Vermont Six Gap 200K pre-ride report

[Charles Coldwell]

This route has existed as a permanent for a number of years: I proposed the idea of a 6 gap permanent in summer 2018 but it was Jas Dembinski who actually did the work and created the permanent (RUSA #03700). It wasn't until August of 2020 (pandemic year!) that I finally went up to do the six gaps, but I have done it every year since then including last Sunday. It is one of my favorite rides.

This route took a while to make the transition from permanent to brevet, and there are good reasons. On most of our brevets the vertical climb is about 1% of the horizontal distance, e.g. 2,000 meters (6,561 feet) of climbing on a 200 km (125 mile) brevet. The 6 gaps is close to twice that at 3,837 meters (12,600 feet). So it's a tough ride. But what goes up must come down, and those climbs are followed by some really dangerous descents, some of which are gravel (Lincoln and Roxbury) or have hairpin turns (Appalachian) or both. RESPECT THE DESCENTS!

As I said, this is also a tough ride; I'm a pretty experienced randonneur and it takes me typically 10-11 hours (vs a 13.5 hour time limit). There are a lot of stops and photo ops, but that's not where the time goes. It's the climbs. Do not attempt this ride as your first 200K. If you don't like climbing, you won't like this ride.

We take the gaps in the following order: Rochester, Brandon, Middlebury, Lincoln, Appalachian and Roxbury. If you ride the perm, you can do any cyclic permutation of the gaps or even reverse the order, but for the brevet that is the canonical order. Each gap has a personality, but the ride basically divides in half: the first three gaps and the last three. Generally speaking, the first three are pretty manageable. Although they all feature an increasing gradient near the top that gets your heart rate up, my advice is do not burn too many matches on the first three gaps.

Rochester and Brandon Gaps go by pretty quickly; the pavement is a little rough on the descents but generally in good condition. Be wary of parallel cracks; if you caught a tire at that speed you'd quickly become a red stain on the road. You turn north short of Brandon and head up past Lake Dunmore for some water-level riding, reaching the first control at the Campersville store on the north end of the lake. That's a great store. Get some donuts from the white boxes on the counter.

Middlebury Gap has special significance for me since that was the big climb on Boston-Montreal-Boston back in the day, but in this context it isn't bad and really quite pretty. The steep stuff starts soon after you pass the school bus yellow buildings of the Bread Loaf Mountain campus of Middlebury college; you are almost there when you pass the Snow Bowl, but the gradient pitches up significantly just before the top. Your payoff is a nice long descent into Hancock; the store was open when I was there Sunday.

After Hancock you turn north again on VT 100, which carries a lot of traffic. On VT 100 you climb up Granville Gulf, which is arguably a seventh gap. The gradient is easy and the vertical isn't much, so you might not even have noticed it if I hadn't just pointed it out. Moss Glen Falls on your left is a photo op, but the overlook was closed due to a pedestrian bridge being damaged by flooding. The climb continues after that, but then there is a nice descent into Warren from the top of the Gulf, and just short of Warren you will make a left turn onto Lincoln Gap Road.

When you reach Lincoln Gap, you will realize that everything you have done so far was just a warmup for this climb. Lincoln Gap is incredibly steep; expect to stand out of the saddle, do the paperboy, or even walk. There is no shame in walking up Lincoln Gap. The one mercy is that the climb is shady. The descent from Lincoln Gap is gravel; TAKE IT EASY ON THE LINCOLN GAP DESCENT! Your control is the store in Lincoln; it's a great store with pre-fab deli sandwiches and lots of treats. Unfortunately, there is no shade to sit and eat.

From Lincoln, you turn north again on Quaker St, another stretch of level gravel that gets you to VT 17. Here begins the Appalachian Gap climb, and here

is where I always realize just how badly Lincoln Gap has kicked my ass. App Gap probably wouldn't be bad in another context but with four gaps already in the legs it takes a toll. The descent from App Gap is paved but includes some 15 mph hairpins, so please TAKE IT EASY ON THE APPALACHIAN GAP DESCENT! You are not Tom Pidcock: you will not be able to take those corners at speed.

The descent ends in Irasville, which is an open control. I really like the Irasville General Store, which is the Mobil station across the street from the official control shown on the route. It has indoor and outdoor seating, a deli counter and a one hole restroom. It's a short level transit from Irasville to Waitsfield, where you cross the Mad River at the iconic covered bridge. 

Roxbury Gap punches above its weight, largely because you start climbing it right after you cross the bridge in Waitsfield. Water runs downhill, so the Mad River is at a local minimum in the topography. The cue sheet says the climb up Roxbury Gap starts after the left turn (and control) onto Roxbury Mountain Rd in East Warren but don't believe it. You have climbed a significant amount just to get to that turn. However, that turn is where you start going parallel to the gradient, so here is where the really steep stuff begins. It's short compared to the other gaps and not nearly as steep as Lincoln, but with five gaps in the legs it still feels tough. Once again, the descent is gravel; TAKE IT EASY ON THE ROXBURY GAP DESCENT!

There's a nice store in Roxbury that closes early, but if you get there in time you can take a quick break before tackling the 33 km (20 mile) transit down VT 12A that takes you back to the start at Bethel. It's gradually downhill as it goes downstream along the White River parallel to a railroad. If the wind is kind, it makes a nice coda to work some of the lactate out. If you're with a friendly group, you can paceline it.

There has been some discussion of tire sizes; for the record I did this ride on 622-28s inflated to 7 bar (100 psi). I probably would've been more comfortable on something wider with lower pressure, but I got away with it.

Final conclusion: this is a tough and dangerous ride. Give it the respect it deserves!

I'll see you out on the course next weekend!

73 de W1CMC

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Charles M. Coldwell, W1CMC
Belmont, Massachusetts, New England
"Turn on, log in, tune out"

[Mike A]

Great ride report/summary, Chip. If I manage to make it this year my strategy for Lincoln is to do whatever it takes not to burn myself out- walk, take breaks, weave. I think what happens there seems to significantly impact the quality of my suffering on the last three gaps.

Mike

[Charles Coldwell]

Thanks for the kind words, Mike. I think you have hit it on the head: the pivot point for this ride is Lincoln Gap. The ride before Lincoln is just a warmup, and the rest is the aftermath. But I will quibble with the math: there are only two more gaps after Lincoln (Appalachian and Roxbury). Or is this just another instance of the fencepost problem?

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[Mike A]

Well that's charitable of you, but yes - only two remaining - regardless of index!