One of the great favorites in the region, this ride covers northern Madison County and extends into Culpeper County. There are exceptional views of the rolling countryside and the mountains; a three-quarter mile steep climb at mile 13 and the descent into Etlan present views of Old Rag Mountain from several angles.
As an optional out-and-back, turn left at Etlan Rd. (mile 13.0) and head up a beautiful, shady valley for 4.5 miles to where the state road ends at the entrance to the Shenandoah National Park (the last 0.8 miles is quite steep). Return and continue with the regular route.
Stores: Mile 17 (Etlan)
Route page:Â MadPeper
Click on the images below for the RWGPS pages.
* Please indicate you will attend by leaving a comment below. Be sure to have the route on your phone or bike computer, and/or have a map or cue sheet. Also, please check the ride comments the day of the ride if the weather is iffy.
Be sure to have the route on your phone or bike computer, and/or have a map or cue sheet.
For details on how group rides are categorized, check out the Ride Classification guidelines.
All riders are required to have a helmet; a taillight, Road ID and a rear-view mirror is strongly recommended. You are also expected to have adequate fluids and a road-worthy bicycle in good repair.  Many rides, but not all, will include the opportunity to stop at a store to replenish supplies.
You should be prepared to fix a flat tire and perform other minor repairs on the roadside.  If you are new to cycling and are not comfortable with these procedures, don’t let that stop you.  However, you might want to talk to a more experienced member before the ride so the group is prepared to help if necessary.
The club considers safety to be our very highest priority.  Please review the information on the Safety Page before you join us for a ride.
We hope that you will find this site helpful; your questions and comments are welcomed.
Start times are based on seasonal averages. Because of the inability to ensure everyone is informed of a last-minute change, scheduled rides will not change based on predicted weather and temperature. Also, club rides generally will not show as “canceled” on the calendar. All riders have their personal thresholds for temperature, wind, and moisture, and are expected to use their best judgment about whether to ride on a given day. CBC encourages all members to exercise caution. If in doubt, please use the comment section on the ride calendar page to communicate with other potentially interested riders.Â
Two options, please post to our Facebook Group or contact us.
I just signed up as a new CBC member and I’m looking forward to riding the 52 mile route. I’m new to CBC, but have been riding in the area for many years. Ned Ormsby
I’m riding tomorrow hopefully 52.
Tim B.
Paul and I are going to join the 52 miler.
Hello! I would like to ride this route, it looks great! In order to be able to do it I will need to get a baby sitter for my little one so I would like to know how many people roughly will be riding. I do not one to pay somebody to take care of the little monster and be the only one riding 🙂
Thanks!