JoelS

It's about time to start planning out the next big NorCal East ride. It'll be Saturday October 10, which is a week after Levi's ride and a week before Foxy's.

This one won't be an easy jaunt. The route I'm looking at is approx 82 miles and 5300 feet of climbing, with some extended hills and a few steeps. We'll definitely pace easy on the flats/approaches in order to conserve energy for the climbs. Periodic regroups will be part of the ride in order to be sure that no one is left behind or gets lost.

There will definitely be a lunch break. But not until after the climbing is done, so it'll be a late lunch. So be sure to bring snacks/bars/etc. to keep your energy levels up.

I figure on heading out at 9am from Hagan Park in Rancho Cordova. Then we'll head up the ARBT to Iron Point. This time, we'll go over the climb (3/4 mi of 8-10%). We'll turn down Empire Ranch. Then over Beatty (up to 16%, IMO the hardest climb of the day, thankfully it's not very long. Try to take this one easy and conserve energy) to El Dorado Hills Blvd. A brief side trip for water bottle refills, and then we'll proceed on the Folsom Lake Loop.

The rest of this ride features 2 good climbs and one very fun and fast technical descent. There is a short stretch where we will have to share the road with some traffic as there is no bike lane. But that time of year it shouldn't be too bad. After the 2nd climb and another short one up to Auburn, we'll wind through the Auburn streets to Auburn-Folsom road and a very long downhill run back to Folsom. There are water bottle refills not far from the top of each of those 2 climbs, and another at the lunch stop at the corner of Auburn-Folsom and Horseshoe Bar.

Here's a MapMyRide link to the route. Note that the route shown here does not include the stretches on the ARBT that we'll take to and from this ride: https://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united...24421222384356

So, who's interested?
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Joel and Bess