chfong

Hi, have anyone ridden both the Skinny Tire Festival and Moab Century bike rides? Both are at Utah USA and seems to be held by the same folks. What are your opinions? Which bike ride is better? I wish that I can do both of these events.

https://www.skinnytireevents.com

I'm from New York City area, and I rarely travel. I want to make the most out of traveling. I have about a week for traveling or vacation.

Oh yeah, what else is there to do around Moab, Utah?
Would you guys recommend going to Grand Canyon or it's too much for one week?

Thanks,

Cyclist0108

Moab is right at the intersection of Arches and Canyonlands National Parks. If it were me, I would focus on that. I actually like that area better, because it is much more accessible than the Grand Canyon. At the very least, visit Arches, Island in the Sky, and the Needles district. (The Maze district is much harder to access.)

(If you went to the Grand Canyon, you would most likely approach from the North rim, in which case it is a whole lot of driving and not a whole lot else other than taking in a spectacular view, unless you go hiking into the Canyon.)

I'm sure the road biking will be great, but there is a reason my Moab is mountain bike Mecca. You should at least rent one briefly while you are there, and try something like the Slickrock trail.

Now, for your question: I've never ridden that organized ride, but I have ridden almost everything in the Skinny Tire festival ride. The second day looks like it would be the most fun, because the road basically goes through the Colorado River canyon. It is the closest, next best thing to riding your road bike inside the Grand Canyon. I think it would be well worth it, but these are also rides you can do on your own. March could be warm or it could snow or rain. It is a bit of a crap shoot.

chfong

thank you, I will look into those areas. I'm more of a road / recumbent cyclist. New to the Mountain Biking, so I'm thinking of renting a mtb bike and go on the relatively easy off-road bike trails at the Moab area.

chfong

As for the Grand Canyon, I was thinking of driving or take some bus(??) from Moab to Grand Canyon. I was not planning to bike at the Grand Canyon, but open to it though. Just go sightseeing , little bit of hiking and maybe even mules?

deepspacegiant

The grand fondo ride in Moab is excellent, it goes up into the La Sals and it's probably my favorite ride of all time. It was not apart of an organized event for me. I don't really know what the century ride is...

chfong

The Moab Century bike ride I was referring to is: https://www.skinnytireevents.com/moabcenturytour in Sept
which seems to be held by the same folks as the Skinny Tire Festival in March https://www.skinnytireevents.com/skinnytirefestival

I was wondering if anyone out there have done both events and compare them both.
As for the Gran Fondo Moab, I would also be interested as well.

Cyclist0108

I just checked Google Maps, and what I said was wrong. It turns out it is about 330 miles to the South Rim, and almost 400 to the North Rim (even though it would be closer as the crow flies). It is a lot more accessible from the South Rim, and you would likely go through Monument Valley. If you have never seen the Grand Canyon, it might be worth the trip, but keep in mind this is a lot of driving from Moab.

chfong

Yeah, I have never been to Grand Canyon before. That's why maybe I can hit two birds with one stone, by visiting Moab and then Grand Canyon within one week. Is there a bus that goes from Moab to Grand Canyon?

chfong

Which bike trails around Moab do you recommend for beginner mountain bike cyclist like me? I'm mostly a road cyclist and urban/city cyclist. I don't want to end up running off some cliffs.. Yikes..

superdex

I've done both --

If you have the time, do the Festival. It's the same roads and mostly the same ride(s), spread out over a couple days. If anything, you get to see more of Moab that way. The Century doesn't go into Arches nor to Deadhorse, and if you head there, you can't miss those.

The weather can be iffy (we got caught in an afternoon snow flurry one day. Hey, it's March. It can happen.), but it's awesometown compared to later in the summer. There's a reason one is in March and the other in late Sept.

The organization is great, and Moab is a small town. Food is good. Margaritas are good. Coffee is good (Moab Garage Co, I'm looking at you).

Non-riding options? well, it is like Mountain Bike Mecca, or something. So I've heard. There's also hiking in Arches etc. There's rafting, but not sure how much in March.

Too far to include Grand Canyon, at least for a week trip it'd be a stretch.

Cyclist0108

Slick Rock.

They have a practice loop, so you can try before you die.

chfong

Yeah, I wanted to ride the four-day Skinny Tire Festival in March 2019, but I didn't learn about this event until early Feb 2019 and I let myself go during the past winter in order to rest and recover. So one month for me to train was way too short. There won't be another four-day event until March 2020, which is one -year away and is far away, while the Moab Century is in Sept 2019 which I can train for in time, but ONLY two-days.. Arghhh...

superdex

Do the Century. Plan an extra day to ride in Arches on your own; it's right next to town and easy to get into. Don't let the ramp from the gate up the wall scare you ....

chfong

Yeah, I'm thinking after the Moab Century ride event, I would go on my own road bike ride to the Arches and any other interesting places. Also do some other events such as river canoe or rafting, some hiking and even some beginning-level mountain biking.
I'm thinking of staying about a week around Moab area before returning home at NYC.

Cyclist0108

Read this before you go: