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Ride 27 – Tanzhesi and visit to UCI Cyclocross Race

What a fabulous spell of weather we have had this past week. Everyone is out riding bikes enjoying the sun and cooler temperatures – smiles all round. This Saturday’s ride is West of Beijing around the Tanzhesi area.
There is also a UCI Cyclocross race happening in the same area in the afternoon so we have conveniently planned the start and finish of the ride at the Cyclocross race course so those that are interested can stick around after the ride and watch some of the best riders in the world battle it out. Josh will be racing (for those that didn’t know he is a Pro CX racer!) so it would be awesome to get a good group out there to cheer him on / yell insults at other riders / spray beer everywhere / etc etc. All the details about the optional race viewing are below.
We have had a lot of new riders the last few weeks so again we’ve planned an easy beginner ride which is suitable for first time Serk riders. The intermediate ride is a bit shorter this week and should be an achievable goal for the fastest of the Beginner Plus riders from last week.
Elite riders have an awesome course – up the back of Miaofengshan over the Changfan climb them down Miaofengshan and over to the Tawang Lu climb up a new secret road.
Self drive is back this week also.
Also please note routes may change slightly from below – going to check routes on Thursday.
* indicates required field






Waiver

Departure Time Saturday  :
06.30 Serk.  Arrive at 06.15 am to load bikes and grab a coffee
Return Time : 12:30 – 14:00 Serk
1. Beginner – 30-45km 500-666 m Climbing



An out and back route to Tanzhesi Temple. Three moderate climbs in total. If you’d like less turn around at the temple and head back (around 32km total) and if you’d like more you can extend the ride further by riding up the road after the second climb ends.
Ride leader : TBC
Average Speed : 15 km/h – 20 km/h
This ride is recommended for all new beginner riders. If you find the pace too slow next week you can move to the Intermediate Group. Its much better to start out on the easier ride and then move up rather than start on the faster ride and find yourself getting dropped and left behind.
2. Intermediate  – 75km 1567m Climbing



The Intermediate ride is shorter this week but with plenty of climbing. An out and back route with a loop tacked on at the mid way point. It’s a challenging ride but one which the faster and experienced Beginner riders should be able to tackle. If it’s too much turn around at the top of the Tawang Lu climb (climb 2) and head back. That makes it a 50km ride with around 1000m of climbing. If you decide to ride intermediate its essential you can navigate the route. We will have one ride leader for the group but he/she can not be with everyone all of the time. Get yourself a garmin or familiarise yourself with navigating on the RidewithGPS app. You also must be able to change a tyre on your own and you need to carry spare tube / tyre levers and pump with you. If not then please join the Beginner group !
Average Speed : 20 km/h – 25 km/h
Please note if you are a new rider you need to join a beginner ride for your first outing with Serk. Once you’ve smashed that you are welcome to move up to Intermediate or Elite ! This ride is recommended for all Intermediate riders. If you find the pace too slow next week you can move to the Elite Group. Its much better to start out on the easier ride and then move up rather than start on the faster ride and find yourself getting dropped and left behind.
4. Elite – 113 km 2200m Climbing

A hard but glorious ride. From the start a small climb and then descent into Mentougou. Through the town and then along the familiar G109 road. You’ll go up the backside of Miaofengshan along the narrow twisting Changfan road (one of our favourites in Beijing). After some tough gradients you’ll descend down Miaofengshan (take it easy on the corners with weekend traffic) and then up the Tawang Lu climb. You’ll take a shortcut up an awesome concrete road that you probably never noticed before. Then its down all the way to Tanzhesi before one little climb which always hurts like hell.
Ride leader : TBC
Average Speed : 25 km/h – 30 km/h
This ride is recommended for Elite riders only. The pace will be pretty fast and on the flat parts of the course we will ride together as a bunch so the km pass quickly. If you are not sure of your fitness or endurance then please do not join this group. Instead go with the intermediate group and as your fitness improves later in the season join the Elite ride group.
5. CX Race
On Saturday afternoon there is a UCI Cyclocross race at the same location as the start/finish point of our ride. We decided to ride from this location to make it more convenient for you to stay around after the Serk ride and watch the race. Please note this activity is optional and Serk is not providing any logistical support for the event (i.e. the vans go back to Beijing and won’t stick around for the afternoon of racing). For those that want to stick around its approximately a 35km ride back to the city. If there is enough demand we can organise some vans to stick around and drive you back (there will be a small surcharge for the drivers extra time).
The race will feature world class riders including  regular top 10 World Cup finisher Rob Peters (Belgium). More importantly Serk staff member and Bejing expat Josh Bauer will be racing – his biggest race of the year ! We encourage you to stick around after the ride and cheer Josh on. The womens race starts at 13.00 and the mens elite race at 15.00. Once you finish the Serk ride you should have enough time to visit a local restaurant for lunch and grab a bag of cold beers to drink track side while the race is on.  Afterward its a 35km ride back to the city. Please register your interest for this activity on the sign up form and we will set up a seperate group !
Waiver
Every rider is required to read and accept this waiver by clicking on “yes” in the form above before participating in a Serk Ride.

Self Drive
The start and finish point will be published in the group chat at a later stage. Approximately 1 hour drive from Serk.
Payment
To pre-pay on Wechat please extract the following QR Code by pressing on it using your smartphone and then select “Extract QR code” You will be taken to a we chat payment page to make the 350 RMB payment.

For self-drive please extract the following QR Code by pressing on it using your smartphone and then select “Extract QR code” You will be taken to a we chat payment page to make the 50 RMB payment.
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Cancellation / Refund AQI Policy
Please read our Cancellation / Refund AQI Policy Carefully here.
Process
Once you have signed up for the ride we will add you to special group chat for the ride. Here you will be able to see which of your friends have already signed up plus we will release the route GPX files and detailed route instructions here. During the ride we will use this group for communication and also its the place you can share photos post ride.