Mountain - Plains - Assault on Rampart Range Road Ride

This is an invite to a ride I have been planning for sometime. I am planning on riding from Garden of the Gods in the Springs along Rampart Range Road. Here is a quick description: A 60-mile-long gravel road that travels the forested crest of the Rampart Range from the Garden of the Gods near Colorado Springs to the highway 10 miles west of Sedalia. The Rampart Range Road, one of Colorado’s best off-the-beaten track drives, traverses the undulating crest of the Rampart Range for sixty miles between Colorado Springs and Sedalia. The beginning is a steep climb and the road is one heck of a lot of rollers. If you are up for a challenge you are more than welcome to join team Big and Tall August 8th @ Garden of the Gods @ 7am (wheels on the road) This is a totally self supported with no sags. PM me if you will be there.

WOW..That is gonna be a heck of a ride.

Don't forget to stop at Devils Head mountain. There is a neat fire lookout perched on top of one of the rocks, you can walk up the stairs and take in the view if you have any legs left after the ride.

Take plenty of water and a water filter.

The wife is driving and dragging water and food. Got to love the supportive wife

do you have a map you can post? I've been itching to ride into the Front Range from Sedalia up hwy 67, but have yet to do it....

This is a link to the best map I could find on the next sorry. I hope it helps. http://www.treknow.com/colorado/backroads/southcentral/rampart_range.htm

So it looks as though this ride is to hard for ya'll.

I completed this ride. I have been tring this ride for two years and today I finally finished it. IT is a total 58.65 miles and 6100 feet of climbing. The big climb in the beginning is not as bad as the constant huge rollers at the top. I will add the profile. The washboard road filled with craters did one hell of a number on my backside and the balls. It is because of these ruts that I have renamed this ride to Colorado's Roubaix. I had a blast wish more people would have been there. Please feel free to let me know why this ride did not appeal to you. I am just curious. I have noticed 167 people viewed this post and only 2 responded. This is one of my top challenging rides I have ever done. It is harder than the Triple by Pass by a long shot. Please again let me know what you think of this ride love to hear some feed back. Thanks

Congrats on completing the ride - was it fun? Did you take pictures? Did you ride a mountain or road bike? Did anyone join you or did you do it solo?

I wouldn't consider a 60 mile gravel road - I'm a roadie, I like pavement. Also, for something so challenging and remote, I'm not surprised that an open invitation on the internet didn't draw many takers - I wouldn't do something like that with a stranger.

With the proper equipment it looks doable. However, like valygrl I am also a roadie who likes pavement.
I would not say it is too hard. However, I prefer to keep my rides in Aug more on the simple side. I tend to burnout badly this time of year and just recovered from it recently.
Now the roadie thing being said, I plan on actually using my hard rock this fall and winter for the occasional mountain biking when I am not in the gym or riding on the road.
I am also curious as to pictures and type of bike.

I rode a my 1999 giant rincon (MTB) that is more up to date. I think you could get away with a cyclocross but with the ruts and washboard I would think more than twice about that. Pics are still to come I not sure what pics the wife took. I was to tired and beatup to take some myself. I don't buy into the roadie thing as I am one my self. I only have 1000 miles on my mtb and over 5000 on my road bikes. I got my first road bike in 2006 and the mtb i have had since 99. I believe so many missed oppertunities when we rule out dirt roads in Colorado. I do see the stranger thing especially for the ladies. The scenery was fantasic. I really hope she took some pics. I had a blast and I rode with a my team Big & Tall which is only a team of three.

Well... you aren't me. Unless I developed multiple personalities with blackout issues.
Mountain biking of any sort seems utterly unexciting to me. Sorry if you do not believe my explanation.

Incidentally, I have something like 27,000 miles on various road bikes and about 500 on my mountain bike.

I use to ride from Garden of the Gods up Rampart Range as far as Mt Herman Road. I'd turn on Mt Herman Rd and ride down to Monument then through the Air Farce Academy back into Colo Sprgs. It was a nice ride, most of the climbing at the beginning and lots of down hill toward the end. By the time I got to Mt Herman Road I had enough of the rollers on RR road. Try that the next time, and if you do it soon there will be no cars on Mt Herman, there is a wash out and the road is closed to cars, bikes OK. (this may be fixed by now, check it out)

Gold Camp Road from CS to Cripple Creek is a nice ride too, it's a railroad bed, so not so many rollers. All dirt, lots of washboard.

Datajunkie I was not saying your explanition was not valid. I do find alot of points of MTB to be not fun. I do like the lower traffic and some of the best scenery I have found on a MTB. I love the rythm of the road and the speed. So I have found dirt roads to be a compermise between the two. The reference to how many miles i have on what type of bike was not a competion it was just to show I love road biking way better than MTB. I have only been into the sport truly for 5 years. Sorry if felt my reply was an assualt on you. That could not be further from the point.

No insult taken. Just making my own point. :p I tend to be a tad short when tired. Now that I have had a nap...

Next time you may try scheduling this out further in advance. Perhaps that would help. Many of the rides in the summer months are scheduled a few months in advance.
I am also of the opinion that most of the folks who frequent this particular forum tend to stick to road cycling.

From my experience, it tends to be fairly difficult to get a ride organized and 3/4 of the folks no show.

Reading the exploits that go on here confirms that my riding habits
and practices are correct.
I keep the rubber side down, ride when I can see, rest when I'm tired or sore.
I push the envelope when I can, know my limits and respect them.
Every ride doesn't need to epic but it does need to be fun.

While crashing on the curb at 2:30am in front of my house,
riding Mt. Evans 3 days before TBP and trashing my knee,
riding 120 miles in rain/sleet to get to CT,
riding 58miles of gravel washboard,
sounds like some real fun......I hope that I never achieve that level of cycling.
...but don't despair, I have you guys on my Darwin pedestal of admiration.

...and having everyone piss'n on the pole to see whose is bigger,
..... just adds to the fun.

Keep those stories and epic rides coming, I'm laughing my @$$ off.

Sucks to be you. Must be a nice and boring life.

oh the ride appeals to me. Just didn't make logistical sense this time around.

I am planning to make this an annual ride. My ultimate goal is to make this an out and back but that would be 116 miles and something like 11,000 feet of climb. Trust me the rollers wear you down fast. My other team mate organizes the Tour De Front Range MTB ride that is in September. Check out TrailCentral.com for more info on this ride.

I am leaning towards taking you up on this next year. The gauntlet has been thrown, so to speak. :p Hmmm....

Love to have you there. What sounds more appealing the out and back or the point to point?

Reading the exploits that go on here confirms that my riding habits
and practices are correct.
I keep the rubber side down, ride when I can see, rest when I'm tired or sore.
I push the envelope when I can, know my limits and respect them.
Every ride doesn't need to epic but it does need to be fun.

While crashing on the curb at 2:30am in front of my house,
riding Mt. Evans 3 days before TBP and trashing my knee,
riding 120 miles in rain/sleet to get to CT,
riding 58miles of gravel washboard,
sounds like some real fun......I hope that I never achieve that level of cycling.
...but don't despair, I have you guys on my Darwin pedestal of admiration.

...and having everyone piss'n on the pole to see whose is bigger,
..... just adds to the fun.

Keep those stories and epic rides coming, I'm laughing my @$$ off.

Well, there is no way that I can ride like some of these guys (and gals), but I sure enjoy reading the stories and admire the daring and skill.

In the meantime, I set my own goals, and find my own excitement appropriate to being almost 70 years old, with some extreme family constraints and issues right now.

Heck, you only go through life once. Might as well make it interesting and exciting.

Keep up the posts.

Love to have you there. What sounds more appealing the out and back or the point to point?

The logistics of an out and back are easier to manage.

I am leaning towards taking you up on this next year. The gauntlet has been thrown, so to speak. :p Hmmm....

Mountain bikes at 20 paces....

If you give a few weeks notice and DJ goes (since I know him IRL) I could be talked into it too.

Sucks to be you. Must be a nice and boring life.

...yea...not so much...on either account.

Please forgive me but when a newbie's first post is easily construed (rightfully or wrongfully) as an insult you get replies such as that. Meaning I find that as a first post to be borderline trolling.

Many of us like to push the envelope, so to speak. If you are content in your safe life than so be it but that is no reason to act high and mighty.

Amen DataJunkie. I love the endorphins and the sense of pride when I overcome some huge unholy sufferfest :thumb: