Looking for the easiest possible century route in the southwest US
 

My eight-year-old has set a lofty goal of riding a century--I plan to ride with him. Over the past year he's done a couple of 50 miler's and can't seem to get enough. Seems with a reasonable training plan and a little help from me it may actually be possible for him. He's a couple weeks into preparations and I'm struggling to plan a good route for him--I could use some help.


I'm hopeful someone can suggest a route with the following characteristics:

• start of ride is within a day's drive of southern CA (Orange County area) -- nor cal, AZ, NV, southern UT all seem reasonable
  
• minimal elevation gain, an average descent ideal
  
• safe--he has surprisingly mature road sense but I'm confident fatigue will challenge his mental acuity
  
• unlikely headwind mid-May
  

Route nice to have's:

• Interesting (i.e. not repeats on a boring section of road)
  
• Probable tail wind mid-May
  
• Occasional civilization
  
• Comfortable weather in Mid May - likely rules out Palm Springs/Phoenix corridor
  

Other relevant info:

• The route does not need to be a loop or an out and back
  
• The route does not need to be a known century ride
  
• The rest of the fam has offered to be a support crew

Any suggestions would be much appreciated. Routes that match the criteria but are beyond the one-day drive would also be interesting to hear about.

I did my first (and so far only) century last summer in an area near Lake Tahoe called the Sierra Valley. The route was a loop approximately 54-56 miles around going through the towns of Loyalton and Sierraville where supplies can be found.
The route takes you on wide open, well maintained roads with little traffic until you reach Hwy70 where there is a fair amount of cars but a massive shoulder and virtually straight with no blind spots.
Altitude in this area is about 4500 but I couldn’t tell it affected me at all and I live at around 350.
This is of course a bit further than you asked for but the scenery is beautiful and it is one of the safest routes I’ve found regarding traffic and the mildest of hills.

In a similar discussion a while back, someone suggested Leadville to Canon City, CO. Follow the Arkansas River downhill and downstream, there's only one significant uphill to go around Royal Gorge 10 miles out of Canon City. The terrain is beautiful, and if you need to recover a day before heading home, take the train up the gorge or a whitewater rafting trip. You might want to delay until mid-June for the rafting, though.

I can imagine that to be just an incredible bike ride. I've driven from CO Springs to Bueno Vista and then onto Leadville about 10 years back with my family to came near Mt Elbert. The views were jaw dropping, especially coming from Brighton Michigan.

No. Not for an 8yr old. Hwy 24 from Leadville to Salida is a 60mph two-lane-no-shoulder puckerfest.

I get the desire to mix in different scenery --if you're gonna do a century, you should enjoy a new locale, right? That being said, is something like Malibu->San Clemente not under consideration? And if you were looking for super flat, Palmdale to Victorville and back? But that would be boring, deserty, and boring. And it's been so long since I've been out there I dunno how traffic would be. And it'd be boring.

If in SoCal, an easy flattish century ride is to use SART-PCH-Laguna Cyn Rd-El Toro Rd-Aliso Creek Bikeway-Santiago Cyn Rd. You could include the Huntington Beach bike path along the beach to avoid PCH to add some miles as well to put you near 100 miles.

You may be right. But doesn't that description apply to almost all rural Colorado highways?

Find a 400m track and ride 400 laps. Have fun!

For the most part, kinda yeah. That's why I qualified my comment. It's a doable stretch, but no way I'd take a child on it. But there are plenty of side roads depending on where you are. You can do a flat-ish 100mi going from Denver to Ft Collins and back, all on farm roads and good shoulders. But in the mountains? Not a lot of the routes have quality shoulders for extended miles on end.

The Century a Month thread has several SoCal routes where a person took the train N, then rode South. LA to north county, maybe? But 100mi and only 3300ft of climbing.

The Sacramento Century route is pretty flat. Less than 1000 feet of elevation over 100 miles.

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/31149377

None of the elevation is an actual hill. The route sort of meanders between sea level at 40 feet ASL and you've got a nice midway point via Walnut Grove. South River Road is not the most bike friendly road in the area but it's got a decent shoulder and lots of visibility. So you won't have vehicles jumping up on you (or you them). Weather up here is mid 50s for the lows and mid 80s for the high. Winds in Sacramento are interesting, I've ridden a rectangle loop in the area and I've had a headwind the entire time. I would say prevails winds are out of the north and west.

yeah...done it multiple ways from la to san diego but nearly always through camp pendleton which can get a little busy at the south end/entrance with freeway on/off ramps.

if it's gotta be in may, that kills (as said in the op's og post) off palm springs and phoenix (and death valley and the tucson loop) which could all be very doable in early/mid april.

it could be done from (as mentioned preciously) from just south of malibu-santa monica, starting along the bike path-to the "enforced" edge of camp pendleton at las flores rd.
only one adult chaperoning rider is mentioned...i'd want two-one ahead and one behind for certain stretches such as the exit from the bike path in redondo and transitioning
into palos verdes estates (your longest grade), along with the rancho palos verdes into san pedro, dropping down into the la harbor area, negotiating anaheim st until the la river bike path into long beach
segment as well as the mariners mile along pch in newport beach. the path would take you inland along the newport back bay trail (climbing out onto jamboree rd sidewalk would be
your steepest short stretch the entire ride) and take advantage of the irvine bike path network to deposit you as close as possible to the corner of trabuco rd/marguerite pkwy.
from there, it would be staying along the south side of the 5 fwy in that corridor until ortega hwy/hwy 74 where you would make a quick left just before crossing over the 5 fwy,
then a quick right to them hook up with the san juan capistrano bike path that deposits you at doheny state beach. from doheny heading south thru san clemente and utilizing the well-signed
and rolling bike route south of el camino real and the 5 fwy until about a mile north of the trestles bike path access. easy ride past trestles and the san onofre nuclear power plant
and enter san onofre state beach area. once thru that and onto the northern part of the (usually) open camp pendleton, it's another few miles to las flores road junction where there is a
large turnout and plenty of parking just east of the 5 freeway/las flores intersection. a couple of thoughts on this section besides wanting a lead and trailing adult rider in certain areas
if doing this ride:
1. no matter how you zig and zag, it's a little steep (and long) for an 8 yo to climb from redondo beach up to palos verdes estates, then up (easiest) via del monte to via montemar and then a right
down to the bluff cove area within the space of 3-5 miles.
2. taking into consideration the various bike paths you pass north to south (ballona creek, la river, san gabriel river trail, santa ana river trail), you would only be on the la river trail for approx
2-3 miles. there are some situations along there that i wouldn't feel comfortable exposing my kid(s)-mine are grown now-to at that age. you could incorporate some part(s) of
the sgrt and or sart as a there and back or starting/ending point but those two trails, along with the la river trail i would save for 16+ yo's. haven't had any such vibes on ballona creek,
the irvine trail network (including back bay) or the sjc to doheny path.
3. if i mock up and dump the ride north of long beach and go all the way to las flores, i come up with 85 miles by doing much of the balboa peninsula and jutting inland with the back bay
trail and following the relatively gentle trabuco rd/marguerite pkwy corridor to sjc (which is a little quieter and wider than the other side of the freeway). noodling and doodling within the
irvine trail network might net you another 6-7 miles w/o repetition and/or doubling back.

i mocked up a san diego coastal century ride that isn't as dicey but could still use a second chaperone here and there. the good news is that it's got about half of the elevation gain.
the bad news is that you repeat about 70-75% of the ride, albeit in the other direction, and it's a more complicated route to follow. the strava route says less than 1,100 feet in elevation
gain but my experience tells me it's closer to 1,500-1,600 ft. still less than half of the la to oc ride where much of your el gain is in the south redondo/palos verdes peninsula area along with the
trabuco/marguerite stretch. the coronado stretch along the silver strand state beach nearly always has a 3/4 headwind heading north for approx 6 miles and the fiesta island loop heading
west and south usually has a decent headwind for approx 1.5 miles.

https://www.strava.com/routes/2799935935163360562

a question is what roads/routes has he ridden (conceivably, orange county) in preparation/doing 50-mile routes so i/we have a better idea of difficulty/traffic exposure?

Wow, thanks for all the thoughtful replies.
 

I figure the easiest routes are ones that start high in mountains and at least give you 10-30 miles of downhill freebie miles in the beginning.

This is our current riding area and it's great practice. Someone else mentioned the hope of going somewhere different. That's true, but certainly just hopping on the bike from home in Laguna Niguel and heading south or north along the coast is a pretty good option. A similar route I looked out started out on the top of Palos Verdes and then heading south. You get some of the early freebie miles, but not too many. We used to live in Long Beach and are very comfortable with this route, even through the port area. (I can't post links, so I'll put the route ID that goes at the end of the URL strava..../routes/[route id]) -- 2799079206554984182

If he does something bad, this will be his punishment route 😂

I love this idea and that's actually what we've done on some of the half-centuries we've done. We just left South Orange county, rode as far as we could, and hopped on an Amtrak back home. The tickets were $15 each and it's a self-sufficient way to cover a lot of ground. It's a good idea because it can easily be done in reverse depending on wind forecasts.

As you mentioned, the wind in this area worries me a little, but I've found a lot of the routes I've been testing in the route planner work really well out here.

Thanks for the route mock up, I'm actually really interested in the route. Really flat, good mix of city and coastal to keep it interesting.

He grew up riding in Long Beach. It was scary teaching a little kid to ride on those busy streets, but I think it was really stimulating at the same time. He his vigilant with cars, driveways, pedestrians, etc. because of it. Now we live in the suburbs with lots of bike trails, large sidewalks and bike lines. More hills too.

I appreciate the comments on having a second adult on some of these routes and think it's a smart idea. Consequently, I've recruited my dad. He's pretty sure he can keep the pace :)

Regarding the CO ride. Wow, I want to go there. Following the river bed is smart and the scenery seems spectacular. I'm going to file that one away for a couple years from now. The drive out there wouldn't be too crazy, but with no familiarity of the area, services, and no friends/family there CO becomes logistically tougher.

I've got four routes so far that I'm seriously considering--all three with lots of freebie miles at the beginning. As my son continues to train that will inform a lot in terms of how realistic any of these are.

The first is starting near Big Bear and heading down toward Anaheim via Redlands. Can anyone speak to the second half of this ride? (strava route id 2799311640530882366)

The second ride that I really like (I think it would be gorgeous) is Solvang north to San Luis Obisbo. It's likely the max amount of climbing I could consider, and there is a pretty high risk of headwind. That said, it would be a rewarding ride. I suppose a good candidate for a shorter training ride. (strava route id 2799439026218074166)

The third one is kind of random, but we drove from Crater Lake last year to the Oregon coast. A memorable and gorgeous drive. It's a long and generous descent and the weather would probably be great. Street view confirms that the road is ok--not great, but seems doable. Primary issue with this ride is how far away it is, but that's not a deal breaker. (strava route id 2799798886832470322)

I haven't thought too much about this final route, but generally it seems to check a lot of boxes. If anyone has experience cycling in Yuba City/Chico area, feedback on this route would be appreciated. (strava route id 2800159669395807966)

The river trails take you through some very scenic parts of the metropolis but maybe you have seen all that and are looking for something new. Riding to Azusa on one one path and back on another is neat and very dramatic approaching the mountains. The Pacific Coast Coast Randonneurs have some routes. I did one with them called 5 rivers or some such.

I don't actually think enabling an 8-year-old to try an 100 mile ride is a good idea. only one good thing can happen - but dozens of bad outcomes are possible......

However this may be the best way to claim a "first century ride" for the future champion......

Go to your previous 50 mile route. but start the ride in the afternoon. Go home, comeback early the next morning and complete the route again - before the previous day's starting time.. There you have it --- 100 miles in less than 24 hours - and much less chance of injury.

If this doesn't appeal - at least setup some alternate test of endurance with rest to be sure the child won't hurt himself. I have no proof - but I just think eight could be a little young - although I can see trying it for 10 and up.

I appreciate the sincere concern and expected some to have this response. My imagination can dream up far more than one good thing happening. In fact, the actual completion of the event, in my opinion, is not even the ultimate goal. The primary goals are teaching my son about building endurance, teaching him about the discipline of following a training program, hours and hours on the bike together, hours off the bike together looking at maps and Strava, etc. All of that in a low-pressure environment where I allow him to lead and be the source of his motivation is a wonderful outcome.

If we actually make it to the big day and attempt the full 100 miles, the goal of this thread is to minimize the risks while balancing the trade off of providing a rewarding ride.

Totally depends on the kid. I rode RAGBRAI with my dad when I was 8, including the century day, on a 5 speed stingray, so it can be done. The nice thing about that ride is that it's a closed course with plenty of supported stops.

There is a RUSA member who rides a relatively flat out-and-back 100k RUSA perm in your area. I just copied it to my RWGPS account and extended it using the heatmap feature of RWGPS. It might be a route you would consider. Just double it so it will be 100 miles. See https://ridewithgps.com/routes/35348133.

Somewhere I read in this string that your son has already done a few 50-mile rides. Having him do a 100-mile ride point-to-point which is heavy on the downhills (especially at the front end) isn't really much of a step up from a normal 50-mile ride. And with regard to head winds, if you do an out-and-back with the headwind against you on the way out, and you (the father) let your son draft your wheel, then headwinds won't really be much of an issue (at least they shouldn't be with regard to your son). And in that case, the return trip with a tailwind would be kind of a freebie.

I can remember about 4 or 5 years ago a female triathlete I did some swimming and riding with entered a half Ironman event that had the swim leg in a river. The swim went with the current of the river. The woman was a poor swimmer. She chose that particular event to help her with her deficiency. The point is, if your son really wants to claim credit for actually riding 100 miles, then an out-and-back or loop type route is the best way to go.

UPDATE: I tinkered with the above-mentioned route to make it into an Out-and-Back, and a P2P. See https://ridewithgps.com/routes/35386700 (out and back), and https://ridewithgps.com/routes/35387116 (P2P).

There are so many places to ride in CA, the only reason to consider going all the way to CO is a change of scene.

My idea: Right now, Rte 1 through Big Sur is closed by a landslide again, out and back from either side would be amazing (though hardly flat). From Monterey it’s 45 miles to the roadblock. That’s probably a lot of climbing and you could start closer. If you were making a road trip of it you could do the aquarium the day after

After commenting on this string recently I was thinking about it at work. I thought back to the 25-mile ride my parents took me on when I was 7 or 8. My brother was along, too. And he was 2 years younger. When my brother's oldest boy visited my folks at age 6 he wanted to do a towpath ride with them that was a little over 20 miles. I got him a 24-inch wheel Raleigh mountain bike with 18 speeds. Yeah, he fit on it barely. My dad had a 20-inch wheel girls bike for him, and my dad asked which one my nephew wanted to ride. He said the BIG boys bike "of course." I got a kick out of that. Connor finished the ride with no problems! When he was 14 he was on another visit to my parents' home (his grandparents' home) and I dared him to do a 50-mile ride that started in Fort Lee, NJ and hit all 5 boroughs of NYC. He took me up on the dare, and finished. Sore, but he finished. So after those pleasant thoughts I figured I would try to design a 100-miler bike route for a kid who lives on the other side of the US who wants to show the world what he can do. Eight-year-olds, the perfect age. A little younger and they aren't able to act adult. And a year older and they start talking back like they know better than those who are supposed to be controlling them.

Any way, here's another route to consider for your son's "big ride." It's not too far from your home, and it's actually a pretty sweet route. Have fun with it. See https://ridewithgps.com/routes/35356803.

That's actually a really neat idea! I will look into this! Even if we don't do it for the whole route, could be a ride anyway--very memorable.

I appreciate the sentiment, for sure. My general feeling is that any ambition that is healthy for the kid and family as a whole is worth exploring. So far, he continues to log miles and seems to love every minute of it, and frankly, I'm having a lot of fun working on it with him.

I hadn't considered the area you shared in your route--it'll get hot as the months go on, but I think in the coming weeks it will make for an excellent training ride. Thank you for the tip and taking the time to make a route!

Here's another version of the route I designed for you. It has about 1000 feet less of climbing in it for a total of 2600 feet elevation gain. See https://ridewithgps.com/routes/35362549.

UPDATE: I got to thinking about the loop I mention above. It occurred to me that there was an out-and-back route hiding in there that would have less elevation gain. I tinkered with the route a little, and low and behold I was able to cut another 1000 feet off the elevation gain. An out-and-back can be done with only 1600 feet of elevation gain. See https://ridewithgps.com/routes/35370392.

Yeah, a 100-mile training ride for a 100-mile main event. :)

UPDATE: I just did a Google search looking for a comparison of May temps for Hemet CA and Palm Springs CA. See https://www.weather-us.com/en/califo.../hemet-climate and https://www.weather-us.com/en/califo...prings-climate. It appears to me that Hemet does not jump in temp in May the way that Palm Springs does. And a look at the temps for May (and similarly in April) in Hemet look very nice to me with regard to an all-day bike ride. Perris and Hemet are tucked away in a neat little valley, thus not subject to the dessert heat, but not getting the benefits of an ocean breeze. I have yet to find a nicer place for a relatively flat ride in the southwestern US. The last route I created for you (the out-and-back one) is about the same degree of difficulty of my fun imperial metric rides here back in NJ/PA. See https://ridewithgps.com/routes/21533645 which is the first perm route I created for RUSA.

That Yuba City/Chico route is extremely meh. Flat flat flat farmlands.

If you were willing to travel that far, this is what I would recommend:

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/35411115

RWGPS says 3039 ft of up, 9740 of down. And the up is inflated due to RWGPS not factoring bridges properly (you'd cross over the Foresthill Bridge [highest deck height in CA], and cross in front of Folsom Dam, then Nimbus Dam).

Weather in May is good in the area, and given this snow season probably no problem starting at the tippy top. In the Sacramento area the 32'ish miles on the American River Bike Trail is mostly protected from the wind. There are a few spots with fast traffic, but the roads are generally wide and heavily travelled by cyclists. I could give you details on every mile of the ride if you ended up choosing that route.

Stop in Auburn at ~45mi then Folsom ~70mi for ice cream.

And if he can ride some short bits of hardpack dirt, all but a couple miles of the heaviest traffic can be bypassed.