Belgian Waffle Ride - Cedar City, Utah 2020

I think there is only around 5,000 feet of climbing, not 9,000 feet, at least according the published route. I have scouted out some of the gravel down there and lots of it is well maintained hard packed dirt roads. I don’t think it will be cancelled. I had a century ride down there about a month ago that wasn’t cancelled. There was a concert that had been blocked from happening in several cities in Utah and Cedar City was finally the one to say they would allow it.

Master road nationals in Cedar City September 24th-27th was cancelled today. IMHO I just don’t see BWR happening. Even if Utah’s cases, deaths etc…are really low, why have people like me come in from all corners of the country where most are seeing the virus spiral out of control. I’d be sort of bummed if I were a Cedar City resident.

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I’m still cautiously optimistic. Cedar City is pretty aggressive to recruit and host events. It’s still over 3 months away so all we can really do is hope.

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Sure, lots of waiting right now! I’m planning to wait until a month out and reassess. See if the ride is still on, does it feel safe to fly, how is the ride dealing with risk issues, etc.

Also waiting to see how this pans out. A lot can happen for better or for worse in 3 months.

A race to keep an eye on is LOTOJA, it might give a good indication if BWR Cedar City still happens. That also starts in Utah, with usually around 1,000 people riding it. As of 5 days ago the race director for it said that LOTOJA is still a go, with some modifications for things like staggered start times, etc. I’m still training hard and really hopeful BRW Cedar City will happen.

Just got the email with the update, and it still a go as of now. They mentioned the Cache Valley Grand Fondo in the email, and their practices to make it a safe and successfully event. I actually rode it a few weeks ago and had a really positive experience. I am super excited for BWRCC!

Also, does anyone have an updated course route? It looks like it has changed drastically from the originally announced route. This looks like it will have more climbing and pavement that the route that they first had for it.

Some updates. The remarks from the organizer sound pretty thoughtful, and the small field size for Utah is encouraging. Looks like August 17th is their date to decide whether it’s happening.

And then I’ll decide whether it feels responsible to fly out there!

The HooDoo events at the end of August and the Tour of Southern Utah in mid-September are both on track and happening.

Coureur rider we met on PCH yesterday had the ‘insider’ insight “nobody knows what will happen next week”. We are planning as a go since UT events are running today but stay nimble. Any Cedar City folks on here who can recommend dog(s) walker/sitter?

An interesting read. With only 500 people signed up and it spread across over 120 miles, that will make for a lot of solo riding…

I just finished the Cedar city fire Road race and it was well organized with over 100 participants no issues we are BWR is going to happen . I can see it happening with Utah going yellow and green with the COVID-19 . I am registered for the E class division and I’m going

Yes I would like a route any download a GPS map so I know exactly where I’m going in the narrative they say this

I don’t know if it is official, but if you search BWRCC on ride with GPS it looks like someone has tried making a plan for the route.

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Thanks @zoodude!! Looks like that should be the offical/final route. It was made by Michael Marckx (mmx), aka the guy that runs the show for BWR.

There seem to be two sort of “final” versions. One officially labeled as “Final” and another labeled with “(no Washington County Version)”, so I’m assuming that could be a last minute change if Washington Country decides that they don’t want to be a part of it.

BWR Waffle Final Course

Canyon BWR Cedar City (no Washington County version)

BWRCC Wafer Final Course

Good job @TQuass putting the links in there. I am new to this forum and didn’t think to do that.
The “(no Washington County Version)” does avoid Washington County, but it also uses a couple short roads that appear on the map but are not actually there. My bet is that the “Final” is the real deal.
I have ridden on most (but not all) of the roads in that “Final” version. Should be fun! I’ve only been biking for about 2.5 years so you can factor my lack of proper cycling knowledge and skills into this, but here is what I think:
The vast majority of the gravel is hard packed dirt with a bit of gravel or rocks on top, and not much washboards. Should be a nice ride. There is a section of single track about 4.5 miles long near the end. I took my gravel bike on it once. It was manageable but not enjoyable for me, I have zero mountain bike experience and not great bike handling skills. That stretch is pretty flat there is just a lot of big (for a gravel bike) rocks in the path and some sharp turns. A bit before that single track is a rough climb. It is only a couple miles long but it is steep and feels like it takes forever! If people are going to walk this is where it’ll happen.

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I saw they recommend 36 or larger tires my wife is riding her road bike with gravel tires but only fits 32s. We are only doing the wafer length ride so we don’t have to do the big washboard road up kanarraville mountain. she is planning on walking the technical parts in the singletrack area anyways. Since you’ve ridden most of those roads before do you think she would be ok on those tires or should we really look at renting another bike for her.

That is a hard call to make.
I recently switched from 43s to 47 and am loving the extra cushion on the dirt. In my opinion it would be mostly a matter of comfort, although I think that such narrow tires may be a bit hard to ride on the single track section.

Cool thanks for quick response I’ll probably have her start looking for a rental just in case.