I think the crew for hire likely keeps things protected in all weather changes conditions. But my dry bags were a good size and closed tightly.
Does the crew for hire help facilitate fast stops? Iād like to try and stay with the leaders at least through the first stop, and Iām concerned that it could take a while if they have to go find and retrieve a bag. Iām also thinking about whether I should try and pack all of my nutrition in a drop bag, or use some neutral support supplies like GU mix. Any insight or recommendations on the feed stops would be appreciated.
I thought the crew for hire were super fast and really having your own crew is rough because unless you are on it you never know where theyāre going to be. With the CFH you fly in (they are the first section of the aid where racerās aid follow and its a yeally cluster F of panicy people looking for their crew) they have 1-2 volunteers asking what your number is (know this) and they relay it onto a second set of Vās that has it organized by # and bam you got it. When i did in in '19 (the last DK) it was impressively fast and for that first one i did not even need my drop. they had plenty of food and drink but at that year the only downfall was just water but if you BYO drink mix you could drop a noon in and go. Not sure what the course is looking like but if you want to stay with the lead(ish) pack iād try and not rely on your drop bag for the first stop.
Tire choice: After reading all this here are my choices: Pathfinder Pro, 42 in the front, 38 in the back OR Pirelli Cinturato M, 40 c. These are the tires I got. Also, does anyone include a spare tire in the drop bag?
Votes on which tire I should use. Seems like opinion is the Pirelliās are not quite a puncture resistant as the Pathfinder. If it rains, I am thinking the Pirellis
I would absolutely do thatā¦when we did it in 2019, my buddy got a big sidewall slash. We booted it, but he still kept flatting the rest of the race. IN hindsight, we should have swapped out his wheels or at least his tire.
Does anyone know if the crew for hire can hang onto a backup set of wheels? Iāve got a pair of 650b wheels set up with 47mm pathfinders, being able to swap those in if I suffer a big flat would be clutch!
No the crew for hire is not necessarily fast. They see you come in, call your number and someone gets your bag. They will help you but they are just volunteers with experience to make it fast.
No crew for hire will not take a set of wheels. Everything has to fit in a bag they can take out.
Iām going with the Pirelli Cinturato M (F & R) myself. I want the additional grip if needed and I donāt want the added stress of swapping tubeless tires right before the race.
I did a 100K road ride on the Ms and they seemed to roll well. Iām sure the Pathfinder Pros are faster (which I also have), but itās all about tradeoffs for me.
Now I canāt decide! 
So why smaller in the back?
I think I need more suspension in the front and I can pick a better line with bigger tires. But the REAL reason is I already bought the 38c and NO 42c were available anywhere. Last week I found some at Competitive Cyclist and bought one. I have bought so many tires thinking about this that I couldnāt face buying more! (or explain to the spouse why more tires are arriving)
Workplace shipments.
Just sayināā¦.
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Regarding setups: Iāve been riding the Open in squishy mode for the past few weeks and am seriously super happy with the combo. Bike is 19lbs so still climbs well, but the added capability and comfort the fork provides is insane. Pictured with 40mm Rene Herse slicks, and swapping in the Pathfinders is the only change that Iāll make aside from maybe adding a 3rd bottle cage underneath downtube so I donāt need to run a pack.
Make sure you get a bottle with a lid (like the Camelbak dirt) so you donāt end up drinking cow 
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Iāve tried out too many tires to count. The pathfinder pros are my everyday tire and race tire unless itās muddy. I have the size 45 pirelli m on a separate wheel set but havenāt ridden them yet. I had some issue getting them to seal properly. Beyond that I have some wtb resolutes which I like but not sure how durable they are
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This was me last year. What Iāve come to tell myself afterward and going into this year is that tire choice is not nearly as important as how you ride the race combined with a bit of luck. Youāll see people at the event on all sorts of tires having no problems at all and youāll see people with flats for all sorts of reasons.
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100% agree. Luck, line choice, and amount/quality of sealant are more impactful on flats. You will find people on every type of tire who flat and those with zero flats. New(ish) tires, with recently refreshed sealant, tire pressure, and line choice are the biggest factors for flats IMO.
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I have a friend who has done unbound multiple times and always runs tubes and never had flats. Always runs schwalbe g one all arounds.
she pointed out to me that a lot of flats occurr in the washed out sections at the bottom of descents where people are barreling downhill and their tires slam into the collection of rocks and gravel in those washed out sections.
And sure enough when I did Unbound last year (bonked at mile 100 
) I saw a good dozen flats and of those Iād about 3/4 of them were immediately after some section of a descent with some washout.
Anecdotal of course but itās one of those things that if youāre aware of can help prevent flats. It can be tough if riding in a group where you have less ability to change your line or avoid road debris
Thanks all. Iāll try to stop obsessing over tires!