CHEW #7 (Steady)

CHEW is a 12-week training series for maintaining and improving wintertime fitness. Be prepared for hills and climbing! 

Ride Start: For CHEW 7 we'll meet at Tibbetts Valley Park in Issaquah (west parking lot entered from Newport Way NW and across from the Issaquah Transit Center).  Be there, ready to go at the time listed above. A Restroom (Porta-Potty) is available at the Start. Water is not available at the start.  Steady riders will meet closer to the north end of the lot, Brisk will meet toward the south end of the lot, and Moderate can gather in the middle. We will start with a required safety briefing, and roll out when that's done, so make sure you arrive early.  All riders must attend the safety briefing to participate.

Route: From the park, we'll head east to tackle the Issaquah Highlands.  After the climb, we will descend back down into Issaquah and head out toward Newport Hills and Coal Creek.  We will take our rest stop at the Newcastle Safeway.  After our break, we will traverse May Valley for our final challenge of the day, Tiger Mountain.  We then make a downhill run back to the start.

Please note the rain route listed in the additional links, and download that too, just in case.

Stops: We have the option, if needed, to stop for restrooms/water at mile 5.0 (Central Park Soccer Fields).  Our longer mid-ride rest stop will be at mile 23.1 (Newcastle Safeway).

Pace: Riders should be able to sustain the appropriate pace which can vary depending on grade and tail or head winds. On hills, we will climb and descend at our own pace, and regroup when needed. A rider who is significantly under the pace of the overall group may have to either drop to a slower pace or continue the ride on their own. We will also observe speed limits on multi-use paths/trails (sometimes 15 MPH or even 10 MPH). 

Fenders! Please be considerate of your fellow riders and have full fenders if the roads are wet, or you may be asked to ride at the rear of the group.

Things to bring: a spare tube and tools to fix a flat (just in case); a phone; ID; cash and/or credit card; ORCA card; water and a small snack. It's also recommended to have a navigation device or at least access to the RWGPS route on your phone, in case you need to finish the ride on your own.

Note: If weather conditions meet the weather cancellation criterion listed in the Weather Status or if there are unforeseen hazardous riding conditions or other unexpected events, the Ride Director 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!