Special Treat: We have again been invited by Michael Steinberg to join with his ride group for the start and finish of our ride at the swimming pool and covered lanai complex at Dylan's Grove. We will ride different routes and speeds, but our route has been planned for us to return slightly later than the faster group, and join them for an (optional) swim and get together on the lanai by the pool. If you want to eat lunch after the ride, bring whatever you like to eat after a ride with you and eat while we chat about the ride. Or if you want to bring a favorite munchy snack, you will probably find exhausted riders to help you devour it and vice versa. There are bathroom facilities at The Lodge for changing into swim suits or dry clothes following the ride. This route will encompass most of the south 55 mile loop of the Santa Fe Century ride, and be a preview of that part of the ride to help train for doing the full 100 mile ride in October.

The Route: Will start going east from Dylan's Grove on SW 15th Ave; we will turn north onto SW 170th Street and take it to NW 32nd Ave which we will take east to CR241S, then turn north and ride to NW 94th Ave, which we will take west to CR235 where we will jog northeast to CR235A which we will take north to the intersection with CR2054 (Peggy Road) and then turn west riding to NW 202 Street north across 441, turning left onto NW 190 Ave and going west to follow it onto NE 6th Street in High Springs. We will then turn northwest onto NE 1st Ave and pick a restaurant for our rest stop. After the rest stop, we will leave High Springs on N Main Street going northeast and follow it as it becomes CR236 and takes us across I-75 at Traxler. We will follow it east to CR239 and take that south until it intersects with CR235, which we will then take west until it merges with CR241S in Alachua and turns south, stopping for a brief rest stop just before crossing 441 again if necessary. We will then resume going south on CR241S until it crosses Newberry Road and becomes SW143rd Street which will take up south to SW 15th Ave, where we will turn west and ride back to Dylan's Grove for the (optional) swim and lunch. This route is ~15 - 20 miles longer than our previous rides in order to encompass the Santa Fe Century route.

Note: This is the first of a series of 4-5 rides targeting coverage of the Cycling Festival routes, to prepare our riders to participate in either or both of these events, or to give them a taste of both routes if they have generously volunteered to serve as support staff for one or both of those official events. If you have not yet volunteered to help stage one of the two events, please consider contacting Roger Pierce to find out how you can help make these important annual charity events work, knowing that you will already have experienced these routes as part of our training program and not be left entirely out of the loop when people talk about their Festival rides.

The Ride: This is a moderately easy but longer ride of ~55 miles, with a few significant hills and mostly smooth roads. Expect ride speeds of 17-19 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, suntan lotion is recommended, as some parts of this ride are in sunny open areas. Due to the added length of this Santa Fe Century preview ride, we may adjust our target average speed down slightly, at the ride group's discretion, to hit the lower end of the target average speed range if necessary.

The Start Point: Dylan's Grove is a gated residential community. If you have ridden with the HighBees or Bee-17s from there, the gate code will be the same as before. If you do not know the code please email me (Ed) for the gate code if you plan to attend. The Lodge at Dylan’s Grove, (18909 SW 21st Place, Newberry, Florida 32669) is located at the rear of the property at the end of the access road. Directions: Go west on Newberry Rd to SW 170th St and turn left, proceed south to SW 15th Ave then turn right (west) and proceed approximately 1 mile to SW 188th Street. Enter through the gate and drive to the rear of the community (~1/2 mile) and turn right on SW 21st Place to the driveway that goes to the parking area for The Lodge.

The Ride Aids: Route maps will be available at the start of the ride; if you want a preview map of the ride (including a map showing where Dylan's Grove is located) or a Garmin .tcx file, email Ed at the address below. A copy of the General Plan for the Bee-17s has been posted on the GCC mail list and is also available upon request.