Lanceoldstrong

********************************************************************
Update: A Date & Time Are Set
Saturday 8/22 at 11:00 a.m.
At the Mt. Wanda parking lot. (At the corner of Alhambra Ave. and Franklin Canyon Road.)
********************************************************************

There have been requests for a NorCal BikeForums Slow Poke Ride again soon.
So... here goes an endeavor to herd us up for a:

Crockett / Miller Trail Slow Poke Ride.

I have drawn up 3 Routes, the big organized rides do it that way, so why not us?
Here are links to the routes:
All 3 begin and end at the Mt. Wanda parking lot. (At the corner of Alhambra Ave. and Franklin Canyon Road.)

1. Slow Poke: 13.6 Miles / 1000 ft. climbing
2. Slow Poke Medium: 19 Miles / 1450 ft. climbing
3. Slow Poke Extra: 27 Miles / 2300 ft. climbing

The Plan:

All Riders meet at the Mt. Wanda parking lot
All Riders start together, regardless of the route each is riding.

• Slow Poke Riders do the simple 13.6 mile loop.
  
  
• Slow Poke Medium riders do 1/4 of the Slow Poke, but diverge at mile 3.6
  (Medium does not turn right on Mc Ewen Road.)
  ... then the complete all of Franklin Canyon w/ a climb up Cummings Skyway and a great descent of Crockett Blvd.
  from there the Slow Poke route is rejoined.
  
  
• Slow Poke Extra riders continue on Slow Poke course until mile 11,
  ... then backtrack to the moderate Crockett Blvd Climb & some fun on
  the false flat Franklin speed chute.

Riders can choose a route based on their ability / desire to hammer, or not hammer.
We should all finish at about the same time, allowing for a little hanging around at the end.
The Mt. Wanda parking lot is shady and wooded, a nice place to hang out for a chat.

When we are all back together, we can opt in or opt out of a post ride coffee.
It is only a mile to a Starbucks with ample patio seating:
Route for Driving or Riding to Starbucks from Mt. Wanda

• No Date Set Yet
• Preferred Day is a Saturday.
• I want to try to pick a date that is as inclusive as possible.
• Please chime in with any Black Out dates you may have due to conflicts with other events/functions.

pacificaslim

Sounds awesome! I can't do 7/25 or 8/8, but will catch you guys next time if either of those are best for others.

If I took BART over there, where would be closest? Concord? And roughly how many miles from there to the start?

Lanceoldstrong

Do not use Concord Bart. It is on the wrong side of downtown and the cross town roads are most bike unfriendly. Most unfriendly.
Too much traffic, no bike lanes. The city plans to issue a proposal to fix that in 2016.

My 1st choice would be North Concord BART. 8 miles to Mt. Wanda. I ride this route a lot. It is very safe. The 2nd half is very, very nice.
Notice the bike path out of BART. That is a nice start. N. Concord BART to Mt. Wanda - A bike ride in Concord, CA


My 2nd choice is Pleasant Hill BART. 11 miles to Mt. Wanda. It is longer, but more of it is bike path. I ride it a lot too.
PH BART to Mt. Wanda - Contra Costa Centre, CA
Be aware when crossing Monument Blvd at the light... The Iron Horse Trail continues about 100 meters to the left, not straight across.

cccorlew

We are interested! We've NOT available on Aug 1, but should be on most other Saturdays.

DiabloScott

I'm pretty sure I can do this depending on date... and I could offer a ride to a single from PH Bart

DougT66

I am unavailable every Saturday until August 22nd

Kaminokaze

I am in for almost any Sat. or even make this a Sunday recovery ride would work too. for coffee stop.

Phil MacFarlane

The only Saturday I have until September is this coming Saturday the 25th. Weekend after that I'm riding to Citrus Hights and back then Im off to France for PBP! Next Saturday?

gw_12

Thanks for the invite on Strava LOS. I'm in.

-Glenn

The Natural

Looks like fun. for coffee afterward. Most Saturdays are fine.

RushFan2112

This sounds like fun. I have mixed availability, and certainly don't let my schedule dictate the timing for the ride. If I can swing the date I'll probably be there.

danec99

Aug 15 & 22 are out. Good luck organizing this LOS, seems like herding cats...

gpelpel

Count me in if the date fits.

blt

Hmmmm. . . 27 miles and 2300 feet of climbing would be on the easier end of my typical Saturday ride, but I suspect that as you mean "hammer," I would fall well behind those who will hammer. I can go far, I can go steep, but not all that fast. I can make a 53 mile round trip from my house to the top of Diablo and back, but from the Athenian School to the summit will take me close to 2 hours and 40 minutes. If I go 27 miles with 2300 feet of climbing, I think it unlikely I will finish close to the same time as those going 13.6 miles with 1000 feet of climbing.

Odds of any Saturday or Sunday date in the next month or so working out for me are probably less than 50-50, so I'm not the person to worry about, but just in case, would you envision that the Slowpoke Extra would work for someone who won't be all that fast?

Lanceoldstrong

I rode Route 1, The Slowpoke, at real honest to goodness Slowpoke pace on Saturday.
Slowpoke rides have a long tradition on this NorCal forum.
Slow and pokey is the way they are, to be welcoming and inclusive.

I rode with my wife who is nowhere close to the 6-8,000 mile a year double century type that I am.
Route 1 Slowpoke, took 2 hours (1:59:20) at the classic SlowPoke pace my wife rides.
Here is the Strava from riding it with my wife: https://app.strava.com/activities/349857819

To finish Route 3,Slowpoke Extra,at about the same time as Slowpokes on route 1, requires an avg. speed of 13.6 mph.
Sounds to me like you can do that. Especially since Route 3 ends with a Cummings Skyway descent, and with the 4 mile Franklin Speed Chute.
It is pretty easy to hold a 25 mph average on that.
https://app.strava.com/segments/663199

Lanceoldstrong

Update...

This coming weekend I will pick a date...
So stay tuned for a date announcement on Monday 7/27

RushFan2112

I'm in!!

cantdrv55

As of now, I will do the easy 13.6 miler. Been so long since my butt touched a saddle.

FrenchFit 

Hmmm,...seems about 4 hrs door to door from North Gate including the group ride...that's about the saddle limit time for my ADD brain. Maybe I'll try it solo first early morning, see if I can stay engaged. Looks like we have a couple cooler weekends coming up.

pacificaslim

Awesome. And thanks for the routes, including the Bart to start recommendations! I'll probably do the medium route since I'll have the extra mileage getting from my house to Bart and from BART to then ride.

FrenchFit 

Rode it this morning. For those coming from the Tri-Valley, you might be shocked how bad the roads are in CCC, it's Prop13-landia. I found Center/Marsh to be unpleasant, particularly with a 20 knot headwind - though I'm fairly certain you could score some crystal on many of the street corners. You might just drive to Mt. Wanda or take the Contra Costa Canal Trail from Walnut Creek all the way to Center -it might actually save you significant time, and it's somewhat wind-shaded. I would not bother with PH BART (Unless you back ride to CCCT) or Concord BART, stay on the west side of 680.

Red Rider

That's what I thought as well.

We're out the 22-23 and 29-30 due to 1.) vacation and 2.) volunteering for Winters RR and Vacaville GP. Otherwise, we're good for the 9th and 15th. And September is WFO as well. Would love to reconnect with my BF friends...it's been too long!

interungulate

Yeah, WC BART is the one you're least likely to be stabbed on the way from, so it's most convenient, even if it is a bit farther. I feel you on the badness of the roads, it's really almost awe-inspiring.

Lanceoldstrong

(bump)

bikingshearer 

Have a great time on this ride, folks. Unfortunately, I have a previous and unbreakable commitment that day, so I can't be there to enjoy the festivities.

As one of the originators of the original SlowPoke series (official licensed apparel avaiable at WhoOnEarthWouldWearThat.com), I salute Dan's initiative and willingness to take on the cat-herding role, not to mention his flamboyance.