# Solvang Century



## bchy (Dec 29, 2006)

Has anybody done this ride? How difficult was it? I keep hearing how hilly the route is. How does this compared to Poway?


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## colnago_ed (Jan 14, 2006)

i rode the half century on my mountain bike last year, due to the carzy weather:mad2: , my plan was going the century on road bike, the weather getting so crazy in the morning so i change to plan b on the mountain bike, the half century was not too hard.


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## Retro Grouch (Apr 30, 2002)

This weekend will be my 5th time (DNF twice due to mechnical and wearher issues). I rode a couple of 100 mile rides in the past two weeks in preparation for this year's century. I've never done Poway, so I can't compare the two. But I can tell you the route in not pancake flat, and there are couple of hills towards the end that do bite after all those miles in the saddle.

The profile graph say 2006, but 2007 should be the same route.










The weather forcast looks much better than last year's rain, hail and locust (okay, I lied about the locust). Temps should be in the 70's during the peak of the ride. Good Stuff!


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## JSR (Feb 27, 2006)

bchy said:


> Has anybody done this ride? How difficult was it? I keep hearing how hilly the route is. How does this compared to Poway?


I've done Solvang half-a-dozen times. It's a great ride, well organized, no fuss.

In a way I find the first half more difficult. It's kind of rolling terrain, making it difficult to team up.

After you leave the Santa Maria airport (the half-way point) be on the lookout for a group to ride with. After you leave the city limits you'll start to get to fairly flat ground within about 30 minutes. Or it will seem flat. Actually you're headed up Foxen Canyon. If you're in a group the same level as you it can really make a difference heading up Foxen, which is a long pull. 

The "Wall" is located immediately after the last stop at Firestone Vineyard. It's not really a tough hill, but if you phsych yourself out at the rest stop it can be intimidating. After that you'll cross Highway 154 and enter the last half of the ToC Time Trial route from last week. It's loads of fun as you run in to Solvang. keep your cool in this section as there are frequently accidents caused by tired riders navigating a fairly tricky road en masse.

Enjoy!

JSR


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## -CM- (Jan 6, 2006)

I've done it 2 or 3 times. It's not an exceptionally hilly century, but the wind can be challenging at times. The sheer number of riders can also make it a bit dicey sometimes, especially with the wide range of skill and fitness levels represented. It's a very popular century for first-timers (it was my first centrury) and well as hammer-jammers. The disparity makes for some interesting situations - it's a very good idea to watch out for all other riders.


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## mohair_chair (Oct 3, 2002)

The things to remember about Solvang are:

1. It's always freezing at the start, but it almost always warms up significantly. Do not be tempted into overdressing. Last year was the exception.

2. Don't overdo it in the first part of the ride. You will be tempted. Unless it is windy on Santa Rosa Road, ride your own pace.

3. The slog into Santa Maria airport can be brutal. If it is windy (and it will be), it may be the hardest part of the ride, at least mentally. After the third rest stop, hook up with a group. Even if it is just one other person, trade pulls. One year, a friend and I pulled a group of about 20 people for that 15 miles, at 20mph. No one else would come up to help. (Ah yes, the good old days when I could do that sort of thing)

4. Those hills starting about mile 80 will kick the asses of a lot of riders. You will see them sprawled all over Heartbreak Hill, just past the Zaca Mesa winery. As painful as it is, do not stop. It's steep, but it's also short, with a nice descent off the backside to recover. Keep moving. The big hill past the Firestone vineyard looks a lot harder than it is. Don't stop!

5. Solvang is not really that difficult of a ride. The problem is that this ride comes pretty early in the year, and you may not have trained enough for it. A lot of racers do it, but they are in shape. Don't be tempted to exceed your ability, because this ride will crack you.


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## CDW (Aug 30, 2006)

I've done both Solvang and Poway. I think Poway is harder. Poway is hillier. There is the big hill at the start and then many ups and downs. Solvang is mostly flat (some small rollers) for the first 60 with 3 hills coming toward the end, none which are nearly as long as the first climb at Poway. 

If you can handle Poway, you'll have no trouble at Solvang.


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## Fsharp3 (Aug 30, 2005)

The time has come and I'm leaving LA for Santa Barbara County. If you're riding, I'll see you there. If you see me on the race, say hi. You'll know me because when you'll see me you'll think either, "this guy is too young to be going *that* slow" or just "What a Fred!"

Hope to see you there!


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## gmoney14 (Feb 27, 2006)

just got done the solvang century and mohair is right on all points... I was one of the few that left @ 7:00am without legwarmers or arm warmers, just a super light pearl wind jacket that got stuffed into my jersey pocket before the first rest station.

great century, it was my first (did it in under 6hrs), I'm an endurance mountain biker and did it for training. It was fun to climb up the road thay overlooks a lot of the Chamberlain ranch XC course (Fireston Walker and 24hrs of chamberlain ranch).

The only thing sketchy were the number of bad bike handlers, but I guess it's expected in that environment...


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## bchy (Dec 29, 2006)

*Tough Century*

It was a tough century for me. This is the first century which took me more than 6 hours. I think because of the cold in the morning and the wind all day long, I wasn't keeping up with hydration. I started to cramp up badly at ~65 mile. Cramping made the last two hills miserable. I definitely have to do it again next year to redeem myself.

Thanks for all your info!!


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## MTBMaven (Dec 17, 2005)

I agree this was a tough century for me as well. I did the Tour de Palm Springs last month and had energy to spare by the end of the ride, this time I was hurting after mile 60. 

I also didn't stay up on my hydration. The winery just before the big climbs at the end selling water was a God send. I stocked up and finished off the ride in decent form.


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## parity (Feb 28, 2006)

My wife and I completed this, our 4th century. We didn't break any speed records but we had a fun time. Apparently there was something like 5000 riders out there. Amazingly I ran into a few people I knew at the rest stops. The Lompoc Record has a write up about the ride:

http://www.lompocrecord.com/articles/2007/03/11/news/featurednews/news01.txt


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## Prolene (Jul 30, 2006)

I did the Half Century. Headwind was noticeable the first half. I thought the first two hills were quite enough for me, but looking at the profile graph, I see there would have been quite more pain in store had I gone the full Century. Kudos to those who completed!


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