The Tour Divide is an off-road event that traverses the length of the Rocky Mountains from Canada to the Mexican border. The course is over 4,338 km long (2696 mi), and along the way, riders will gain over 60,000 m in elevation (200,000 ft).
This ride is self-supported. The clock begins at the grand depart and won’t stop until riders cross the finish line. The fastest rider will complete the course in 13 days, covering approximately 334 kilometres per day (207 mi).
This event is quite cool from a gear optimisation perspective, as a few tweaks to the bike setups will allow riders to knock hours or days off their ride.
Just like my last article, I’ll analyse 151 different bike setups from this year’s Tour Divide, but this time I’ll also look at the fastest bikes to have ever completed the course. Shout out to BIKEPACKING.com who has generously collected many of the statistics I’ll draw upon (HERE and HERE).
Let’s start with a quick look at some of the fastest recent bike setups.
Fast Tour Divide Bike Setups
Justinas Leveika broke the course record this year on a Trek Supercaliber mountain bike. He used flat bars, front and rear suspension, 29″ wheels, 2.2″ wide tyres, and aero bars.
Ulrich Bartholmoes was second quickest down the Tour Divide on a BMC Twostroke mountain bike (title image). His setup was not dissimilar to Justinas, except he prefers drop bars rather than flat bars.
And lastly, Lachlan Morton recently completed an individual time trial (ITT) on the route that was 14 hours quicker than Justinas. He used a Cannondale Scalpel mountain bike with flat bars, a suspension fork, 29″ wheels, 2.35″ wide tyres, and aero bars. You can take a closer look HERE.
Now that have a sense of what constitutes a fast Tour Divide bike, let’s see what riders are using for this year’s event.
Handlebars
- Drop Bars – 48%
- Flat Bars – 52%
The handlebar choice is an interesting place to start, as around half use drop bars, and half use flat bars (48/52). This is the same kind of split we see in the top 10 riders too.
Some might choose flat bars as they offer better bike control in the mud and snow and over the rougher sections of the route. But as this is a very long event, comfort is usually the primary reason for riders choosing one handlebar design over another.
A more crucial component choice on a Tour Divide bike is aero bars.
Aero Bars on Tour Divide Bikes
- Aero Bars – 89%
- No Aero Bars – 11%
Aero bars increase your speed by reducing your frontal area and making your body shape more aerodynamic. They also play a vital role in increasing your comfort, which is why we see them on 89% of bikes this year and 100% of bikes in last year’s top 10.
Aero bars offer your body a break by providing a different riding position that reduces strain on your arms, wrists, hands, and bum. In the aero position, you can stretch out your back and use different muscles.
It’s important to get the aero bars set up not for speed, but for long days on the bike. You’ll notice many bikes have the aero bars sitting quite high and often tilted back – some riders are using 70mm of spacers.
To maximise comfort, it’s also often necessary to fit the arm pads closer to your body. Some riders use the Fred Bar to mount their aero bars on the steerer while others use aero bars that allow you to slide the armrests backward along the extensions.
If you want to go further down this rabbit hole, I have a detailed article about aero bars HERE.
Saddles
- Brooks – 22%
- Ergon – 22%
- Specialized – 13%
- WTB – 11%
- Other Brand – 32%
Another comfort critical component is the saddle.
There isn’t one magic saddle that works for everybody, as we all have variations in our ride position, core strength, sit bone width, soft tissue, and much more. That said, there are a few saddle brands that stand out.
Brooks and Ergon were the most popular saddle brands amongst Tour Divide riders (22% each). Brooks saddles flex and move underneath you, so if the shape works for your backside, they can be quite comfortable to sit on. Ergon saddles are also really popular due to their shapes and responsive foam padding.
A design I’ve noticed becoming more popular is 3D-printed saddles, which are constructed using a liquid polymer that’s printed into a tuneable honeycomb structure. This fancy design better distributes sit bone pressure across the saddle and helps to damp vibrations too. You can even get tailor-made padding structures that can be asymmetrical in design, with support where you need it, and softness where you don’t. Expect to see more 3D-printed saddles in the coming years.
Another interesting design that’s gaining popularity is the Infinity Saddle. These minimise sit bone pressure by placing your body weight on the muscle mass around your butt. Infinity saddles flex similarly to a Brooks, further increasing comfort. I’d love to hear in the comments if you’ve tried one.
Suspension Seatposts
- Rigid Seatpost – 79%
- Suspension Seatpost – 21%
Suspension seatposts are another great way to improve ride comfort. They essentially isolate you from bigger hits and smaller vibrations, which add up over multiple weeks. Most people who try one will agree the weight penalty of 200 grams is well worth it.
Two years ago, 13% of riders used a suspension seatpost (including the carbon Ergon Allroad Pro), and today, it’s up over 21%.
My current pick of the bunch is the Redshift ShockStop Pro, which combines both a steel coil spring and an elastomer spring. This seatpost has a fast but controlled movement and performs the best in our vibration lab tests.
Tyres on Tour Divide Bikes
- Vittoria Mezcal – 46%
- Conti Race King – 13%
- Maxxis Ikon – 10%
- Rene Herse Fleecer Ridge – 7%
Tyres are an important component to optimise over a 4,300km ride, as they need to be both durable and fast rolling.
The average tyre width amongst riders this year is 2.2″, which is also the average width of the top 10 riders from last year. But it’s usually not the tyre width that determines how fast they roll, instead, it’s the rubber compound and sidewall design that are the key factors.
The Vittoria Mezcal is used by 46% of all riders this year, and the next most popular is the Continental Race King, found on 13% of Tour Divide bikes. Of the fastest riders both this year and last, we see similar popularity when it comes to these tyre models.
Lachlan Morton set the fastest known time with Vittoria Mezcal tyres, however, the data suggests that the Continental Race King is about six watts faster per tyre due to its advanced rubber compound and sidewall design. The fast-rolling Race Kings were used by Justinas Leveika to set the current course record, and by the late Mike Hall who held the previous record.
It’s hard to come up with an accurate time saving between tyre models due to the mix of road surfaces, varying rider weights, and more – but a set of Race Kings could be over 10 hours faster than a set of Mezcals (75kg rider, 15kg bike, 140 watts power output).
That said, Race Kings are 25% less puncture-resistant across the top when compared to Mezcals – so riders need to weigh up whether using a more durable tyre is worth the extra rolling resistance.
A great way to boost puncture resistance is to use high-performing tubeless sealant.
Tubeless Sealant
While I don’t have any data on what sealant people use for the Tour Divide, I recently analysed every sealant puncture test available on the internet and compiled the data into one article.
When we look at the MTB tire width puncture tests, Orange Seal Regular comes out on top with some seriously impressive puncture repair characteristics. In every puncture test I could find, this sealant closed the puncture sites with very little air pressure loss. Even with a 6mm cut, there was just 3.2 psi lost.
Make sure to check out my sealant article to see what tests best for road and gravel bikes too.
Wheel Diameter and Wheel Material
- 29″ Wheels – 92%
- 27.5″ Wheels – 8%
In terms of wheel diameter, two sizes are tackling the Tour Divide: 27.5 and 29-inch.
As the largest diameter wheel offers the smallest ‘angle of attack’ over bumps and depressions in the road, it can maintain the highest average speed. It should come as no surprise that the top riders all use the big 29″ wheels.
56% of people are using carbon rims, with the other 44% on aluminium. Carbon rims are often much stronger at a given weight than aluminium, so if they fit your budget – carbon wheels are a great way to save some grams.
Dynamo Hubs
Regular Front Hub – 40%
Dynamo Hub – 60%
Dynamo hubs are a common addition to a Tour Divide bike setup. With around 5 to 10 watts drag, you can power a decent set of lights, or trickle charge a smartphone. And with no devices drawing power, there is virtually zero drag.
But dynamo setups are starting to become less frequently used in ultra racing as battery and light technology are advancing rapidly.
You can now get a 20,000 mAh battery (~60 Wh) that will charge from empty to full in under one hour (100W input). This is enough power for two full smartphone charges (24 Wh) and about 19 hours of light at 600 lumens output (36 Wh).
Given the drag reduction, some quick maths suggests a power bank could conservatively be a 10-hour saving from a Tour Divide run, depending on the light brightness and power consumption of the dynamo setup you’re comparing to, and how much you use it (75kg rider, 15kg bike, 140 watts power output).
Batteries are undoubtedly a marginal gain that riders should now be thinking about. Lachlan Morton ran battery banks and battery lights for his ITT last year, as do about 40% of the fastest finishers.
Frame Material For Tour Divide Bikes
- Carbon – 54%
- Titanium – 27%
- Steel – 13%
- Aluminium – 5%
Carbon is the most popular frame material with 54% of people choosing it. This is followed by titanium at 27%, steel at 13% and aluminium at 5%. Amongst the top riders, 70 to 80% tend to ride carbon bikes.
Carbon frames typically weigh 1.0 to 1.5 kg, while similarly tough titanium frames are closer to 2.0 kg. Steel frames are often 2.5 to 3.0 kg.
To put this weight into perspective, an extra kilogram is likely about 1.5 hours over 4,300km for the average rider (75kg rider, 15kg bike, 140 watts power output). That’s not much time between frame materials.
Popular Bike Brands
- Salsa – 22%
- Specialized – 8%
- Trek – 6%
- Why Cycles – 3%
- Giant – 3%
- Rodeo Labs – 3%
- Bearclaw – 3%
- Other – 52%
61 different bike brands are represented on the 2024 Tour Divide.
The most popular bike brand is Salsa Cycles who make up 22% of all bikes. This is quite a bit down on previous years; in 2022 Salsa made up 39% of all TD bikes. Other popular bike brands are Specialized (8%) and Trek (6%).
The Salsa Cutthroat is still the most popular bike model with 19% of riders using one.
Tour Divide Bike Suspension
- Suspension Fork – 54%
- Rigid Fork – 46%
A big change over the last few years has been the use of suspension forks.
Two years ago, just 30% of riders used a suspension fork in the Tour Divide. Now, you can find them on 54% of all bikes. The top three riders all used suspension forks this year and last, as did Lachlan Morton on his 12.5-day ITT.
Suspension forks give you better bike control and reduce fatigue on the rougher sections of the route. Given that you can lock them out, the biggest disadvantage is simply that they add weight to your bike. This weight penalty should be worth about two hours of ride time for the average rider, which seems to be worth it for the extra comfort.
Drivetrains
- 1X – 86%
- 2X – 5%
- 3X – 1%
- Singlespeed – 6%
- Gearbox/IGH – 3%
In terms of drivetrains, 1X makes up 94% of all bike setups using derailleurs. This should be unsurprising, as the Tour Divide is an off-road route that demands wide tyres and low gear ratios, and almost all bikes that accommodate these features use 1X drivetrains as standard.
SRAM is the most popular drivetrain brand and is employed by two-thirds of riders. I suspect this is because it’s quite easy to pair SRAM drop bar shifters with mountain bike derailleurs.
Gearbox bikes are not very common in this event as they add weight and drive resistance. I’ve calculated that a gearbox could add between 7 to 12 hours of ride time over 4,300km, depending on the model used.
Pedals
- Clip-In Pedals – 87%
- Flat Pedals – 13%
As the performance advantage of clip-in pedals is mostly found under acceleration, there likely isn’t a big speed difference between flat and clip-in pedals on a route like the Tour Divide.
This year, 87% of riders choose clip-in pedals and 13% are using flat pedals.
Tour Divide Bikepacking Bags
- Revelate – 47%
- Tailfin – 36%
- Apidura – 19%
- Rockgeist/Porcelain Rocket – 16%
- Restrap – 13%
And lastly, let’s take a look at the most popular bikepacking bag brands.
Revelate has been making Tour Divide bags since the very first edition, so it’s not surprising that they are represented on a whopping 47% of all bikes. Tailfin is next; we can see their ridiculously well-engineered products on 36% of bikes. Apidura is the third most common brand, featured on 19% of bikes.
Aero bar specific bags are undoubtedly on the rise. We can see them from Restrap, Apidura, Revelate, and Cyclite. I like that the Revelate has feed pockets built into the sides and that the Cyclite employs an aerodynamic profile and unzips open from the front.
Summary
We’ve now had a good look at what constitutes a fast Tour Divide setup. Based on the trends and data, we should see more suspension forks and suspension seatposts in future editions.
The notable places where some riders could make their lives a bit easier are tyre choice, and using quick-charge batteries with rechargeable lights rather than a dynamo setup. These changes could theoretically shave a full day or two off some rider’s times.
