Riv Riders in Western NC

[Dick Pahle]

Checking to see if there are any Riv people, other than me, in the Brevard NC area. I ride a 2015 AHH. 

Dick

[Artaud]

I ride my Hillborne further East in Greensboro, but after riding back home from Floyd two summers ago, I've been wanting to spend more time riding in the mountains.

Denis, in NC

[Michael Iauch]

I ride an Atlantis in Boone. Went to high school in Brevard. My folks still live there. You may see my dad riding an old diamond back with albatross bars I found in a junk pile and built up for him. He installed an electric assist on it! 

Michael

Boone, NC

[esoterica etc]

Dick,

I live in the flatlands of Raleigh, but my wife and I had a chance to go on a terrific gravel ride with Michael on a visit to Boone. Michael's a wonderful guy and he knows a bunch of great rides in the area. Y'all have some excellent terrain up there in western NC. If you ever find yourself near Boone, reach out to him. It's always a hoot to connect with someone on the list in person. Cheers,

~Mark

Raleigh, NC

[Pam Bikes]

I'm in Charlotte, NC.  We should plan a Riv NC ride sometime.  I'm not much for climbing.

[Steve]

I'm in Asheville. Not currently on a Riv but am giving one some serious thought (which is why I'm on this group). I occasionally ride fire roads in the Pisgah starting from the Hub. Last spring I did a ride from the Arboretum at Bent Creek to the Hub (still sore from that one!). Been thinking Oscar Blues or Ecusta Brewing might be fun to start from and end at. I'd enjoy riding with a group of Riv riders - if you'd promise not to be too hard on me if I turn up on a different marque. Full disclosure; I am old and slow.

[lukeheller]

I used to ride a Riv Canti-Rom for a few years when i first started riding brevets in 2012.

No longer ride a riv but all my bikes are riv inspired. I've had several custom frames that are spin offs from my canti-rom.

I'm the local organizer for the Asheville Intl Randonneurs and live in Asheville if anyone wants to drink the kool-aid.

[James]

I'm a Riv rider in West Asheville

[lconley]

I don't live in NC, but my sister lives in Pittsboro, and I generally make it up there a couple of times a year. I will be there the 1st week of July this year at a minimum.

Laing

[Dick Pahle]

Thanx to all responding to my western NC post. Good to know. First......to Pam........took your CC class in Clt few years ago. Still benefitting from it. Good friend of David S who I think  is member of this group too. To Michael........will keep eyes open for your father here in Brevard. At 73, I'm guessing I'm as old or older than him. :-) To Steve in Asheville. I know the areas you mention well. The hills around here can be brutal, especially for an old slow guy like me. 

I've ridden from my home in Brevard to the Parkway (Blue Ridge Parkway) once, up 276 and back down. ~ 40 miles round trip with tough elevation gain, especially the last few miles, before heading back down. Ever thankful for my super comfortable 61 Homer that Keven helped me with back when he was still at Riv. Great guy. 

I get the usual comments about my bike. Nice bike! How old is it? Among others.

Dick

[Steve]

Dick, just saying "thank you" for kicking off this thread. Interesting to see the number of Riv riders in the area.

If you ever take a notion to organize a Brevard area ride for Riv riders (and Riv curious, like myself) I'd be interested. Between the Brevard paved greenway network, the dirt trail into the National Forest at Pisgah Forest and the breweries/eateries along the greenway - and whatever routes you Brevard locals keep secret - I bet a low key party pace ride could be a fun event. 

[Brian Turner]

I'm only 5 to 5.5 hours away from Asheville and/or Boone. I'm in Central KY. There's a handful of us Riv riders here who would probably consider making the drive if there was a meetup planned in that area!

[Suntour Jim]

Same goes for me - Knoxville is only 2 hours away from Asheville. A group ride would be great.

Jim Bailey

Knoxville, TN

[Franklyn Wu]

I live no where near Asheville (in Berkeley, CA) but my wife was born in Asheville and grew up in Greenville, SC, and I visited the Upstate/Western NC plenty between 2006 and 2019. Here is the selfish bit: I will be visiting the upstate area from 2/22-2/28, maybe you guys can arrange the get together ride on the weekend of 2/26-27? (and someone lend me a bike?)

Franklyn

[Dick Pahle]

I am out of my league when it comes to orgainizing things (anything). Pam in Charlotte (on this list) is much better at it than me as she does it all the time. Downside is she doesn't know the area all that well. Could be wrong about that. 

Would enjoy a group ride and would be cool to get others from as far away as Kentucky and/or Knoxville Tn to join us. If anybody wants to stay overnight Jann and I have two guest bedrooms and lots of floorspace for those who may not mind crashing there in a sleeping bag. Neat little 50's style motel nearby too.  Lots of camping options including backcountry in the Pisgah National Forest. 

99% of my road riding is slow and solo. Leave from my house for various amounts of time and distance, based on how my 73 year old body feels at the time. 

Thinking out loud...........many good local shops in town. They could suggest routes. Or we could do a section of the Blue Ridge Parkway which would mean out and back or arranging for some kind of shuttle service. Parkway is beautiful. Lots of 'scenic overlook spots' every few miles. Hilly in lots of places. As best I can recall the elevation along the ridge near us is 3 to 5,000 feet. Riding up to the Parkway and back from Brevard would be about 30 miles, round trip. Or longer if you wanted to add some parkway miles once we got up there. For me, that would be a hard ride. 

What's next? Does someone here wanna organize? All done on this thread or do we start a new one?

Spring and fall are georgeous here. Summer too but it can be hot and humid. Plus, we are in a temperate rain forest so it rains a lot. 

Had no idea my post looking for Rivs in the area would generate this kinda response. It's great!!!

Dick

On Wednesday, February 15, 2023 at 2:24:27 PM UTC-5 steve...@gmail.com wrote:

[Dick Pahle]

Franklyn:

Who knows. Might work. My only other bike is a 1983 Raleigh Super Course 12 speed. Don't think you'd wanna ride that one. 

Dick

[Pam Bikes]

Franklyn, I'm in Charlotte and can loan you a bike but you'd need to pick it up.  If y'all do organize anything I'd plan to be there but I'm busy teaching CyclingSavvy 2/24-26.  Y'all could all come to Charlotte and join me for the course!  Or I could come 2/27 or 28.  It's warmer in Charlotte.  It was 72° - shorts and t shirt weather today.  Just an idea.

On Wednesday, February 15, 2023 at 10:30:53 PM UTC-5 sin...@msn.com wrote:

[Pam Bikes]

Mark, I've been riding in Apex and Cary and I think it's hillier than Charlotte.  Lots of rollers with the steep grades I'm finding.  Charlotte is flatter.

Dick, I didn't realize you were the OP until now.  I'm not great at organizing but I would like to do a Riv ride.  I haven't ridden in Brevard.  I hear it's great.  

On Monday, February 13, 2023 at 7:20:00 PM UTC-5 esoter...@gmail.com wrote:

[Gary L]

Hi Dick,

I’m in asheville and know about 5 other riv riders here. We spend lots of time on the Bent Creek trails/fire roads.

Gary

[Pam Bikes]

Let's all try to plan a Riv NC ride near Boone this summer.  Who can help?  We would need to pick a date, plan a route.  I'm not familiar with the area.

[Pam Bikes]

...and also determine mileage, pace, elevation, etc.  Obviously I'd like to be able to take in all the bikes over a picnic or some type of gathering.  

[MTR]

Northeast Tennessee here, but keen on getting together for a ride. 

Morgan , Cumberland Gap TN

[Michael Iauch]

Pam, I'd be happy to help w route planning!

Michael 

Boone, NC

On Monday, February 20, 2023 at 12:15:07 AM UTC-5 Pam Bikes wrote:

[Nick Shoemaker]

Just putting my name down in the "happy to travel from Knoxville for a Riv-ride" column...

[Dick Pahle]

Be happy to come up to Boone too. 

Dick

[EGNolan]

I'm throwing my name in the hat to join along. I'm in Indianapolis, but my in-laws are in Spruce Pine just off the Parkway and I'm keen to ride in the area with other Riv-folk.

Best,

Eric 

[River Bailey]

Also in Indy and could travel down with Eric for a Riv ride.

River

[Pam Bikes]

Should we shoot for Boone or Asheville?   What month?  Mileage?

[Jason D]

I would be interested in this ride as well. I visit Asheville pretty often, but I don't have any insights on the trails/fire roads there. Asheville or Boone would be good with me!

[Michael Iauch]

I'd propose a ride that is a figure 8 loop in the pisgah national forest wilson creek area. It takes me about 3hours with a lunch stop. Its a 70/30 mix of gravel forest road and fire roads to mostly mellow singletrack. There are some sections folks may prefer to hike a bike, but those are downhill. I am not much on digital route planning, I ride with paper maps, so forgive the lengthy text description. You can refer to the MTB project website - "yancey ridge" to use their map of the area as reference for the following description. Start at Beacon Heights on the parkway> Carrol Gragg rd>Mountains to Sea trail> Old House gap> down yancey ridge trail to FS 451>Roseborough rd> FS 192(old house gap rd)>edgemont rd> 221> Beacon heights. 

Another possible route would be a loop covering the Maple Sally Rd in Wilson Creek Area - a full loop ride (back on Brown Mountain Beach) takes me about 4 hours. Theres also an option for a shorter 10 mile loop along the route if some folks wanted to opt for that. 

late may? june? 

[lconley]

June 30 thru July 9 would be good for me.

Laing

[EGNolan]

I'll be in the area over July 4th as well, so Laing's timeframe would work for me! Michael's routes sound pretty perfect.

Eric

[RichS]

This could be quite the Riv Ride. Tossing my cycling cap in the ring!

Best,

Rich in ATL

[Junes]

This sounds great. If scheduling aligns, I’m down for a ride, too. I have family in NC — Piedmont area — and it’s an easy drive to the west. 

On Mar 3, 2023, at 18:31, RichS <rshann...@gmail.com> wrote:

This could be quite the Riv Ride. Tossing my cycling cap in the ring!

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[Steve]

Turns out I've been thinking about a ride in that Wilson Creek area for awhile now - just haven't had a chance to pull it off. If the date(s) work I'd love to be included! 

[EverRed]

I rarely post but I'm in Black Mountain with my All Rounder and would love to meet some Riv folks!

John

On Thursday, March 2, 2023 at 2:51:30 PM UTC-5 Jason D wrote:

[Gary L]

The Wilson Creek area is beautiful - but is pretty remote and about 1.5 hrs from Asheville. Closer to Asheville there are some great fire roads and mellow singe track at Bent Creek Experimental Forest that is connected to the NC Arboretum. I ride there all the time and it is just about perfect for a riv. It's also only about 15 min from downtown Asheville.   There's also a growing urban bike trail that includes roads, bike paths, and breweries lacing through town that is a fun way to get to know the town (and the beer). And, a new bike store named "Gravelo" just opened in town and although they don't sell rivs, they are very familiar with them and always ooh and aah appropriately when me and my other riv pals go in there. They are really a great group!  That's my. $.02!

[Gary L]

Oh, and one other detail I forgot to mention is that there's a really nice campground at Bent Creek - although it fills up pretty quickly in the summer. Lots of chain hotels around Bent Creek too.

[Pam Bikes]

I think we should stick to the Asheville area for the main ride.  I know Wilson Creek is beautiful.  I've hiked there.  I ride fully loaded and am not into hiking a bike.  Mine is too heavy.  I think we should shoot for a ride in Asheville at the end of June 
For those who want to do Wilson Creek would y'all want to a 2 part Riv event so people could choose one or the other or both?  I hope this pans out.  I'd love to see all these bikes.

[Steve]

Giving this thread a bump -  Hate to see it get lost.  Trigger Warning: Long Post.

I've been living and riding in Asheville for 30 some years now, and would be happy to offer some route ideas - but first a caveat. The Asheville metro area has seen phenomenal growth over the past decade (from 282,000 to 371,000 residents). We're also seeing about 11 million annual visitors. 

The result of the rapid growth  transpo infrastructure has been overwhelmed. Paved routes around town and the surrounding county that were old favorites have mostly become Thunderdome rides.     --   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9JKZKjFjHDM ---   

If you're still reading this - in addition to the decline in road riding pleasantness,  the best close to town off pavement riding (Bent Creek) has become a "regional destination". Trailhead parking can be a challenge, especially on weekends. Having said that, BC and the Pisgah National Forest are still great riding. If you want you can climb up to Bent Tree Gap  and descend on the BRPW through two tunnels  (bring your lights).  Ample (& secure) parking is available at the NC Arboretum for $20 per vehicle. I have an annual membership and could transport up to 4 bikes and three passengers. 

As already mentioned, the new urban greenway in the River Arts District is pleasant, albeit short, with multiple interesting places to stop for food and/or beverage or just to gawk at the graffiti murals.. There are some opportunities to climb up into surrounding neighborhoods on fairly quiet streets.   There also happens to be a small RV park (with a tent area) that the western end of the River Greenway. runs right through.

 I do not recommend planning a gathering for a holiday weekend ---  or any time in the month of October.  

[Gary L]

Steve, I agree that July 4 wknd would not be the best time for a gathering as Asheville gets mobbed then. But if we can find a suitable date I’d be happy to help with some organizing of the gathering. Seems like the biggest hurdle is getting a date nailed down. Any summer date would probably work for me, but I’d suggest late May/early June if we wanted to avoid July 4. Not quite as many tourists here then.

[Steve]

Gary, May would be a good choice. September is  generally a bit quieter as well. I'm guessing most would prefer a weekend???   

I'm thinking a 3-4 hour ride at Bent Creek early in the day and then possibly an afternoon to early evening ride on the River Arts District greenway concluding with a stop for food & beverage. 

Anyone want to weigh in?

[Gary L]

Steve - Yes, Bent Creek and the River Arts sounds good. We could also add another ride the following day on quiet roads (they do exist!) just north of downtown, up Sunset to Town Mt, around Montford, etc. that could follow the Asheville bike routes.

[Steve]

Gary, I second your suggestion.   I lived in North Asheville on Melrose St for a number of years - I'm currently on the south side. Those roads above the Grove Park Inn and on to Town Mountain and then the BRPW were my go to routes (that was back when Michael Davis owned ProBikes). I haven't ridden up that way for over a decade. Good to hear it's still decent riding. 

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[Gary L]

Hi Everyone, at the risk of being presumptuous I went ahead and created this Doodle scheduling poll to see what (if any) weekend dates in May/June would work best for a Riv group meetup in Asheville.  Just click on the link and it will guide you to a calendar that will allow you to select the dates you are (and are not) available for a weekend meetup. After about a week, I can post the results and we can either take the planning further from there or else pick different dates and try again.  Here is the link to the poll:  https://doodle.com/meeting/participate/id/eXQgKnka

Gary

[Steve]

Thank you Gary for setting this up!    Are you thinking weekends, or...?

[Gary L]

Yes, Steve - all the options I selected were the weekends of May and the first weekend of June.

[Brian Turner]

Dang! Just my luck... I'll be in Florida the last week of May / first week of June. Still, I look forward to this happening so I can read the ride report and hopefully see some good photos!

-Brian

[Gary L]

We've had five folks fill out the doodle scheduling poll (thanks Steve, Jason, Ky, and Chasen) to try to find a late spring date for a potential Asheville gathering and the May 12, 13, 14 weekend is best for those who responded. Does that date work with others who didn't respond? Or should I throw out some summer and/or early fall dates? 

Gary

[River Bailey]

I think those May dates work for me.

[Carl]

Thanks Gary, I can participate at least part of that weekend.

On Monday, March 20, 2023 at 11:01:46 AM UTC-4 Gary L wrote:

[Maple Fortress]

Just seeing this. Would love to ride! On an Appaloosa in Boone.

[EverRed]

I'll be out of town (touring in France!) but I would love to join any future rides.  I see that there are a lot of gravel suggestions.  Are Riv group rides generally off road?

John

Black Mountain

[Heather Hayes]

Hi everyone! West Ashevillian here. I'm late to the party, but just chiming in to say that a Platypus and two Appaloosas belonging to the RivMavens of Asheville would love to join the fun. Sadly, May and June are out, but we could join in July if that ends up working for others. Here's an orange Platy and a Sam in Bent Creek for ride inspiration. :)