# Following the Tour de Georgia by bike



## Pepe (Jun 24, 2004)

I'm thinking about going to a State Park in the Chattahoochee National Forest and then riding my bike to a strategic vista on the two mountain stages of the Tour of Georgia in April (like I saw people doing when I went over to follow the TDF last July, regretfully without my bike). Anyone have any experience? Or any general experience riding in that area? I don't want to join a group tour, I just want to drive there from Nashville with a couple of my cycling buddies and do something on our own. More specifically, are the roads good/ bicycle friendly around there? and Are road closures a problem, or do they let bikes/pedestrians through after they've closed them to cars like they do in France? Any insight would be greatly appreciated.


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## Speedi Pig (Apr 18, 2004)

*Biking at Tour de GA*

Yes, you can do it, but it would be more trouble (and in some cases more dangerous), than it's probably worth.

Last year I drove up for the Friday "Three Gap" stage, parked at the bottom (north side) of Woody Gap, and walked a mile and a half or so to a point about 200 meters before the top. The race climbed Woody twice last year, and I think it does again this year though we'll have to wait for the detailed map too see so just by sitting still I got to see the race twice. Granted Woody is a small climb, but it was the last climb of the day so it's a good vantage point.

Based on the description of this year's Brasstown stage, I think it might be possible to ride from one point on the course to another, but you could face some long STEEP climbs depending on how you do it. 

Do not attempt to take your bike on Brasstown Bald itself. Sustained grades exceed 20% for much of the climb. I actually heard officials were not allowing bikes up the mountain, but I guess some got through because I heard about one really bad crash where someone was trying to descend in traffic. 

Which leads to a another point, last year, there were a lot of people on bikes. It looked pretty hairy with so many cars, bikes, and pedestrians on the road (of course, a lot of that was due to the Lance factor). If you do it, be careful.

As for closing roads, roads were open until 45 to 60 minutes until the riders arrived, then closed completely.


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## Pepe (Jun 24, 2004)

*Thanks*

Thanks for the info. I was somehow afraid of that. The south's come a long way with respect to being bicycle friendly, but we ain't France or Italy... Yet.

Alternatively, I'm thinking about either 

1) driving / walking to the stages and then finding other roads (not on the Tour route) to ride on in the area during the downtime. Do you know of any good information resources? or.....

2) I saw your other post on the Brasstown bald century. Maybe I should ride that (part of the intrigue of the area is conquering Brasstown Bald) then watch the TV coverage the following week. I'll miss the crowds, and likely avoid the hit and miss showers the Appalachians are notorious for in the spring. Hopefully OLN will have some decent coverage.


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## Speedi Pig (Apr 18, 2004)

*Try the Three Gap loop on Saturday*

You might find it interesting to ride the Three Gap loop (from the Friday stage) the morning of the Saturday stage. Start at Turner's Corner on US 129, go over Neels Gap (cat. 2) and descend until Hwy. 180 and take a left. Go over Wolfpen (cat. 2), and take a left on Hwy. 19 (I think...180 dead ends into it so you can't miss it) in Suches. Go over Woody Gap (cat. 3) and descend. After the descent from Woody, take a left (don't remember the name of the road), and that will take you back to Turner's Corner.

The entire loop is 30 to 35 miles. I don't know what traffic will be like for the race weekend, but without Lance there, I can't imagine riding would be any more hazardous than sharing the road with the maniacs on crotch rockets up there on any nice Saturday or Sunday afternoon.

After your ride, you should be able to get to a good vantage point for the race within an hour.

Good Luck!!


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## litespeedchick (Sep 9, 2003)

*This is what I did last year:*

I'm from Greenville SC, so I knew next to nothing about the area. 

On Friday, drove to Dahlonega and then as far as we could toward Woody's Gap. Pulled the truck WAY off the road to park (AFter the race, we saw 2 cars that had been pushed out of the road...seriously...at least one of them would have required a tow truck to retrieve. Don't Park with a wheel over the white line!) I can't remember how long it was before the race came through, maybe an hour. Rode our bikes from that spot a couple of miles up to the top of Woody's Gap. Watched the race come through 2 times. It was a ton of fun.

Spent the night in Hiawassee, then Sat am did an organized group ride called Circle the Bald put on by a local bike club. It traversed some of the roads that the tdG did, about 35 miles worth. Beautiful scenery and a couple of really bad-ass climbs. After that we drove toward the base of Brasstown Bald, parked as close as possible. We had intended to take the shuttles...there were none. We walked moderately uphill about 2 miles to hit the turn to BB, then walked straigh up for 3 more miles. As a cyclist, you think you are in fantastic shape and walking is only hard for fat-ass couch potatoes. WELL. BB will kick your ass walking. Be prepared. Ladies, do not carry a 15 lb. tote bag full of everything you own (although someone is gonna want to carry some water and some sunscreen).

I have friends who rode thier bikes up to the main parking area just before the summit. Bikes were not allowed any further. There were quite a few people trying to ride. Very few managed to stay on their bikes. I saw people on mountain bikes who couldn't stay upright. It is STEEP. 

But we survived the 2 hour walk and had a great time. We met tons of other pilgrims, people had come from far away. And yes, somebody crashed their bike on the way down and held up the shuttles (yes, there finally were some) on the way down. We waited about an hour in line to get a shuttle down.

You should come...it'll be fun. Just don't spaz if things don't go EXACTLY as planned.


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## Pepe (Jun 24, 2004)

Thanks for the info. I figured out last year on Alpe d' Huez (we went about halfway up) that walking up a mountain is a different animal from riding a bike. This friend of mine from NYC I went with left me in the dust and I was constantly begging him to slow down. I can ride circles around him on a bike. But he walks all the time in New York. No matter how good of shape you're in you've got to condition for the specific activity you're doing.

I'm leaning toward going and just walking to watch the races, and getting in some riding earlier or later in the day. Since Armstrong announced he's going I'm sure the crowds will be as big as or bigger than last year.

Do you have a link to the website or know the name of the bike club that sponsored the club ride around Brasstown Bald?


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## trek2100 (Jan 27, 2005)

http://www.sabacycling.com
Circle the bald ride

http://www.brasstownbaldbustercentury.com/

that is a ride up brasstown


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## turkishvan (Mar 7, 2005)

litespeedchick said:


> I'm from Greenville SC, so I knew next to nothing about the area.
> 
> You should come...it'll be fun. Just don't spaz if things don't go EXACTLY as planned.


As a local rider very familiar with the terrain and caois that can result when all the men/machines and clueless maniac's converge on those narrow steep mtn roads...we appreciate your enlightenment and advice.......


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## Pepe (Jun 24, 2004)

*Tour OF Georgia*

Quote

"As a local rider very familiar with the terrain and caois that can result when all the men/machines and clueless maniac's converge on those narrow steep mtn roads...we appreciate your enlightenment and advice....... :"

Do I detect a hint of sarcasm? Anyhow, being another rider completely unfamiliar with the lay of the land, I will defer to your judgment....

I've decided on Saturday riding the circle the bald club ride. I figure the strength in numbers rule will help me there, then we're going to drive and walk up Brasstown Bald (or maybe an earlier KOM like Hogpen Gap). Then on Sunday, we're thinking about getting up early (probably 2-4 of us depending on who finally commits to go) and doing about a 40 mile ride then finding another vantage point just to see the race go by before returning to Nashville. In your experience, will it be total mayhem everywhere, or is it possible to find a peaceful route somewhere near Unicoi before catching the final stage?


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