robertc3

Is anyone else out there riding the 7 Hills of Kirkland? I am riding the metric century route. I will be the guy wearing the UW jersey riding the beaten down Specialized Rockhopper.

BengeBoy 

Maybe. I like the ride -- I have done it before by riding from home, doing the 40-mile route, and riding back home; that gives me a metric century without having to drive anywhere.

Wicker

I had a lot of fun last year and will be riding the century this year. For anyone wondering, it's on Memorial Day and ride info is here: https://7hillskirkland.org/
It's well supported, and the finish line strawberry shortcake is a pretty awesome way to finish the ride.

See you on the road

Kamala

I'm in on the metric century route. Will be sporting a Crater Lake Century jersey.

RabidBikeMonkey

I'll be doing the metric century too. My house is very close to the route so I've been able to do a bunch of training on those hills. I did a training ride on the full metric century route yesterday. Felt great!

Jasper Storm

I'm signed up for the 100 miler.

Old'N'Slow

I'm riding the 40 mile version, but when I include the commute from my house in Newcastle, it'll be about 70 miles.

Sure hope the weather on Monday isn't like it is right now or I may need to bring my mask and fins!

Kamala

Anybody else get a kick out of the Seattle Summer switch being flipped after we got done slogging in the rain today? Thought the organizers did an excellent job on the ride and I had a great time. Will definitely be back!

RabidBikeMonkey

Yeah that was seriously messed up! After slogging all morning I spent most of the afternoon wiped out on my couch while the clouds parted and the sun shone down. How is that fair? I ate too much at the finish line but I don't regret it. I'll do the same thing next year in a heartbeat.

Kamala, I might have seen you out there. At any rate I saw somebody sporting a Crater Lake Century jersey on the metric route. I participated in the major theme of the day by getting two flats. I'm glad the guys from Kirkland Bicycle were at the food stop with spare tubes and other assistance.

CliftonGK1

I wasn't "officially" part of the ride, but I did the first half of the metric route with Kamala and crew before heading back home.
It was a great time, even with the rain. Thanks to everyone who stopped or asked about our rider who wiped out at the base of the downhill side of Norway Hill (IIRC). Amazingly, he only suffered a few light scrapes on his hands and knee, and his bike was fully functional after re-alignment of some bits what got smacked out of place.
The rider support staff was excellent; I saw them helping quite a few flat repairs. And as always, the support stops were phenominal (although I just stood off to the side since I wasn't registered and don't believe in banditing rides!)

robertc3

That sounds a lot like my afternoon. I was supposed to go riding with my wife, kids, brother and sister-in-law after the ride, but that was cancelled while I was at the last food stop. The weather would have been great for riding in the afternoon, but I was not too disappointed to be sitting on the couch.

I was happy to get only one flat. I was amazed at the number of people who asked if I needed any help. Mostly riders, but one lady in a car going the other direction from me.

Did anyone else on the metric route turn right on 208th from Novelty Hill Road and get lost? I did and I must have seen 30 or 40 other riders stopped along 208th studying cue sheets trying to figure out where they were. I swear there was a Dan Henry pointing to the right, but when I got back from my detour I didn't have the motivation to go check.

All in all a great ride. I will be back next year.

Kamala

Yep, that was me out there pimping my favorite ride to date. If you want the opportunity to eat way too much after a ride, Crater Lake Century is your destination. Giant delicious BBQ spread at Fort Klamath after the ride that also included homemade strawberry ice cream. You will not be disappointed!

My bad on forgetting to mention this. Our buddy is in one piece and Clifton is a great mechanic, saved the ride! Our buddy's brakes were actually working better after the crash! And he also managed to grab a flat on the climb up Rose Hill a few miles from the finish.

I thought the Dan Henry pointed straight but there was plenty of confusion out there and we saw a good pile of people completely turned around. They need one of the big signs there to send people straight.

robertc3

That is where I got my flat. I thought that was such a cruel place for a flat. Glad you buddy is in one piece. I was happy that I didn't see any crashes. I thought they might be pretty common with all of the rain. I think the shear volume of rain we have had in the last week has washed the roads clear of any oil.

CliftonGK1

I'll check the DH @ 208th and Novelty on my way home tommorrow, but IIRC it was a straight forward mark at that corner. I wasn't paying much attention because I was too happy about having stopped to buy some Rainier cherries at the roadside stand and I was only a mile from my house at that point.

For the record, if you turned right at 208th, the next intersection is Union Hill Rd.
- Turning left will bring you to the intersection @ Redmond Ridge Rd, Union Hill and 234th. (turning left onto Redmond Ridge Rd would put you at the top of Novelty Hill, essentially doing the 7-Hills loop of that area in reverse)
- Turning right will take you down the Union Hill past Cadman Concrete by the UPS Center and Gold's Gym.
- Going straight will drop you down onto SR-202 a couple miles south of the downtown Redmond.

Jasper Storm

I did the century route, leaving Marina Park at probably around 7:30. The only stop I made was Duvall, where I topped off my water bottles.

From the time I passed the Vincent Schoolhouse food stop until rejoining the metric route at Avondale and 116th, I probably passed six other riders. There's no way I would encounter that kind of solitude on a 70 degree sunny day.

I was wearing a s/s white Hammer jersey and shorts, on my Davidson Ti. I rode 110 miles in a completely waterlogged state. While I certainly prefer sun, the rain doesn't bother me too much. At least it was warm rain (56 degrees.) I think the gloomy weather kept a lot of people inside, as there was little car traffic on Cherry Valley and High Bridge Roads.

I used my in-depth knowledge of the ghetto-tastic tendencies of various locales along the route to avoid shoulders and bike lanes that I know to commonly have shards of windshield and beer bottle glass. I wasn't at all surprised, especially on a wet day, by the number of riders repairing flats.

BengeBoy 

Glad you all had fun. I was watching the weather all weekend, and decided Sunday looked better than Monday so I did a metric century on my own Sunday morning (just a little bit of rain). Monday I waited for the rain to stop and went for a nice ride after an early dinner.

I washed my bike 4 times this weekend...