To celebrate having the Friday before 4th of July off, Dad and I organized a very modest group ride up to the Paradise overlook on Mt. Rainier. We met up with a total of eight people, including ourselves, and we all wore masks when close to each other. But mostly we weren’t close — we rode up the mountain at our own paces, and ended up in groups of three or fewer almost the entire time.

After so many months of stringing the same roads together in slightly different variations, it felt great to see new sights and ride new roads. Riding up the mountain felt decent — I’m not as strong as I was last time I rode there on RAMROD in 2016, but still pretty good. And it didn’t rain!

Inspiration Point, Mt. Rainier
Inspiration Point

The route as mapped was only 60 miles. I’d been doing 100-mile rides the last few weekends, so that didn’t seem like nearly enough. When we reached the cars, everyone else went home, but I wanted to ride a bit more. A quick map consult indicated that the town of Eatonville was 20 miles away, with unmistakable directions (there was literally one turn). I arranged with Dad meet in Eatonville — he drove and I rode. He took his time eating, getting changed, and generally discombobulating from the ride; I kept pedaling. I arrived in Eatonville maybe 10 minutes before Dad.

End of Rainier Ride
Ended in Eatonville.

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