Southern California - Five County Century

Is anyone gonna do it? Has anyone done it before? I think it's a good century for only $20 if you preregister by 11/11. I'm actually thinking about it. It sounds pretty.:love: There's also a 88.5 mile option with only 7000 ft of climbing.

http://www.lawheelmen.org/schedule.htm

That's very reasonable...

Do it, grrlyrida! I will be there with some members of my club, it's one of my favorite routes. I first did it in the 80s. When I lived up there I did it solo a few times. This year Rene and her parents will be providing support. They are wonderful.
Oh, don't be fooled by the numbers, it's harder than it looks on paper.

Couple pics from the ride.
http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u308/bigjohn53/4counties4.jpg
http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u308/bigjohn53/4counties2.jpg

So grrlyrida, are you coming to this thing? It's looking like good weather.

I'm not in shape to do hard---maybe moderate. Looks like I'm gonna skip this one. Have fun on the ride John. It sure looks pretty. It looks like it could be in New England.

Thanks, girrly. It would be tough if you're not ready for it. There's no bail out or easy option once you're in it. How about a couple more pics?
http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u308/bigjohn53/stan.jpg
http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u308/bigjohn53/4counties5.jpg

Gorgeous pics. Now it looks like you were in Tahoe or the Sierras. That's why I wanted to do the ride. It has scenery I don't normally see in the City. Have fun this Saturday.

Looks really nice. I'm coming off back surgery and ~6 months off the bike, but would love to be able to tackle this in a few months.

Only major concern is potential lack of places to resupply food and drink (I'll worry about the potential colder weather later), but if you zoom into about the 47.3 mile point of the ride ( http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/ca/lake-of-the-woods/733125721930677924 ) there's what appears(??) to be a spot to resupply.

Can anyone verify??

celtic, if you're coming out here I will go with you on the ride. I have done it unsupported, even solo a couple times. There is a convenience store out on Hwy 33 and a bar that serves sandwiches. There is also water before the turn onto Lockwood Valley road, but nothing after that.
It would be hard to do in hot weather, but spring would be fine.

Thanks for the info and you're on.

I'm working in Orange Co. for the next few months -- probably not long enough to wait until the spring. Avg. high in Frazier Park for Dec-Feb is ~50, w/ an avg. low of ~38. Let's say we start in Frazier Park (~4800') at 7am and ~12 miles later we're @ ~6100', then there's about a 900' descent the next few miles or so --- I wonder how frikkin' cold that'll feel? I'm kind of a fair weather cyclist, but I'm thinking/hoping there's going to be a weekend or 2 that I'm in SoCal where the weather is a notch or 2 above normal. This is on my calendar for sometime in late February or early March, obviously the later the better.

Hey John,

Could you give me a brief description of the ride. Do you start climbing at the start? Then a 900' descent? Is the rest flat or rollers? Thanks.

Yes, the climbing starts right away, then there are a couple short drops and you have 2500 feet in 12 miles. Then the first rest/food stop befoe the long descent of 23 miles. A few miles on Hwy 166 to Hwy33 and then 20 miles of false flats and little summits. This section can kick your butt if it's windy or if you think you can just fly through it. Then comes the lunch stop near those beautiful Aspen trees.
After lunch there is a long, gradual climb up to Heartbreak Hill, the hardest climb on the loop. After Heartbreak people tend to think the worst is over, but there is still more climbing and the potentially worst wind area is ahead, too.
Like I said, it's harder than it looks on paper. If you do the shorter (86 Mile) route, there is only 7000 feet, but the way the hills are and the winds make it a challenge. If you don't underestimate the ride, it's doable. Trust me.
http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u308/bigjohn53/LAWM-4counties.png
Oh yeah, if it rains hard I'm out.

It was great, you should have been there.

That looks hard on paper even. Glad you had a great time. Next year I'm gonna be in shape to do it. I'm determined to stay in shape all year.

Looking forward to you posting more beautiful pic from this year's ride.:)

Here is one of me and Cassave in the warmer section before we go back up.
http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u308/bigjohn53/johnandsteve.jpg

Here is a link to Shai's page with the pics from last year and a few from yesterday.

http://www.shprung.com/sfvbc/?ride=LAWM-5C

Yesterday's 5-County Century was indeed a blast. In fact, my bones were still cold this morning.

This ride is basically some of the same route as the Heartbreak Century of "King of the Mountains" series, and the portion of Tour of Two Forrests (beginning with the turn onto Lockwood Valley). Starts 6.7 miles up Frazier Mountain Road from the Flying J in Frazier Park at the Latter Day Saints Church. We started in 31-degree weather; immediately the climbing begins which helps warm up...a bit. However it is in the low 40's by the time we get to the 14 mile stop at Apache Saddle. From there we traverse a rolling downhill with fabulous views (from about 6000 ft up) of the central valley and beyond. Of note is the excellent quality of the road surfaces; smooth and clear. This stretch includes some steep pitches up to 13%, but overall this is the only "net descent" portion of the ride. We made a left at the hwy 166/hwy 33 intersection at about 36 miles and encounter some big-truck traffic for a few miles (we are now in San Luis Obispo County) until we make the left on hwy 33 which meanders for about 20 miles of "net ascent" riding but nothing more than a few grade percents up to about 4%. It is during this time that we pass into Ventura County. I recall seeing two signs one indicating Ojai was 79 miles down this road and another indicating that the next gas was 50 miles down the road. The temperature warmed up down this stretch to the 60's and I stopped to remove my jacket (although i wore my long sleeve jersey with arm warmers all day). The winds were favorable for the first 60 miles; and we pulled into the lunch stop just beyond the Lockwood Valley road. The hospitable volunteers were bundled up as they eagerly offered assistance and food/beverages; but to sit for any period of time beyond taking care of the necessities was to risk getting cold and chilly. After about 10 minutes, i left and began the traverse along and up Lockwood Valley toward the Heartbreak checkpoint. It was along this stretch that the winds began to pick up (crosswinds and some headwinds) and the temperature began to drop into the 50's. At Heartbreak, Kermit Gagnier and Kerin Huber were working this checkpoint (mile 71) and offered fluids and snacks. Since this was the last of the support stops, i topped off my fluids and proceeded onward. Although a lot of cyclists consider the grind up to Heartbreak to be the challenge, I have always considered the 15 miles after that the more difficult portion with the "net ascent" of "rollers." The temperature continues to drop to the low 50's (with windchill) as we make the right turn back onto Frazier Mt Road. About half mile down from here is the start (Kern County) and the 88.5 mile option. The Century ride is if you continue down the road to Interstate 5 (e.g. Los Angeles County), which i did in a cold tail wind; the whole time flying down this road at over 30mph i'm thinking that i have to turn around at the bottom and ride back up this thing.....afterall my car is up there! Another challenge was the lack of dedicated "facilities" during the ride; so visiting the various bush options and a few businesses along the way was the rule of the day. I stopped at the Flying J to take care of that issue; and after being accosted by a stranger who wanted to engage me in a conversation about bikes, i took off and made the U-turn to head back up the mountain. Of course there were some steep pitches, head winds, and traffic speeding by. About 1 mile from the finish, my GU wore off. GU is great but when it wears off it is like dropping off a cliff with no warning. By the grace of God, i mash on my pedals and make it back to the lot...shivering and tired, but thankful for another successful cycling adventure.

True to the warning; this is not an easy century and not for the first time rider. I usually ride double centuries, and that experience was helpful on this century.

Kudos to the L.A. Wheelmen for putting on an excellent event and making sure that everyone was taken care of. Thank you to Nina Bartolai (who is the volunteer of volunteers, i see her at many of the doubles and other cycling events), Clem Bartolai (who warmly greeted riders in the morning), Renee Smith (ride co-director), Kerin Huber and Kermit Ganier (rest stop and roving sags) who always offer encouragement and inspiration, and finally to all the other volunteers who braved the cold and remote conditions to ensure that the riders were well taken care of.

Data as recorded by Garmin Edge 705:
Total Ascent: 8712 ft
Distance: 101.00 miles

Terri, I think I saw you a couple times during the day, (I recognize you from Rick's pictures), and one of those times was when I was in the car heading home. I always feel bad when I see riders coming up that hill from the fwy at the end. I always do the 88 mile option unless I start at the fwy. There was a group that started there this time with maybe 15 riders including the Fast Friday club.

I'm bummed I didn't know about this ride until it was too late. The Heart Break 100 was my favorite century out of the three last season. Oh well there's always next year.

The folks who put on this ride are very cool. I enjoyed it.

Here is a helmet-cam video of the long descent. I'm the first rider he passes near the top.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6XwRyGvyBI

Here is a helmet-cam video of the long descent. I'm the first rider he passes near the top.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6XwRyGvyBI

John,

The video makes is looks like the top 2/3 was repaved. Is that just because of the video quality, or did they repave the top portion of the descent.

Most of the long descent has been resurfaced, but there are holes and rough stuff near the bottom.