Coffee Grinder XL Recap, "A Beautifully Chaotic Tour De Richmond."
Tour De Richmond. - Levi
Beautifully chaotic. A master class in finding fun. - Brian
My favorite part was that everyone on the ride was, at some point, practically in their own backyard - Daniel
I’m not sure where I am. - Steven
That up and over by the power lines outside Larus was spicy. - Walter
Larus because this was the first time I rode it without getting totally and loopily lost. - Tim
This past weekend we set out on what could aptly be called a “Tour of Richmond” via all the lesser traveled parks, dirt cuts, and shred portals. An evolution of the original Coffee Grinder ride I started with some like-minded individuals all the way back around 2010, this took the core elements of that ride and expanded from there. Over a total of about 60 miles, we managed to make a third of the ride off-road while avoiding the true “mountain bike” trails the city is so well known for. We focused on stitching together the lesser-known off-road bits of Richmond (and a tiny bit of Henrico) and it all somehow worked out.
About 75 fellow dirtbags showed up at Bryan Park that morning, and from what I can tell, all had a good time. Some did the full ride, some cut it short, and some even took the side-quest from some random wizard on a Surly.
Those that did the whole deed likely even rode to some places they had never been before.
What was your favorite part? For Brian N there were almost too many bits to mention. “Brown way, across the street, through the woods … up the climb, down and through the bamboo cut, down the cement drain … Larus was also amazing. The leaves, the downhill, the powerline climb. Walking through the bamboo cut saying, of course, we’re doing this, wouldn’t be a dirtbag ride without something like this.
I’ve been kicking around long enough that I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve ridden all of this (and in the interest of making sure it worked, I even pre-rode it twice last month), but for me it never gets old. With the change of seasons, our city changes too and all these amazing bits of green space never lose their appeal. Rides like this bring me back to my childhood desire to explore the world around me. I’m always stoked to share this with those who feel the same.
