The DeRonde Portland is a bike ride based on the Tour of Flanders in Belgium. It's a road race that covers 17 cobbled hills which are really steep. Well, the organizer of the CrossCrusade in PDX thought it would be a treat to replicate the fun in the West Hills of Portland. They started the DeRonde a few years ago. Initially only a few people join and last year it swelled at 500 riders. Even OPB did a video segment on the news.
It's about 40 some miles and approximately 7500 feet of climbing. The two steepest hills are streets called Brynnwood and College. Byrnnwood tops off at a grade of 31%. I had a moment of lost concentration on that one and lost my momentum. There was no getting back on the bike and continuing to ride with that type of grade. I made it up College - photo below (I'm in the center).
We had a great turnout from Portland Velo. A few of the guys finished in the top 10 finishers (not that it was a race). It was great to have a friendly ride with folks you race with and enjoy the city. We stopped at a couple lemonade stands and a beer stop along the way. We're very blessed to have opportunities like this in Portland. Yes, we're spoiled.
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