AV A - 2025-02-02 - Race Sims

Hi all,

This Sunday 2/2 we will be using the A ride to run through some race scenarios and simulations. While you don’t need to be an active racer to join (the first half of the ride in particular will provide some good practice navigating a fast peloton), you should expect a race-pace ride. It will be wet; bring rain gear/fenders, let some air out of your tires, and ride safe.

We’ll meet at Summit Bicycles at 9am and roll easy along the Spectrum route to Cañada Rd. Then we’ll do a couple laps back and forth between Jefferson Rd and the Bike Path, practicing pacelining, leadouts, and general group riding skills.

Once we’ve had our fill of Cañada, we’ll roll through Woodside for a quick stop to fill up bottles. We’ll then begin some practice races using the AV Pop Up Crit course (Mt Home/Whiskey Hill loops followed by the Firehouse or Alpine sprints).

Route (or a rough idea of it): https://www.strava.com/routes/3320905909635036294

Summary: Portola, Cañada reps, Pop Up Crit reps.

Start: Summit Bicycles, Palo Alto

Time: Meet 9:00 AM, Leave 9:10 AM

Ride etiquette: https://www.altovelo.org/ride-rules 

Ride Leader: Cameron O’Reilly

9/29 A Ride: Recruiting Ride #3

Are you interested in racing with Alto Velo Racing Team in 2025? If so, please join us this Sunday 9/29 at 9am at Summit Bicycles for our third recruiting ride of the season! After this there is only one more opportunity to join a recruiting ride on Saturday 10/5. These rides are your best opportunities to get to know the team and show off your strengths on the road, so the more you can attend the better! If you are interested in racing and haven’t already applied to AVRT you can do so here.

This week's ride will feature a selection of segments for you to show off your fitness and skills. A long climb up Page Mill Road, a technical descent down West Alpine Road (please ride responsibly), pacelines on 84, and sprints at Willowbrook/Alpine and the Dish.

Please review the route before the ride. If you plan on climbing Page in >40 minutes then please turn RIGHT onto Arastradero Rd at about 3.4mi for a shorter “warm up” loop before the climb. We will have a short regroup at the base of West Alpine and then a longer regroup/water stop at SkyLonda. After descending 84 we will do a rolling regroup and maintain a social pace through the Maze, then kick off some friendly competition on Whiskey Hill racing for the Willowbrook/Alpine sprint (Tuesday TMR finish). If you get dropped during this you can skip Willowbrook and meet the group at Alpine and Portola. We'll do a quick regroup then race for the Dish sprint to finish the ride.

Route: https://www.strava.com/routes/3273513018082995924

Summary: 54 miles / 5,000 feet: Summit Bicycles > Foothill > Burke > Robleda > Purissima > Arastradero > Page (short regroup at top) > West Alpine (short regroup at bottom) > 84 (stop at SkyLonda for water) > 84 > Tripp > Maze > Whiskey > Portola > Willowbrook > Alpine (sprint for the top) > Alpine > Foothill (sprint for Dish) > Summit Bicycles

Start: Summit Bicycles, Palo Alto

Time: Meet 9:00 AM, Leave 9:10 AM. Note the A ride will start at 9am for the rest of the year.

Ride etiquette: https://www.altovelo.org/ride-rules 

Ride Leader: Cameron O’Reilly

9/22 A Ride: Recruiting Ride #1

Are you interested in racing with Alto Velo Racing Team in 2025? If so, please join us this Sunday 9/22 at 9am at Summit Bicycles for our first recruiting ride of the season! This is the first of four recruiting rides; while you don't need to attend all of them, these are your best opportunities to get to know the team and show off your strengths on the road. If you are interested in racing and haven’t already applied to AVRT you can do so here.

This week's ride will feature a selection of segments for you to show off your fitness and skills. A long climb up Kings Mountain Road, a technical descent down Tunitas (you can go fast, but please don’t be stupid), pacelines on 84, and sprints at the Firehouse and Dish. 

Please review the route before the ride. Regroups will be short; if you get dropped on 84 you can skip West Old La Honda and/or take a right on Portola and skip the Mt Home loop.

Route: https://www.strava.com/routes/3270548571985554512

Summary: 60 miles / 5,000 feet: Summit Bicycles > Sand Hill > Whiskey Hill > Kings (short regroup at top) > Tunitas (water at Bike Hut) > 1 > 84 > WOLH (roll to SkyLonda for water) > 84 > Mt Home > Portola (sprint for Firehouse) > Alpine > Foothill (sprint for Dish) > Summit Bicycles

Start: Summit Bicycles, Palo Alto

Time: Meet 9:00 AM, Leave 9:10 AM. Note the A ride will start at 9am for the rest of the year.

Ride etiquette: https://www.altovelo.org/ride-rules 

Ride Leader: Cameron O’Reilly

A Ride Earlier Starts

As you may have noticed in the ride announcement emails, the A Ride start times have moved a bit earlier, with today's ride starting at 8am. Now that the longer days and hotter weather of summertime have arrived, 8am starts to the A Ride will be the standard for the next few months.