CHEW South 2018 #7 (Moderate - Brisk)

Climbing Hills Eastside Wintertime “CHEW” - South End Series

CHEW is a challenging, progressive winter-time hill training series. Riders who like the challenge of hill climbing and riding outdoors in the winter, and who are looking to stay in shape through the winter will have a great time on this series. The CHEW South rides are climbing routes on local hills in the South end which progress from 30 miles and 2100 feet of elevation gain to 50 miles and 3800 feet of elevation gain over the twelve weeks of the training series.

The CHEW South End Series is held Saturdays beginning, January 6th, and ending March 31st at various locations in the South end of Seattle. Two paces are currently offered, moderate (14-16 mph on flats with no headwinds) and brisk (16 - 18 mph on flats with no headwinds). All pace groups use a common route each week.

Registration: Please register for this ride in advance on the Cascade site, it helps ensure there is sufficient Ride Leader support on each pace. You can register now by selecting the Register Now  button at the top of this page, then follow the prompts. Online registrations are accepted until 7 AM of ride day, after that all riders must register at the ride start. In addition, those who register in advance, please check in at the ride start to verify attendance. Thank you.

Ride Start Details: This week’s ride will start promptly at 10:00 a.m. out of the the Twin Lakes Park and Ride parking lot in Federal Way. There may not be restrooms available at this park and ride, but there is a Fred Meyers and Starbucks store at the corner of SW Campus Drive and 21st Ave SW. Please arrive early enough to set up, check in and/or sign the ride waiver, and participate in the ride overview and Cascade SMART talk.

If you are a new rider to Cascade Free Group Rides, we welcome you! Please be sure to go to the Cascade Bicycle Newcomers page to read important information, for a link to the site, see the links section at bottom left of this page.

Week 7 Tip) Body Position.

Professional climbing body position. 

For most of us CHEW climbers, we need to have our head and chest raised up higher to be able breathe more deeply and fully, engaging our stomach and core. Notice his heel is parallel to the road so he can pull up with his right foot, while pushing down with his left foot.Notice he is back slightly in the saddle to engage his hamstrings and glutes. Some hills like Zoo hill are too steep in places to be back in the saddle. Sometimes you have to get forward in the saddle to avoid a wheelie.

Ride Requirements: Please print off and bring cue sheet. Please be knowledgeable and equipped with tubes, pump, etc to handle flats or minor mechanicals. The group may not always be able to stop for mechanicals. It is important to bring adequate food and water as there may be limited opportunities to purchase along the way.

If roads are wet, full fenders with long mudflaps are highly recommended. A good headlight and taillight are recommended. Helmets are required to ride.

Regroup: We regroup at the top of major hills and at major turns for a reasonable amount of time. This is a training series so we will ride with the best interest of the group in mind. Stops will be brief, and slower riders may need to fall back to a slower pace group. Riders in the last pace group, and unable to keep up should expect the Rider Leader to check in, give guidance on returning back to the start, but in this case slower riders or those dropping off must be able to manage riding independently for the duration of the ride. It is highly recommended all riders print off and bring a cue sheet to have just in case.

Planned Stops: Quick Stop at mile 18.5

Cancellation: Ice, snow or otherwise unsafe riding conditions will cancel this ride. In the event of a cancellation, a notice will be posted in the comments section in both the Cascade and Meetup postings.