The Bee-17s will ride from the Earl Powers Park, Saturday, April 7th to Melrose for a trip of 42.3 miles.
The Route: Will start from Earl Powers Park and ride east on SR20 (Hawthorne Road) to SE 60th Terrace, where we will turn south and cross over to the Hawthorne Trail and ride it east to Grove Park (SE 156th Terrace) and then return to Hawthorne Road and ride it east until we get to SE 171st Street, which we will take north as it jogs west to become SE 163rd Street and continues to CR 1474, which we will take east until it become Price Road and "Ts" into Hwy21 just south of Melrose, which we will take north into Melrose and the rest stop. We will resume going west on CR26 to CR234, which we will take south through Windsor, then turn west onto SR20 (Hawthorne Road) and take it west back to Earl Powers Park. Anyone who "rides to the ride" can return to the Trail at SE 60th Terrace and ride back directly into Gainesville from there on the downtown connector trail (which goes back through/by UF and along Archer Road all the way to SW 34th street) instead of returning to Earl Powers Park.
The Time: Meet at 8:45AM, ride at 9:00AM, Saturday, April 7th. Expect a full ride time of ~3:30 hours including the rest stop in Melrose.
The Ride: This is a relatively easy ride of ~42.3 miles, of mostly flat roads with a few minor hills. Expect ride speeds of 15-19 mph with a target pedaling speed of 17 mph and an average speed of 16-17 mph. This is a no-drop friendly ride for riders in reasonable physical condition; we will soft pedal as necessary to keep the core of the group together because riders on this ride are expected to be able to ride at the stated group speed; nevertheless we will wait for everyone to regroup at each major turn and after fun sprints, if necessary to prevent drops. Helmets are required.
The Rest Stop: Will be in Melrose at approximately 23 miles at a convenience store/gas station with restrooms.
The Start Point: Earl Powers Park is located on the east side of town on the north side of Hawthorne Road (SR 20), which has bike lanes continuously from the east side of town; look for the brown standard park sign just outside the primary populated area east of town, several miles east of Waldo Road. It can also be accessed by bicycle by riding the Hawthorne Rail Trail approximately 4 miles east from Boulware Springs, over the "hills and hummocks", until you get to the "SE 60th Terrace" sign on the trail, where you can cross directly from the Trail to Hawthorne Road and ride a few hundred feet west back towards town to reach the Park. There is no fee to enter and park at Earl Powers Park; we usually meet near the restrooms close to the entrance to the park.
The Ride Aids: Route maps will be available at the start of the ride; if you want a preview map of the ride or a Garmin .tcx file, email Ed at the address below; anyone on my mail list is sent a map in the Ride Report for the previous ride. General information about the Bee-17s is now available in the "Riding Groups" page at the GCC web site.
Weather: In the event of questionable weather as we near ride time, a GO or cancellation notice will be posted on the list server approximately 1 hour or sooner before posted ride meeting time; if you don't see anything by then, the ride is most likely a GO; if you still have concerns or useful specific information about bad weather along the ride route, please give me a call.
Note: The Bee-17s are now an official GCC riding group. Anyone wishing to "join" the group as a regular member can do so from their own Members Area page. Non-group GCC members continue to be welcomed to join us on any posted ride they feel like riding without having to formally "join" the group.