We get a lot of inquiries about whether it's okay to bring to the Ride To Empower a "hybrid" bike, or any other type of bike that doesn't look like a standard road racing bike.
Our answer is always YES. Followed by a BUT...
Here's the BUT:
Hybrid bikes and mountain bikes with slick tires are, generally speaking, heavy. A heavy bike doesn't make it impossible to ride the route; but we can't lie: the climbs will be way more challenging. And the Utah route does have some climbs. Nothing super steep... but climb you will. Unless you're a pretty strong athlete, the heavy bike is going to take a bit out of you physically - so be ready for that.
Bottom line: If you bring a non-standard road bike, be prepared to be closer to the back of the pack than to the front; and expect to be out on the course for a larger part of the day. No big deal. The scenery is awesome - so you'll just get to enjoy it for longer!
Hi all!
I am training for this ride and am fortunate to live in St. George, the nearest big city to Springdale. I am a very novice rider, I've done a couple of metric centuries in my local area and the Little Red Riding Hood (a 100 mile all girl ride in Logan Ut--much higher elevation, but a flat ride)and thats it for big stuff. I have 2 peices of advice- if you don't already have a compact crankset, don't switch now and TRAIN ON HILLS! There are several very challenging hills on this course! But it is going to be fun and will be worth it!
Posted by: Tami Fullerton | 09/30/2010 at 07:58 PM