NCAR/El Dorado Canyon Loop - Boulder, CO

These "Whopper Virgin" commercials are driving me nuts. The premise is that taste testers travel around the world to find burger "virgins", give them a Big Mac and a Whopper, and see which one they like the most - the "ultimate taste test." My problem with this commercial is that in order to find true "virgins" the produces must have found isolated populations, away from city centers where Burger King and McDonald's can be found. These isolated populations are probably growing and raising their own food. Which means that their diet is high on proteins, vegetables and fiber, and completely lacking in processed foods. The Whopper comes in an 1800 calorie package of processed beef, cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion and bacon (at your option). The Big Mac is a 540 calorie bomb with many of the same ingredients, but covered in a french dressing-like sauce. The "virgins" wolf down these burgers, give a thumbs up to the Whopper, and then the commercial fades out with some ominous voice-over about how the "virgins" have spoken. I have an idea; lets show these people about 2 hours after they eat the burgers - running around, holding their stomachs, vomiting and trying not to shit all over the town square. Maybe the producers could do a test of which burger resulted in less explosive diarrhea. The Whopper virgins have spoken!!

Thankfully we have bikes to work off any Whopper/Big Mac damage we've managed to do to ourselves, and thankfully mountain towns have an abundance of great rides. The NCAR/El Dorado Canyon Loop is a great flatter ride that runs through the South Boulder area. Featuring a few moderate climbs, great views of the southern Flatirons and a cool, isolated canyon, this ride great for putting in some base building miles.

Starting from downtown Boulder, the ride takes you up the bike path that runs parallel to Broadway and runs through the CU campus. This bike path will take you all the way into South Boulder and to the first climb of this ride, the NCAR campus, which sits on top of a hill underneath the Flatirons. This climb is long and fairly gradual, providing some great views of the plains and foothills and functioned more as a warmup for the rest of the ride. The descent, however, is a ton of fun - very fast, great sight lines, and fairly smooth road. Back to the bottom of NCAR, the ride climbs up through a Boulder neighborhood that provides some more great views of the meadows ath abut the Flatirons, before diving back down towards Table Mesa Road.

From Table Mesa the ride heads further south and eventually heads back to the El Dorado Canyon area. This part of the ride is my favorite - a long, slightly uphill road that heads West directly into the Canyon area, which is apparently a great spot for hiking and rock climbing. The road eventually comes into a small little town before it turns to dirt. This is our turnaround point. After winding back out of the canyon, the ride heads up Cherryvale Road - another long, rolling road that heads northeast. You'll roll past meadows, farmland and a reservoir. Not the mountains, but a beautiful part of Boulder nonetheless. From Cherryvale road its easy to hop onto the Boulder Creek Path, which will take you back into downtown.

The best part of this ride is the long, fairly even straightaways that are great for intervals or sprinting. The moderate climbing is nice if your legs or sore, or if you are trying to work off a hangover, when a climb up Flagstaff might result in you running around like the Whopper virgins.

Distance: 26.5 miles

Directions: Starting at 9th and Pearl Street, take 9th South to Canyon Ave and take the Boulder Creek Path east. Hop on to the bike path in Central Park, at Arapahoe Ave and Broadway St. Take the path as it climbs up Broadway towards south Boulder. The path will parallel the CU campus. About a quarter mile after Regent Drive you can either go under Broadway or straight towards the law school. Take the tunnel under Broadway, and then turn left, as you continue to head south (you'll be able to see CU's law school across the street). You will cross Baseline, where the path will briefly put you onto the road. The path will continue to parallel Broadway all the way up to Table Mesa Drive (sometimes putting you onto a road). Take a right on Table Mesa (towards the Flatirons). Stay on Table Mesa, as it climbs all the way up to the NCAR campus. Turn around once you reach the top and bomb back down Table Mesa.

Toward the bottom of where Table Mesa begins to climb to NCAR you want to take a right on Lehigh St. There isn't a stop sign here, so make sure to keep a look out for the road. Lehigh will climb and eventually crest above a large meadow before descending down all the way to Broadway (Lehigh will eventually turn into Greenbriar Road before intersecting with Broadway). At Broadway you will come to a light. Cross Broadway and you will be able to pick up a bike path, which you will take a right on (towards the south). This path will eventually put you on to Marshall Road. Take Marshall Road until it intersects with Eldorado Springs Drive, where you want to take a right. This road will take you up to a light. Go through the light, crossing Foothills Parkway, and then bear left at the convenience store. Eldorado will take you all the way back towards the canyon. Once the road turns to dirt, turnaround and head back, again crossing Foothills Parkway at the light. However, instead of heading back on Marshall Road, take a right onto Marshall Drive (your first right after you cross Foothills Parkway), and then a left onto S. Cherryvale Road, which is the first left you can take.

Cherryvale winds through the plains east of Boulder, passing farms and a resevoir before bringing you to a stop sign at the intersection of Baseline and Cherryvale. At this intersection, go straight and then take your first left on to Dimmit Drive. This road will eventually dead end at an entrance to another paved bike path. Take the path until it ends at Centennial Trail. Take a left and then your first right on to Merritt Drive. Take Merritt Drive until it intersects with Eisenhower Drive, where you will take a right and head toward the intersection of Eisenhower and Arapahoe Ave. Cross Arapahoe and then take a left on the the sidewalk/bike path that parralels Arapahoe and eventually intersect with the Boulder Creek Path to take you all the back to downtown Boulder.


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