Saturday, August 15, 2009

Rough Riders Rally Reconnaissance

Since shortly after publishing "Mountain Bikes: Who Needs Them?" in the February, 1993 issue of Bicycle Guide - when the "love letters" starting pouring in - I've dreamed of hosting a rally to celebrate the "Any Bike, Anywhere" ethos and lifestyle. Now that dream is really beginning to take shape, as you will see from our beautiful logo above and the fantastic photos on this page and on our website. Read on, check out the photos, and mark your calendar to join us next year!

Over the weekend of August 8 & 9, 2009, I traveled to Marin County to further preparations for the July 23-25, 2010 Rough Riders Rally. As a result, we've finalized the main ride route, made plans with our host bike shop, and much more. Plus we now have over 200 photos to whet your appetite for what will be a truly exciting, memorable, and fun international gathering of Rough Riders. YOU are invited!
Yours truly at West Point Inn, on Railroad Grade, above Mill Valley and the Bay Area. Photo by Ed Levinson.

The Rally is our new annual mixed-surface (road/trail/etc) cycling festival based in Marin County which celebrates the "Any Bike, Anywhere" ethos. There will be a Friday afternoon ride, followed by a BBQ at Tam Bikes in Mill Valley. Saturday will be the big day: a six hour ride in spectacular terrain. Later that afternoon the bikes will be assembled for a bike show. (To enter a bike in the show, it must have been ridden on the full route, including the photograph. No "for looking only; not for riding" bikes may be shown.) It will be a fantastic evening. Sunday morning we'll ride Railroad Grade to the summit of Mt. Tam, then return to Mill Valley for a social hour or two at The Depot, before we depart town. It promises to be a very fun weekend in an absolutely spectacular cycling paradise. Mark your calendar! (Mountain bikes are welcome, too!)

Click here for a preview slideshow and a very rough route sheet of the Saturday route for the 2010 Rough Riders Rally. The route is approximately 345 miles with approximately 5000' of elevation gain and features single track, double track, fire road, gravel road, abandoned paved road, and newly paved road. Some consider this "mountain bike territory," but this route is 99% rideable by an accomplished Rough Rider on a road bike with 32mm cyclocross tyres (or on a cyclocross bike), and perhaps 90-95% rideable on a road bike with 28mm road tyres.


Special thanks to my long-time friend and local guide, Ed Levinson, a Furnace Creek 508 veteran who owned and operated a bike shop in Mill Valley for over ten years. (Our host shop for the Rally will be Mt. Tam Bikes at 357 Miller Avenue, as pictured in the slideshow.)


This region offers truly superb cycling, with fantastic views of the San Francisco Bay, Alcatraz, the Marin Headlands, Mt. Tamalpais ("Mt. Tam"), Tiburon, Mill Valley, the Bay Bridge, a bit of the Golden Gate Bridge, and dramatic, rugged Northern California coastline. Honestly, this is cycling paradise, a region unparalleled for its beauty, diversity of scenery and riding surfaces, and its cycling-friendly trail signage and local population
!

Above: Ed Levinson, with Mt. Tam behind, on Bobcat Trail in the Marin Headlands.

View the entire slideshow on our website. Every image you will see was taken on the route of the Rough Riders Rally Saturday ride. The riding is truly that fantastic!

Join us July 23-25, 2010 for the first ever Rough Riders Rally! Mark your calendar and stay tuned for further details!

4 comments:

Protorio said...

I'm really excited for this. I rode the RR grade in June - and loved it.

Unknown said...

Sorry to miss you when you were up on the recon loop. I will say that any ride that ends at Avatar's is an excellent ride.

surf said...

How can one get a rough riders Tee-Shirt?

Thanks, SurF

Chris Kostman said...

We have just one size medium Rough Riders cycling jersey in stock. It's by Hincapie and "race cut." $50 +$5 S&H to the first person to request it.

Otherwise, we will make a new batch of RR jerseys in conjunction with the Rough Riders Rally. When we open registration for the Rally, we'll also offer jerseys with registration.