Sufferin' Summits Details

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For details about the route, see the Route page.

This is a very difficult ride; it is deliberately designed to be that way.

The ride takes a minimalist philosophy; there aren't starting line or finishing line ceremonies - in fact, there aren't even official starting and finishing lines. No T-shirts, no volunteers, and importantly - no sag or mechanical support.

The assumption is that you've ridden a lot and are willing to do this ride pretty much self-supported.

What we offer:

A map and tick sheets you can print out ahead of time.

A GPX file you can download to your GPS. Note that the route crosses itself a few times, so if you just listen to your GPS, you may get confused

Notes on where you can pick up food and water.

Minimal course markings. I hope to have the time to put up Dan Henry's, and maybe a few signs where it's easy to miss the turn, but it's still possible to miss the markings and go off course.

There is an jersey you can order if you wish

A deliberately difficult route.

Whether you ride the quarter, the half, or the full ride, I think you will find that this ride offers a unique combination of some of the steepest terrain in the Seattle area, some wonderful views, and a laid-back atmosphere.

The Start

The starting point is Tibbets Valley Park, at the parking lot in the northwest corner of the park. There is a parking structure across the road that you can use, but I don't recommend it if you have a car-top bike carrier.

There is a suggested starting time of 8-9AM, but there is no official starting time; you are free to start whenever you wish.

If you want to ride with the organizer, he's planning on rolling out at around 9AM.

Cautions

A few general cautions:

This is an urban ride, so there will be traffic.

There are a lot of descents on this ride. Some are steep. Some have poor pavement. Some have tight turns. Some have lights or stop signs at the bottom. Some have all of these.

many with stop signs or traffic lights at the bottom. Make sure your bike's brakes are in good condition, and control your speed

In some places, the pavement is less than great.

Please be mindful of the other riders out there, especially when passing.

Weather

Rain cancels this ride. It simply is not safe to climb and descend these kinds of hills in the wet. If this happens, we will reschedule.

Rider notes for 2020

Welcome to the second Sufferin' Summits. I hope it will provide all the suffering that you are hoping for.

This is (obviously) a ride with a lot of steep climbs, and that means a lot of steep descents. Some have tight turns. Some have bad pavement. Some have stoplights on the bottom. Some have all of this.

Please take it easy on the descents.

Route maps, Cue sheet, GPS files..

A preview of the route is here.

The full route is here.

The cue sheet is here.

GPS files can be downloaded from the RideWithGPS page for the ride. Note that because the path crosses over itself, your GPS may get confused. I recommend carrying a copy of the cue sheet so you can look at the maps.

Do the following:

On the right side of the page, choose "Export". Different GPS computers work best with different format files. Scroll down on the right panel and look for specific instructions for your GPS at the bottom. If it is not listed, search the internets for more information. Scroll back up on the right panel, and choose the file that you want to download. Put the file onto your GPS.

Shorter options

There are two shorter course options:

The Quarter goes on the first two hills, and clocks in at 15 miles and 2068' of climbing. It is covered by the first section of the cue sheet.

The Half covers the first four hills, and clocks in at 32.5 miles and 4635' of climbing. Follow the cue sheet to 28.1 miles, and then turn right out of the stop, and pick up the cue sheet at 51.4 miles, which will take you back to the start.

Jerseys and T Shirts

Apparently, I lied when I said there would be no jersey. I decided to do one for myself, and it's simple to share the design. There are two slightly-different designs:

Design 1

Design 2

There will be a T Shirt version of this soon.

Food and Water

There are no food or water stops. Okay, that's not quite true; there are no ride-specific food or water stops, but there are four places during the ride where you may choose to stop. They *should* be open but I have no control over whether they actually will be open.