The Ride Of Your Life To Raise Funds Supporting Our Wounded American Heroes

FAQ

We hope you’ll be able to find an answers to the most common questions:

THE RIDE

  • 4-Day (310 miles): Pittsburg, PA to Gaithersburg, MD
  • Click here to view Day to Day details of the ride.

The ride includes bus transportation from Gaithersburg to Pittsburgh. It includes one night hotel and two dinners. It also includes full ride support and rest stops with lots of fluids and snacks. You have a mechanic at your disposal and a jersey also included in the ride fee. You will have to pay your own way for three nights hotel and most of your meals.

We’ve had riders in their teens on up to age 80. While this is a serious endurance event, we have riders of all skill levels join us annually. With the proper preparation, a novice rider should be able to complete the ride.

We do encourage that you join us for our rookie rides during the summer and leading up to the big ride. They range from 20-40 miles and are a great way to get in shape for the ride. We also recommend you consult your personal physician to determine if a ride like this is appropriate for you.

Not at all! Of course there are always a few rides who are just plain fast… and there are far more who take a nice leisurely ride each day, soaking in the beautiful views along the way.

Anywhere from 10-16 MPH on average. Less than 10 MPH and you’ll have difficulty meeting certain ride checkpoints that are time dependent (coordinated police escorts, group photos, etc.).

Not a problem – You will have 100+ new friends very soon! If you’re able, we encourage riders to get involved in the training rides throughout the year. Once you’re on the ride we’ll help you sync up with riders of similar skill levels.

We have a number of trail bosses who will be alongside you throughout the ride, as well as SAG support at each rest stop. If you find that you’re beginning to fall behind or just can’t continue riding, inform one of the trail bosses and they’ll arrange for a SAG driver to bring you to the day’s final destination.

No. Ride Allegheny volunteers are not trained medical professionals, and carry basic first aid kits only (for road rash type injuries). Any situation requiring greater attention will be treated at the nearest medical facility via emergency call to 911.

While riding, carry all prescription medications, health insurance card, and emergency contact information in your jersey or bike bag.

You may cancel your ride, however, registration fee refunds are not available.

Registrations are not transferable across years or individuals.

LOGISTICS, PREPARATION & EQUIPMENT

That just means you should get in some practice rides in advance. You want to condition your legs and get your behind used to sitting on a saddle for long periods.

This is a matter of personal preference. Cyclocross, Hybrids, Road and Mountain bikes are the most common found on the trail. Check out the GEAR GUIDE page for more details.

Yes, of course you do!

It is always a good idea to ensure you fit your bike for these long rides to avoid any fit-related injury. However, if you have been riding a long time and are comfortable with your current setup, there’s no requirement to get professionally fitted.

We take lots of group photos and it looks really awesome.

It is critically important to avoid dehydration by drinking water and sports drinks on a schedule throughout the ride (roughly one liter per hour, starting with water and switching to sports drinks after the first hour or two). Do not rely on thirst – thirst kicks in only as you are becoming dehydrated. It is also important not to overconsume water. Over hydration with straight water lacking the sodium found in sports drinks may result in hyponatremia, sometimes referred to as water toxicity. This is a dangerous – and potentially deadly – condition that can be avoided by switching to primarily drinking a sports drink that contains at least 100 mg of sodium after the first 1-2 hours of riding. Be sure to read your fluid labels as many “sports beverages” contain far less than this minimum recommended amount.

We offer supported rest stops for food and water refills every 15 to 40 miles, depending on the leg of the trip. Carry with you enough hydration and nutrition to keep you safe in the event unforeseen circumstances should occur.

GUs, nutrition snacks, and electrolyte tablets are common and lightweight staples with cyclists on rides such as this.

The Four-Day registration fee covers your stay in Ohiopyle/Confluence – so there’s no need to make reservations there. You will need to make your own reservations for every other night during the ride. Visit the LODGING page for a full listing of each night’s preferred hotels.

DONATIONS & FUNDRAISING

Ride Allegheny has partnered with Operation Second Chance by providing support to the needs of our soldiers and their families to cover the gaps that are not covered by the US Government.

You can register for free to become a Virtual Rider with your own fundraising page, or simply make a donation to support another rider!

Ask your sponsors to contact their HR department to see if they match RA donations. The employee will need to follow their company’s process. Most companies have an online matching system while others use paper forms. The match will be credited to your fundraising as soon as we confirm that the underlying donation has been made.

Ask local merchants if you may hang up a sheet promoting RA ride. Include a description of the RA, a picture of yourself, your reasons for riding the RA, the RA website address and information on how to sponsor you. Offer to have the names of local merchants printed on a riding jersey or t-shirt that you will wear at some point on RA.

All donations made online will be acknowledged with an emailed tax receipt. Donations made by check will receive a tax acknowledgement via USPS.

Yes, click to visit the fundraising minimums page.

A Virtual Rider is someone who fundraises for the RA but does not ride in the actual event. For more information about Virtual Riders, click here.

Yes! Simply mail the check directly to Operation Second Chance at the address below. Be sure to indicate Ride Allegheny and the rider you are supporting on the memo line (Memo: “Ride Allegheny – John Smith”).
Payable to: Operation Second Chance
20251 Century Blvd., Ste. 130, Germantown, MD 20874