Fall Gravel - Carnation Marckworth Forest Loop

Let's celebrate the fall weather foliage with a gravel ride around the Marckworth State Forest, the ride will have a mix of surfaces ranging from paved to light loose gravel, in general the trails are well packed, but expect some wet foliage, mud, washboard and loose gravel in some sections.

Let's meet at the Nick Loutsis Park parking lot. Be there, ready to go at the time listed above. We will start with a required safety briefing, and roll out when that's done.  All riders must attend the safety briefing to participate.

We will climb and descend hills at our own pace, and we will regroup frequently. We'll also limit our speed on any multi-use paths to the legal maximum (usually 15 MPH, occasionally 10 MPH).

Restrooms are not available at the start but there's a couple coffee shops nearby. We will do one rest/snack stop at mile 18, note: this is a gravel ride in a forest area and there are no bathrooms or other amenities, you must carry any water/snacks that you might need to support the ride. There are usually plenty of creeks along this route so bringing a water filter is also an option, bringing at least 2 water bottles is recommended.

Pace of this ride is based on paved flat road speeds, it is expected the ride will average a slower speed on non paved surfaces

Bring a spare tube and tools to fix a flat, just in case. Other things to bring: phone; ID; cash and/or credit card; water and snacks. 
All bike types are welcome, but given the mixed surface of the ride, narrow road tires are discouraged, minimum suggested tire width is 32mm but wider is recommended depending on experience.

Note: If weather conditions meet the weather cancellation criterion listed above or if there are unforeseen hazardous riding conditions or other unexpected events, the Ride Leader will cancel the ride and all registered riders will be sent a notification email. If the ride is cancelled at least two hours before the start, Ride Leader(s) will not be at the start location. Please check before leaving for the ride.

We hope you can join us!