hour down the rocky road. From the bottom, the trail heads back upstream along the Colorado River. After climbing a couple of small uplifts, the route ends up in Jackson Hole, at the base of Amasa Back. Jackson Hole is an abandoned meander of the Colorado River; Amasa Back is part of the Cane Creek anticline w hich isnt important to know, except that all this creates Jacobs Ladder. This is the only way from By the time COVOTE SHUTTLE fi ZSTll 435-259-66- 56 W- - ; rCOYOTC SHUTflXIl Muki rllil Mitittla Rimjlai Bemlil Hitt!. RIm lrWti era Tnll-$10rld- ir Trill-fttrld- ir RIm lnk if tin ikiHli Blk Tnll-MrU- ir Bikini flil Rm TnlMtOrliir Blffliiltf Tri!i-$tQrU- rttlt nf ir kiri Bik-tii- k -- Mlttli Bittim -- Cilia Cnik -- ll StiJjBlN Bma Rivir tryitil Biftir Rakf Riaik Mlairtl littiia Vthltlt Traathrt: WntwtttrChn, hhiMthtrtl itHtm-KI- h it down after Jacobs ladder, most of the calo- theyve kept ries will be spent. Spectators may notice racers sucking down ing sandstone face of Amasa little ketchup-lik- e packets at this Back has created a talus slope point. Actually, that stuff is which is hikable. It is not food, of a sort. bikable. Riders will carry their It might help, but even mounts up this section, for a gain Soylent Green wont completely of about 400 vertical feet. The relieve this fatigue. These cytrail is rated somewhere around clists are going to be tired and "mountain goat, so passing here cramping, and theyre going to will involve technical climb- race down a fast, technical descent. So, if youre looking for ing with a bicycle. Once riders have managed the an insider's tip on where to long, spinning First section, and watch the race, there you have the sandy, grunting second sec- - it. tna ttlnr liwif IrHfi fun. But these riders wont likely be having much fun at this point. Theyll be lucky to still have any fuel left from breakfast even if Jackson Hole up to Amasa Back. One smajl drainage in the impos- It I Vi R S Hum IS: Ctltrtfo It I tt r tion, all that remains is the dangerous part. Getting back down from Amasa Back is more fun than we should be allowed to have (by Utah standards, anyway). From the highest point of the ride, racers will descend a broken layer of Kayenta sandstone the thin, hard layer of rock that makes Moab so much Htritt COME AND RIDE THE DIG GREEN TRUCK j - wtmiM w 'mw Vfll lilt |