UPDATE: As we've gotten closer to this weekend, the weather forecast has shifted, with Saturday still looking like it'll be lovely and Sunday looking like it's back to rain by the afternoon. I'm shifting this ride a day earlier to the nice weather on Saturday; apologies if the last-minute change means we lose some RSVPs in the process.

For this route, I'm going to do two "SMILES" - starting with Mercer Island, followed by the lower Lake Washington loop. This totals 33 miles, which is about 1.5x the normal SMILE out-and-back route.

As this is an early-season ride focused partly on the great weather, we're doing this in the afternoon instead of the morning. Meet at 1:30pm, wheels rolling by 1:40pm. I'm capping attendance at 15 as I don't feel comfortable leading a bigger ride on the open roads there.

Route: I plan to ride the “Double Smile”, meaning I’ll start at the parking lot at the Lid Park on Mercer Island, ride south along W Mercer Way all the way to the south end of the island and back up E Mercer Way until reaching I-90, then cross I-90 eastbound and continue with the clockwise Lake Washington loop around Renton Airport, returning to Mercer Island via I-90 eastbound. Total distance is about 33 miles, 1250 ft of elevation. There is a restroom and water fountain nearby the start/finish, some options near the Landing in Renton, and again at Seaward Park.

You can see the map here: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/47249952

Pace and regrouping: I'm very out-of-shape right now, so expect I'll maintain an average pace slower than last year (wild guess? 13 mph), which translates to about 16mph on the flats. We will have a few planned regroup spots, but this means you should expect the ride to split into smaller groups based on your speed, and you could be riding portions solo.

Equipment and Safety: Helmets are required to ride. A good headlight and taillight are recommended. Rain (however unlikely) will cancel this ride. Bring your own nutrition you expect to need during the ride. Riders should be able to sustain the appropriate pace, know how to read a cue sheet, change a flat tire (and have the requisite equipment to do so) and have a positive attitude. Ride Leaders and Sweeps will not stop long for flats or mechanical issues due to group safety.

In order to participate in any Seattle Triathlon Group event, you must sign our waiver. Waivers only need to be signed once per year or if your contact info has changed. As this is early season, if you participated in an event with us in 2024 you like still have an active waiver from last year - you can login to your account at https://www.seattletri.org/dashboard to check. I will only be accepting electronic waivers - please complete the waiver ahead of time!

Thanks and Tri On!