Based on a pre-ride by Pat Gaffney, there were some updates and tweeks to the route. The latest cue sheet is VERSION 3, and the RWGPS file
was last modified on 2024-10-29 16:42:17 EDT. RWGPS file and cue
sheets can be found here. Some of the text below was based on comments by Iwan Barankay who pre-rode the course in 2023.
A few miles into the brevet, you are on the Pennypack Heritage Trail (very hard-packed stone, so no challenge for any tires), where Pat Gaffney used to have fun as a kid with his mountain bike in the forest to the right. But now you are on a shared use trail with rules, so please announce yourself to the many pedestrians on the trail walking their dogs, who are invariably called Trooper, Cooper, Hooper, or Blooper.
Soon, carried by memories of the sad fate of the Lenni Lenape, you reach the first open control in New Hope. Perhaps find a coffee or a snack to prepare you for the walk across the Delaware immediately following.
Then comes 12 miles along the flat, featureless river road (aka NJ 29). Please team up with a friend here; or enemy; failing that, prepare music, an audiobook, or a podcast; otherwise, you end up like me, recalling memories I paid my therapist handsomely to forget.
At Frenchtown, because of bridge construction on 29, you are mercifully detoured onto the D&R trail along the river. This is a really nice section of the D&L. The only issue is at the end when you make a sharp right onto a gravel road that Tees back onto Frenchtown Rd. The final short section of this gravel is relatively steep, and the gravel is soft. You need to decide: ride or walk. There are no half measures. If you decide to ride, pedal with purpose. If you hesitate climbing that soft stuff, it won't be pretty.
When you reach Milford, the true PA Randonneur thing to do is to get a bagel at Goldberg's right at the corner. Toasted bagels with cream cheese are fast, but fancier stuff with eggs can take a while.
Super special note. Be extra careful with bridges. Especially the METAL GRID BRIDGES OF DOOM. We emphasized them in the cue sheet: Do not ignore our warnings. Slow down. There is a bridge with such a slippery surface that I had to unlock unique ninja warrior moves so I didn't end up kissing the cold metal grid.
After Easton, the real climbing begins, so make sure you have gentle gearing on your bike and enough sugar in your thighs. Whatever glucose or self-esteem you have lost in those hills, you can scrumptiously refuel them at the Tabora Farm & Orchard control. Restrooms are open (!), and they have a copy of the US Constitution in there so you can reevaluate how you feel about Shelby County vs Holder (2013).
From there, it's an easy finish back to Hollywood.
Please
be careful with the swelling evening traffic in the suburbs. Ensure your lights are on
and don your safety vest at Tabora -- even when it is still
light.
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