Pagoda Classic
200K Brevet
Sunday 5 June 2022
07:00 EDT Start Time
07:00 EDT Start Time
Flint Hill Farm Educational Center is a working farm located on the summit of Flint Hill in Coopersburg, PA.
Park along the fence around the corral to the right just past the antennas as you enter.
Suggested parking locations for the start/finish are public places, with theft and vandalism a real possibility, especially in cities. Park during the event at your own risk. Please do not leave valuables in your car during the ride.
Riders are advised to make sleeping arrangements at or near the start/finish. Please don't try to drive a long distance before or after a tough brevet. Multiple options are available.
Join us in the buffet in the arena building to recount your tales of joy, woe, and epic adventure (some of which may even be true). There will be access to a hot shower, allowing you to clean up after the ride, as well as port-o-johns.
The next ACP brevet of the season is a westward journey out of Easton to the Pagoda at the summit of Mt Penn in Reading.
This challenging route departs Flint Hill and immediately tackles the hills south of Easton. After tagging the National Canal Museum in Easton, the route reverses and you get to climb those hills from the other side. Our warmup complete we follow relatively moderate roads through the Lehigh University Goodman Campus and the northern edge of Center Valley.
Alas, South Mountain must be climbed somewhere, and we finally attack the ridge at Chestnut Hill Rd, which takes us over into the interesting town of Emmaus, PA. Riding is now easy for a while as we continue Westward to the Wawa controle in Macungie, passing near the Valley Preferred Cycling Center in Trexlertown. The hilly region near Huff's Church bars us from entry into the Oley Valley, so there's some work to do before we reach the town of Oley, home of the 500 year old Sacred Oak tree.
The signature climb of the ride then soon begins as we work our way through the hills forming Antietem Reservoir and up Skyline Drive, past the Fire Tower, and on to an Info Controle at the Reading Pagoda. After catching our breath and taking in the vista, we scream down the switchback Duryea Drive descent off the nose of Mt Penn and down to the Schuylkill river where we begin our generally Eastward return trek on the Schuylkill River Trail.
Moderate grades up from the river lead us to the Daniel Boone Homestead, the birthplace of American frontiersman Daniel Boone. There is an information controle at this museum and historic house.
Climbing begins again in earnest as we cross the Eastern boundary of the Oley Valley formed by the Reading Prong (remember the terrain near Huff's Church?). The summit of the climb takes us by Trout Run and Popodickon mountain reservoirs and over into Bechtelsville. The reward for this hard work is a controle stop at the legendary Longacre's Modern Dairy.
Terrain in the Perkiomen Valley is now moderately rolling. We work our way through Beverly Hills into the town of Coopersburg and the final grunt back up to Flint Hill.
As shown in the route profile, there are several steep, extended climbs. A triple or 39x27 is highly recommended.
| Date | Finishers |
|---|---|
| 2019-03-16 | 39 |
| 2020-03-14 | 23 |
| 2021-04-17 | 25 |
| 2022-06-05 | 2 |
This ride is a randonneur style bicycle event under the sanction of Randonneurs USA. Completing this event can help you train for Paris-Brest-Paris and earn RUSA awards. You need a current RUSA membership to ride this event. You can sign up for RUSA here.
First time riding with PA Randonneurs? Read an overview of what to expect on your first PA brevet. All participants are obliged to follow the rules for riders as well as local vehicle laws (PA, NJ, NY). Safety is a primary concern. All riders must sign a waiver. Please read these Safety Instructions.
To receive credit for finishing a randonneuring event you must complete a brevet card as required by the rules. PA Randonneurs accepts traditional brevet cards filled out with stamps/signatures and backed up with merchant receipts. PA Randonneurs encourages use of the eBrevet cell phone app. (Version 1.3 minimum required) as an electronic brevet card assistant. Nevertheless, you must check into all controls on the app -- or provide traditional proof for each control. Your finish time and finish code from the app must be written on the paper card, along with your signature, or you may be disqualified.
These events are not for beginners. The courses are hilly. You may face extremes of weather: heat, cold, wind, rain. The roads are unmarked and open to automobile traffic. There will be night riding in the longer events. Complete several ordinary century cycling events before starting a 200K brevet; complete several 200Ks before starting a longer brevet.
Subject to possible pandemic restrictions, several items are included in your registration. At the start/finish a complimentary breakfast buffet will be provided before the ride, and a dinner buffet will be available after the ride. Also at the start/finish there will be shared access to a shower, and some places for "safety naps". Tent camping on the Flint Hill grounds is free. If you want better accomodations, a limited number of indoor shared rooms with beds and shower/bath access are available at Flint Hill Farm for a small extra fee. Please book these with registration, first come first served.
The online URL for this event info page is
https://parando.org/info/event/2022-06-05/200
For all other information about Pennsylvania Randonneurs, visit our web site https://parando.org/