Today’s event was Tour de Peaks, a local event held in association with Railroad Days celebration in Snoqualmie, WA. This is the second year I’ve used it as a warm-up to R.S.V.P., which I’ll be doing this Friday.
The ride is very familiar territory, relatively easy — total elevation gain is about 1,300′, about half of what I’d do on the way to work — but it’s a good warm-up to make sure everything on the bike is working. The total route is officially 62 miles, broken up into two 30-ish loops, one heading to Fall City (north, called the “lower valley”) and one to North Bend (south, called the “upper valley”).
I did the south loop near Mt. Si (North Bend) first because it’s prettier and hillier. This was a relatively quick ride, ending up back in Snoqualmie. I deliberately blew off about four miles of back-and-forth city streets because they literally herd us back to the ride starting point, then back out the same route to get to where the loops actually join.
The northern loop heads down state road 202 to Fall City, then does a counter-clockwise loop to Carnation. It’s set up so you’d hit the rest stop on the way back. However, since I had to pee (a recurring theme as I get older and want to stay hydrated) I stopped there first. Kind of glad I did because they were running out of food. After availing myself of the, um, facilities, I grabbed a handful of cheese cubes and topped off my water. I then did the loop the “right” way. Total ride distance was 62 miles, averaging about 13.8. 
The big enchilada starts on Friday…