I’m going RAW in 2008!!!
It’s official. I’m going RAW in 2008!
This year’s Ride Around Washington is called the “Tour of the Volcanoes” Cascade Mountain Tour. It’s six days and about 30,000 feet of climbing. I know it sounds crazy, but there are only 200 spots for this, and they are already sold out!
During our week of cycling, we will visit four of Washington’s most prominent geographic features (ie volcanoes); Mt. St. Helens, Mount Adams, Mount Rainier, and Mount Hood. Two of the volcanoes are on the western side of the mountains (cooler, unpredictable - read Seattle like weather), and two are on the eastern side of the mountains (hot and dry).
Here is what Cascade.Org has to say about the event:
What better way to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Ride Around Washington than with a brand-new spectacular route. The Tour of the Volcanoes offers something for everyone – cooler, moister air of Western Washington and the warmer, drier climate of the east side of the mountains – tall trees and sage brush – great climbing, grand long descents, and some flats for good measure – four stupendous volcanoes and a magnificent river. With this kind of pure scenic beauty you’ll need a big memory card and extra batteries for your camera.
Starting and ending in Packwood, this loop route winds in, around and over the scenic southern cascades. We’ll travel through quaint towns such as Randle, Carson, Underwood, Glenwood, Goldendale, and Moxee. There will be lesser know passes like Elk, Independence, and Konnowac to cross. The average daily mileage will be around 70-75 miles and we’ll be throwing in some optional side-trips for those who want to maximize their riding opportunities. The nearly 30,000 feet of total elevation gain makes this a great ride for intermediate riders as well as seasoned RAW veterans.
As usual we will be staying in fun camping venues in Packwood, Swift Forest, Trout Lake, Brooks Memorial State Park and Naches. Each night there will be fun activities, including wine tastings and the ever-popular New Belgium happy hours… Maybe a post-ride rub down from our fabulous traveling Washington Sports Massage team will really hit the spot!
Don’t be put off by the thought of daily consecutive rides. Reasonable training and a decent level of fitness paired with awesome on-road support by our volunteer ARES team will get every cyclist safely to the next venue. Plus you have all day to get there!
Hot breakfasts, suppers and lunches will be provided, plus a deluxe hot shower truck follows us to every campsite. Due to our low number of riders we never have long lines for anything during the week, plus we can offer much better campsite venues than most large tours!
So for those of you who have not done RAW, give the Tour of the Volcanoes a try. We may be camping, but we really camp in style… all your luggage and camp gear is carried by our gear trucks. Our outstanding new food menu provides riders with three healthy, nutritious meals per day. We are confident that RAW is the best supported, most economical, week-long camping style ride in the United States…It is produced “by Cyclists for Cyclists”. So what are you waiting for?
I’m not waiting, I’m in!!!
Filed under: Bicycle Tour, Cycling, Uncategorized, fitness, fitness over 40, fitness over forty
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