Happy Friday!
Finally a beautiful weekend forecast for us all, this newsletter is becoming more about the weather than the rides. A quick shoutout to Catie who suffered an unfortunate bike crash on Lookout Mountain a couple weeks ago. We hope you heal up quickly and know a few broken bones will not hold you back! We’re all thinking about you and hoping for a speedy recovery! To share a few choice words from Catie, “Wear your helmet, saved my life”! Seriously people, the helmet is the number one way we can protect ourselves out there on the bike, please make sure your helmet fits you well and is in good condition. We probably all need to evaluate how long we have had our helmets, even without crashing 3-5 years of hours in the sun will degrade your helmet. Please take a moment to consider buying a new one if yours is maybe double that age? As Bontrager cleverly says on their box, “you only get one brain”. We are so grateful Catie’s accident was not worse, but it is important to be cautious and prepared. Thank you.
We have over 30 first year riders on the team again this year, welcome to Wheels, you are not alone! I thought it would be good to highlight a little of the “what to expect” from the weekend. Regardless if you are riding in the family ride, the 40-mile, the 80-mile, day one/ day two, or volunteering, we hope this is your favorite weekend of the year.
A few “Pro-Tips” for you:
Book your lodging now, all condos in Copper are not created equal
Check out Copper Vacations, Vacasa, AirBnb, VRBO etc for more variety
All events are centered in center village, so if you want to be in the heat of the action that’s where you want to be. If you want a quieter weekend look to East/West Villages, they are a short walk from center and have larger units
Be sure to come for both days, it’s more like camp than a bike a ride, you really want to take it all in if you can!
I stay Thursday – Monday as an annual family tradition
Traffic on Friday & Sunday can be hellacious, if you can get out before 2 on Friday and leave after 4 on Sunday you won’t regret it!
You don’t have to ride a bike to come to the Courage Classic! Ben will disagree, but the point of the story is that there are about 1500 riders and about 4500 people at the Courage Classic. There are activities for everyone, it is a vacation destination in its own right and while there are many volunteer positions, it’s also perfectly encouraged to just come out and enjoy the Rocky Mountains!
Copper comes alive for the Classic and it’s such a fun weekend to wander around and catch up with friends and make new ones. The summer staffing is not always their strength and restaurants on Fri/Sat night could have two hour waits. A Costco lasagna in your fridge can be real clutch. While many meals are provided by the registration, that is only for riders and volunteers so I encourage people to bring snacks and other provisions as there isn’t really a grocery store within 20 minutes.
If you are not from Colorado, drink water the minute you get here, the elevation gain is no joke. We don’t want you to miss any part of it due to elevation sickness
Enough about that, we have 9 weeks to train and fundraise prior to the Classic. Your gear will be mailed to you by the first week of July IF YOU HAVE MET YOUR FUNDRAISING COMMITTMENTS. Please call me anytime with questions you may have!
Thanks,
Amber
To Do List:
June 24th – Deadline for riders to meet minimum fundraising amount and receive their rider packets in the mail.
Aug 17th – Earth Angel Fest