The Chico Wildflower Century 2014 Highlights + Video

This past weekend was a big one on my ride calendar: Enjoy a  few highlights from one of my favorite rides of the year, the Chico Wildflower Century.

The Ride

Consistently listed by Bicycling magazine as a Top Ten Century, the Wildflower course offers terrain that is both challenging and scenic. Through the 96 mile course, riders are faced with nearly 5,000 ft of elevation gain that varies from the sharp ascent up the Humbolt fire road, to the switchbacks of honey run, and eventually the long, sustained effort up table mountain. As for vistas, the scenery is immense. The natural topography that surrounds includes etched canyons, sweeping valleys, staggering buttes, and typically a great deal of wildflowers.

The Video

The Experience

As you’ll notice in the video, the standard Chico heat managed to take a year off and allow for a chilly breeze and some showers this year. And while that may have made a few of the descents a bit more tricky it was still a great day to be on the bike. As always, the organizers’ Chico Velo and their volunteers for this ride go all out and make it a tremendous experience. Rest stops are well-stocked with delicious options and even in the rain, there were still onlookers ready to cheer you up the climb from the beds of their pickup trucks. I could go on, but I think the video below paints a nice picture of what there was to see this year. (note: while I did capture all the major elements of the full century option, battery life, water-logging and the flat monotonous nature of Durham persuaded me to leave out the final orchards this time around.) That said, enjoy the video and leave a comment if you rode this year. I’d love to hear about your experience.

The Route

Fin

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