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  1. #1
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    I wanna go back to Oaxaca...Puebla too?

    Thinking of possibly going down in Feb/March and just shuttling, staying in a nice hotel, eating in the city etc. My shoulder starting to come around. GF getting a plate put in her shoulder in 3 weeks.

    Did TSN last year and it was amazing. Go with the TSN guys again or someone else? Where to stay? (actually liked hotel Victoria last time for the old school feel). Looks like some nice whole home VRBO/AirBnB options as well.

    Heard there is good riding in Puebla too. Any shuttle options up that way?

    Would be me and a racer buddy plus my GF (strong blue rider). Would be cool if she brought a friend so the guys could split off and ride the stupid gnar a couple days.

  2. #2
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    Do NOT go with Oaxaca Bike Expeditions if you want to ride a lot. My friends and I did their 6-day tour in Feb and the amount of riding each day was fucking pathetic. We weren't on trail until around 12:00 each day, and we were done by 3:30. 3-4 shuttle laps if we were lucky, despite all of us asking for more riding.

  3. #3
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    WRG, I'll try and do some heavy research for you next month. I'll be with Alvaro and the crew for like 10 days.
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  4. #4
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    Coyote Adventuras. Talk to Carlos.


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  5. #5
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    WRG, we may have discussed this before, but I think this is a good thread to review.
    What can I expect as far as maximum difficulty in the actual TSN race? Anything stupid hard that you can’t even walk down if you choke?
    I am really going just to ride/survive and not ‘really’ be competitive, as this year I am only riding at 80% or so due to a few reasons.
    I will be there for a few days to ride first, but obviously they won’t tell me the actual course.
    TIA.
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  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by rideit View Post
    WRG, we may have discussed this before, but I think this is a good thread to review.
    What can I expect as far as maximum difficulty in the actual TSN race? Anything stupid hard that you can’t even walk down if you choke?
    I am really going just to ride/survive and not ‘really’ be competitive, as this year I am only riding at 80% or so due to a few reasons.
    I will be there for a few days to ride first, but obviously they won’t tell me the actual course.
    TIA.
    There was nothing really that you couldn't walk. A few small drops if I remember. The biggest thing is getting tired/arm pump or fried brakes. Some of the stages are legit like Lobo at Big Sky but 4 times as long. I'm not kidding. If you don't already run Rev Grips I would start there and next time I would run 220mm rotors at a minimum. Bring a bunch of brake pads too.

  7. #7
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    Yup, I run 223 and 203, I always bring spare pads on any ride with more than a few k of vert. Thanks for the update.
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  8. #8
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    Puerto Vallarta in Feb looking pretty damn nice too. Looks like the TSN/Ocean Sierra guys are the only guide in that area?

  9. #9
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    Yup, they have a mafia like lock on it.
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  10. #10
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    Timely. Friends have invited me on an all inclusive Oaxaca MTB trip with a tour company called. 2wheelepix. At first glance I'm not sure it's my scene, as I typically don't do the tour thing. Also seems expensive compared with trips other friends have coordinated through the TSN folks. If anybody has experience with these guys LMK.

  11. #11
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    Now I'm down the rabbit hole. Colombia? My birthplace and I have never been back. Marcelo G mentioned starting tours in Colombia when at TSN last year. Doesn't look like he is doing that yet. Haku expeditions?

  12. #12
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    My son and I are trying to plan where to go for Spring Break next year. We’re thinking of Buenos Aires/Bariloche, or maybe Colombia. LMK what you find out. Kiddo is not into the bikes lately, sadly…
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  13. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by Whiteroom_Guardian View Post
    Now I'm down the rabbit hole. Colombia? My birthplace and I have never been back. Marcelo G mentioned starting tours in Colombia when at TSN last year. Doesn't look like he is doing that yet. Haku expeditions?
    I can't speak to the MTB in Colombia, but I bet it's great. They love bicycles. I suspect the MTB scene is behind MX, though--the main focus is on road racing. The potential is off of the charts.

    I can say that it's one of my favorites out of the ~ 40 countries I've visited. The people are super nice, and it's like a moto playground. (We toured all around on a dual sport.). I speak Spanish, but if you don't, be aware that there isn't as much English as you might be used to in MX.
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  14. #14
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    This would be a plus for us, we always go to Spanish speaking countries for spring break, the less English, the better.
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  15. #15
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    I can confirm Colombia is awesome. Awesome people with great sense of humor and less touristy than other countries in SA. Never heard much about MTB there though. It's true there arent a lot of English speakers but what I found is the Spanish was easier to understand there and the locals could recognize I didn't speak it well and would talk slower to help me out.

    If you're looking at SA and want big descents look at Peru or Bolivia. MTB wasn't much on my radar when I backpacked SA but I ended up doing tours out of Ollantaytambo and La Paz. Not sure if these companies are still around but used KB tours in Peru and Gravity Bolivia. I think those 2 partnered together at a later time. Have had friends do a tour to same place in Peru and also to Ecuador and were very happy.

  16. #16
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    I have gone to Perú 9 times to ride, HMU if anyone has questions. I am planning a trip next fall that will be 7-9 days of raw mother-fucker Enduro-Ness, there might be spots available.
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  17. #17
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    Quote Originally Posted by rideit View Post
    I have gone to Perú 9 times to ride, HMU if anyone has questions. I am planning a trip next fall that will be 7-9 days of raw mother-fucker Enduro-Ness, there might be spots available.
    Spill the deets. Totally self supported or with a guide? I'm so fucking over 2022. Need to find some shit to look forward too.

  18. #18
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    Dude. I’ll call you or text you tomorrow.
    You basically have to go with a guide for access purposes. There are a million miles of single track/trails in the Peruvian Andes, and about 50 (100?) miles worth actually on Trailforks. The good stuff is not easily accessed, and if you make a wrong turn, you could end up very, very, very far from your intended designation. A lot of the shuttle access is on private/gated roads as well that you might need an agreement to access. As well as local collective communities that are paid by the guides to ease friction. These trails are not exactly public, not exactly private, and definitely not well mapped.
    It’s very much it’s own thing.
    But this is my friend Wayo’s company, and what he offers.

    https://ridemonkey.bikemag.com/threa...n-peru.295214/
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  19. #19
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    Quote Originally Posted by rideit View Post
    Dude. I’ll call you or text you tomorrow.
    You basically have to go with a guide for access purposes. There are a million miles of single track/trails in the Peruvian Andes, and about 50 (100?) miles worth actually on Trailforks. The good stuff is not easily accessed, and if you make a wrong turn, you could end up very, very, very far from your intended designation. A lot of the shuttle access is on private/gated roads as well that you might need an agreement to access. As well as local collective communities that are paid by the guides to ease friction. These trails are not exactly public, not exactly private, and definitely not well mapped.
    It’s very much it’s own thing.
    But this is my friend Wayo’s company, and what he offers.

    https://ridemonkey.bikemag.com/threa...n-peru.295214/
    Sounds awesome as hell.

  20. #20
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    The other reason to go with a guide is security. It’s a third world country, and word is getting out that these bikes are worth what a poor Campesino makes in like, five or ten years.
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  21. #21
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    Couple other points that need to be made clear. These aren’t ‘bike’ trails. These are hundreds (or even thousands) of years old Inca and pre-Inca trails, that have been and are used for foot and Burro traffic. They weave in-between yards and communities, and link together in thousands of ways.
    The Incas built a single track network that ranged from Ecuador and Columbia all the way to Argentina, and from the 20,000 foot highlands to the ocean. We ride on these same trails, often on the original stonework of the early builders.
    There (generally) are no berms or trail maintenance, there are no trail building groups in the country. There also are (for the most part) no emergency services that would be helpful. So even if you had a Spot tracker or whatever, you more than likely would still have to get out under your own power. There is no SAR, there are no helicopters generally available.
    It still a very raw riding experience, which is amazing in this day and age.
    Also stunningly beautiful, and in some cases, you would still be one of a few dozen people that have ever ridden a particular route.
    There is a zone called Lamay (Sacred Valley, near Macchu Picchu) that has some local shredders building and improving zones, but this is in its infancy.
    I have been going there since 2001, and certainly have seen changes, (there are actually bike shops and rentals now), but I would still call it ‘nascent’. And amazing.

    Here is an example: (but this is on the coast)
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    Up high
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  22. #22
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    Also, you can spend every night in a four/five star hotel, or whatever you fancy, and I haven’t even gotten into the food…
    Last edited by rideit; 09-16-2022 at 05:00 PM.
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  23. #23
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    I usually stay with friends, but we stayed here for a few nights last trip. One of the nicest hotels on the planet.

    https://www.marriott.com/en-us/hotel...usco/overview/
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  24. #24
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    I wanna go back to Oaxaca...Puebla too?

    Having done some hiking on some of those ancient Inca trails, I’m not sure I could feel good about myself shredding them on a bike, especially a bike worth more than the locals yearly wages. They use those trails for everything, it’s their life blood of commerce and community. You come around the corner and smoke a donkey or llama carrying their products to market and that’s like burning a farmers entire farm. Plus the indigenous people are incredibly small (like many normal sized for them people are what we would consider almost dwarf) from thousands of years of malnourishment and living at high elevations that have both contributed to stunting their growth on a generational level. It’d be like hitting a teenager and if it was an elderly person, I can’t imagine. I’m sure the experience is incredible. But it seems so off putting. To mob through ancient cultures and communities on an absurdly priced bike. I’m sure most of the outfitters are Peruvian/Ecuadorian/Colombian/Bolivian but I doubt that they actually live in the indigenous communities but are rather mestizo. I’ve spent some time with an indigenous community in the Amazonian rainforest in Ecuador with a group of Spanish botanists. I can’t even fathom riding a bike through their trails. Moreover I’d say they’d have every right to assault any gringo doing so. There’s a world of cultural difference between the locals who’s native language is Spanish and those who’s native language is Quechua/Quichua. And the former are the keepers and users of those trails.

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  25. #25
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    I've only been to Peru to climb, but I walked into a bunch of valleys on those trails and definitely see the point above. It's super important that cyclists are respectful, especially in the early phases of introducing the sport to those places. I bet the tour guides are doing this now but as it grows the danger gets magnified.

    Here is my question: does anyone ride uphill on these trips, or is it all shuttling? Would it be possible to have a fun time if one were, say, interested in riding 50 miles and 8000' of climbing some days and half of that on others? Or is what little infrastructure/trail access/etc that exists only set up for the downhill only crowd?

    It sounds like the Oaxaca trails are all shuttle access only and that it wouldn't really be possible to do an independent trip there, so I wonder if Peru is different.
    ride bikes, climb, ski, travel, cook, work to fund former, repeat.

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