The Air Force Association Cycling Classic Challenge Ride – Sunday, June 9

[consularrider]

Registration is now open, but it’s not called the Crystal Ride now. The website says that this year it is a 16.5 km closed course, but there’s no active map yet (just the Crystal Cup). You have three and a half hours (7:30 am to 11:00 am) to do as many laps as you can. Completing at least six will get you a gold medal, four or five the silver, and two or three the bronze. A great ride, but it does get crowded.

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[Jason B]

Always a fun ride. Hopefully W-L Bike Club will have a good showing this year.

[TwoWheelsDC]

@consularrider 47675 wrote:

You have three and a half hours (7 am to 11:30 am)

Does the course start and end in different time zones? :p

[vvill]

Yeah small correction to the OP – it’s 7:30-11am.

This was fun last year, I’ll probably do it again.

You’ll need a ~17.7 mph avg to get the gold.

[TwoWheelsDC]

For some reason I couldn’t do this ride last year, but my calendar is open right now, so I’ll probably sign up. Combined with the Clarendon Cup, it’s a pretty awesome weekend for cycling.

[mwhatley]

Same day as the Jamestown Gran Fondo! Now I have to make the decision — any thoughts??

My Arlington roots have me leaning more towards the Air Force ride but was really looking forward to the GF.

[Vicegrip]

I am in.

My father was Army air corp before there was an Airforce. He started in open cockpit and ended up in F4 Fantoms with all kinds of aircraft along the way.

[Jason B]

@TwoWheelsDC 47754 wrote:

For some reason I couldn’t do this ride last year, but my calendar is open right now, so I’ll probably sign up. Combined with the Clarendon Cup, it’s a pretty awesome weekend for cycling.

Now if we could only get a velodrome built by those new soccer fields down there, we could have a trifecta!

[Jason B]

@mwhatley 47871 wrote:

Same day as the Jamestown Gran Fondo! Now I have to make the decision — any thoughts??

My Arlington roots have me leaning more towards the Air Force ride but was really looking forward to the GF.

Do the Garrett Fondo a few weeks later. Seems like you can’t swing a stick without hitting a fondo nowadays, but the Air Force is a local one of a kind.

[PotomacCyclist]

Some people (including the fastest riders) last year finished their final lap after the official cutoff. As long as they started that final lap well in advance of the cutoff, they were allowed to start that last lap. I don’t think there’s an official rule on when they let someone go ahead for another lap. I guess if you look fast and there is still plenty of time on the clock, they will let you go for another lap.

[consularrider]

@PotomacCyclist 47980 wrote:

Some people (including the fastest riders) last year finished their final lap after the official cutoff. As long as they started that final lap well in advance of the cutoff, they were allowed to start that last lap. I don’t think there’s an official rule on when they let someone go ahead for another lap. I guess if you look fast and there is still plenty of time on the clock, they will let you go for another lap.

My first year they ride started almost a half hour late because of rain an standing water issues on the course. They still closed the course at 11 am. I was not allowed to start my eighth lap (12.5 km laps on that layout) even though there were still 15 minutes left when I hit the start line. The second year I think my time was 3:34 for the 100 km and the third was about 3:20. Then last year the lengthened the course to 15 km, but you only needed six laps (90 km), so no issues. This year we’re back to 99 km.

[Dickie]

Yeah, registered for my first official cycling event since I got back in the saddle… looking forward to seeing you all out there!

[Tim Kelley]

@consularrider 47982 wrote:

My first year they ride started almost a half hour late because of rain an standing water issues on the course. They still closed the course at 11 am. I was not allowed to start my eighth lap (12.5 km laps on that layout) even though there were still 15 minutes left when I hit the start line. The second year I think my time was 3:34 for the 100 km and the third was about 3:20. Then last year the lengthened the course to 15 km, but you only needed six laps (90 km), so no issues. This year we’re back to 99 km.

So what did they do to change the course? How does it differ from this: http://app.strava.com/segments/1546230

[consularrider]

@Tim Kelley 48006 wrote:

So what did they do to change the course? How does it differ from this: http://app.strava.com/segments/1546230

Here is my Garmin readout from the 2011 ride. The end point is off because I forgot to reset before I headed home. Also the first lap had a strange readout.

The 2009 ride went both ways on what is now Long Bridge Drive (Old Jeff Davis?), and it wasn’t much better than it is now. At one point it narrowed to less than one lane because of deep water ponding. In 2010, the route got off Long Bridge Drive and was closer to the 2011 route, but without the hairpin turn on Army Navy. Here’s a MapMyRide link.

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