Penticton Bike Tour - Day 2 and Day 3 Rides

Day 2 Rides
Day one is done and the legs are warmed up for the first of what I consider three hard days over the next week. Today, both groups will hit the Ironman course. The Rad category will stick to the course (minus out-and-back) and get in around 160kms. The Awesome-Rad category will ride the Ironman course to Green Mountain Rd (just before the Yellow Lake climb begins) and then hang a left. The group will follow this road 24 kmish up to the junction. Trouble will then ensue as the climb gets significantly steeper to the Apex ski resort. Don’t be fooled by what may seem like a short 11km climb.

If I can pin point one moment in time to give context around why Lockie soloed an ice climb half way into his 150km off-piste ride a few weeks ago through Waiporous, it is the Apex climb. He obviously wanted to avenge the partial death of his body by the hands of Apex’s eight to 12 per cent grade access road during last year’s bike tour.

Day 3 Ride
Day 3 is your first “rest day” with an approx. 100km spin. Both groups will ride south to Oliver, hang a west, ride up the hill and then follow White Lake Road to Area 51. There are a couple of minor hills, but this day should be kept easy. We should be back to town early afternoon at the latest so there will be time to storm around the Okanogan, check out some wineries, lay on the beach or whatever. Feel free to take this day off if you so desire. No pressure today.

While we’re on the rest day activities, visit the Oliver Twist winery just outside of Oliver. It’s fairly new (2 years old I think) and has some unique whites you won’t find around many other places. Specifically, their viognier and kerner are super fun, but they have the usual reds and whites as well. Their gift shop also has some quality stuff to check out.

Finally, if you are not an ABA member or member of another provincial cycling association and would like to ride with us for the week, click here for the link to purchase the insurance you need. It's $35. See you for Day Four rides ‘n stuff next week .