Gnarly Routes Moab Tour
Gnarly Routes
May 16-20 & May 23-27
Moab, Utah
For the first time Gnarly Routes scheduled back to back tours to offer more available spots for riders looking for an adventure ride of a lifetime! Over these two weekends of riding we guarantee there are life long memories burned into all of our minds!
For the first week we had an incredibly fun group of 5 riders with a riders coming from opposing coasts! It was also the first time we had two brothers on a ride together. It was a lot of fun watching them banter with each other, but also keep an eye out for one another on the trail too. We were also fortunate enough to have our Gnarly Routes transport sponsor, Mike Brillanti, join us for a ride! The Landmark Chrystler/Dodge Dealer has as much love for motorcycles and riding as anyone we have met and has been a family friend for years!
The second group was made up of 3 riders with 2 reoccurring participants! They knew what they were getting into and were really excited to check out a different location than the one they had ridden previously.
Unbelievable riding conditions would be the first things to talk about! For the beginning of the summer time we lucked out tremendously with a slight cold front that pushed through. This offered an ideal riding temperature in the 70’s!! When it would usually be upper 80’s and possibly higher at the peaks!
We upped the ante as well with some awesome houses where the groups all stayed together. The first house had a hot tub that was a massive hit after a hard day of riding! The second house was really unique in its own way as it was an old trade shop just minutes from downtown Moab.
During the first weekend of riding the two brothers let us know they were “C level” riders and hadn’t ridden in 7 years. We were a bit concerned in the beginning as we were about to turn it up and go right into some technical terrain on the first day! However, these guys did amazing! They were so pumped on how well the bikes worked and the Rekluse auto clutch was an absolute savior. Only positive vibes came from these guys and the three riders had just as much fun riding up front and trailing the tail of Russell in some faster sections!
We have three different loops with completely different styles that make up the 3 days of riding. The rocky cragginess with slow tech riding in day 1 makes for our most technical loop, but is also the shortest in mileage. The overlooks of the Colorado river on this ride are incredible and the lunch spots by some arches are impressive to say the least!
The enduro loop makes up a large part of our 2nd day of riding. This ride is the most physical as it has miles of sand whoops and washes that tax the body. There is also an incredible section with solid red rock that makes you feel like you are riding on Mars!
Both groups had their biggest struggles on the red rock in a section we now have dubbed “bare foot basin!” One rider opted not to ride a steep wall section, but couldn’t walk up it either!! So he lost his boots and took off like Spiderman up the wall!
The biggest difference between the two weekends of riding was the fact that a massive rain storm pounded the area!! What rain in Moab?? 50 degrees high??? It was crazy, but made for packed sand and loam town by the river bottoms. The sand dunes turned into the ultimate playground and the “tubes” were full of water.
Each group finished their ride off on the Sovereign Trail system. A mix of technical sections and tight switchbacks and a ton of singletrack.
The final day with our second group may have been one of the best days of riding during the entire trip. A good steady pace with everyone kept the party on the trail rolling and it was awesome to witness everyones progress through out the week! Every rider improved and looked more confident on their bikes each day.
It is so much fun meeting and riding with these great groups of riders! We had an absolute ball during both the rides and are looking forward to putting the next tour together.