The Rides
The Ride. It is the cathedral of our sport, where we worship at the altar of the Man with the Hammer. It is the end to our means. Indeed, The Bike may be the central tool to our sport, but to turn the pedals is to experience the sensation of freedom, of flight. It is all for The Ride.
The world is overflowing with small, twisty roads that capture our collective imagination as cyclists. We spend our lifetimes searching out the best routes and rides; we pore over maps, we share with our fellow disciples, we talk to non-cycling locals all in pursuit of the Perfect Ride.
The Rides is devoted entirely to the best routes and rides around the world. Some are races or cyclosportives, others feature in the Classics and stages of The Great Races, while others still are little-known gems, discovered through careful meditation on The V. Be warned: these rides are not your average Sunday Afternoon spin; these rides are the best and most difficult rides in the word – they represent the rites of passage into La Vie Velominatus. It is to be taken for granted that these rides require loads of Rule #5, many of them Rule #10, and all of them are best enjoyed in Rule #9 conditions. They have been shared by you, the community. The Rides also features articles devoted to the greatest rides and providess a forum for sharing other rides for discussion.
If you’d like to submit a ride or an article about your own favorite ride, please feel free to send it to us and we’ll do our best to work with you to include it.
[rideitem status=”public” title=”Haleakala” distance=”56km” category=”Grimpeur” url=”http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/50412514″ location=”Paia, Maui, Hawaii, USA”]
Haleakala is simultaneously the longest paved continuous climb in the world as well as the shortest ascent from sea level to 10,000 feet in the world. Though not terribly steep, this is a long, grinding climb that will reduce a strong rider to a whimpering lump.
To put the effort in perspective, this climb is 60km long a an average of 6% with two pitches as steep as 17%. That translates to somewhere between 3 or more hours of nonstop climbing, usually in Maui’s direct heat and often into a whipping headwind that spins around into a headwind no matter which direction the switchbacks take you.
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[rideitem statuc=public title=”Liege-Bastogne-Liege” distance=”265″ category=”Rouleur” url=”http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/58053308/” location=”Liege, Belgium”]
Liege-Bastogne-Liege is not only La Doyenne, the oldest of the Classics, but also represents perhaps the most demanding course in cycling. The 280 km, 3000m vertical route starts with an easy ride out from Liege to Bastogne which lulls riders into a false sense of security; the hills are frequent, but none of them terribly demanding. Into Bastogne, and the story changes on the way back to Liege with 9 categorized climbs in the second half, including the fearsome Côte de la Redoute and the Côte de Saint-Nicolas.
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[rideitem status=public title=”Paris-Roubaix” category=”Hardman” distance=”265″ url=”http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/58052610/” location=”Compiégne, France” guideurl=”http://www.cyclingpave.cc/” guide=”Pavé Cycling Classics”]
L’enfur du Nord. The Hell of The North. The Queen of the Classics. This isn’t a ride over the stones from your local brick-paved roads. You think climbs are what make a ride tough? We’ve got news for you: this is the hardest ride on the planet and it boasts a maximum elevation of 55 meters. These are vicious, brutal stones; the kind that will stretch each kilometer to their full length, the kind of stones that you will feel long after the rattling of the bars has stopped. These stones will change you. Forever.
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[rideitem status=public title=”Mortirolo/Gavia Loop” category=”Grimpeur” distance=”115km” url=”http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/59027020/” location=”Bormio, Italy” contributor=”Joe”]
The Mortirolo is perhaps the most feared pass in Western Europe, and the Gavia the most storied. Given their proximity to each other, its a wonder why this isn’t the most talked-about ride in Italy. Maybe it is; its impossible to say without being Italian. The loop nature of this ride makes it feasible as a solo escapade, but any ride with the kind of stats this one bears – 3200 meters ascended in 115 kilometers including the viscously steep Mortirolo – is best enjoyed with a riding partner or support car.
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[rideitem status=public title=”200 on 100″ category=”Grimpeur” distance=”330km” url=”http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/58052808/” location=”Vernon, VT” contributor=”cdelinks” contributorurl=”http://cyclowhat.com”]
“Dumptruck of Awesome” has become the catch-phrase associated with this brutally hard, yet strikingly beautiful 330 kilometer (200 mile) ride down Vermont Route 100. This ride was made popular during the summer of 2011 when Ted King, Tim Johnson, and a local amateur cyclist, Ryan Kelly, documented this ride on film. The ride starts on the Canadian border and finishes on the Massachusetts border. With over 2500 meters of climbing on this 330 kilometer ride, you will need to pack a few lunches to get through this one. Do this ride in the Fall, and the foliage might be beautiful enough to distract you from the horrible pain you will most certainly suffer.
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[rideitem status=”public” title=”De Ronde Van West Portlandia” distance=”76km” category=”Grimpeur” url=”http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/15276210″ location=”Portland, Oregon, USA”]
A ride that officially “never happens” each spring, this 76 km route charts a course through Portland’s West Hills, paying homage to the European Spring Classics. Approximately 1,800 meters of paved and unpaved climbs are spread throughout the course, with several sections reaching grades of over 20%. More information can be found at Ronde PDX.
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[rideitem status=public title=”Seattle Master Urban Ride” category=”Rouleur” distance=”130km” url=http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/57732282 location=”Seattle, Washington, USA”]
This is perhaps the most challenging urban route in Seattle, hitting three of the big hills that define Seattle’s topography. The route starts and ends on Phinney Ridge, but hits the climbs of Interlaken and Alder Street/Lake Dell Drive on its way to Mercer Island, before coming back to hit Queen Anne and Magnolia, weaving its way up each of these hills as many times as possible via the steepest route available before the finale to the north via Golden Gardens, Blue Ridge Drive, and Carkeek Park. Panoramic views of the Cascades, Mount Rainier, Mount Baker, The Olympic Penninsula and Puget Sound makes this a standout Urban ride.
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The mighty ‘Douche
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QpbEfH7Ef6E
@DeKerr my problem with the power meter is that is what tells him how hard, or not, to ride at any given moment, same as his climbing “technique” it’s awful to watch, and is he racing anyone but his own threshold? He never looks at his opponents to gauge their level of suffering before launching an attack, just waits until the “machine” says he has 20 more watts available for the the next 42 seconds then goes at it like a sailor on shore leave. Meh.
@piwakawaka ‘xactly.
This was at the local hipster bike shop, the last 30 seconds of these races are brutal!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ow4b0_Cbjhw
Thought some of you might get a switchbone over this, I know I have!
@Beers
Nice. More Switchbone from Norway:
I’m going to work this embed thing out……….sorry folks if I post some (more) garbage!
@Teocalli OFFS. If you are trying to embed photos and the photo is on your computer (PC), do this:
If you have the photo on your computer but it is a mac, buy a PC and follow steps 1-8
If you don’t have the photo right click on it and hit “save image” (chose a location you’ll remember otherwise you’ll get to step 4 and have to start again) then repeat steps 1-8. The “Insert/Edit Image” button will only complicate matters.
For video (you tube but others should be similar):
@xyxax
*Sigh* You can’t fucking paste, people. Don’t believe everything your iPad tells you.
@Chris
Thank you.
@Chris
It’s exactly the same with a Mac, you just use Finder to locate the files, either in a folder or in iPhoto if you’ve uploaded it there.
@Chris Ta ! However I “think” I’m doing exactly that. I’m pasting the code in the embed video line that pops up when you click the Icon then clicking OK on that popup. The video then actually appears in the post window and runs fine but disappears when I click Submit Post. I’m starting to suspect a browser issue on my laptop so might try a different browser in a week or two when it won’t piss everyone off………….photos work fine.
I am prepared to feature the new style cycle helmet on the Cogal…………
@Teocalli Which browser are you failing with?
@Chris MS Explorer, I think v9 or whatever the latest is but just turned off my office PC so now on the MAC downstairs (hiding!). I have noticed one or two oddeties with v9 since MS kindly auto installed it without me asking…….
@frank
Good luck @Frank! Ontario in April? I imagine that you will be taking Le Graveur? Or the new road beauty?
I have had some interest from the locals in Team Cafe Roubaix. This would be an appropriate beginning to the season I think.
@Teocalli Frank will soon be along to post a pie chart about that.
Try Chrome. I’m not sure if the tech freaks care for it but it seems to work well enough for me.
@Chris
I think he will probably be posting my new cycle helmet with my V Gear!
@Teocalli
@Teocalli
I think the newest version is IE10 and officially Velominati does not support IE. 5% of our traffic uses that piece of shit, and it would take 90% of my time to get things 100% right with it. Honestly, IE is the bane of any web developer’s existance. I test it for the core functionality and support, but really don’t sweat the details.
I prefer Chrome – it also syncs my history across all my devices (3 computers, 2 iPads, four phones) so it is head and shoulders above the rest. Also, it is free and standards compliant. Also, the latest upload tool I’ve been working on for the last few months supports copy-paste so long as you use Chrome (no other browser supports the functionality).
@frank
This is worth bearing in mind in terms of home and work devices.
Our racing season is properly underway now – third race today and my first podium. Third in the Masters and 10th overall – not bad for someone turning 47 tomorrow.
Masters is a very wide range here, starting at 30, which is a bit unfair in my books. There are guys at 31 and 32 who’ve chosen to race Masters rather than Open.
Anyway so far so good. Raced the new TCR today although it wasn’t really the course for it – a flattish hotdog circuit about 4km in each direction.
http://www.strava.com/activities/83625674
The interesting news is that the Tour of Sharjah, which you may recall I did last year, is going to be a proper UCI 2.2 race this year and our team will probably get an invite. They’re also talking about teams being invited to a similar 2.2 in Qatar.
That will be something to peak for ! Good thing it’s in two months.
@ChrisO Top man, well done. I’m looking forward to bathing in your awesomeness when you’re over for the Cogal. By the way, eat a pie or two please; we’re the same age and your lean frame is making me feel inadequate.
@Mike_P
A pie or two would also help create a better “hole” for the rest of us to draft in.
@frank
Yeah it is IE10 I have and will use in Velominatiland no more. Apart from the above @frank what do you really think of it? It has been the bane of my internet life since MS kindly auto-installed it much time spent searching for circumventions to problems, I must copy over my bookmarks and stop using it. Good to know it (probably) was not me but next time I try to post a video I guess I’d better also make it a good one.
@ChrisO
Kudos!
@Teocalli
*cough*Firefox*cough*Chrome*cough* (Just a handful of alternatives.)
By the way, if you don’t want windows explorer on your PC at all, might I suggest an OS upgrade to some wonderful flavor of Linux? I’d mention *bsd, but I’m not a sadist.
FWIW, site renders perfectly in Ubuntu w/ Firefox (or Chrome)
@ChrisO – Dude, this is awesome news! And congrats on your first podium!
@Chris
Chrome also supports multiple accounts. I have two at home (home and work accounts) and one at work. It’s very nice being able to just open up the work account at home and not risk cross-contamination. =)
@ChrisO Congratulations….and I followed your progress last year on your race through the desert, including, if I remember correctly, a fall, some visits from the Man with the Hammer, and ultimately a great deal of satisfaction for the achievement at the end of it.
Keep us posted again this year!
@ChrisO Congrats on the podium and happy birthday for today.
So today was my first real cross race. The course was more of an XC than a CX course, but it meant i didn’t disobey Rule #5 like 11 other people who DNFed after 2 laps because “it was to technical”
I didn’t podium. In fact I was lapped by the leaders, but it was an awesome day riding with my club mates.
@ChrisO congrats chris! look forward to another guest article on what you’ve learned year over year
I’ll put this bit here too. Next spring, March or April, I’m planning on bicycling from Lexington, MA to Miami, FL. Figuring 10 days will be enough time to get down there. The prize? @Rob lives in FL now! Relying on him to show me how to ride track!
No actual route planned yet, except I’m trying to keep it in the 3800km range. If any Velominati live in CT, NJ, PA, MD, VA, NC, SC, GA, or FL and have a spare couch, give a holler! I can connect the dots later and make it somewhat cohesive.
cheers!! and also, i have a open invite to anyone that needs a place to crash in boston. just in case you also have a desire to honeymoon through my neck of the woods!
@roger
sweet jesus, that is a long haul. You and the C-59? And fenders?
no colnago for this one…seven axiom sl…son28 dynamo generator hub for phone and garmin. And the smallest rack system possible. she will be breaking some rules, no way around it
@ChrisO Well Done!
But goddamn you’re a skinny bastard. Definitely not too fat to climb (although not that much of a problem in the desert I assume).
@roger
Generator hub, very cool. First bike with a USB charging port. This will be a nice ride.
@Weldertron
Nicely done! Sounds like a blast!
@ChrisO
Congrats on the podium, Chris – well done!
Any thoughts/first impressions you’d like to share, with regard to the TCR?
@ErikdR
Wait until after tomorrow… I am taking it to the hills so it will be the first real test.
I have, as the Euro-bikers say, good sensations so I’m hoping for a nice ride but will update on how it performs.
I’m just sorry I had to take the Vittoria gumwalls off as the 25mm didn’t fit in the Ridley and I’ve been using it during the week.
Anyone want to buy a pair of Vittoria Open Corsa, used once, or swap for 23 mm ?
@ErikdR
OK, so first real test for the TCR today and I’m happy to say it is as awesome as (I think) it looks. Really happy with it.
We did a 100km ride from Hatta to Kalba, with about 1700m of climbing. There was one guy there who had just come from two weeks riding the Vuelta course and another guy brought his 14 year old son who has started beating a whole load of people up hills, courtesy of a phenomenal power to weight ratio. No pressure.
We got away much later than I would have liked. 28C seems like a nice temperature at 6am but by 6.30 and there is still mucking about going on I’m thinking of the 40C that it will be by 10am.
The real tests were two big climbs and their descents – it’s an out and back route with mainly steady climbing on the way there, but then you do a big descent little climb and another big descent. Not Alps type but 300-400m at 7 to 8 % on some big sweeping turns and very good roads, so you really feel you should be going down full gas. We’re looking at 80km/h or something around that.
Previously I’ve done it on the Ridley Noah and had some moments. I love the Noah but I feel that it’s best as a flat-course aero bike. I find the relatively high position and the big tubing can make it feel a little unstable in cross-winds and on hard corners.
The TCR on the other hand has that corner-on-rails type of feel. I didn’t really push it but on the second descent I didn’t even touch the brakes, which for me is quite an achievement. It felt really stable and I could just lean into the corners so easily.
Going up was equally good. It’s hard to say what was the definitive cause – bike, weight (mine) or training – but I did my best ever times on the main climbs and am in top 5 for most of them, not far behind some very good climbers.
Managed to stay ahead of everybody on our ride too and get back to catch the end of breakfast at the hotel. I needed that, and I’ll be in bed early tonight – exhausted.
Ride here if anyone wants to have a naughty peek.
http://app.strava.com/activities/85229052
@ChrisO Kudos. Er, no sorry, what the fuck am I talking about, wrong site. Nipple lube.
80kph, wow, that thing must be stable. Looking forward to seeing it in the flesh in a couple of weeks.
@ChrisO The TCR just looks beautifully, stealthily aggressive in that photo. It sounds like you are in a real run of form at the moment; chapeau. Please leave the form out there when you come back to London in a couple of weeks :-)
Why is it called Strava anyway? It means extravagant. Why not Strada. Strava is almost like getting too much info on the race radio. Anyway Starva screws with the V meter accuracy as well. Some secteurs can be smashed so hard that there is only one that should know about it — you.
@unversio You’re baiting me on purpose now, and don’t think I haven’t noticed you cheekily trying to move the debate to The Rides from The Rules. No more comment on the subject from me.
@Mike_P No. Just moving the thread.
Wow, sounds like a great bike. Tell us about your choice of wheels; looks like lower profile on the front than on the rear?
@ChrisO
OK, so first real test for the TCR today and I’m happy to say it is as awesome as (I think) it looks. Really happy with it.
We did a 100km ride from Hatta to Kalba, with about 1700m of climbing. There was one guy there who had just come from two weeks riding the Vuelta course and another guy brought his 14 year old son who has started beating a whole load of people up hills, courtesy of a phenomenal power to weight ratio. No pressure.
We got away much later than I would have liked. 28C seems like a nice temperature at 6am but by 6.30 and there is still mucking about going on I’m thinking of the 40C that it will be by 10am.
The real tests were two big climbs and their descents – it’s an out and back route with mainly steady climbing on the way there, but then you do a big descent little climb and another big descent. Not Alps type but 300-400m at 7 to 8 % on some big sweeping turns and very good roads, so you really feel you should be going down full gas. We’re looking at 80km/h or something around that.
Previously I’ve done it on the Ridley Noah and had some moments. I love the Noah but I feel that it’s best as a flat-course aero bike. I find the relatively high position and the big tubing can make it feel a little unstable in cross-winds and on hard corners.
The TCR on the other hand has that corner-on-rails type of feel. I didn’t really push it but on the second descent I didn’t even touch the brakes, which for me is quite an achievement. It felt really stable and I could just lean into the corners so easily.
Going up was equally good. It’s hard to say what was the definitive cause – bike, weight (mine) or training – but I did my best ever times on the main climbs and am in top 5 for most of them, not far behind some very good climbers.
Managed to stay ahead of everybody on our ride too and get back to catch the end of breakfast at the hotel. I needed that, and I’ll be in bed early tonight – exhausted.
Ride here if anyone wants to have a naughty peek.
http://app.strava.com/activities/85229052
@Weldertron
Congrats, mate! It might be because of the odd angle, but it looks like your saddle may be too low and your reach a bit short. Just an observation made without knowing anything about your physiology, riding style, or skilz.
@roger Jeeeeeesus, Roger. I’m happy to help if you want. I’ll join you from Lexington to, say, Newton? But seriously, maybe I can hook you up with some folks in NJ for a Velomiescort through the Garden State.
No, not that kind of escort.