Braver than the Elements

A few months ago, a friend posted about the Rapha Braver than the Elements ride in December.  There were only 10 locations in the United States that were offering the ride.  Originally I only saw the ride in NYC, which isn't exactly the easiest for me to get to.  I later saw another friend post about the ride going out of Emmaus, PA - much easier for me to get to.  I signed up thinking it would be great motivation to ride and hopefully see some friends.

As we got closer to December 20th, I found out that more of my friends would be attending.  Awesome!  More friends more the merrier! The week leading up to the ride our leader, Beth Strickland, sent out an update on the ride logistics.  She mentioned that our ride had 109 women signed up - the largest group out of all 10 rides.  She also mentioned that it was a ride - not a race - and anyone looking to beat records or destroy Strava segments stay home.

I know about Emmaus because it's the home of Bicycling magazine - and near the Valley Preferred Cycling Center (home of Nittany CX too) and Bear Creek (where I raced at MTB Nationals).  It's a mecca for cyclists in the area with lots of great roads to explore.  The ride met at South Mountain Cycle and Cafe - and the staff was so generous and accommodating to all the ladies.



We signed in, got our cue sheet and gathered for a group photo.  Cars actually stopped both ways so that we could get the photo!

photo via South Mountain Cycle and Cafe

We rolled out in a group, with two route options.  I was in for the 40-mile loop along with a few other friends.  I settled into a group with our leader setting a comfortable pace.  I had the pleasure of meeting some new girls as well as catching up with some I haven't seen since CX and MTB season ended.   The route included lots of farm scenery and nice climbs.  One gal in our group rode with a Go-Pro and made this video.  Bill Strickland acted as our support vehicle as well as photo guy.  A few times he was laying in the road for the perfect shot!

Smiles and thumbs up for the ride - photo by Bill Strickland

As we rolled into the shop at the end of the ride, my fingers were just starting to get cold - and a hot chocolate was exactly what I needed to warm up.


photo by Nikki

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