Saturday Permanent - "We Can See Clearly Now"

Dear Friends,

This Saturday we're riding my "We Can See Clearly Now" 201K RUSA Permanent, starting from Marshall, Virginia.  This is a spectacularly beautiful (and challenging) ride, inspired by an impromptu ride that Bennett Minton rode last winter and traveling down many of the same roads taken on that ride. 

Here's the link to the marvelous photos that Bennett took that day:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bikerben58/sets/72157625488386376/show/

Starting from Marshall, we'll head west and cross the "Stan Miller Memorial Low Water Bridge" on our way to Front Royal, then cruise through the lovely Fort Valley before the first major climb over Massanutten Mountain at Edith Gap.  After a thrilling descent we'll have lunch in Luray.  Next we'll tackle the climb over Thornton Gap; this one's a bit laborious but the descent is long, swoopy and delightful.  The last climb of note is on Gid Brown Hollow Road.  It's never very steep, and the scenery is so beautiful that you'll hardly even notice that you're climbing :-)  There is a 1.4-mile stretch of hard-pack on the climb, but the beautiful descent on Harris Hollow Road is paved.  Harris Hollow will take us down into "Little" Washington, and from there we'll return over moderately hilly terrain via Flint Hill and Orlean.  Conservative estimate of elevation gain is 9000 feet.

Now that spring is here in all its glory the views will be slightly different from but every bit as gorgeous as what you see in Bennett's slideshow, and we'd love to have some company.  **In order to join us you'll need to contact me no later than Thursday afternoon, and you must be a RUSA member to participate.**  You should also be familiar with and understand the rules associated with riding RUSA Permanents.  For more information on that, please visit the Permanents page of the RUSA website, http://www.rusa.org/perminfo.html.  Once you advise me of your intention to participate, I'll send you the registration form and waiver by email with further instructions.  If you're interested but not sure yet, please contact me now so that I can send you the paperwork in any case.

Crista
crista.dccentury@gmail.com

Saturday Ride - Old Rag 200K Brevet!

Dear Friends,

A ride that is particularly close to our hearts, the Old Rag 200K Brevet, is this Saturday, April 23, starting from the Howard Johnson Inn in Warrenton, Virginia.  Registration opens at 6:00 a.m. and the ride begins promptly at 7:00 a.m.  Onsite registration fee is $10.00.  I hope we will see many of you there!

The Old Rag 200K starts at the "Howard Johnson Inn" at 6 Broadview Avenue in Warrenton, VA‎ (540 347-4141‎). Checkin starts at 6am and the brevet starts at 7am. Pre-ride restrooms are available in the Burger King, just N of the HoJos, on Broadview. Please do not park at the HoJos, unless you are a guest. There is street parking on Waterloo, just west of the HoJos. If you want off-street parking, park at the High School which is at Waterloo and Van Roijen St, about three blocks from the HoJos.

From Warrenton we head generally southwest passing through rolling horse farm country with the Blue Ridge Mountains as our backdrop. We parallel the Blue Ridge as far south as Madison where we begin our return to Warrenton after a stop at the friendly, well-stocked Yoder's Country Market. The route is fairly gentle as we wind our way to Syria in the shadow of Grave's Mountain. A moderate climb followed by a 3-mile descent puts us up and over the Old Rag Grinder. A series of steep and unrelenting rollers–lovingly known as The Three Kings and The Meanies–will consume us for the next hour or so, prompting many to re-fuel at the Laurel Mills store with the sweet spring water that flows nearby. Country roads bordered by stone fences carry us through Ben Venue and into Flint Hill and the final control at the reopened Orlean Market. A final climb over Piney Mountain brings us back to the HoJos in Warrenton. Estimated total elevation gain: 8,000 feet. 

Lights are not absolutely required, and there will not be a mandatory lighting inspection, but lights and reflective gear are required to ride in dark conditions. So we recommended that you bring lights in case you need to ride after it gets dark. Lights might also be needed at the start if it's cloudy.

Cue sheets and GPS files have been posted at http://dcrand.org/blog/2011/04/19/cue-sheet-and-gps-files-for-april-23-old-rag-200k-acp-brevet/.

BIG Saturday Ride - DC Randonneurs "Contrary Mother 300K Brevet"

Dear Friends,

The DC Randonneurs "Contrary Mother of All 300K's" Brevet is scheduled for this Saturday, April 9, starting from the Super 8 in Middletown, Virginia at 5:00 a.m.  Truly an epic ride that will challenge and thrill you all at the same time.  We won't be scheduling a Sunday ride, as we'll be busy licking our wounds.

Here are all the details, courtesy of RBA Bill Beck.  See ya there!

Crista

----------  Forwarded message ----------
From: William Beck <william.a.beck@gmail.com>
Date: Tue, Apr 5, 2011 at 8:02 AM
Subject: [DC Randonneurs] Cue sheet & GPS files posted for April 9 Contrary Mother 300K ACP brevet
To: dcrand@googlegroups.com

The cue sheet and GPS files for the Contrary Mother 300K brevet scheduled for 5AM this Saturday, April 9, are now posted at http://dcrand.org/blog/2011/04/04/cue-sheet-and-gps-files-for-april-9-contrary-mother-300k-brevet/. If you downloaded the GPS files before today you should redownload them since there was a change.

Registration will be open in the lobby of the Super 8 Motel on Friday from 6PM to 8PM and on Saturday morning starting at 4AM. There will be a mandatory bike inspection for front and rear lights firmly attached to the bike, and you will also be asked to show your reflective ankle bands and vest or Sam Browne belt. [See Article 10 of the RUSA rules for riders (http://www.rusa.org/brvreg.html) for details.] Note that the current rules strongly recommend backup lights for both the front and back, but they are not mandatory so we won't require them. But I strongly advise bringing backup lighting since there are many ways for a light to fail, and you would be frozen in place if your light fails in the dark. Riding without front and rear lights is a mandatory disqualification.

 

As the name "Contrary Mother of all 300Ks" suggests, there are a few hills on the route. But it is very beautiful, and will be excellent training for those planning on PBP or another long ride this year. Hopefully we will have better weather than on the checkout ride last Sunday. Our dedicated checkout riders, Gary Dean, Lynn Kristianson, and ride organizer Maile Neel encountered a big lighting storm with hail at the top of Wolf Gap (but finished safely).

 

Bill

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Sunday Ride, April 3, 2011

Dear Friends,

We've got a fairly mellow ride scheduled for Sunday.  Hope you can join us! 

Please download and print out your own cue sheet.   Just click on "Cue Sheets" (on the left side of this page), and you'll find it there!  When you open a pdf file, just click on "Print" to print the cue sheet.  If you're unable to print the cue sheet yourself, let me know and I'll bring a hard copy to the ride start for you.  I won't be bringing extra copies of cue sheets to the ride start unless you email me directly and advise me that you're unable to print out your own.

Sorry, haven't had time to do a GPS file.  If you want one, let me know and if I have time to produce one I'll send it to you.

Crista

SUNDAY, APRIL 3, 2011

"VARIATIONS ON A THEME BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE SMITH," starting from Roy Rogers, 191 Thomas Johnson Drive, Frederick, Maryland.  **NOTE LATE MEETING TIME 8:30 a.m**!!  This kind and gentle ride is adapted from the 2007 Frederick Pedalers Century designed by Bill Smith and Tim Guilford.  (Thank you, Bill!)  The route goes to most of the same places but uses mostly different roads to get there.  In the morning we'll noodle along some of our favorite mellow roads between Frederick and Emmitsburg, then continue north into Adams County PA and slightly east to McSherrystown for lunch at Brothers Pizza.  We'll pass through the village of Harney in the morning and again in the afternoon, and there will be an afternoon rest stop at WGR's favorite refueling spot -- Detour!  Only ~ 4,000 feet elevation gain.  100 miles, with a 58-mile short option. 

Directions to the ride start:

ROY ROGERS, 191 Thomas Johnson Drive, FREDERICK, MARYLAND

From D.C. Beltway (I-495), take I-270 north 31 miles to Frederick.  Continue north on US15 3.7 miles.  Take Exit 16, Motter Ave exit (sign for Frederick Community College).  Turn RIGHT at the traffic light onto Opossumtown Pike.  In a quarter mile turn right onto Thomas Johnson Drive, then left into the shopping center.  Park at the north end of the parking lot near Weis Market.