NOT a road ride at the Athletic on Tuesdays

Patrick Croasdaile

2017-03-08

Starting Tuesday March 14th @ 5:30pm at the Athletic Community���s HQ on NW 19th, we���re going to host a weekly ride through the woods of Forest Park. You heard it here first folks. We���re not hosting a weekly road ride this spring. Instead, we���re hosting ���Not a Road Ride���. Inevitably some roads will be ridden on, but those are a means to an end. A paved expressway to a place where no cars go.

While I love riding on the road, Echo Red2Red, Bear Springs Trap, Sisters Stampede, et al. are what I try and prepare for. As such, I want to lead a ride aimed at keeping folks like myself loose, comfortable, and fast on dirt, gravel, and mud. Most rides will be about 20 miles roundtrip starting and ending at the shop. I imagine we���ll lallygag up Thurman and then once wheels hit dirt, things will speed up, considerably. Usually we���ll return to the shop via Hwy 30 by way of a descent down Germantown. If you live up north, that���d be a good time to break formation and head home.

I���d love it if you���d come along and join me for a light-hearted, spirited ride to let off some steam and get a little fitter each week.

As this isn���t a road ride, there are a few points of order I���d like to highlight.

���Rule��� 1 - Come prepared. We���re planning on riding Leif Erikson and some combination of Forest Park���s many Fire Lanes and bike-appropriate trails. If you know how to shred the woods on a road bike with 25s, cool, do it. Most of us are going to be on a fatter tire road bike, or a gravel bike, or a cross bike, or a 29er/650b hardtail, or maybe even a super-appropriate 29-minus rig (or even something the industry hasn���t cooked up yet but fits the bill). To that end, let me say that 26in plus bikes are not invited, but I thoroughly invite you to ride your vintage Stumpjumper with city slicks. I recommend choosing a bike that will allow you to go the fastest you���re capable of on a variety of surfaces. To me, this is a 700x32mm tire or larger. Regardless of your bike and tire choice, make sure you have a way to fix yourself if your bike breaks. In my mind, this is a pump, a spare tube, and allen key. Also, if like me you���re prone to bonking after 15 minutes on a bike, I highly recommend bringing a bar or gel and certainly some fluids. Be an adult and prepare accordingly. Sabes, si?

���Rule��� 2 - This is not a drop ride, but it���s not a slow ride either. In pure roadie terms, we intend to make this ride tempo pace with a couple opportunities for you to kick it up a notch or three. Ride as fast as you want, but be advised we���re going to designate a few rally points. When you reach one you can either wait, or tack back to get the last-placed rider. I recommend the latter. Think of it as a recovery spin, or free miles, or maybe even a bragging rights lap: ���I got there first���.

We���ll be sending out the week���s intended route via an email list the day before . If the weather is absolutely terrible, we���ll do an abbreviated version of the route, and preferably stop someplace for a beer.

If you want to be included on these plans, write me here (service@theathleticcommunity.com).

Anyway, I can���t wait to see you all on the 14th for some grubby good times.

-Patrick