The Gateway Park group ride, starting in Boulder, CO and looping at Carter Lake is an early season staple, where local fast guys (and gals) get to mix it up with top domestic and Euro-pros.  The ride tends to draw fewer riders and spring turns to summer, because the types of riders it attracts are off racing somewhere.

Where: The parking lot of Gateway Park Fun Center.  4800 28th St, Boulder, CO 80301.  (Note: Gateway Park Fun Center has NO affiliation with this ride. It’s just a convenient starting point on the north side of Boulder)

When: Saturdays, 10:00 AM. Same time on Sundays, but expect fewer riders and a much less aggressive pace. (Personal note: this is a proper start time for a group ride. 9:00 AM should be considered the absolute earliest start time for any group ride, as anything earlier cuts into the performance-enhancing sleep-ins and leisurely espresso time.)

What to expect: 30-100 riders, ranging from ambitions Cat-4 getting shelled out the back to Euro-pros at the sharp end and making it look easy. This as a fast ride, often taking the whole road as though it’s a pro race. This is more a race than a ride. You must be experienced in aggressive groups, comfortable with crosswinds and very hard surges. If you have a mechanical or get dropped you are on your own.

Run-ins with annoyed locals and law enforcement are frequent. We got pulled over and yelled at by the Sheriff once last year (thus adding to the ride’s mystique).

This day’s ride was 62 miles at 23.6 mph average.

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