Challenge Penticton Half... Who's in...

I've ridden both the full and half Challenge bike routes.  The first time I road through Willowbrook the road was incredibly rough but last year it seemed not nearly as bad.  Maybe I'm just more experienced.

McLean Crk Rd is still rough but if you ride up it a few times it does get easier.  From the start of the ride to the Fairview Rd turn in Oliver it is fairly fast (proportionately more downhill).  Once on the Fairview Rd to Willowbrook it is fairly rough and lots of climbing.  I'm a slow cyclist but I can ride through there at a fairly decent/slow pace.  Just push through it.  When I crest the last climb to the White Lake valley I begin to get excited.  The road is in better condition and once you reach the Observatory you've only got 7 short km to the highway and the fast ride down the Kaleden hill and back to Penticton.

If I recall correctly there are two cattleguards to cross.  Kind of jarring but I've never lost a waterbottle yet.  

Having written this I'm thinking I should ride it sometime soon myself.  I've got ChelanMan Half in two weeks (18th) so won't be for a while.

Quigley - I can't shake the idea that I may have met you back in 2013 while we were training for Challenge.  It would have been at the Osoyoos Visitor Centre (just before the turn up to Richter).  My wife was driving as a Sherpa and we talked briefly in the parking area.

Just heard today that the Challenge half bike route has been changed.  I haven't looked at the Challenge website to confirm it yet but apparently the new route starts out the same but turns up Secrest Rd for a pretty serious climb then connects back to the old route by White Lk past the Observatory and back to the highway then turning right and riding down into Okanagan Falls and returning to Penticton by way of East Lake Rd.

I've never ridden up Secrest but I've heard it is pretty daunting.  I'll have to check it out as soon as I can.

I just had a look at the Challenge website and it shows the new bike route as I described.  Looking at the elevation map of the ride Secrest looks like a memorable climb.  It also says the total climbing on the route is 1031m/ 3382'.

I won't be able to ride the route until after ChelanMan but I'll get out there as soon as possible.

As for your good MRI news, congrats to you.

Are you signed up for "Across the Lake"?

That's a pretty intense looking climb.  Then adding McLean Crk Rd and you've got a fairly challenging course.  I'm terrible on hills so I'll be pretty slow on this route.  

Whoa!!  I missed your last couple posts.  So congrats on your commitment.  Maybe I'll see you around on the 30th.  I had hoped to do the full course but my performance at ChelanMan shows I'm no where near ready for a full and I'm now looking more seriously at the Challenge half.

After Chelan I took my bike into the Bike Barn for regular maintenance and they found a crack in the carbon.  So, I'm bikeless for a couple weeks.  Today, I drove the new Half bike route.  According to my vehicle it worked out to 88.4km but still lots of climbing.

I only just found out they also changed the full course bike route as well as the half.  So you'll wind up going back through OK Falls and East Lake Rd. as well.

Just curious, but how did you do in the Across the Lake swim?  Several of my friends swam as well and their times were pretty impressive. 

My Chelan swim was fair but my bike was very bad - a very tough course and I had nothing left in my legs to run with so I walked 21km.  I did enjoy the race but I would never do the half again.