Words and photos by David Christenson
The Festive 500 was a challenge put on by Rapha to complete 500km between the 23rd and 30th of December. So in my imperial mind I was thinking “Only 310 miles in 7 days?...that sounds easy enough.” Which in theory it is, your average cyclist should have no problem completing it. The problem is that if you happen to be in a part of the world that gets true wintery weather it does become a challenge. That on top of family commitments during the holidays makes it double tough. I had been riding a lot leading up to the challenge and my legs were good but Iʼd never really ridden more than 3 days in a row in this time of the year so that was going to be something new. I had ridden 100km on each of the two days before the Festive 500 started so I was already feeling it a bit on the first day. The days flew by and so did the kilometers and by my fifth consecutive day riding I was really feeling it. Thereʼs a big difference when youʼre riding with groups and you can just follow wheels but when youʼre out there with just two guys thereʼs nowhere to hide so after day 5 I took a day off and hung out with my family. The next day I felt very refreshed and ready to go and we set off on what would be our final and longest ride of the Festive 500. Instead of writing about each day Iʼll just write about some of the highlights of the 5 days I rode. Geiger Grade is an 8 mile ascent with an average of 8% grade with some 14% sections. You gain 2500ft in those 8 miles and it tops out at 6800ft. Itʼs definitely not the tallest climb in the area but the road stays pretty clear of snow most of the winter when a lot of other areas are too dangerous to ride. Greg Lemond grew up in this area and Iʼm sure he trained on Geiger many times or some variation that included it. Bobby Julich also used to live and train here and during the summer there are several time trials up Geiger Grade put on by the Reno Wheelmen. We rode this climb three times in the 5 days and each day the weather was different varying from sunny and shedding layers to outright freezing...so cold that the snot in my nose froze.



Carson City is the capital of Nevada and it is about 30 miles south of Reno. We rode there on our final day. I had never ridden there before and just getting there was an adventure in itself. Heading south out of Reno you have to take highway 395 for a few miles and it is very nerve racking due to the heavy traffic. Once you get to Washoe Valley you can get on a quieter road but this section is always very windy. Once through Washoe Valley you have a small climb and then a fast descent down into Carson. Once there you are surrounded by the state government buildings and other historic buildings dating back to the Comstock period in the late 1800s.

Virginia City is an old mining town up in the mountains just outside Reno. There are several routes to get there, one being Geiger Grade, and also through Carson City you can climb up the back way. We rode both routes during the week and it was the first time I had ridden up the back way. After riding both versions of the climb Geiger is definitely the harder of the two but if youʼre in for a bit of a site seeing trip and a longer ride going trough Carson City is better. If you go via Carson you climb up to Virginia City and you can have a quick look around maybe stop in to some of the shops and restaurants along the main drag then continue to climb 3 more miles to the summit and descend back to Reno down Geiger. Virginia City is well preserved and there is also a bit of kitsch to it but it really is a neat place to stop and check out while on a ride or even a day trip in the car so you can bring the kids along.





Verdi is one of the most popular areas for cycling in this area. During the summer its packed with people on their bikes. The cycling has gotten better out there too since I moved away because of construction there is a lot of new roads that go through the foothills so you can include a good amount of climbing if you so choose. On the way to Verdi you are on very quiet roads and you ride along the Truckee River for a good amount of the time so there is always nice views and in the summer if youʼre overheated you can head down to the river and cool off. Verdi is a small suburb of Reno at the base of the Sierras on the way up Donner Pass and is right on the Nevada/ California border. If youʼre ever in the area Iʼd really recommend this ride because its not too difficult and you can take in some good views along with the quiet roads.




Reno is where I was born and my family still lives there. I moved away 6 years ago but I always enjoy coming back to see my family and to get some riding in. I was surprised to see how much things have changed and to see how empty downtown was. Most of the casinos are closing down and only time will tell if they will reopen. I donʼt gamble and never have but it is one of the main industries here so its a bit strange to see. Casinos arenʼt the only thing on offer as Lake Tahoe is about 30 minutes away by car so some of the worldʼs best skiing and snowboarding is right there. As with any “ski town” it offers a lot of outdoor activities year round and great roads to ride so if youʼre ever in the area bring your bike and get out and explore.


All in all my Festive 500 was good and Iʼm happy I did it. I would have been riding during the holidays but not as much thats for sure. There were a couple times when the weather was bad and I was asking myself why I wasnʼt at home where it was warm but as long as the roads werenʼt too slick I was going to ride. Doing the Festive 500 was a good way to connect back into cycling where I grew up, see new roads here and sharpen the legs for the upcoming year. It also helped me get over 1,000 miles for the month of December and Iʼve never had a December like that before.
This was also a great way for me to get out on my new NeilPryde Diablo and really get to know the bike. It really holds a line well at lower speeds when climbing and itʼs stiff but not too stiff that itʼs uncomfortable on longer rides. Descending it really held a line and inspired confidence even on windy descents where we saw gusts of up to 65kph. lʼm really looking forward to putting a lot of miles in on the Diablo in the new year.

Stats: -Days riding: 5 -Total distance: 524km (325 miles) -hours in the saddle: 20h09m03s -climbing: lots!!