Registration opens today: Chilly Hilly
 

That is the ONE group ride I love.

I used to ride that every year: twice around is the way to get your money's worth. I quit it when it got so crazy. Back then my technique was to get in line for the ferry early, get as close to the front of the ferry as possible, then hammer away until I passed everyone I possibly could and got a nice gap, preferably out of sight. Then I'd ease off and wait for some fast riders to show up and team up with them if possible. That made for a safe first lap. The second lap was always better - a lot fewer folks on the course.

I posted a note about this on the local hiking forum, and most of the replies are negative. One person recommended following the route a week after the event to avoid the crowds. I did the ride several years ago and had a great time, in spite of the crowds, I'm glad I did, and feel like everybody who loves cycling would benefit from doing this ride once.

I'm signed up for it. It's a nice ride and I like the scenery. Plus the ferry back and forth is a nice bonus.

I'd like to try out the route difficulty without having to go to Bainbridge. It looks like Queen Anne Hill is roughly equivalent to the grade and length of the worst Chilly Hills. What do you think?

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/12115383

It's been years since I've done the Chilly Hilly but I don't remember anything as difficult as Queen Anne on that ride. I think there was as steep, but not as long. Taylor is a bit less steep than QA though.

Here's GPS data with an elevation plot for the Chilly Hilly:

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/72320363

I got 2,340 feet over 33 miles. You could rack up similar numbers with a loop down to Seward Park and a return via Beacon Hill.

Oh, I didn't mean Queen Anne Ave N; I'd need to set up the actual counterbalance to get up that hill. My route had 3rd Ave W.

Thanks for the suggestion—I may give that a try. However, judging by my poor performance just hauling myself up Dexter after a few months of being mostly off the bike tells me all I need to know about my readiness. Perhaps next year.

I've done Chilly Hilly twice. Like all of the big group rides in the area they get a lot of negative feedback. If you accept them for what they are, which is large group rides and not a private, quiet route you found on your own, then they can be a lot of fun. Save the racing for race day, slow down, and enjoy riding with a lot of interesting people. Yes, there are new riders so you do have to pay attention, but hardly worth the complaining that happens about these rides. Enjoy them for what they are. All of the Cascade sponsored rides are worth doing at least once if you're in the area. Its a bike ride, it should be fun. It amazes me the amount of complaining about these rides that local cyclists do...

I stopped attending Cascade rides not because of the mass of people but because the behavior that I saw seems to have gotten worse in the last few years (or maybe that's just my perception). People riding 3-4 across not sharing the road, litter, flipping off motorists, just generally bad behavior I did not care to be around. Chilly Hilly is probably the most "chill" of all the Cascade rides and probably the only one I would still consider doing if I were still doing group rides.