To ensure that all riders feel comfortable matching their skills and physical condition with the rides on the schedule, P.E.D.A.L. describes their rides as:
Below is a profile of the General Description of the ride and other information to help you better understand the nature of the ride. If you need more information or wish to ask questions, return to the Ride Schedule page and call the P.E.D.A.L. member who is managing the ride in which you are interested.
General Description |
Difficult road-bike rides are long or into the mountains or both. Difficult mountain-bike rides are also long or extremely steep or involve precarious rock-strewn single-track descents. |
Endurance |
Difficult rides are for conditioned cyclists. Difficult rides actually range from rides that any cyclist in good physical condition can complete to rides that require extraordinary athletic ability. |
Road/Mountain |
RoadA road-bike ride is a ride on paved
roads and usually requires a narrow-tired bicycle of reasonable quality. We
formerly said these rides required a ten-speed bicycle, but this is an
anachronism since modern bicycles have 12 to 24 gears. Easy road-bike rides may
be completed with any style of bicycle. MountainMountain Bike rides include rides
that involve well-packed flat dirt roads (like any of Lee Gregory's rides)
which are suitable for anything but the narrowest-tired racing bicycle. We just
don't want you to be uncomfortable, since we know some people have 20mm tires
and can't stand to ride over a rock the size of the average wedding-ring
diamond. On the other hand, some mountain bike rides involve careening off
boulders the size of houses. |
Other Info |
The ride to Rawhide Power Plant is classified as difficult because of its length (80 miles) and its potential problems if high winds are encountered. In fact, the route is very flat and if no problems are encountered, any experienced cyclist can complete the ride. On the other hand, the Trail Ridge Road ride (125 miles) has been rated by Outdoor Magazine as one of the most difficult bicycle rides in America. Outdoor didn't start the ride in Loveland; we do. Some very experienced cyclists can not complete this ride. |
P.E.D.A.L. has not scheduled any Extremely Difficult (or Wacko) rides for several years. Wacko rides are over 150 miles in length and are designed for the very few people who are trained long distance riders (like John Ellis ) or people with Something to Prove, or people Determined to Destroy Their Knees. P.E.D.A.L. has scheduled 300 mile rides across the Plains, though none have quite been completed. Rides in excess of 200 miles have been completed. If you would like to organize an Extremely Difficult ride, we'll be happy to put it on our schedule, publicize it, and wave good-bye.
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