unterhausen

Crush the Commonwealth

zeerith

Maui seems awesome, Once I get some miles under my legs I am doing something like this. I can't wait.

Bill

DALMAC in Michigan is a great ride--4 to 5 days of riding, depending on which route you go. They all end up at the Mackinac Bridge--amazingly beautiful.

jmX

No, the death valley rides are all capped at a few hundred people. There is no infrastructure to support thousands of people out there.

All this talk of rides with 3000+ people has me cringing. Who the heck wants that? They are epic only in their level of annoyance.

Mike F

Dont know if its the SPUD or not but a retired lady volunteering in our office, husband did the Ride Idaho this year. Pictures looked like they had a blast. Her husband and some other die hard retiree's went up and did it.

Holden McNeil

Was all set to do this last year and had to bail last minute. It's on my short list for 2012 along with "The Longest Day" in June.

fishymamba

really? I must have confused it with something else.

cleon

+1 for ride the Rockies , but I might be biased...

thinktubes 

The Apple cider century in Michigan draws about 6000 riders (across all the mileage options). Did it back in 1997 - too large for my taste.

MKahrl

Forty years ago the BIG American ride that everyone had to do was the Tour of the Scioto River Valley. It was pretty much the only big organized ride in 1971 when the bike boom hit. Next year will be the 51st run. Ridership is a reasonable 2500 to 3000.

unterhausen

did Paris-Brest-Paris this year, 750 miles in under 4 days with 5500 of my closest friends. I have to admit there were a few moments where I got tired of being surrounded by other riders. But in general it was fun to be riding with that many people.

yellowjeep

Dirty Kanza
https://www.dirtykanza200.com/dirty-kanza-faqs/

banerjek

If you start out fast so you're in the first few hundred people, it's not bad. When I used to do the STP (which I think is normally capped at 8-10,000 riders), I'd just take off fast and stop for absolutely nothing until I was at least 50 miles out. I've managed to get off course a couple times because there were sections where I couldn't see a single rider ahead or behind me.

Grumpy McTrumpy

They have been doing the Highlander Century in the Finger Lakes region for over 10 years.

I did it this year: https://app.strava.com/rides/1576493

lots of steep. lots.

StephenH

Some of the rides with massive amounts of people are on interest because of the people. It's not a ride you want to do every day, but neat to experience now and again.

idc

Assault on Mt Mitchell - it's on my list anyway
https://www.theassaults.com/mtmitchell

p2templin

I'd argue that they're epic in their level of excitement and opportunity for drafting. Finishing those also tends to be more exciting than the smaller rides.

TheRedWolf

Hilly Hundred in Brown County, Indiana (50 miles each day)- which is this weekend by coincidence. It is on my to do list, have never done it but the Mid-Westerners rave about scenic hills and Fall colors.

hyhuu

8000+ riders in an event? That's a lot of urine in a span of a couple hundred miles.

Ultraslide

I've done this three times. If you can, leave a bit early in the morning to get ahead of the crowds. The descents are much better when not surrounded. Like most scenic organized rides I've done, now I just want to go back and do it with a small group.

Ultraslide

Speaking of ... This year will be my first "New Harmony to Louisville" ride, an informal unsupported ride of 15-20 folks from New Harmony, In to Louisville, Ky. 143 miles, 5700 feet of climbing. https://ridewithgps.com/routes/574417

8Lives

Wow, I am sorta surprised no one has mentioned a Gran Fondo yet, unless I missed it. So - Levi's Gran Fondo. 103 miles, 9k feet of climbing (all in two major sections), 7,500 riders over the three routes, awesome scenery and...some closed roads and lot's of controlled intersections. It was a great feeling to come off King Ridge and have the Highway Patrol wave me onto Highway 1, with traffic stopped both directions.

Bluechip

The ride around Lake Tahoe is one of my favorites. There are several organized rides throughout the year but doing it on your own is a blast too!

GrandBob

Over the past 25+ years I've done 35 cross state week-long rides. Among the best which I believe are still being offered are the following: TRIRI in Indiana (June and September), DALMAC in Michigan, GITAP in Illinois, Northwoods in Wisconsin, BRAT in Tennessee, Ride Idaho, Cycle North Carolina (mountains to the ocean in October), West Shore Lake Michigan, and Moosa in Maine. BRAG in Georgia also has a week-long ride. I did it several years ago and did not have a good experience. Too many people, and too hot and humid in mid June. However, BRAG has two three-day rides, an early spring ride (April) which they call the "Tune Up" and an autumn ride in mid October. I've done both of these rides several times, and both are very enjoyable. My very favorite week-long ride was the Grand Canyon to Mexico ride, 8 days, which used to be held in October. I don't believe it is offered anymore, but the Tucson Bike Club (Greater Arizona club) has some other rides that I believe would be awesome. I also once did the RAW (Wyoming) which is no longer offered. There are other Wyoming rides that are available. There are several websites which give information on these kinds of supported tours. You can Google "Bicycle Tours" and find a number of places to get additional information. Also, the Adventure Cycling Association offers several tours. Some are self-contained, and some are fully supported. I'm a member, but have never done one of their tours. Friends have told me that they are very well done. Good luck in finding a ride to your liking.

Treefox

There's Jeremiah Bishop's Grand Fondo, aka The Grand Fondle. A number of my teammates did that this year and loved it. Claims to be the hardest Grand Fondo in the US.


Dirty Kanza is quite something; looks to be a logistical PITA though.


Whoever mentioned Seagull Century - - no, that does not deserve to be offered as a great American bicycle ride. That's getting stuck behind a thousand people swerving around on hybrids who scream at you for not saying 'on your left' when you pass them with a ten-foot berth at 8 mph.