Garmin Connect – 2012 12 Hour Recommended Route
Garmin Connect – 2012 12 Hour Recommended Route.
Some Notes
The course will be open to traffic. None of the prizes we’re offering will offset the cost of a trip to the emergency room or a traffic ticket. The St. Pete Police Department know what the route is, and they enjoy writing tickets to cyclists. You have been warned. Stop at stop signs. Stop when the light’s red. Use common sense. The future of this event depends on every rider comporting them self with the utmost respect to pedestrians, drivers, volunteers, and other competitors. Do not cut through yards, driveways, or other private property.
While this is a recommended route, and obviously you’re free to modify it as you wish, there are a couple of recommendations we’d like to strongly suggest, and there’s two sections of the course where you MUST follow the recommended route.
Some of you are going to look at the map and want to take MLK St from checkpoint (CP) 1 to CP 2 instead of 4th st. Yes, it’s a bit shorter, but there are zero traffic signals on 4th, and there’s 4 on MLK, including a blind left turn. 4th has a bike lane, 9th has 2 narrow lanes, a big curb, and no shoulders. 4th has pretty light traffic, and 9th is usually pretty busy. We’ve tested it, and 4th is always faster, so save yourself the headache and stress and take 4th.
When you’re leaving CP 2 (Paul’s house), you might be tempted to cut across his neighbour’s lawn. Do Not Do This. You’ll get disqualified, and your team will too.
The next recommendation is to take 1st Ave S instead of 2nd or 3rd Ave S. It’s faster than both, it’s paved, not bricks, and there’s three traffic lights that you can if you time them right you can catch them all green versus a billion stop signs on 2nd and 3rd.
We used the Pinellas Trail last year, and the potential for disaster is just too great to use it again this year. There are too many weekend warriors with headphones and kiddy strollers on the trail these days. Please don’t use the trail through the warehouse right next to the home base in particular, we will make you turn around and go back around the correct way on 3rd.
This seque’s nicely into the one required section of the course. You must make a right turn off of 1st Ave. South onto 20th St, then a left turn onto 3rd Ave S, and a left turn onto 17th to enter the parking lot. We will have marshals at the final corner as well as the Pinellas trail to look out for cross traffic, but be prepared to stop at those locations.
If you have questions, please ask them in the comments, or email us- 12hoursofstpete at gmail dot com
