# Dahlonega, GA 6-GAP



## Rickyracer

So who's going to do 6-GAP this year?
I will do it if someone can promise better weather than last year's event!:thumbsup:


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## tconrady

I'm in! You're right, last year's weather totally sucked. I've got a group of buddies riding with me this year and there's a good chance they'll only be able to 3 Gap....they've never done a century with any substantial climbing. It'll be a good time but I'm bumming a bit about the possibility of not doing all 6 again this year.


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## cartecs3

I'm thinkin' about doing 3-gap.. not sure I can talk myself into doing the full thing or not--I'll be doing my first road century next weekend so we'll see how that goes first. I'm actually in Dahlonega right now for the Fool's Gold 100 MTB race (I'm doin' 50). Starts in about 2.5 hours.


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## tconrady

Good luck with your race. Let us know how you do.


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## blubike

*THC Comparo to Six Gap*

Is anyone out there familiar with Texas Hill Country rides - say the climbs from Vanderpool to Leaky - and how these might compare to north Georgia climbs?

I'm signed up for the Six Gap and having ridden THC plenty, could use a basis of comparison. Thanks.


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## VinPaysDoc

I'm in. It will be my first time. Should be fun?

Greg


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## Tarmac_Editor

The climbs in North Georgia are in the southernmost section of the Appalachian Mountains. Wolfpen Gap is a Cat. 2 climb I believe on the Tour de Georgia. Hogpen is a long climb with an extended section of extremely steep grade. I've driven through the Hill Country a number of times, but I've never ridden the hills on bike. But I'd say that's the biggest difference... to put it simply it's hills verses mountains. North Georgia's climbs are going to be longer and in the case of Hogpen especially, long AND steep.

Edit to add this great link for the North Georgia climbs: http://www.mountainmapper.com/NGA-fr1.htm


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## Lou1187

*St. Louis*

I'll be there, coming from ST.Louis.


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## gutfiddle

Cape Canaveral representin'!


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## Rickyracer

Cape Canaveral!? SAWHEET!
I'm originally from Cocoa, FL, currently living in Birmingham, AL
Hopefully you have been putting yo face to the wind to prepare for some GA climbs.


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## VinPaysDoc

I'm guessin' he's been riding over the Indian and Banana Rivers an awful lot! River road on the Indian River was pretty nice riding when I was down visiting the inlaws in June.

Greg


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## gutfiddle

Rickyracer said:


> Cape Canaveral!? SAWHEET!
> I'm originally from Cocoa, FL, currently living in Birmingham, AL
> Hopefully you have been putting yo face to the wind to prepare for some GA climbs.


ha I know a few fellow florida flatlanders comin up to spin dem hills the end of this month! this one just got his compact crank off ebay and did the cherohala challenge and hilly hellacious tryin to get ready for 6 gap, plus big ringin in the wind up and down A1A (tour de vero century last saturday) can't wait to get out of this humidity and pedal to some overlooks:thumbsup:


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## gutfiddle

VinPaysDoc said:


> I'm guessin' he's been riding over the Indian and Banana Rivers an awful lot! River road on the Indian River was pretty nice riding when I was down visiting the inlaws in June.
> 
> Greg


u R correct Greg, the club i ride with "Space Coast Freewheelers" ride along the Indian river quite often aswell as most brevardians, usually u pass many more cyclists then cagers. Also I pass over the indian river and banana river causeways on my commute to work in Rockledge from Cape Canaveral.


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## Rickyracer

When Indian River Road was my spinning grounds (lived in Port St. John) my goal in life was to get a speeding ticket. - That was WAY back in high school.

I'd see a cop and the game was on...I got pretty with hopping speed humps but never a ticket.


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## Kennedy

Tarmac_Editor said:


> The climbs in North Georgia are in the southernmost section of the Appalachian Mountains. Wolfpen Gap is a Cat. 2 climb I believe on the Tour de Georgia. Hogpen is a long climb with an extended section of extremely steep grade. I've driven through the Hill Country a number of times, but I've never ridden the hills on bike. But I'd say that's the biggest difference... to put it simply it's hills verses mountains. North Georgia's climbs are going to be longer and in the case of Hogpen especially, long AND steep.
> 
> Edit to add this great link for the North Georgia climbs: http://www.mountainmapper.com/NGA-fr1.htm



Here are the UCI Cats for the 6 Gap climbs:

Woody’s Gap Cat. 3
Unicoi Gap Cat. 2
Neal’s Gap Cat. 2
Wolfpen Gap Cat. 2
Hogpen Gap Cat. 1

I can't find one for Jack's.


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## Rickyracer

Rickyracer said:


> So who's going to do 6-GAP this year?
> I will do it if someone can promise better weather than last year's event!:thumbsup:


Looks as though the weather will be nice...Now, I need to find another excuse for not doing all 6. DAMN!


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## kk4df

Rickyracer said:


> Looks as though the weather will be nice...Now, I need to find another excuse for not doing all 6. DAMN!


I have an excuse for only doing 3. My 14 year old son and a 16 year old newbie (daughter's boyfriend) will be riding with me. As the adult, I can't just leave them. And I've had no luck convincing them to ride 6 with me.

There's always next year. Next year, it's 6 or die.


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## ATHiker07

*The climbs*



Kennedy said:


> Here are the UCI Cats for the 6 Gap climbs:
> 
> Woody’s Gap Cat. 3
> Unicoi Gap Cat. 2
> Neal’s Gap Cat. 2
> Wolfpen Gap Cat. 2
> Hogpen Gap Cat. 1
> 
> I can't find one for Jack's.


This will be my 3rd year doing 6-Gap and my goal this year is sub 5 1/2 hours. I have vastly improved my power to weight ration so who knows maybe it'll be enough. As for the climbs heres the basics:

Neels Gap begins at mile 17 and averages 5.5% for 6.6 miles, but that includes a short decent about 1/3 of the way up.

Jacks Gap starts about 32.3 miles in and averages around 5% for 4.1 miles, but it's not constant at all. Some stuff around 11% and some short decents.

Unicoi starts just short of 42 miles in and is closer to 7% average for 2.3 miles. It's a nice climb with a LONG decent afterward.

Hogpen begins at 54.4 miles in and averages 7% for 7.1 miles. Keep in mind there are a few decents and then the crusher is that from miles 3 to 5 the climb AVERAGES over 12% so be prepared for the cramps...the decent off the back of Hogpen is scary fast (50+ mph with no effort) with a few tight turns so be careful.

Wolfpen really starts at 71.8 miles in, but there is about 2 miles of 2-3% before the real climb begins. The actual climb is about 7-8% for 3.2 miles on some nice switchbacks and good views of those below you are the norm. The decent of wolfpen is twisty and fun.

After some "rollers" the short climb to Woody's starts at mile 83.2 and averages 4.5% for 1.8 miles. Then the real fun begins as you bomb a LONG decent back into Dahlonega with two 1/2 mile climbs the last few miles but otherwise lots of fast downhill.

I'll be coming from Florida as well so I hope we show the "mountain guys" how it's done. :thumbsup: 

Steve


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## blubike

*Florida First Timer*

Thanks for the good info. I will be there for sure, but could use a little assesment of my training and encouragement. 

I'm all the way down in Miami, so save for the bridge over the bay (70' rise) it's all flat. I can do 20 repeats of the bridge without difficulty except mentally it gets really boring after 45 minutes. On the advise of some local old timers I've also been riding on grass to experience extended increased resistance - figure 8s across a soccer field.

All in all I've been ridding 225 +/- miles per week for the last four months (up from my usual 150 per week), including fast group rides of 80-100 miles on Saturdays. I finish these feeling pretty good so my endurance appears to be up. So far I've avoided ovetraining or injury - which I did two years ago agravating a herniated disc. Cautionary note to cyclists: strengthen your core muscles, but beware of military-style sit-ups. By the way, I'm 50-something. 

My climbing history is limited mostly to Texas Hill Country - there are actually some fairly good 2-3 mile climbs there, many back-to-back. 

I put a compact crank and 26 cog on my steel italian frame. My wheels are Mavic Cosmos. My goals are to get there, start, finish, not crash, not die, not blow-up, not puke and get back under 9 hours. Comments?


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## gutfiddle

blubike said:


> Thanks for the good info. I will be there for sure, but could use a little assesment of my training and encouragement.
> 
> I'm all the way down in Miami, so save for the bridge over the bay (70' rise) it's all flat. I can do 20 repeats of the bridge without difficulty except mentally it gets really boring after 45 minutes. On the advise of some local old timers I've also been riding on grass to experience extended increased resistance - figure 8s across a soccer field.
> 
> All in all I've been ridding 225 +/- miles per week for the last four months (up from my usual 150 per week), including fast group rides of 80-100 miles on Saturdays. I finish these feeling pretty good so my endurance appears to be up. So far I've avoided ovetraining or injury - which I did two years ago agravating a herniated disc. Cautionary note to cyclists: strengthen your core muscles, but beware of military-style sit-ups. By the way, I'm 50-something.
> 
> My climbing history is limited mostly to Texas Hill Country - there are actually some fairly good 2-3 mile climbs there, many back-to-back.
> 
> I put a compact crank and 26 cog on my steel italian frame. My wheels are Mavic Cosmos. My goals are to get there, start, finish, not crash, not die, not blow-up, not puke and get back under 9 hours. Comments?


you'll be fine, just dont let any Georgia Peaches keep you too long at the sag stops w/ their southern accents mmmmm. Cya in Dahlonega!


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## ATHiker07

Bluebike,
You should have plenty of endurance. Be sure you avoid the temptation to get in some last minute hard training, it's too late to really do anything effective at this point and you need to rest up. Do a short 30 minute ride on Saturday with some brief harder efforts to open up your systems and legs, but otherwise maybe only 1 or 2 rides between now and Friday. I would seriously consider not riding at all on either Thursday or Friday to store up all the energy you can.
Steve


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## gutfiddle

looks like it should be a good weekend for beautiful overlooks and brutal climbs! can't wait to be there....


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## tconrady

kk4df said:


> I have an excuse for only doing 3. My 14 year old son and a 16 year old newbie (daughter's boyfriend) will be riding with me. As the adult, I can't just leave them. And I've had no luck convincing them to ride 6 with me.
> 
> There's always next year. Next year, it's 6 or die.


Were y'all the ones wearing matching jerseys?


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## tconrady

It was an beautiful day today for the ride! Damn my legs hurt! I pretty much slacked this past month on the training and it showed. Luckily I rode it with a buddy who had never done it before or really any substancial climbing...and he thought I was just going slower to hang with him.  I'll never tell!


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## salesguy

the ride was great, my first time and it was perfect weather. I was the first 6 gap'r to finish in 4:54...


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## VinPaysDoc

It was indeed a beautiful day. My first time at DAW-lawn-egga. I stayed with a friend and finished with a time around 7:13. While it was a pretty day, it was quite chilly for the first hour or so. Random thoughts:

1. I've always thought carrying tunes might not be such a great idea but almost got to witness it first-hand. On one of the early descents before Neel's Gap some guy had his ear buds dangling out of his jersey pocket flopping around at near 35 mph. I was coming up to let him know when they got caught in his rear spokes and made the bike start to wobble. He held on, pulled off, and I never found out whether there was any damage to the wheel as I kept on truckin'.

2. Was anyone else tempted on Jack's Gap to make the turn to Brasstown? I sure was. I don't get to that neck of the woods often. 

3. I didn't find any of the grades terribly offensive. Hogpen was just a long slog up. Take this with a grain of salt since I wasn't pushing very hard.

4. The little farm lake in the valley between Hogpen and Wolfpen was beautiful.

5. Perhaps it would have been better to set up the Rest Stop on Wolfpen on the right side of the road? That looked like a recipe for disaster.

6. Descending Wolfpen a car was stopped in the traffic lane talking to riders. I wish they had pulled onto the shoulder.

7. The descent of Woody's was quite fun. I still had legs left and was able to pull my buddy at a pretty decent clip. Several miles of fast descent is a fine way to end a ride.

8. I didn't see anyone get ticketed for 'Indecent Exposure', although there were plenty of opportunities. Perhaps the chill in the air made things a little less exposed????

Greg


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## Duckman

That sag on the left was actually Unicoi (3rd gap). Same for the dang SUV in the middle of the road..being at the bottom of the descent(headin down towards Helen) right after it. I couldn't beleive it.


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## VinPaysDoc

You're right. It was Unicoi. Wolfpen was on the right with little traffic up there. 

Greg


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## Duckman

We must of passed thru there close to the same time, considering the SUV couldn't have been there long.


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## VinPaysDoc

Duckman,

I was in a Red/Black/White MotoVelo Kit on a Trek 5900. I sure hope that SUV wasn't on the road long. Why they stopped in the lane instead of pulling over I'll never understand.

When Bird's Eye View gets the pictures up I'll link to my photo.

Greg


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## Rickyracer

salesguy said:


> the ride was great, my first time and it was perfect weather. I was the first 6 gap'r to finish in 4:54...


4:54 - WTF took you sooo long! 
Holy cow, that's smok'in.


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## Duckman

I was riding a black w/ yellow strips TCR. Wearing an Outspokin green/white/blue kit. 

No recent roadie pics in that kit. But a recent 35 mile mtb race..










Compared to most stronger roadies, I climb way slow. But, I passed countless people on the descents(must have passed 25 going down Unicoi, being my fav descent in 6 Gap). I used to race WERA Superbikes as a young man(I'm 49 now) and lived in that area all my life, and know those roads very well. 

You prolly saw this over at Ride Reports, but just in case....(report/tons of pics of 6-Gap)

https://forums.roadbikereview.com/showthread.php?t=109151


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## FarmerG

salesguy said:


> the ride was great, my first time and it was perfect weather. I was the first 6 gap'r to finish in 4:54...


Are you the guy in the Stars and Stripes?

What's you name/where you from? 

I was in the group at the bottom of Hogpen. World Cup champions jersey (white with vertical rainbow stripes) and riding a System Six. I finished in 5:11 which was a PR for me. Don't expect to ever go under 5:00.

Great ride but you don't have to come back .


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## salesguy

yep, that was me - I remember that system six because I have one at home too. Nice riding - I will be back next year for sure - maybe do it in 4:45 next year?

I'm from NC...


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## FarmerG

Got another question for you....

I know who you were and I know Tracy (GTC). Who was the third guy? Heard he was 15 or 16. Was it the guy in the Suanier Duval kit? I don't recall seeing anyone in the front group that looked 15-16 but last year I passed a 14 year old after Wolfpen so I'm wondering if it was the same kid.

Good luck with a 4:45. From my recollection, the fastest time since they moved the start to the High School is a 4:54. That was the fastest time last year and I also believe that was Cesar's time the year he did it.

I think I'm going to take my 5:11 and rest on that one. My fitness came as a bit of a surprise this year so I decided to capitalize on it but I can be happy knowing that I did my best ride at 44 after being "retired" from racing for 6 years.

Check out Tour de Tuck in Sylva next year the week before Six Gap....good warmup  

http://tourdetuck.com


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## VinPaysDoc

Duckman,

Nice write-up, BTW. But you made the mistake of taking a picture of something I missed at the event - some guy's Brasstown Bald Buster jersey. Hmmm, end of April, eh? Hmmmm..........

Greg


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## Rickyracer

VinPaysDoc said:


> Duckman,
> 
> Nice write-up, BTW. But you made the mistake of taking a picture of something I missed at the event - some guy's Brasstown Bald Buster jersey. Hmmm, end of April, eh? Hmmmm..........
> 
> Greg


Yea, I saw a few of those jersies myself. Not sure what the actual route is but I'm sure it's interesting. The climb up Brasstown in interesting in itself. I never thought a 5k could bring me to tears!:cryin:


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## salesguy

third guy was a 15/16 junior, who won the nationals TT - so that was 2 national champs in the finishing 3. He wasn't in the SD kit - that was some other guy who got dropped after the first few KM of hogpen.


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## FarmerG

I just checked the pics just before Woody and saw you three together.

Don't normally mind getting beat by National Champions but a 16 year old? Guy has a great future if he doesn't burn out.

I'm a 3,000 mile a year old guy just trying to stay fit. My time (5:11) was 16 minutes better than my previous best and I'm not inclined to try and top it but you never know...perhaps I can keep improving with age.

See ya next year (at least for 20 or so miles).


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## Rickyracer

FarmerG said:


> I just checked the pics just before Woody and saw you three together.
> 
> Don't normally mind getting beat by National Champions but a 16 year old? Guy has a great future if he doesn't burn out.
> 
> I'm a 3,000 mile a year old guy just trying to stay fit. My time (5:11) was 16 minutes better than my previous best and I'm not inclined to try and top it but you never know...perhaps I can keep improving with age.
> 
> See ya next year (at least for 20 or so miles).


FarmerG - where did you find the pictures? I've searched for 07 Six Gap photos and only come up with 06 stuff.


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## Duckman

Here you go.

https://www.birdseyeview.net/cgi-local/store/imageFolio.cgi?direct=Cycling/20070930_SIX


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## VinPaysDoc

Duckman,

Here I am slacking:

https://www.birdseyeview.net/cgi-local/store/imageFolio.cgi?action=view&link=Cycling/20070930_SIX/Passed%20Clock%2006_30%20to%2006_59&image=SIX_2352.jpg&img=&tt=&tfile=tn_SIX_2352.JPG

Greg


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## Duckman

Mine. I'm smiling, but my legs sure wern't by then..


https://www.birdseyeview.net/cgi-lo...IX_2251.jpg&img=100&tt=&tfile=tn_SIX_2251.JPG


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## blubike

*Ride Results?*

Anyone know where/when results will be posted??


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## Rickyracer

and mine...
https://www.birdseyeview.net/cgi-lo...SIX_2444.jpg&img=50&tt=&tfile=tn_SIX_2444.JPG


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## ATHiker07

blubike said:


> Anyone know where/when results will be posted??



I spoke with Stephanie yesterday and she said sometime today they should be up on the chamber of Commerce website.

Steve


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## nchillbilly

FarmerG said:


> Are you the guy in the Stars and Stripes?
> 
> What's you name/where you from?
> 
> I was in the group at the bottom of Hogpen. World Cup champions jersey (white with vertical rainbow stripes) and riding a System Six. I finished in 5:11 which was a PR for me. Don't expect to ever go under 5:00.
> 
> Great ride but you don't have to come back .


Farmer I should have insisted that you take a piss test, I know you gotta be taking some testy stuff, not to mention that other stuff you're on, I may have to try a cookie next year.

Oh and I figure I would have been 10-15 min behind you at most, so I would have come in under 5:30 which would have been my goal. Just didn't see the need to drive all the way into the start just to get the other 20 miles of easy terrian before and after the gaps.


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## gutfiddle

results:
http://swagger.gobike1.com/6gap/results/2007resultsbyname.htm


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## talentous

*6 Gag 3 Gap post ride pics?*

After reading a few riders experience this ride, I'm considerng the challange next year. 

Does anyone have pics from this ride? I found a few on the internet already.

Or a link... just wanted to check out the scenery.

Thx


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## Duckman

Enjoy

http://forums.roadbikereview.com/showthread.php?t=109151


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