Rides in all 50 states

msurads06

Ok, so this year I set myself the goal of riding in all of the "lower 48" states, hopefully eventually all 50. I expect this to take several years to complete but I am having trouble finding resources. I want to ride an organized event/charity ride (not a race) some states are easier to find listings than others. I live in texas and have found a few ride possibilities in Oklahoma, but am drawing a blank on many of the other states, This year and next year I plan to focus on states within 8-12 hours driving distance (ok, ks, la, ms, ar) or those near where i have family and will be visiting anyway (nc, sc, va, ga, fl, WI, IL, MN) (mostly south/southeast).

Can someone recommend either a good website for each state or maybe a ride you have done in a state that you would recomend? Also if anyone knows of events that are held on Sundays, I know there arent many but maybe a 2 day event that you can choose to ride only 1 day so I can do two states in a weekend? Looking for 20-100 miles. Thanks for the help.

ntnunk

This won't give you an all-inclusive list, but for any event listed with USA Cycling you can go to their website and search. Go here, click a state on the map, and then choose "Non-competitive" at the top under "Event Search Results." For NC there are currently 11 rides listed for 2016. I'm sure more will follow.

BikeRide.com seems to have a fair number listed as well, searchable by state.

bsexton3

active.com lists many of the rides I sign up for in Oregon and Washington. It has events all over the US. Not many on there now for around here. Most come on by April 1st.

Spatialized

In AZ there's tons of organized & charity rides depending on what you're looking for. Here's 2 of the biggest though:
Road: El Tour de Tucson, in Tucson, usually held in November multiple ride distances
MTB: the Whiskey Off-Road (April/May) in Prescott. (24 hours in Old Pueblo is awesome too but it's 24 hours...)

I'll second the active.com suggestion too.

denversillygoose

This list isn't for 2016 but most of these rides are annual and you can find their websites.

http://www.bikeacentury.com/colorado/

Some in the SW off the top of my head:
Santa Fe Century, NM spring
Moab Skinny Tire Festival, UT spring
COCO Century, La Junta CO June
Denver Century, CO summer
Buena Vista Bike Fest, CO
Tour the Moon, Grand Junction CO fall

Just_Ceci

This site has a pretty comprehensive list of Arkansas rides:
kansascyclist.com/events/Arkansas.html

msurads06

Thanks for the suggestions it seems like some states are easier to find listings for than others.
Spatialized is there a website that lists Arizona rides, Ideally I am looking for a ride where I can easily tack on a trip to the Grand Canyon as part of the trip. (but at the same time is not too mountainous

Spatialized

msurads06 wrote: »

Thanks for the suggestions it seems like some states are easier to find listings for than others.
Spatialized is there a website that lists Arizona rides, Ideally I am looking for a ride where I can easily tack on a trip to the Grand Canyon as part of the trip. (but at the same time is not too mountainous

Here's a couple of sites that have info on organized rides/racing.
http://azcycling.org/ (more race focused)
http://www.active.com/phoenix-az/cycling

If you're looking for something to connect a trip to the Grand Canyon look for activities in the Northern Arizona (Flagstaff) region. It's around 60-90 minutes drive from Flagstaff to the Canyon. If MTB is your thing you can hop on the AZ Trail (http://www.aztrail.org/) from downtown Flagstaff and ride all the way to the Canyon.

msurads06

Thanks, I am not as interested in "distance" from the Grand Canyon as I am in time of year. I wouldnt mind driving to AZ on friday, riding Saturday then driving to flagstaff, I would atleast make a 4 day weekend out of the trip with a full day at the Grand Canyon. More interested in making sure the ride is in Apr/May or Sept when kids are at school and traffic at the Canyon wont be so bad. I will check out the links.

Unfortunately I'm not into MTB at this time or the AZ Trail looks AWESOME!

Spatialized

msurads06 wrote: »

Thanks, I am not as interested in "distance" from the Grand Canyon as I am in time of year. I wouldnt mind driving to AZ on friday, riding Saturday then driving to flagstaff, I would atleast make a 4 day weekend out of the trip with a full day at the Grand Canyon. More interested in making sure the ride is in Apr/May or Sept when kids are at school and traffic at the Canyon wont be so bad. I will check out the links.

Unfortunately I'm not into MTB at this time or the AZ Trail looks AWESOME!

That's a solid plan, except if you're going on weekends, traffic will not be pleasant (generalization, ymmv). El Tour de Tucson might fit your requirements though, come in on Friday, ride Saturday and drive after and have all day Sunday at the Park. It's usually mid-November, awesome weather in Tucson, but the Canyon might be a bit chilly...but relatively empty.

I also remembered for Oregon (Portland specifically) these guys put on some awesome events: http://www.goodsportpromotion.com/

msurads06

Thanks, I will definitely put El Tour de Tucson on my ride list for next year. It looks exactly like the type of thing I'm interested in. I may sightsee on Sat and Sunday the do the canyon Monday. Even if I go Sunday I would assume (Perhaps wrongly) the crowds would be less than summer. It will depend on how much time I can get off work. Thank you again for the excellent suggestion and advice.

piccolarj

One great site is racesonline.com. There is a ride here in MS that's on the Natchez Trace Parkway June 8, 2016. It's a ride to raise money for cycling safety and the name is Little Mountain Ride. The Natchez Trace is a premier riding parkway with beautiful scenery and friendly wildlife year round. I am blessed to able to ride it anytime. You can also check out the Natchez Trace Parkway on their website. If that ride does not work out there are some others on that site from all around. Good Luck!

tony__mason

Alabama - www.bobikesbama.com