Bhubble.com

Any road bikers looking for a cycle buddy?

Submitted by Claire Gougeon on Tue, 11/06/2019 - 12:53pm
I've had no trouble finding mountain biking partners, but we can't all just mountain bike all the time. That would be like just skiing all winter without ever snowboarding! Some of us like variety. Or maybe it's just the appeal of never getting good at one thing. Either way, I like road biking and I just discovered that 1 hr away, Colville, boasts world-class road biking! I'm sure there's closer stuff, but as a part of my trip to Spokane, I plan to ride the Colville Loop on Thursday (34.3 mile loop on paved rural roads around the city of Colville: http://newashingtontrails.com/find-road-cycling-loops/ ) If you like road biking and want a buddy, let me know, I'm new to Rossland and haven't connected with road bikers yet.
Town: Rossland, BC
»
»  Report abuse, harassment or publication of personal information in this post or its comments
Submitted by Christa on Wed, 12/06/2019 - 6:27am.

I was trying to look it up on google, but I'm pretty sure there's a road cycling group in Trail that meets every Wednesday outside of Gerrick's around 5-5:30. I've stumbled across them once or twice.

In terms of local rides, I would recommend biking to Fruitvale, the Waneta border crossing, or Genelle from Trail (usually park by the walking bridge). I've tried going out to Salmo from Fruitvale before, but the shoulder is full of cracks and potholes. Trail to Oasis is a lot of uphill. Castlegar to Nelson looks to have a decent smooth shoulder, even if I haven't tried it.

Submitted by rosslandskibike on Wed, 12/06/2019 - 8:09am.

You are correct, WA is excellent for road riding and there are routes heading out of Colville in every direction. Rossland roadies, the fitter/faster cousin of our MTB tribe, enjoy a few popular routes beginning in Northport, south of the Patterson border crossing. For riding closer to home Christa is steering you in the right direction. Call Gerrick's to confirm and get on the email list for their Wednesday ride, it's a "no drop" cruise on a 30-40km route at a civil pace. They also have a Tuesday Hammer Ride for those so inclined, a ~60km rip at Buckle Up Buttercup pace. Both rides usually switch to a start at the Rossland Museum once the summer heat hits the valley. 

Two more excellent routes to check out are the Pass Creek / Krestova loop (lollipop?) starting near Robson, and the Kootenay Lake shoreline ride heading north from Nelson. Lakeside Park is a good start point for a post-ride swim. Call Gerick's Sports in Nelson and speak to Travis to find out about group rides there. 

Tourism Rossland has/had a road biking brochure/map, ask for it at Revolution. 

 

 

Submitted by CherylD on Wed, 12/06/2019 - 9:55am.

The Nelson North Shore has a lot of summer tourist traffic - I wouldn't recommend it in July & August.  The shoulders are narrow and the road windy.

Submitted by Claire Gougeon on Sat, 15/06/2019 - 12:08pm.

Thanks for the comments and suggestions, I'll look into those. The Colville loop was really great. Such quiet, nicely paved roads, wide shoulder on the short section of busier road, beautiful hilly farmland views throughout... I highly recommend that one too.

Submitted by sunnydayz on Mon, 01/07/2019 - 7:54pm.

Hi and welcome!  Sorry I missed seeing this sooner.  Are you on Strava?  If so, check out the West Kootenay Endorphin Junkies Group.

Usually an easier 40 km group ride starts Wednesday’s from Gericks Trail at 5:30 (No drop ride, informal, to Waneta border and back.  Average speed maybe 24km/hr.

Tuesdays is a harder drop ride, usually longer, around 60 km.  Starts from Gericks at either 5 pm (B Group) or 5:30 (A group.  Average speed 28-33 km/hr.