Craig Wisner and I have been going back and forth via email about meeting up to do a double crossing of the Grand Canyon for a while now, a recent thread discussion led to this topic and it seems there is a growing interest amongst members in assembling this upcoming spring for a group run. All discussion and planning will take place within this thread, so click the "Watch this thread" hyperlink at the upper right corner to keep up to date.

What: A double crossing or better known as "Rim to Rim to Rim" run in the Grand Canyon. 41-47 miles *(dependent on which route we decide to take down to the Colorado River and which route we decide to ascend on the return climb), 21,000+ft. of elevation gain/loss. This will be done in the fashion of a run/hike and will likely be a 12-16 hour day, this is NOT going to be an overnight or multiday trip, so an understanding of one's own fitness and limitations before signing up should be seriously weighed in your planning.

When: Saturday, April 14th, 2012

Where: Grand Canyon, AZ- South Rim (Start/Finish).

Who: Anyone... *that understands the strenuous nature of doing a RRR in a single day

Those that have expressed interest at this point:

Greg Gressel
Thom Darrah
Craig Wisner
Myself
Brian Blair
Dave Chenault
George Matthews
Mike Moore
Brendan Swihart
Art Messier
Eric Payne
Ben Wood
Devon Gowler
Dan Hewins

Resources and stoke:

Grand Canyon National Park

Grand Canyon NP Trail Distances

Andrew Skurka- RRR Route and How To Information

ultraRUNNING Magazine- Grand Canyon Basics: Rim to Rim to Rim

ultraRUNNING Magazine- Fueling Rim to Rim to Rim in the Grand Canyon

Fastest Known Time- Women\'s Run Report (Devon Crosby Helms and Krissy Moehl)

Edited by Eugeneius on 11/18/2011 08:00:55 MST.

I'm definitely interested and will be waiting to see what dates ya'll come up with. If it works for me I'm in. I've done R2R2R once and would love to do it again.

I'd be driving from Orange County, CA and would be able to transport 2 or 3 others. John Wayne airport is close to me and would be an easy option for those needing to fly in. The South Rim is a 5.5 hour drive for me.

Best for me would be a 2 night/3 day trip.

Day 1: Travel, spend the night at South Rim (either camp on free forest land or wherever...)
Day 2: Run R2R2R, camp again on free land/other lodging, victory BEER and FOOD
Day 3: Limp to breakfast together, head home.

This could either be Friday-Sunday (running Sat.) or Saturday-Monday (running Sun.)

If people don't mind the expense, I suppose we could also pitch in and just get a room. I'm up for sleeping in the woods, the car, a hotel, whatever...Just want to keep it cheap. The National Forest land is close, free, and convenient- easy to sleep in cars, tents, whatever.

What do you all think?

I'm in SoCal too...Brian, you and I should hook up to drive, plus anyone else out this way.

I think it's also important on a trip like this to acknowledge people might have to bail last minute. Most folks can't just up and run a 42+ mile trip unless training, health, etc. come together properly, and I think we all know many things can go wrong prior to the big day. So just putting it out there- I won't be upset if people end up not being able to make it. Not trying to sound flaky, just being realistic. That said, I'll be there.

Edited by xnomanx on 11/11/2011 18:57:18 MST.

I'm definitely interested. Training (read running) in Montana in the winter can be a little challenging, but I'll start bumping it up :)

BUMP

I will be tracking this thread for sure.

Put me down for maybe...I'm definitely interested but can't commit yet...

Thom and Brendan,

You guys are on the tentative running list, pun intended. This thing is 6 months out but I'm already getting pretty pumped about meeting some of you guys under these circumstances.

Every adventure needs an old slow guy, I hope that can be me!

Thom said "Every adventure needs an old slow guy, I hope that can be me!"- I resemble that remark :)

@ Thom and Mike,

I hope everything comes together and both of you can make it. I guess I can get the ball rolling here on landing on a date.

What is absolutely out of the question as far as dates go? Work conflicts? Family conflicts? Holidays?

Is there any particular weekend that sticks out at you ("you" being anyone interested in joining) as a good option?


I think the more we stick to doing this in early/mid April the better weather we'll have down lower in the ditch, avoiding some of the heat- this may mean some lingering packed snow/ice up on the upper reaches of the trail heading up the N. Rim, but I think the amount of year round foot traffic will keep that in check.

Thoughts?

a friend and I will be doing the RRR weekend of April 14.
it's the only date we can do, pencilled in between two 50 mile races (we are slow but tenacious).

if that weekend works out for you guys, would be great to meet you.

"this may mean some lingering packed snow/ice up on the upper reaches of the trail heading up the N. Rim"

But there is bright side...... Snow usually means water and MALTO slushies! It sounds like a mid April timing would see us with the water shut off at a few points. The south rim wouldn't be much of a problem but the north sounds like it would be a several hour carry. There could be some creative water caching options that would make that less of an issue.

Art,

I'm waiting to hear back from Craig on a date, but I'll definitely keep in mind April 14th. You guy's are nuts sandwiching this in-between two 50's.

Emailed you back Eugene.

I could do the 14th of April if we traveled on the 13th, ran the 14th, and went home the 15th. I'd be taking Friday off work- If I had to pick you (Eugene)up in Phoenix I could theoretically even leave the afternoon of Thursday the 12th...

Is the 14th on the early side concerning snow on the N. Rim? As long as it's still doable, I don't care if I have to carry microspikes, a pair of poles, etc...

One other thing...

David Chenault mentioned getting picked up in Las Vegas.

I could do that, but it would make getting to Phoenix in the same trip difficult.

Basically, I could leave Los Angeles and take the southern route to the South Rim, coming up through Phoenix. Or I could go out to Vegas and then cut straight across to the S. Rim. But doing both would be difficult. I'm more than happy picking people up, but doing both Vegas and Phoenix in a single trip would be tough.

So if David C. is coming, I could do Vegas to get him and leave someone else to get Eugene in Phoenix or visa versa....

Just a detail to think about.

Craig,

April 14th looks good if Art doesn't mind me taking a piggy back ride up the S. Rim if I see him.

Let's make it official and go with Saturday, April 14th, 2012. Looking over the climate overview for the GC, April has the ideal conditions for a run, temperature wise.

April GC avg.:

S. Rim: High- 60, Low- 32
Inner Canyon: High- 82, Low- 56
N. Rim: High-53, Low- 29

May temps jump up considerably from April down at the river, how does 90F+ sound?

Sweet, sounds good. Let's plan on running on the 14th then. We'll work out travel details as people commit and we get closer.

Weather and snowfall can vary year to year.
Three years ago it was 20* at the south rim when I started, but warmed up quickly on the descent. Still I wore 2 shirts the whole time and kept a jacket and windshirt handy.
that time there was snow the last mile or two up to north rim but no big deal. very packed down, slushy and some mud, did not slow me down much.

Edited by asandh on 02/14/2012 08:35:20 MST.

Eugene: I'm tentatively in. I did a rim to rim this spring as part of my AZT thru-hike, and couldn't help thinking how much fun it would have been to head back south. As far as I'm concerned, this would be great training for Dave's Bob Marshall Wilderness Open. Would love to meet up with some of you as well..