On an early March day this year Robert Panzera headed out into the spectacular countryside of San Diego County, California for a recon of the famous Dirty Devil Ultra Century Ride. This unique ride takes in 28 miles of packed dirt roads, amazing scenery, 11,000 feet of ascent (3,350 m) and makes for a perfect – and yet challenging ride.by Robert Panzera with additional photos from Bernd Straehle and John Clare.Years ago many of the roads that are used for The Dirty Devil were seldom traversed by those on road bikes. Most did not do that type of riding with the skinny tires, but saved those adventures for bikes with fatter tires and maybe a bit of suspension. But alas, weve moved into the time of the gravel grinder, and riding road bikes and beefier approximations of road bikes on the unpaved backgrounds is all the rage.BeginningsI was introduced to the dirt roads of San Diego the year I moved here in 2005 by a good friend who, like me, was in the mood for all day wandering adventures. We explored many of the dirt roads, which would later be stitched together to form the current course of The Dirty Devil. The dirt roads of The Dirty Devil are improved and graded to varying degrees, but depending on the year, the weather during the winter, and the unknown grading schedules, these roads are in various states of condition when you traverse them via road bike.The full tilt version of The...
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