Over the years a cyclist may participate in many cycling events and do all sorts of rides. Some of them are remembered as fun or boring or whatever, but a few will stand out. Some unique quality will make these particular rides more memorable. Often it is just the difficulty of a ride that can make it stand out but there are other reasons as well. Perhaps it is the scenery, the weather or just a good group of friends to ride with. It can be hard to define what elevates these rides, but one thing is certain, they are rare, and special because of it! These are the rides I am calling my “Epic Rides”, and here is my personal list.
California Triple Crown Hall of Fame Induction 2018
Succeeding completing my first 200 mile bicycle ride in 1991 I was able to continue participating in these longer events until I finally reached this goal. I might have gotten there sooner but some of my earlier double centuries did not count towards the total since they were not yet on the list of qualifying events for this award. Eventually though, with a few lapses in continuity along the way I was finally able to get here. Probably also earning the honor of taking the longest time participating to achieve it!
Eroica Hispania 2016
As the Eroica family of events branched out to other locations this was perhaps the newest site in the series and perhaps my favorite. I missed the first running of this event last year but was able to attend this second edition. In keeping with the heroic nature of the Eroici this was a challenging and scenic route. Over 200 kilometers of mixed dirt and back roads with well over 3000 meters of climbing throughout the day visiting nearly every hilltop village in the Rioja region! I was the first American rider to both participate and complete the long route.
Eroica California 2015
After attending Eroica events in both Italy and England I was very pleased when I heard that it was now coming to California! This location too would be both extremely challenging and scenic. I had ridden many of the roads used by this event in the past while doing brevets or double centuries so it was kind of my home turf in a way. Like the other Eroica locations, this one is a very difficult ride, 127 miles, 10,000+ feet of climbing, 40% on dirt roads, grades exceeding 25%! All this on a 1962 Legnano Gran Premio alongside my friend Bob Owen.
Eroica Britannia 2014
My second foray into the world of vintage cycling events was this, in it’s inaugural year and the village of Bakewell England was our host. Located in the heart of the Peak District, a scenic region of wild country, lonely moors and charming villages. 1100 enthusiasts turned out, with perhaps less than a quarter of them (along with myself) attempting the long route. At a total distance of just over 100 miles there was still bout 10,000 feet of climbing to overcome, which made this, mile for mile, perhaps a more difficult route!
Link, a story of beer and sheep bits!
Surf City 600 km Brevet 2013
This ride was almost an epic fail! Sure, it all started well enough but maybe that should have been a red flag. What can happen when, you have a large turnout for a great 600km route, wonderful weather, a friend to ride with all day and a good plan? Well you just might end up as “lantern rouge” finishing the ride with just minutes to spare! It was a bit of a wake up call for me.
L’Eroica 2012
The basic idea for this ride is to take vintage bicycles and ride a spectacular 200 kilometer course through the Chianti region of Italy. There were a couple of caveats however. First, the route to be ridden included some 100 kilometers of the “Strada Bianca”, or the white gravel roads of the region. Next, there would be perhaps 3500 meters of climbing (over 12,000 ft) in the course of the day. Many of these climbs exceeded a gradient of 20 percent!!! We would be served traditional foods during the event, no sports drinks, no power-bars, no gels, this would be old-school all the way. Ride report here.
Seattle to Portland DC 2010
This is the biggest double century that I am aware of in the US and the finish is just blocks from our place. It is limited to 10,000 riders and is sold out months in advance each year. Riders start out in waves of 500 or so a few minutes apart. This ride has more crashes tan any event I have ridden. If you survive the first 50 miles you just might live!
Central Coast Double Century 2009
One of my favorite double centuries (because I love the area so much) but a very tough ride. I had done this ride three times prior so I knew what I was getting into, or so I thought. This is the story of when a hard ride turns into an epic ride! Perseverance was the key.
Paris Brest Paris, 2007
This 1200 km event which begins outside of Paris and travels to the coast at Brest before returning is held only once every 4 years. It is the pinnacle of randonneuring and the goal of every randonneur and randonneuse. Nearly biblical rains defined this event for many riders including myself. 2007 featured the highest DNF rate ever for the event, also including myself. The 2007 ride was unsuccessful for me but I returned in 2008 to finish what I had started finishing the route unsupported and on my own.
Arrivaca 400 km Brevet, 2006
This is a ride that perhaps more than any other ride tested me and the other riders to our limits. The conditions were truly epic, the courage shown by the riders was remarkable and the camaraderie that was displayed was inspirational. The photo here show us in Arrivaca at the control. We look ragged but the worst was yet to come! Here is an additional note on Epic-ness at this event
Death Ride, 2005
The Death Ride is one of the original challenge rides and has been around for well over 35 years. Rider numbers are limited to 2500 riders each year. I have done it several times previously with mixed results. It is a course which features climbing over 5 mountain passes in the Sierra Nevada mountains near South Lake Tahoe. The Climbing totals over 16,000 ft of elevation gain in about 125 miles. What makes this year unique was that Clair and I had both had surgery less than 2 weeks prior to the event. The photo here was taken at the top of Carson Pass, on the final summit!
Grand Tour Triple Century, 2004
What was amazing about this ride was how badly it all started and how well it finished. Less than 20 miles into the day I hit a rock and double flatted also damaging my front rim. Then within the next 30 miles I got 2 more flat tires and I thought the day was ruined. After that things starting looking up a bit. At mile 150 our group of 4 hooked up with 8 others and we made a fast team, eventually finishing the 300 miles in 21 hours total. Riding partners Joe Schoney (center) and Craig Egerton (center right) are pictured in the photo. Clair Jensen and myself are also in the photo, yellow and blue helmets in the center.
Solvang Double Century, 2003
This ride qualifies for epic status because of the unusual conditions. The day was breezy and mild but the winds kept shifting so that they were always at our backs! Never before or since have I had all day tailwinds. Our group finished the 200 mile ride in 11 hours total time, with 9 hrs 50 minutes on the bike.
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Brian Head Epic 100, 2001
100 miles of dirt, 10,000+ feet of climbing, mostly over 10,000 feet elevation. What is so epic about that?
I only did this ride a couple of times and it always kicked my butt. It was a Team Big Bear event but it is no longer being held. I think it was a harder course than most people liked so the return rate of participants was low. My best finishing time was about 12 hours.
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El Tour de Tucson 1999
This was my first really big event in terms of number of riders, approximately 11,000 for this event! A fairly flat 110 mile course around the city was a logistical nightmare for the organizers. Pretty fun to ride though if you could stay out of the many crashes. We had a number of members from our local club for this one.
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24 Hours of Moab MTB race 1996
This was my first team relay race along with 3 other riders. Our team was called Blazing Saddles and we raced in the Sport/Veteran category. We did pretty well and got on the podium in 3rd place with a result of 19 laps 52 minutes. Our group was kind a the “B” team for southern Utah since our other local team “Team Red Rock” rejected us all as prospects. Revenge was sweet however as we kicked their butts in the results!
White Mountain Peak in a day! 1990’s
I did this ride 5 times in the late 80’s and early 90’s and it remains the hardest MTB ride I have ever done. It started just outside of Bishop CA at about 3500 ft elevation and climbed up the incredibly steep jeep road in Silver Canyon with grades up to 30%! The ride topped out at the summit of White Mtn Peak at 14,282 feet. Add in another 5000 feet of climbing and descending along the ridge and you have an epic day. The 65 mile ride started at 1:00 am and my best finish time over the years was 14 hours, being the 5th rider to summit White Mountain Peak. No suspension, no oxygen, no problem!
Davis Double Century 1991
This was my first double century and an event that I have returned to ride a total of 14 times over the years. Still one of my favorite distance events, it used to see about 1000 riders but now with so many other doubles it gets about 400. It is organized by the Davis Bicycle Club and is one of the oldest DC’s in the state!
The story from my last participation in 2018
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Chico Wildflower Century 1987
I believe that this was my first “real” century ride and probably what got me started on doing the bigger rides later on. Well supported and well attended with about 3-4000 riders turning out back then.
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*As I look over this list I note that most of these rides were ridden with my good friend Clair Jensen who is no longer with us. Thank you Clair for your part in these adventures.
The Utah Randonneur 
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