# Suggestions on which Ride Event to Join First



## Shinjukan

I can fairly say that I'm now ready for my very first Full Century, but I'm only after the flat ones and not yet those rolling hills (which includes some sustained climbing). My area is Southeastern Pennsylvania and I have the following flat centuries which I'm interested in joining:

* June 24 - Bay to Bay (www.chestertownlions.org)
* Aug. 11 - Ride to See (www.ridetosee.org)
* Aug. 25 - Shorefire Century (http://www.whiteclaybicycleclub.org/Events-WCBC/shorefire.htm)

I would like to get everyone's opinion and experience on any or all these 3 rides, was it fully supported by well-stacked rest stops and SAG, post-ride lunch and festivities if any, and how they would rate it from 1-10 with 10 being as a MUST EXPERIENCE kind of event especially for first-timers.

Reason for my asking is Time and most importantly Budget. I can definitely ride any of them, but not all. If we all need to inform our Bosses at work perhaps weeks in advance if we're taking a day off and when, I also think it's fair enough for me to do the same to my family since these events will be on weekends. 

Thanks in advance for all your inputs! It will help me greatly in choosing which ride is it for this year.


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## JimF22003

I did the Chestertown ride a few years ago. It was well supported, but I didn't find the route very interesting. The main point of the ride is to go from one bay to the other, so a lot of time was on fairly uninteresting major roads rather than on more interesting side routes. It's worth doing, but on your scale I'd give it a 5.


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## Shinjukan

JimF22003 said:


> I did the Chestertown ride a few years ago. It was well supported, but I didn't find the route very interesting. The main point of the ride is to go from one bay to the other, so a lot of time was on fairly uninteresting major roads rather than on more interesting side routes. It's worth doing, but on your scale I'd give it a 5.


Many thanks for your valuable input, JimF. These are the kind of reviews that are very helpful because it comes from a rider's point of view in contrast with those of the organizers.


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## lostPixels

I signed up for the Cival War Century in September as my first century, check it out!


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## bb1857

I think I am going to do the Civil War Century as well. That one looks really cool, but not easy!!


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## lostPixels

bb1857 said:


> I think I am going to do the Civil War Century as well. That one looks really cool, but not easy!!


Yup! I hear there are some nice climbs throughout the ride. I don't really know what to expect though, I am planning on riding up to gettysburg and trying portions of it to get a better feel of the challenge.


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## bb1857

lostPixels said:


> Yup! I hear there are some nice climbs throughout the ride. I don't really know what to expect though, I am planning on riding up to gettysburg and trying portions of it to get a better feel of the challenge.


Same here. I only live about 30 minutes from there in North Central MD so I think it will be a good idea to hit some of the route prior. If you are interested we can meet somewhere and ride together. Always fun to meet new people from these forums as long as your not an ax murdering cyclist!! LOL


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## Shinjukan

Or what they call "Boogeyman"? 

Thanks for putting the Civil War Century in my radar. I'll check it out, though I must admit I've somewhat locked myself in to one or more flat full centuries this year, and that means those are going to be either in MD, DE, or both.

But if you guys who are planning to make a reconnaisance on the route and it's going to be a big group, count me in. I'd like to join and meet up with new fellow riders, though I'm 90 minutes away from Gettysburg. 

UPDATE: As of today, I'm almost sure in joining the Bay to Bay ride on Sunday. I'm still a bit hesitant 'coz I have nobody from my usual ride group to join me. Add to this my unfamiliarity with the area and the route, and I'm 2 hours away from it so I think my worries are warranted. I'll find out my final decision in a day or two.


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## bb1857

Shin - the invite is still open to ride myself and my neighbor if you want. I think you may surprise yourself on your pace riding without hills. If you find out we are pacing too fast I am sure there will be other groups to latch onto. We are hoping to find a bigger group as well to get more benefit from the draft! Let me know.


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## Shinjukan

bb1857 said:


> Shin - the invite is still open to ride myself and my neighbor if you want. I think you may surprise yourself on your pace riding without hills. If you find out we are pacing too fast I am sure there will be other groups to latch onto. We are hoping to find a bigger group as well to get more benefit from the draft! Let me know.


bb1857: Wait, are you referring to the reconnaisance ride to the Civil War Century or the Bay to Bay ride this coming 24th? Sorry I got confused. Too many rides to choose from eh?


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## bb1857

I was referring to the Bay to Bay ride this weekend. Though the same invite would be available for Civil War recon ride. We are planning to arrive right at 6:30 and hoping to pull out right at and as soon after 7:00am as possible.


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## Shinjukan

bb1857 said:


> I was referring to the Bay to Bay ride this weekend. Though the same invite would be available for Civil War recon ride. We are planning to arrive right at 6:30 and hoping to pull out right at and as soon after 7:00am as possible.


Ok, thanks for the heads up. Is this a mass start event or Show 'n Go? This means I have to leave my place by 4am.


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## bb1857

It is a show and go but you have to leave for the Century ride no later than 9:30am. That being said we are shooting for an early departure to take advantage of the lower temps for as long as possible.


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## AMCman10

Did you ride the Bay to Bay?? I did it a few years ago, and it was a beast (it was over 90 degrees by 10:00). But that last half mile or so where you can see the water and its all downhill is great! I finished, leaned the bike on a tree, and went full sprint across the beach and into the water! Must have been funny looking to the people laying on the beach, just had on my bibs, hahaha.


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## Shinjukan

AMCman10 said:


> Did you ride the Bay to Bay?? I did it a few years ago, and it was a beast (it was over 90 degrees by 10:00). But that last half mile or so where you can see the water and its all downhill is great! I finished, leaned the bike on a tree, and went full sprint across the beach and into the water! Must have been funny looking to the people laying on the beach, just had on my bibs, hahaha.


I did. Weather was Sunny all day, temp was a cool 72F around 7am but heated up as the day went on. This year they started from the Fire Department hall and not from the beach.


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## bb1857

Congrats on the Bay to bay Shin. I also rode it this year for the first time. It was a lot of fun other than me missing a turn at the 80 mile mark or so and riding an extra 8 miles. Doh!


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## AMCman10

Sounds like it was a great ride! bb, I did the same thing when I rode it! Oh well.


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## Shinjukan

Congratulations to both of you too, bb and AMC. Even though it's a pretty flat ride with some gentle rises and dips, it still sapped most of my energy primarily because of the temp heating up as the day went on. And it's much harder when you're doing it alone.

bb, sorry for not contacting you prior to the event. Honestly, even as late as 8pm the night before, I'm still unsure whether I would do it or not.


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## Wooga

Shinjukan said:


> Or what they call "Boogeyman"?
> 
> Thanks for putting the Civil War Century in my radar. I'll check it out, though I must admit I've somewhat locked myself in to one or more flat full centuries this year, and that means those are going to be either in MD, DE, or both.
> 
> But if you guys who are planning to make a reconnaisance on the route and it's going to be a big group, count me in. I'd like to join and meet up with new fellow riders, though I'm 90 minutes away from Gettysburg.
> 
> UPDATE: As of today, I'm almost sure in joining the Bay to Bay ride on Sunday. I'm still a bit hesitant 'coz I have nobody from my usual ride group to join me. Add to this my unfamiliarity with the area and the route, and I'm 2 hours away from it so I think my worries are warranted. I'll find out my final decision in a day or two.



I am looking to do my 1st Century maybe September / October. I live in PA...could one of you suggest a fairly flat one in PA, MD, DE? I would like to do a fairly flat one for my 1st go.


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## NJBiker72

Wooga said:


> I am looking to do my 1st Century maybe September / October. I live in PA...could one of you suggest a fairly flat one in PA, MD, DE? I would like to do a fairly flat one for my 1st go.


Never done it but i have heard the seagull century is a great ride in Maryland. 

Also there is the bike ny ride along the jersey shore. In late September. Always think about that and always conflicted but maybe not this year.


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## Shinjukan

*Wooga:*

Check these coming events in the next few weeks:

WCBC Shorefire Century -- WCBC Shorefire Century (Aug. 25)

Amish Bike Tour -- Amish Country Bike Tour (Sept. 8)

These are the flat century rides available in the DelMarVa region.


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## Wooga

Shinjukan said:


> Check these coming events in the next few weeks:
> 
> WCBC Shorefire Century --
> 
> Amish Bike Tour --
> 
> These are the flat century rides available in the DelMarVa region.


Thanks for the note...I am doing the Tour De Shore this weekend. The Amish Bike Tour looks nice. Someone told me about the Twin Lights Ride as well, Jersey Shore. I am assuming that is fairly flat as well.


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## Shinjukan

Wooga said:


> Thanks for the note...I am doing the Tour De Shore this weekend. The Amish Bike Tour looks nice. Someone told me about the Twin Lights Ride as well, Jersey Shore. I am assuming that is fairly flat as well.


Yeah, almost all rides from South Jersey until the eastern section of Maryland are flat. There are some gently rolling terrain but no hills categorized as "grabbers" that I know of. But once you venture towards the west (think PA-DE-MD borders) and you'll start to say "Hi" to those hills. 

I'll check out that Twin Lights Ride you mentioned. Also I stumbled upon a few upcoming rides in NJ, I would suppose they're also fairly flat:

South Jersey Wheelmen Cycling Club
SIBA Pumpkin Patch Pedal


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## NJBiker72

Wooga said:


> Thanks for the note...I am doing the Tour De Shore this weekend. The Amish Bike Tour looks nice. Someone told me about the Twin Lights Ride as well, Jersey Shore. I am assuming that is fairly flat as well.


The Tour de Shore is a real nice ride, at least at the start. The ride in to AC is nothing great. (City to Shore to OC is much better in that regards).

I want to do the Twin Lights Ride but the scheduling never works for me.


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## Wooga

NJBiker72 said:


> The Tour de Shore is a real nice ride, at least at the start. The ride in to AC is nothing great. (City to Shore to OC is much better in that regards).
> 
> I want to do the Twin Lights Ride but the scheduling never works for me.


Do you know anything about the Twin Lights ride, beyond whats on the site?


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## Shinjukan

NJBiker72 said:


> The Tour de Shore is a real nice ride, at least at the start. The ride in to AC is nothing great. (City to Shore to OC is much better in that regards).
> 
> I want to do the Twin Lights Ride but the scheduling never works for me.


Is the Tour de Shore the same as the Irish Pub Tour de Shore (Irish Pub Philadelphia - DonorDrive® I think it's already closed for registration. I was told this event is a well-supported one, with the full support of the Philadelphia Police and coordination with the local South Jersey law enforcement groups. But it's not a register-then-go type of event. One has to raise a set minimum amount before they're allowed to ride.


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## Wooga

Shinjukan said:


> Is the Tour de Shore the same as the Irish Pub Tour de Shore Irish Pub Philadelphia - DonorDrive® I think it's already closed for registration. I was told this event is a well-supported one, with the full support of the Philadelphia Police and coordination with the local South Jersey law enforcement groups. But it's not a register-then-go type of event. One has to raise a set minimum amount before they're allowed to ride.


Yes it is the same...and you are correct. The reg was like $25 but you need to raise $150 in donations. I am doing it Sunday for the 1st time, I will let you know my thoughts after. I am going to end up staying in AC for the night. I plan on fully enjoying the free beer and food after party ha!


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## Shinjukan

Yeah, please do update on your experience. One of our fellow rider in our club will be riding too this Sunday, and he was trying to convince the rest of us to ride with him even though he's the only one registered. It won't happen 'coz we know the organizers have fine-tuned their expertise in filtering out those "event crashers" through the years they've been holding this event.

There's an option to ride the shuttle going back to Philly for a nominal fee. But you've already reached AC so why not enjoy your reward, right?


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## NJBiker72

Wooga said:


> Do you know anything about the Twin Lights ride, beyond whats on the site?


No. But I did the Bike NY 5 Borough Ride, so I have some opinion on the organization. Not a huge positive. But not bad. The other organized rides I have done have been better organized, fwiw. That said the others had at most 1/3 the people.

The Twin Lights is always the same weekend as the City to Shore in South Jersey which I have done for the past few years. Conflict this year but that goes for Twin Lights too. 

The City to Shore is remarkably flat other than the bridges at the end.


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## NJBiker72

Wooga said:


> Yes it is the same...and you are correct. The reg was like $25 but you need to raise $150 in donations. I am doing it Sunday for the 1st time, I will let you know my thoughts after. I am going to end up staying in AC for the night. I plan on fully enjoying the free beer and food after party ha!


The free beer is not worth it. By the time you get it, the beer is hot. But the ride is fun. Wish I was doing it this year.


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## djcastagna

which one did you pick?


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## Wooga

I did the Tour De Shore Sunday.....it was beautiful out. Ride time 3hrs 38mins, only stopped at the second of 4 rest stops to refill my water for a minute or two. Route was well marked, support was great, rest stops were fully stocked. The after Party was incredible, I was completely surprised by he quality of the food, the amount of free cold beer and the entire atmosphere. 

The police support was probably the most impressive part, from the escort through Philly and across the Ben Franklin to the countless crossing that were blocked for us. I think I possibly hit maybe 3 intersections that were not blocked for us at the time add we needed to stop. The police presence was felt the entire ride. All in all great day....I would recommend to anyone who asked! 

PS - this was my first ride so take my review as that.


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## lostPixels

Was that for the 50 mile ride?


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## Wooga

lostPixels said:


> Was that for the 50 mile ride?


No it was a 65 mile ride..


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## lostPixels

Ah, nice timing then!


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## NJBiker72

Wooga said:


> I did the Tour De Shore Sunday.....it was beautiful out. Ride time 3hrs 38mins, only stopped at the second of 4 rest stops to refill my water for a minute or two. Route was well marked, support was great, rest stops were fully stocked. The after Party was incredible, I was completely surprised by he quality of the food, the amount of free cold beer and the entire atmosphere.
> 
> The police support was probably the most impressive part, from the escort through Philly and across the Ben Franklin to the countless crossing that were blocked for us. I think I possibly hit maybe 3 intersections that were not blocked for us at the time add we needed to stop. The police presence was felt the entire ride. All in all great day....I would recommend to anyone who asked!
> 
> PS - this was my first ride so take my review as that.


Sounds like a lot improved from when i did it a couple years ago.


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