Who comes to Redlands to ride a bike?

The Redlands Strada Rossa drew participants from all over Southern California (and Virginia!). Redlands as a destination for bike riding is a pretty cool idea. We would love for Redlands to be on people's minds when they're thinking "What should I do this weekend?"

On that note, here is a map showing the towns that riders came from. This is only for those that showed up, so we're not trying to inflate it to show anything that's not there. Only one tag per town, so somewhere like Carlsbad that had four riders only gets one point. A very cool map, the benefit of living in a GIS town! Thanks John, for putting this together!



And here is last year's map to compare/contrast:

And that's a wrap!

Wow.

Really, wow.

This event is now in the history books. A total success as far as my unbiased opinion goes!

The volunteer crew was fantastic. The ride was billed as unsupported, and we wanted to make people were self-contained. That said, providing some water and moral support at key junctures made sense. Hopefully it helped keep riders safe and happy out there.

The plans for the future definitely include a 2015 iteration of this ride. So plan on a mid-March rendezvous in Redlands! It’ll probably be about the same size to keep it manageable and make sure the kinks are worked out.

Thanks again to everyone that came in to help. We even had riders that asked if they could do anything. Amazing outpouring of good will from everyone’s part.

Our goals of 1) Promoting the Inland Empire as a bicycling option, 2) Highlighting the city of Redlands and it’s trail networks as a destination, 3) Fostering a bit of cross-pollination of the bicycle cultures, and 4) Having a kick-ass day were all met!

Only criticisms we heard were a stretch of San Timoteo between Live Oak Canyon and Alessandro was too busy with fast auto traffic and that trails could have been marked better.

And here's some really cool data on where the participants came from. Of the 133 riders we had sign in Saturday, we know the city that 104 came from:

City	Start
altadena
altadena
Apple Valley
Banning
Beaumont
Brea
Carlsbad
carlsbad
Carlsbad
Carlsbad
Carlsbad
Carlsbd
claremont
colton
Crestline
Crestline
crestline
dana point
El Cajon
Encinitas
fontana
Fontana
Forest Falls
Fullerton
Hemet
Hemet
hesperia
Highland
Highland
Highland
highland
Huntington beach
Irvine
La Canada
La Mesa
laguna beach
laguna Beach
Loma Linda
Los Angeles
LOS ANGELES
Los Angeles
Los Angeles
Mentone
Mentone
Mentone
mentone
Mentone
MIDLOTHIAN	VA
Montclair
Moreno Valley
Moreno Valley
Murrieta
Oceanside
ontario
Orange
Pasadena
Pomona
Rancho Cucamonga
redlands
Redlands
Redlands
redlands
Redlands
Redlands
Redlands
redlands
Redlands
Redlands
Redlands
Redlands
Redlands
Redlands
RIALTO
Rialto
Riverside
Riverside
Riverside
Riverside
Riverside
RIVERSIDE
Riverside
San Bernardino
San Bernardino
San Diego
san luis obispo
Santa Ana
Santa Ana
Sunland
Tustin
Vista
Vista
Vista
Vista
walnut
West Hills
Winchester
Yucaipa
Yucaipa
Yucaipa
yucaipa
Yucaipa
Yucaipa
Yucaipa

Watch out for critters tomorrow!

Trailside find, a photo by cyclotourist on Flickr.

This little guy was saying "Hi" as I rode by in Scott Canyon today.

Last Minute Prep

Two late-breaking items of interest: Don's Bicycles of Redlands is offering 20% off all accessories for Strada Rossa riders on Friday the 14th! If you need last-minute tires, tubes, chain, cassette or a new wheelset, get to it!

Also, Redlands Bike BBQ will be open tomorrow night at 6:00 to put Stan's latex sealant in your tubes. You don't need special tubes or tools, they'll show you how to do it! Donations accepted!

Bail Out Points

While this is a recreational/fun ride, it is still going to be pretty damn tough.  Plus it's unfortunately going to be hot... at least 85F. Be sure to have plenty of self-contained water and know the water options on the route (Hulda Crooks Park tennis courts, Wildowood City Park, Crafton Hills College gym).

If at some point on the ride you need to get back to Redlands, please be familiar with the route back. The recommended bail out spots are San Timoteo Canyon Rd at the 31 mile mark. Followed by Calimesa Blvd at the 41 mile mark. The final logical way back would be Oak Glen Rd at the 50 mile mark.

San Timotoe Canyon Rd. route: Left on San Tim, Right on Alessandro, over hill into Redlands.
Map point: http://tinyurl.com/l3vvumz

Calimesa Blvd route: Continue straight on Calimesa Blvd (will be busy, high/fast traffic), cross Oak Glen Rd (light), continue on 14th St. Cross Yucaipa Blvd (light), continues on as Sand Canyon Rd. Follow into Redlands.
Map point: http://tinyurl.com/krmp5dc

Oak Glen Rd. route: Continue straight on Oak Glen (may be busy, moderate to high/fast traffic), follow down hill, Right on Chapman Heights Rd (light), Right on San Canyon Rd. Follow into Redlands.
Map point: http://tinyurl.com/lgdrlrv

Please know that everyone is invited to the after-ride party!!! No requirement to have finished or even to have begun the ride!!!

Final Map Unveil!

Finally, the moment you have all been waiting for!

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/4102226

This is the final map, based on everything we know. It was pre-rode in it's entirety yesterday, and looks great! Couple sections of Orange Blossom Trail that are being bypassed due to storm damage. Jackrabbit trail in the Loma Linda hills is a little less than primo due to storm then motorcycle damage. Other than that, it's gonna' be a great route!

Pretty high on the epic-meter. It's doable in seven to eight hours at a moderate pace. It's being re-rode today at a fast pace to see what a good time for that is.

There is a water fountain at Hulda Crooks Park tennis courts at mile 16. They also have toilets up the hill behind that in the kid's park. Next water & toilets are at mile 46, Wildwood Canyon City Park. Final water is at Crafton Hills College gym, mile 59. No toilets. Plan accordingly! Remember, self-contained!!! There is also retail food and beverage available at mile 47 in Calimesa. Chevron & AM/PM, Taco Bell, Burger King. Those are the only retail services on the route.

Ride rolls at 8:00 for those planning needing more time. Faster riders should plan for a 9:00 roll out. Assembling in alley by Augie's coffe. They toast all their own beans on site, and have great coffee!

Ride ends where the party begins! Private party near downtown, you can see on the map. Will have food, local beer from Ritual, and local soft drinks from Empire.
Will be selling tickets for food and drink. It's very reasonably priced, and not included in your ride fee.

Green Hills For The RSR!

Green Hills For The RSR!, a photo by cyclotourist on Flickr.

Goatheads!

Goathead thorns have the potential to make this a miserable ride for you. There are a LOT out here. Out of towners have had to abandon when they weren't prepared for this and it killed their ride. Locals do better as I think we know how to watch out for them. Goatheads are not a native species so luckily they only grow where there is a water source. You won't find them on the trails. But you will find them in the suburban transition zones as well as the agriculture areas where there is water run-off. And guess what, we're riding through a lot of suburban transition and ag areas!

To avoid them the best thing you can do is to not ride in the gutters or on the dirt shoulders of roads. That 100% where you'll find them. Carry at least TWO extra tubes in addition to a patch kit.

I would also HIGHLY recommend using some sort of sealant. Either latex based or the glycol basd. Whatever, you will appreciate it. You don't need to run tubeless, just fill some of your tubes with the product. Here is a great set up to consider: http://oceanaircycles.com/2014/02/22/38mm-and-tubeless/ (Rob's going to be coming down for this ride!!!)