A group from Seattle I had toured around BI a year ago had been planning a ride of the Flying Wheels 100M route for a few months, being pushed off by a number of factors. Finally this weekend, albeit without perfect weather, we were able to ride the course. To mix it up, we opted to ride it backwards and, with inspiration from Jan from BQ, I rode two transport stages as well.

A departure from my usual farm and logging road riding, this loop offered a lot more city riding along with bridges and islands I had never visited on bike.

A quiet roads ride with plenty of gravel options from Bainbridge to Port Gamble’s Stottlemeyer trail system.

Blue skies and warming temperatures promised ideal riding conditions so I chose to venture to Vashon Island to tour the farms, coffee stands, and bakeries. I started with a route from the Seattle International Randonneurs, 2020 WTS #9: Vashon Island, and modified it slightly to add some gravel and a trip through Dockton Forest, both of which turned out to be great additions to the route.

I’m a huge fan of Rapha’s annual #Festive500 challenge. The challenge rules are simple: ride 500KM in the 8 days between Christmas Eve and New Years' Eve, inclusive. I look forward to it every year because there’s something about riding in the cold, dark, wind, and rain which appeals to me.

Fantasic tour under blue skies, under falling leaves, and quiet roads among farmland. I started the ride from BI on the normal loop to Port Gamble with a small detour for a road closure.

✅ Ride from BI to Deception Pass and back in one day.

The primary goal of the ride had been to see | ride what had become known as the scary bridge – the High Steel Bridge, the highest railway arch bridge ever built in the United States.

It’s not an adventure until something goes wrong.

Who knew Bainbridge could hurt this much? This route was created by Tom of BI Cycle as a challenge for the locals tackle all the major hills on the island from the hard direction. It’s quite a bit longer and hillier than the Chilly Hilly. Come prepared!