Additional Information
RAMROD (Ride Around Mount Rainier in One Day)
is the Pacific Northwest's premiere one-day ultra-marathon cycling event. The course starts in Enumclaw, WA (elevation 720 feet) with a gradual downhill to its lowest elevation (300 feet) near Orting. This is followed by 40 miles of rolling hills through the towns of Eatonville, Elbe, and Ashford, with a gradual climb to the Nisqually entrance of Mount Rainier National Park. The climb stiffens at Longmire where riders begin the 12 mile ascent to Paradise (elevation 5,420 feet). A 12-mile descent through Stevens Canyon follows and then a quick 3-mile climb to Backbone Ridge. This leads to one of the most fun descents of the course: a swooping 5-mile run to the Grove of the Patriarchs and the intersection with Hwy 410. What follows is generally considered the most difficult section of the course: the 9-mile climb up Cayuse Pass (elevation 4,694) which starts at 100 miles into the ride. The rapid descent from the pass ends with about 30miles to go. These last miles are gradually descending or rolling except for one final, fast descent down Mud Mountain Dam just 5 miles from the finish in Enumclaw.
As is usual for most RAMROD events, the exact course we will follow is presently unknown. However, we have been informed that last year's road repairs have been successfully completed and we are optimistic that we will be using the traditional course.
We are in regular contact with the respective permitting agencies and will keep you informed of any changes when we learn of them.
In November of 2006, the park suffered extensive flood damage. Many of the roads became impassible, campgrounds were destroyed and scores of trails were wiped out. Last year RAMROD riders helped Redmond Cycling Club raise over $12,000 in donations to help rebuild our park! We want to continue those efforts this year as there is still a lot of restoration to be done. Even if you decide not to ride RAMROD this year, we are providing an easy way for you to make a donation to the restoration efforts. Go here to make a donation or make your donation when you register on Active.com. In addition, we will again be holding a special auction of RAMROD tickets. All proceeds from the sale of these tickets will go to the Washington National Park Fund for the benefit of Mt. Rainier National Park's rebuilding effort. This auction will be held after the lottery results are announced and will probably be done through eBay. Check the Redmond Cycling Club website http://www.redmondcyclingclub.org/ in mid-April for more information on this special fund raising auction.
