Cycle The Gap 2025 #4: Bellevue-Cumberland (Brisk)

The CYCLE THE GAP TRAINING SERIES (CTG)  is a five-week series of rides to help folks get in shape for Cascade's Ride from Seattle to Vancouver and Party (RSVP) -  Aug 23-24 and other late summer events. CTG will run for five Saturdays, from July 19 to August 16.  CTG is designed to build endurance and strength. The rides will incrementally increase in distance and elevation gain starting with 41 miles with 1,752’ of elevation gain and concluding with a 79-mile 3,400’ route.

Let's meet at Newport Hills Park and Ride at 7:45 a.m. 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.

Today’s ride: A 75-mile route with 3,000 feet of elevation gain from Bellevue area at the Brisk Pace (16 - 18 mph when flat with no head or tail winds.) It travels across May Valley Road, south to Ravensdale, then to Cumberland before crossing to the bridge over the scenic Green River Gorge, lunch at the Black Diamond Bakery, and back to the finish via Renton. This ride includes flats and a mix of climbs and descents, including rollers and some hills that are long and/or steep. It is advisable to use the route link on this page to check out the profile of the ride below the map. 

NOTE about the start:  There is a port-a-let at the start, but no water. Please, come prepared to make it to the first rest stop at mile point 3.2. 

Rest Stops: The rest stops will be at Lake Boren Park, MP 3.2; Ravensdale Park, MP 28; Black Diamond Bakery, MP 46; and Gene Coulon Park, MP 69. All stops should be 7-10 minutes except for the lunch stop at Black Diamond Bakery, which will be a 20-minute stop. (A word of warning, the bakery can be crowded and the counter understaffed. If you want a sweet roll, don't wait to get in line.)

The Basics:  These rides are not supported. Riders should be able to sustain the pace, carry nutrition/water, a cell phone to call for assistance, and have the know-how and equipment to fix a flat tire.  We will pause briefly to assess any mechanical problem, but will not delay the group for an extended time. Everyone may climb the hills at their own pace and we will regroup at the top. We will observe posted speed limits on multi-use trails (usually 15 mph, but sometimes 10 mph, as in the Renton area).

Be considerate and have full fenders including mud flaps if roads are wet or a prediction of rain is in the forecast. If you don't have fenders, you will be asked to ride at the rear of the group.  

The Route: A link for the route is listed in the details to the right. There can be changes to the route up until ride time. So it is best to check back for the most current version of the route or, if you are using Ride With GPS simply choose to PIN the route. By pinning the route, you should automatically have a link to the most current route in your pinned ride folder.

New Riders:  We are very happy to have you with us.  Please read the New Rider link (“Read our newcomer information”), above, and keep in mind that a helmet is required for all Cascade rides. 

Weather - If on the evening before the ride Weather Underground predicts more than a 50% chance of more than .2" of rain or showers between 10:30 am and 1:30 pm, the Ride Leader will cancel the ride. Additionally if weather conditions meet the weather cancellation criterion listed above, or if there is poor Air Quality Index (above 125 on the Airnow.gov website), 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 canceled at least two hours before the start, Ride Leader(s) will not be at the start location. Please check before leaving for the ride.