“Gravel Gals” Skills Program

Beginner Tour Icon

May 7-July 8, 2023

Join us this spring to go from gravel-curious to gravel-confident!

This six-session program covers everything from the fundamentals of bike care and group riding, to the skills you’ll need to ride your bike with confidence on rail trails, gravel roads and forest tracks. You’ll even learn our techniques and secrets for mapping out a great route!

Open to all cyclists who identify as women.

See below for full description and dates. Most sessions will run from about 9 a.m. to noon, riding at an average pace of 16-20 km/h.

Participants in the Gravel Gals program will receive a discount on our Oxford County Gravel Gals Getaway – September 9-10 at the Elm Hurst Inn & Spa in Ingersoll, Ontario.

Presented in cooperation with SeeWhatSheCanDo – your neighbourhood hub for active women.

Price: $575

Included with program is a special edition Gravel Gals Cycling Jersey. Please select your jersey size below, or take a look at our sizing chart:

SKU: 2023-01 Categories: , Tags: , ,

Description

The Gravel Gals program is focused on skill-building in an encouraging and social atmosphere. It's all FUN and no judgement! As father to four daughters and brother to three sisters, Ride Captain Rich wouldn't have it any other way.

We'll ride in some of our favourite locales: Caledon, Fergus and Woodstock. Throughout the program, we'll be joined by some experienced, friendly women we've met out on the roads and trails. They will co-lead the rides, offering their perspectives and expertise. 

Participants should be comfortable cycling for a couple of hours at a time on paved surfaces or mountain bike trails. Gravel bikes, mountain bikes and road bikes (with a minimum tire size of 32mm) are welcome.

Dates & Details

Session 1 – The Fundamentals

Sunday, May 7 - 9 a.m. to noon - Location TBC

We’ll start with a one-hour session on how to care for your chain and gears, along with how to change a flat tire. Then, we’ll spend a couple of hours practicing some bike handling skills and learning how to ride cooperatively as a group on the rail trail. We’ll wrap up with coffee, treats and a Q&A session.

Session 2 – Bike Handling on Gravel

Saturday, May 13 - 9 a.m. to noon - Inglewood

This session is all about cycling on loose surfaces: picking your path, riding rough road  and how to brake – all the while continuing to develop our group riding skills on a 2 ½ hour ride. After the ride, we’ll enjoy coffee, treats and a Q&A.

Session 3 – Advanced Gravel Skills

Sunday, May 28 – 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. - Palgrave

We’ll head out onto the trail and roads for a 3 ½ hour ride. Along the way, we’ll pause to learn and practice how to climb hills more efficiently and how to descend and corner with confidence – with a mid-ride coffee stop to refuel before our return.

Session 4 – Putting it into Practice

Saturday, June 11 – 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. - Fergus

Gaining skills and confidence, we’ll enjoy a social ride with on-the-bike tips and encouragement, cycling rail trails and gravel roads non-stop (except for a tasty mid-ride bakery break).

Session 5 – Forest Trails

Sunday, June 25 – 9 a.m. to 1 p.m - Palgrave

The best gravel rides include a little bit of everything: rail trails, gravel roads and even a little time riding through the woods. With guidance from an experienced woman mountain-biker, we’ll ride through Albion Hills or Palgrave Forest, learning the fundamentals you need to handle double-track and easy single-track trails. After the ride, we’ll enjoy a delicious lunch on the patio at Caledon Hills Brewing Company – and look ahead to our final ride.

The Virtual Session

Week of July 4 – Date & Time TBC

Jump on a video call with Ride Captain Rich to learn how he plans out a route. Rich will share his screen and walk you through the websites you can use to plot your course. You’ll learn how to double- and triple-check your plans – and how to download your map onto your bike computer.

Session 6 – The Everything Ride

Saturday, July 8 – 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. -Woodstock

We wrap up the program with a four-hour ride celebrating everything we’ve learned. We’ll ride through farmland and forest, tackling hills and coasting down country roads, with a tasty mid-ride bakery break. After the ride, we’ll toast all that we’ve learned and share laughter and lunch on an outdoor patio.  

Please Note: Gravelocity’s rides run rain or shine. That said, we reserve the right to alter routes, distances or start times to avoid the worst of what Mother Nature (or the local gravel graders) may throw at us. On the rare occasion that a ride is cancelled altogether, we’ll do our best to arrange another ride to make up for it.

Other Options

You may also like…