San Ysidro Dirty Century

Or, in my case, the Dirty 68.

SYDC is another race in the New Mexico Endurance Series (nmbra.org) and offers routes of 98, 83, and 68 miles. The longer routes include singletrack and require more skill than I currently possess, so I opted for the shortest route featuring a kite-on-a-string-shaped ride in the beautiful terrain around Cabezon Peak, the largest of the volcanic plugs in the area called the Rio Puerco Necks.

Yes, the wind showed up late morning, upping the effort required on southeastern return but overall, the day was perfect and the ride a pure quintessential gravel experience.

This isn't a photo of Cabezon Peak but a lesser yet still alluring formation that I nearly left the trail to explore.

I'll be returning to this area for an overnight with bikepackingroots.org in a couple of weeks. If you haven't heard of this organization, check them out and consider becoming a member. And going on a bikepacking overnighter like this (about 60 miles spread over two days) is a great way to learn about bikepacking, meet a bunch of swell bike dorks and nature lovers, and generally have yourself a ball. Find details about the Cabezon Peak Campout here.