Let’s kick this pig, folks. Sunday, we ride.
We’ve all got a lot of reasons to want to prevent cancer, cure cancer, and erase cancer from the face of the earth. It starts here. It starts with supporting the people working for solutions and finding answers to some of the most complex scientific, medical, political, and social questions of our time. You might not be able to determine the effect of environmental contaminants in a child. But you don’t have to; you just need to ride your bike.
We’ve got a ton of people looking to join us this Sunday, and we wanted to slap together a quick guide to the gameplan.
The ride starts and ends at Breakaway Cafe, located at 1990 US 31 N. at Four Mile. There’s plenty of parking spots both here and across the street behind Speedway. If you can ride to the ride, that’s also cool, appreciated, and earns you at least one more cookie. It’s going to be dry for the ride, and at 44 degrees, it’s perfect practice for Iceman. Dress warm, you’ll be fine.
We’ve got three ride distances, with links to each below. The 47-mile route should take a little over two hours at the pace we’re hoping to stick to. This isn’t a race, but since we want to get back before the birthday cake is gone, we’ll plan on averaging between 17-19 miles per hour. If you’re a stronger rider, considering riding your mountain bike for some Peak2Peak/Iceman training and to help keep the speed down…slightly.
The 34-mile route is the traditional There Will Be Blood route, and after riding it mid-week, it’s in primo shape. Most riders on gravel or mountain bikes can finish this in right around two hours.
The 20-mile loop is a nice entry into gravel, including a run at the famous Moore Road rolling hills and a long, fast descent back to East Bay. This is about 50/50 pavement and gravel, and what gravel there is was in awesome shape on Tuesday. A bit of rain since then should have this pretty doable on road tires, if you dont’ want to ride your 29er.
To keep things safe heading up Four Mile, we’ll have each distance leave as a group at two-minute intervals. Make sure you follow the rules of the road and stay two abreast on the pavement. The 47-mile group will leave at 8:30, followed by the 34-mile group at 8:32, and the 20 milers at 8:34. If you roll in a little late, just head out. No worries.
When you get back, Breakaway Cafe will have the coffee on and the cookies out, so bring a little cash and hang out awhile. We’ll also have the final kilometers of the Men’s UCI Road Race World Championships on the big screen.
We’re really excited about the ride and doing something for our pals at Less Cancer. We’re less excited about turning 30, but we really appreciate everyone taking a break for Out’n’Backs to grind some gravel with us.
Can’t make the ride? You can donate to Less Cancer right here. We’re already really close to our $1,000 goal before the ride has even started, so thank YOU for donating!
We want to thank Keen Technical Solutions, up.bike, Yen Yoga and Fitness, and of course Breakaway Cafe for their support in putting this ride on.