SLO Roubaix Pre-ride

Sundays have been turning into endurance suffer fests the past couple months. The drill is to chose a route hard and long enough that it takes 5 or so hours to complete and leaves you close to crippled by the time you're done. This past Sunday was no exception. I rode an exploratory pre-ride of the 2013 Slo Roubaix. This event is held the first Sunday in April to coincide with the real Roubaix. A dozen or so local maniacs normally show up to ride a combination of pavement and "special sections" which can comprise dirt roads, single track, climbs and sprints for points. Each year's course is unique and this years looks great. It has a high giggle factor and a high suffering score. The highpoint on the giggle scale is some twisty single track between Morro Bay and Turri Rd. that if you don't finish it grinning you may as well commit suicide. The leader on the suffering board is the fireroad climb up behind Sycamore Springs Resort. I'd never ridden this beast before, but it rivals in difficulty the steeps at the top of Black Mountain and that says a lot. Yesterday's group of five was a lot of fun. I wasn't the slowest nor was I the fastest on any of the sections. Let's hope it stays that way two weeks from now when we do the real thing.