Preparing for Spring Rides #7 Renton Fairwood - Black Diamond Loop

Preparing for Spring Rides is a 10-week series intended to keep our legs moving and warm throughout the winter. Optional social gatherings are available before and after the rides to meet and connect with Ride Leaders and fellow riders. Our mid-ride rest stops will be brief in an effort to retain body heat. Please arrive 20 minutes before the published start time to ready your bike, check in, and participate in the SMART safety discussion.

Preparing for Spring Rides #7 starts at the Starbucks in the Fairwood Shopping Center (next to Round Table Pizza). Our route heads north along 140th and down a 2-mile hill before we turn right on the Cedar River Trail. Our first warmup hill is up Cedar Grove and we keep climbing until we get past Ravensdale. Our mid-point reward awaits us at the Black Diamond Bakery for our rest stop (or The Smoke House, if savory is your pleasure). The rest of the ride is mostly downhill along the Black Diamond Road with a quiet turn-off through the Soos Creek Trail. We’ll hop off the trail at 132nd to meet our final climb as we head north along 140th and enjoy a well-deserved meal and beverage at the neighborhood Apogee Pub.

Cue Sheet: Map and cue sheet are listed under “Links” on the Cascade Bicycle Club ride announcement. Please print and bring your own cue sheet; copies will not be provided. Please download the cue sheet and/or RideWithGPS route after 3:00 p.m. one day before the ride to reflect any recent changes.

Pre-Ride Gathering Time and Location: 9:00 a.m. at Starbucks at 14022 SE Petrovitsky Rd, Renton (next to Round Table Pizza in the Fairwood Shopping Center)

Rest Stop: The Black Diamond Bakery at mile point 22.2

Post-Ride Gathering Location: Apogee Pub & Restaurant, 14125 SE 171st Way, Renton

Rider Safety and Responsibilities: You must wear a properly fit helmet, ride safely, and follow Cascade’s SMART guidelines. Earphones/earbuds are strictly prohibited while on a Cascade ride. If there is any chance of rain or wet roads, fenders will be required and rain gear is strongly recommended.

You should be able to sustain the posted pace. Please be sure you have the equipment and knowledge to fix minor mechanical issues (flat tires, dropped chains, rubbing fenders, etc.), plus a cue sheet to get home on your own or a phone to call for assistance if needed. The Ride Leaders’ responsibility is to the group, and it is at their discretion whether to stop for individuals’ mechanical issues; they will, however, stop for all medical issues and emergencies.

Group Communication: Communication is key for individual and group safety. Please pass communication to the rider directly behind or in front of you. If such communication is done well, the Lead and Sweep will hear each other’s hazard communications passed through each and every rider. 

Regroup Policy: We will regroup at safe places whenever the Sweep is beyond sight distance from the Lead, primarily at the top of hills, at critical turns or past intersections. If a safe regroup point isn’t available, we will “soft pedal” (ride well below pace) to allow the split group to reconnect and resume the posted pace.

Cancellation Policy: If there is heavy rain, high winds, flooding, ice/snow or other unsafe riding conditions, Ride Leaders will cancel the ride. Ride cancellations will be posted in the comments section below on the Cascade site, ideally two hours prior to the start time. If such posting takes place, Ride Leaders will NOT be at the start. A ride may also be called at the ride start or during the ride for safety reasons. CHECK THE CASCADE WEBPAGE BEFORE YOU LEAVE HOME.