A little ride around Mt. Rainier / AKA Ramrod
 

So Botto's Tuscany post got me inspired to share my ride from yesterday. It was a group ride called the Ramrod where you ride around Mt. Rainier in one day, 150 miles and about 10,000 feet of climbing. It was a tough ride but very pretty.

Here is the Garmin data:

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/42372117

This is the first real climb up to Paradise.
http://i1046.photobucket.com/albums/...e/IMG_1969.jpg


This is the start of the Nisqually River:
http://i1046.photobucket.com/albums/...e/IMG_1977.jpg

http://i1046.photobucket.com/albums/...e/IMG_1981.jpg

Rest stop at the top of the climb:

http://i1046.photobucket.com/albums/...e/IMG_1984.jpg

http://i1046.photobucket.com/albums/...e/IMG_1992.jpg

Climb up to Paradise: VIDEO
http://i1046.photobucket.com/albums/...h_MVI_1972.jpg

VIDEO:
http://i1046.photobucket.com/albums/...h_MVI_1982.jpg


This is the descent from Paradise. Went down the other side of the canyon too. VIDEO
http://i1046.photobucket.com/albums/...h_MVI_1993.jpg

Cayuse Pass climb. I call it White Pass - wrong. Climb starts about the 100 mile mark and is a constant 7% climb for about 8 miles. It was hot too. VIDEO
http://i1046.photobucket.com/albums/...h_MVI_1999.jpg

Put a fork in me:
http://i1046.photobucket.com/albums/...e/IMG_2002.jpg

There is Mt. Rainier, the one we rode around:
http://i1046.photobucket.com/albums/...e/IMG_2004.jpg


It was a great ride. Almost everyone knew how to ride. Unlike a charity ride where 1/2 don't have a clue. Had a great paceline the last 40 miles with some guy from Tri-Cities.

Gorgeous! Not you.

:mad:

Work PC won't show images!!!

:crash:

Great pictures, and that looks like an amazing ride.

Sooooo nice

Amazing. great pics. sounds like a great ride. 150 miles and 10k climb!

Pasty white, what can I say. At least the bike is kinda sexy. ;)

Great Pics Hunt-man. It was a awesome day and great views of Mt. Ranier. I had a great time also.

There's no denying that.

Ok I'm jealous as hell.

Ya , but here in California they do a ride that starts in Death Valley, 135 miles later it ends at Whitney Portal, and then they hike to the top of Whitney, all in 24 hours or under. I do not know the "They", but have heard it's done. LOL Actually, a friend did it one year, making the summit in the 24 hour time cutoff, and he said it nearly killed him. And he is one of the most "in shape" people I know. I made it, the one year I tried it, from Death Valley to Lone Pine (122 miles) and after getting off the bike, fell asleep on some grass in the shade. Your ride around Rainier looks like a fantastic one. As one that has summitted Rainier, riding around it seems like the next best thing to do. :50:

So how did the ride go for you? Took me just at nine hours of moving time but I stopped and took a lot of pictures and hung out at the rest stops.

Wow. This is an epic ride. Congratulations. Thanks for posting.

unquestionably among the most beautiful roads in the country. thank you for the pics; they bring back fond memories.

very nice.

:beer:

Great photos! I did the ride for the first time this year. I saw your jersey; you passed me going up to Paradise.

just fantastic. 150 miles and 10k climbed. i am color of jealously. well done. later.

+1 on that.
Epic and Iconic are the only words that come to mind.

Did you get the video to play? There are a couple of the Paradise climb and you might be in it. Click on the smaller pictures for the video. The descent from Paradise video is my favorite. Or go here:

http://s1046.photobucket.com/albums/...Ramrod%20Ride/

Cool.

excellent! enjoyed the pics.

Thanks for the link; I checked and I'm not there. Your videos are great; I guess I have to to that sometime. I've ridden the route through the park twice (just once as part of RAMROD) and I didn't stop in the right place to get the photos of Stevens Canyon. About where you took your video is the best place to get a photo, I think, and I should have learned that my first time through. There's always next time.

I put my thread about this ride over in the Old Folk's Home:

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...port-w-pics%29

For folks not familiar with the ride, here's the profile:

http://i27.tinypic.com/35iudj6.jpg

Also BF member Northbend did it on a FG (!):

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...n-an-epic-ride

I was riding by myself so it was easy to screw off and stop and take photos. If I'd been with a group I would have pressed on. It was actually a nice ride to do solo. Had some really good turns in some groups on the flats and no group can help that much up a hill. So plenty of time to stop and take pictures of the roses.