www.CostaRicaTicas.com

Are there any other cyclists on this board?

I'm looking for an opportunity (excuse) to visit CR solo and I can probably use this. Has anyone ever heard of a chica friendly cycling tour?

Has anyone on here ever been on ANY cycling tours in CR?

I've seen them run off the road by taxistas and truck drivers on the way to Jaco!! Does that count?

So we've established that they drive the same way in CR!

I've been on a cycling tour in CR and, for me at least, it was perhaps the most fun and thrilling thing I've ever done in CR (apart from the mongering of course).

What I went on was a day trip out of SJ that started off near the top of Irazu volcano. It went down and up double track dirt roads between Irazu and the neighboring Turrialba Volcano with only the occasional farmer on his horse for traffic. I'm ashamed to admit that the altitude had me gasping for breath and walking the bike at points, but I'm no hard core cyclist and could be in better shape cardiovascularly. Still, I didn't think that part was that bad and the scenery was fantastic.

The best part came at the end when we made it back to a paved road (or semi-paved in parts) on the Turrialba Volcano. This part is what you may have heard referred to as "Gravity Assisted" mountain biking which basically means all down hill. You can go as fast as you dare. My guide said we we were going at speeds up to 60kph although you'll want to slow down for the hairpin turns which had steep dropoffs on the other side (and no railing). Also, you'll find a few gravelly/sandy patches of roads and will be passing through lots of patches of clouds (just to add greater thrill if you speed blindly through it ). You might want to bring a pair of gloves as your fingers will get really cold in that climate and at that speed (and really tired from squeezing the brakes so much). On the plus side, there were VERY few (if any) cars on that road and the guide went ahead to spot any oncoming traffic for you. That part of the ride lasted about 30-45 minutes of near continuous thrill with no stops (or maybe one brief one). The guide said that usually MOST gringos take the ride a LOT slower with more stops than we did, so you can also go much slower if you're chicken . When I got down to the bottom, I was pleading with the guide and sag wagon driver to take us back up to the top so we could do it again and he almost went for it, but by that time it was getting late and was time to head back to SJ.

I'd definitely do that tour (or similar ones) again PARTICULARLY if I could have multiple stabs at the downhill part which was simply AWESOME. The bad part is that these tours seem to have gotten more expensive (typically over $100). It could be because of insurance liability although it didn't feel that dangerous to me. The equipment was in good condition, the route was as good or "bad" as any off-road or country road I've ridden elsewhere, I had control of how fast or slow I wanted to go (except on the uphill stretches where I HAS to go slow ) and, more importanly for them, I signed a waiver. I think the real reason these tours cost so much is because they don't get sufficient enrollment. When I went it was just me, the guide and the driver. I tipped them well, but I don't see how the company could make much money with just one paying customer. They've since added a 4 pax minimum and as a result don't always offer the tour. I think your best bet is to put together your own group. You can put me down for it if we're ever in CR at the same time.

BTW, there's a similar bike tour that starts with a tour of Poas Volcano, goes all down hill on country roads with FAR less traffic than the road down to Jaco and ends with a tour of the Doka Estates coffee finca. And there are also tours that are more up and down that descend into the Orosi Valley. Again with much less traffic to worry about than what these non-bicyclist fear mongers would have you believe.

IMHO, CR is an EXCELLENT place for mountain biking or even road biking. You just have to choose your roads. I wouldn't want to bike on any of the major traffic arteries here in Tampa at rush hour either, but that doesn't mean I won't take my bike out into the nearby country on weekends.

Oh yeah, as for chica friendly tours. It would probably have to be one very athletic chica or else it would have to be one of those all down-hill "gravity-assisted" tours which do not require ANY physical fitness but do require you have some balls (figuratively speaking). Do you know any chicas that are fearless?

BrotherTDF7-- I understand you were asking about specific companies or specific experiences such as Brother Prolijo provided, but a Google-search turned up quite a few references. I understand your concerns about the "Chica-friendly" part vis-a-vis the other riders but if you were a pudgy, out-of-shape geezer (such as, say, I am), you wouldn't be doing this anyway. As far as the other riders are concerned, she's your novia--that's all. I doubt if the tour operators care one way or another. The hard part as Brother Prolijo intimated will be the finding a hardy Chica. Hope this helps.

_________________
"A man accustomed to hear only the echo of his own sentiments, soon bars all the common avenues of delight, and has no part in the general gratification of mankind"--Dr. Johnson
"Amen, brother"-ED

TDF7,

If you are a Serious rider/racer check out this link. I have a few friends stateside that are looking at this race for '09.

http://www.velonews.com/race/detail/85026

I am a cyclist.Exclusively since my car disappeared almost a year ago. Am considering investing in a touring quality mountain bike (Cannondale or Trek). I would be down for a ride from San Jose to Manuel Antonio.I tried a while back to look up any CR cycling clubs to ride with, but could not find any.

As JB pointed out, a Google search for Costa Rica cycling will turn up many hits. The problem is that many of them are for multi-day package tours which I don't think most mongers are really looking for. How to sort through all the clutter? Well, this is what I do , so here is Prolijo to the help again.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:I start with info about some CR bike races since HolaB brought that up. Next I discuss local CR bike clubs that MrLV was asking about. I throw in some information about Bike Shops and Bike Rentals (as most guys probably don't plan to bring their own bikes). A little general commentary on choice of bikes for MrLV since he also mentioned that. Info on the shorter 1 day bike tours that TDF7, MrLV and others might be most interested in. And finally suggestions to MrLV (and anyone else still interested) in biking all the way to Manuel Antonio.

Bike Races in CR: I'll start with a couple of bike races, not because I think most CRTers will be that interested in participating, but because HolaB brought it up with his link and, like him, I think some might find these interesting even if they don't want to join in themselves.

The official website for La Ruta de los Conquistadores, the multi-stage race that HolaB's link referred to, can be found at http://www.adventurerace.com. It has been called "The World's Toughest Mountain Bike Race". Personally, I suspect a lot of that is hype by the race's promoters (and cycling mag writers looking for a dramatic story). If you want to talk about tough, IMHO the REAL toughest race in the world is the "Great Divide" which runs through the Rockies from the Canadian border to the border with Mexico and probably leaves La Ruta in the dust. And, as long as we're talking interesting bike races, I should also mention the "Mega Avalanche" which has been called the "World's CRAZIEST Downhill Mountain Bike Race" since it descends 2600m (in 33kms) from Pic Blanc in France with ice still on the roads near the top. HOWEVER, I'm NOT about to enter ANY of these races. Unfortunately for MrLV, since I'm sure he was thinking of trying it , La Ruta STARTS from the Pacific Coast and goes UP rather than the direction he was looking for. OTOH, IF he can make it past the 1st 2 stages, the second half of the race descends from the new TerraMall in Tres Rios (just east of SJ) to Reina's Restaurant in Limon on the ATLANTIC coast.

I'll toss out some other CR biking events. The biggest takes place about a month after La Ruta. The Vuelta Ciclista a Costa Rica (or Tour of Costa Rica) is a mutli-stage race held annually in late December. Spread over 12 days, this is may be a little easier than La Ruta as it carries a 2.2 UCI rating (just above the 2.1 which is the easiest for multistage events). The event is organized by the FCC and info on that race can be found at their website (see below). The next big race for 2009 is El reto de los Volcanes which is just a few weeks away (April 3-5). It is a 3 stager that climbs successively the slopes of Irazu, Barva and Poas. After that at the end of June there is the Guanaride a 5 day event that starts with a mountain climb up from Liberia, followed by 4 more stages that take you from near Playa Hermosa all the way to Playa Tambor at the southern end of the Nicoya Peninsula. The last "big" race of the year (before the Conquistadores and Vueltas) is the La Soledad MTB. It is a 1-day 100km race that takes place near Playa Samara in October. Those are probably the 5 biggest races of the year in CR, but you can also find out about many other smaller races that occur through out CR at the FCC website and at http://www.bikecr.com. The next couple will be this very weekend: the Copa Nacional in San Ramon and Ride Suerre Trek in Guapiles.
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CR Bike Clubs & Associations::The Costa Rican Cycling Federation or Federación Costarricense de Ciclismo (the FCC mentioned above) is the national governing body of cycle racing in Costa Rica. Their website is http://www.fecoci.net (unfortunately, for the language challenged, all in spanish). Some other mountain bike group websites (also in spanish) are http://biclacr.net, http://ecociclistas.blogspot.com (their blogsite since their main website seems to be down) and http://www.ticomania.com (really more of a multisport or triathalon website). There are undoubtedly other formal and informal CR biking groups that organize races or at least recreational group rides, but they normally don't even have websites. One such mountain biking club that I found reference to is the Asociación Nacional de Ciclismo de Montaña (HQ in Cartago). Again no website but at least here is their contact info: Fax: (506) 591-8795 E-mail: mtbcostarica@gmail.com.

Bike shops and bike rentals: MrLV was talking about investing in a bike, but even if you have a bike you might not want to lug it to CR. Sure you can always pack one (it can't be much harder than packing a surfboard, which you see many people do), and it will increase your biking options while in CR, but I don't think most guys are going to want to go to that trouble for just a 1-day trip during their stay. That means either going on a tour that provides bikes for you or finding someplace that will rent you one. For whatever its worth, I found 2 working websites for bike shops in CR http://www.ciclolosases.net in SJ and http://www.cicloguilly.com in Cartago which claims to be the largest in CR. BTW, do you see any connection between the biggest bike store being in Cartago and the National Association of Mountain Biking being located in Cartago? This is probably the center for MTB in CR and the area where you'll find the most biking activities. Any way, I have no idea if these shops also rent bikes or not, but being the largest are probably the most likely to. One outfit that I know offers bike rentals in SJ is http://www.bikingincostarica.com (sorry no rates). Here are some other links for bike rentals in other popular CR locations where you might go: Arenal ($22/day), Monteverde ($25/3hr & $35/day 9-5) and Manuel Antonio ($15/hd & $20/fd).

Choice of bike: MrLV, personally I'm a "Trek man" and am very happy with mine but, for whatever its worth Canondale seems to be a lot bigger in CR. My bike is actually a hybrid trail/road bike because I do a little of both. I used to do a lot more single-track riding over some pretty rough trails (and still do sometimes). However, in my old age, I'm finding I'm increasingly just as happy on a smooth single-track or "boring old" double-track and my heiny is definitely more happy with that. And my bike works great for that. I also ride a lot of the paved bike paths and back roads in my area and my bike is passable for that, but is far from ideal. My frame is a little too heavy and my knobby tires equal a noisier and rougher ride with more road resistance. I can't see buying a 2nd bike right now but what I might do is getting a 2nd set of wheels that I can swap out on days I ride the roads. It won't change the stiffness of my ride or the weight of my frame but it might mean a little smoother easier ride. Any way, my point is that, unless you want to get more than one bike, you really need to think long and hard about what type of biking you're most likely to do - real off road mountain trail riding or road touring. If you really want something that can do both than you should get a front suspension (hardtail) bike as that will at least spare your wrists and arms the impact of off-road bumps but if you go full suspension I'm sure you'll find that too heavy for extensive road touring. Basically, if you seek a compromise solution, that's all you'll get is a compromise that is okay but not really great at everything you may want to do with it.

One day bike tours in CR: Unfortunately, I don't remember the name of the day tour company I used for my bike ride in CR, but I have compiled a list of other outfits that provide tours. First of all, those sites that I provided above for bike rentals in Manuel Antonio ($40-95/day), Arenal ($67-95/day) and SJ (http://www.bikingincostarica.com again no prices listed) all provide day tours. That link for SJ lists 6 different tours, again mostly in the direction of Cartago. Finally, you might also want to try http://www.lava-tours.com/Day/dayb.htm which offers 5 different 1 day bike tours in the SJ area ranging from the easy Poas-Doka gravity assisted ride I mentioned earlier (which I think even a "pudgy, out-of-shape geezer" like JB could probably do) to the intermediate Orosi Valley and Tapanti NP swim and ride to the advanced "Rodeo Ride" in the mountains west of SJ near the University of Peace. The one I did sounds most like their "Irazu Challenge" which they call intermediate to advanced, but IMHO apart from the effects of thin air I did not think it was even really that hard. The last tour they have which is also listed as intermediate to advanced is the "Gravity assisted Cerro de la Muerte Dowhill", where they drive you up to the Tarrazu area and you ride downhill to Quepos. That last one sounds like just what MrLV was looking for. However all of these tours require a minimum of 6-8 people for them to do. If they don't get enough other people to go on the tour, you'll need to come up with them yourself. Still this could be a great thing to put together as a CRT outing.

Suggestion to MrLV and others who want to bike to Manuel Antonio: The way most of us think of going to MA is by way of Atenas-Orotina-Jaco, which is fine for driving but which means riding your bike on twisty mountain roads with lots of crazy tico truck and car drivers (no thanks) and then the extra distance on the mostly straight, flat and boring stretch between Jaco and Quepos. I think a better way to go by bike would be the way proposed in the section above. If you can't manage to do it with them (due to insufficient enrollment or to save on costs), you could do this on your own. First, you could take a bus part of the way to get out of the city and spare yourself a lot of the uphill. Of course, I've never taken a bike on a bus or seen it done in CR, but imagine it is possible. Some buses have compartments underneath or else you could carry it on-board providing the bus is not too crowded (or you pay little extra). Besides, what were you going to do with your bike to get back to SJ? The bus that many of us take up to Donde Alcides in Tabarca would give you a good start and is only 40 minutes from SJ. Better yet, the bus to San Marcos de Tarrazu takes just over 2 hours and it is there where you'd hit the dirt roads down to Quepos. I wouldn't do this solo, in case I ran into some trouble out in the middle of nowhere, but I could see renting a bike and doing this independently with a wingman, a spare tire and a good map.

Yo Pro,

Thanks for taking my suggestion in the manner that it was given. I appreciate your thorough analysis and don't mind the length (I can read really fast...).

Props also for knowing the correct format for an EXECUTIVE SUMMARY including the all caps. However, before somebody interjects, and ES is supposed to contain all the conclusions, the real data, that you would find detailed in the study: A synopsis of findings, if you will. Your ES on cycling detailed what you would discuss in the post but did not give the data, just listed what would be included.

I only mention it because I know you like to be correct on the details and I don't want somebody taking a cheap shot at you on the board.

I like your stuff...

Pac55

_________________
"Your love gives me such a thrill
but your love don't pay my bills,
I NEED THE MONEY!" - John Lee Hooker

Disclaimer: The above is merely the opinion of the author unless specific scientific data is included.
Your mileage may vary. https://costaricaticas.com/phpBB2/viewto ... 978#206978

You know, I actually thought about that when I was writing it, but didn't see any way to do it without making the ES really long too. Its not like there are really any conclusions per se in that post or data that is more important than the rest (other than perhaps the many links). So my ES in this case turned out to be more like a ToC. At least my "ES" and my boldened sections makes it easier for readers to jump down to the part that most interests them. And, if they don't want to wade through even an individual section, those individual links are also easy to spot and click on.

Any way, writing tomes like this is not always as easy as I make it look, at least not when I have to go back and draw the most salient points into a summary (what would you want next? footnotes? ). Altering one's unique style is not something that comes so naturally or easily and this will be a work in process. But thanks for your input nonetheless.

Just a bunch of guys having fun, in varied ways.

_________________
"A man accustomed to hear only the echo of his own sentiments, soon bars all the common avenues of delight, and has no part in the general gratification of mankind"--Dr. Johnson
"Amen, brother"-ED

Prolijo - that is great information. I have a Gary Fisher down here and do some XC biking. If you go up in the mountains, you will see a lot of locals doing DH on pretty expensive equipment. DH is a lot more popular because it is pretty much up and down.

My neighbor is also a biker and has down the the trail of the Conquistadors. This ride is not for the faint of heart and is overnight, with lots of hard work.

IMPORTANT NOTE: You should always go in groups and be prepared for anything. I was combing through some Spanish discussion boards looking for some different trails, and came across many threads, where people have been robbed up in the mountains. Yes - bikes and money gone. In one case at gun point. This happened in Santana and the Atenas de Escazu. This is locals, robbing locals.

My Colombian neighbor used to ride all the time, until his Canondale got robbed. Its a sad twist on a great outdoor opportunity in CR.

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In order to write about life, first you must live it! - E. Hemingway.

That's very interesting (and disturbing) about the robberies of cyclists up in the mountains. I've heard that armed robberies of hikers is extremely common in places like the slopes of the Izalco Volcano of western El Salvador, but this is the first I've heard of cyclists being targeted in CR.

Those $100 per day group tours sound pretty pricey compared to doing it independently, but when you factor in all the other aspects it starts to look more and more like a real bargain. First, there is the obvious cost of renting the bike for the day (probably $20 or more). Then there is the cost of transportation out to whereever you're biking and back. It might be possible to do that by bus for fairly cheap but it will much more hassle than using a tour group provided van. Alternatively, one could use a rental car which will probably cost another $20/pp (for a group of 2 after figuring in gas, insurance and the additional cost of a rental bike rack), however, unless you start and stop in the same place (which would be impossible on a gravity run), that will add the problem of how to get back to your car after you get to the bottom. Next you add the less tangible benefit of having a sag wagon trailing behind you to pick you up in case you run into some trouble on the road (obviously does not apply to single track sections). And finally you add the potential loss of your rental bike which you'll probably be responsible for unless the outfitter offered some extra insurance for that (at an extra cost). On a group tour where they provide the bikes, the risk of stolen equipment probably falls on the group organizer rather than their customers. Also travelling in a tour group of 6-8 or more plus your tour guide (who, for all we know, may be "packing" himself) is much less likely to be targetted by crooks to begin with.

Re: your neighbor's account of the Conquistadores race. I'm quite impressed if he has done the whole race (or even any stage of it). And I'm absolutely sure he got it right about it not being for the faint of heart. However, you were actually understating it when you said it was "overnight" because it is actually a FOUR DAY race. Here is the complete race description from the www.adventurerace.com website:

There are groups of local cyclists everywhere. Here is a spanish discussion board that I joined:

http://www.puromtb.com/Default.aspx?tabid=422

There is even an english section. I know several locals that are serious, serious riders. The breeze through trails that I carry my bike through.

Concerning dangers of robbery... I'm suprised that you are suprised. The locals always go in groups. In fact, on their board, you will see them preaching about riding in groups, much like we preach about walking in groups at night.

Its sad, but true.

FYI... if anyone wants to go on a ride this weekend, I'm going out past Santana.

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In order to write about life, first you must live it! - E. Hemingway.