New Bike for Bender event: Pioneertown Gravel Grinder - April 4, 2015

All new Bike for Bender event for 2015!!!!!!

Pioneertown Gravel Grinder
April 4, 2015 8:30am start (this was formerly the Vision Quest date)
50 mile option with 6000' of climbing
35 mile option with 4000' of climbing

Start and finish will be in historic Pioneertown with food and beer at Pappy and Harriet's afterward. Ride heads toward Big Bear and back, mostly fireroad and jeep roads.

For more details check our website - http://www.bikeforbender.com/home/pioneertown-gravel-grinder/

Sign up on our Facebook events page - Facebook Signup

Any questions ask here or on the Facebook page. Thanks!

 

Looks really fun. So you just click "join," on the fb page and you're in?

 

Pappy and Harriets AND Pioneer town are GREAT! Love that place!

Here's a sweet documentary on the place.

http://vimeo.com/116551630

 

Thanks for that sweet link, shittymon. Cheers...

Looks like fun. I wonder if it's possible to join the ride without becoming a facebook user.

 

Yes, we are putting on this event for no charge for the first year. We want to see if it's something people are interested in and we can grow. One of our missions at Bike for Bender is to promote cycling, so hosting an event helps us accomplish that mission. We also help the Socal High School mountain bike teams. We have 2 programs in place, one is essentially a grant we give to teams to help with their costs and the other is the scholarship program for the NICA summer camp. So we will take donations or perhaps have a raffle so you will be able to help us raise money to go towards our high school programs.

 

You could just pm me your name on STR and you're in. We don't anticipate needing to cap the number of riders, so you could even show up the morning of and be fine to ride.

 

Thanks for posting.

 

Thank you, pinnacle10. PM sent.

 

Just an update on the schedule. The 50 miler will start at 7:30am and the 35 miler will start at 8:30am.

http://www.bikeforbender.com/home/pioneertown-gravel-grinder/

 

Thinking about it, but it is a long way from OC for a day trip.

 

Here's the final information....


Location and Parking
The venue is located about 50 yards behind Pappy and Harriets. Drive straight past the restaurant and turn right. See this map for exact directions. You will be directed into the venue area to park, so please do not park at Pappy and Harriets or in any residential areas that will obstruct traffic.

Registration and Start Times
This is a Gran Fondo-style ride that will be timed. Registration opens at 6:00 am. Everyone will need to fill out a waiver and get numbers onsite. The 50 mile ride starts at 7:30am and the 35 mile ride starts at 8:30am. We will post finishing times, type of bike and age but there are no official categories.


Aid Stations
There are two aid stations: Aid Station 1 at mile 17.5 and Aid Station 2 at mile 25. The 50 milers will pass Aid Station 1 at mile 17.5 and again at approx. mile 30. We will have large water jugs, heed, oranges, cookies and small assortment of bars and gels. All drop bags for Aid Station 1 will need to be in by 7:00 AM.

Safety
This ride takes place on public roads and jeep trails, so please ride with caution and be courteous to all pedestrians and vehicles. There are many steep, blind descents so be sure to give all oncoming vehicles the right of way. The course will be marked with ribbons, but as a general rule, if you come to an intersection, just stay LEFT going out, RIGHT coming back.


Awards and Raffle
We will have awards for the top three overall riders for each ride at 12:00 - 1:00 PM. There will also be a raffle and a chili cookout after the finish. Raffle tickets will be available for $1 each at sign up.


All funds raised from this event will go towards our grant and scholarship programs to help support the local high school mountain bike teams and fallen riders.


Thank you so much for your support and we look forward to seeing you bright and early Saturday morning!

B4B

 

Cool.....not a FB user....but I will be heading out to join in the fun.

 

Looks cool and I could muster up enough juice to do the 35, but I am heading to Sedona. I'll have to keep an eye out for next year.

 

Such a bummer cuz I live right here but there's no way I'm in shape to ride 35. Maybe 15 I can swing but I saw this post a lil late....

Smoke it J!!!!

 

It was a really fun event. Good times for sure.

 

Thanks to those who came out. We felt like it went well and is something we're planning for next year also. Tinker again showed he's subhuman at 54 years old he came in at 3h21m.

There's loads of pictures on our Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/bikeforbender

Here's a few to check out -

Registration (it was cold first thing in the morning)


1 Fatbike


About 20% were on cross bikes.



Tinker doing his thing


I explored Pioneertown on my Coaster Brake bike while riders were on course.


Overall top 3