When your mind turns to thoughts of dream cycling vacations, likely your fantasy locales tend to be far away and require long plane flights, bike cases, expensive hotel stays and the mastery of another language. Sure, it’s fun to ride gran fondos (great endurance) in Italy, climb the famed peaks of the Tour de France or pedal the cobbled paths and murs of Belgium and France, but get a grip. This is 2008. How green – or affordable – is any of that?

Even if you take the most gas-hogging SUV, and load it up with bikes and riders, your carbon footprint – not to mention the impact on your bank account – will be much lighter if you head to the cycling paradises of the southeast United States instead. This isn’t a case of settling for second best. Far from it – with challenging single tracks, lightly traveled scenic roads and magnificent rails-to-trails conversions, the Southeast has a two-wheeled option for every taste. Better yet, if you know where to look you can find your own magical spot where the rooms are affordable, the food is great and the locals will welcome your presence and not try to drive you off the side of the nearest mountain.

For more than a decade, the staff here at Competitor has made annual pilgrimages throughout the Southeast, riding with the local pelotons, seeking out hidden inns and climbing every nasty hill we could find. For your summer cycling pleasure, we present here a selection of our favorite spots… and the most fiendish events for your exquisite suffering. Enjoy.

The B’s – Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk and Beech Mountain, North Carolina

God’s Country. North Carolina High Country. Whatever you call it, this area roughly fifty miles east of Asheville has a rich tradition of road cycling, and more than a few trails to get your freak on if mountain biking is your thing. Back in the mid-’90s Beech Mountain hosted four mountaintop stage finishes of the Tour DuPont, finishes that saw epic struggles between a young Lance Armstrong and an ageless Viatcheslav Ekimov. Later, of course, a post-cancer Armstrong would return to the area in the company of then-teammate (and now Versus commentator) Bob Roll to rediscover his love of the bike.

While the 3.5-mile climb up Beech from Banner Elk rises 1,400 vertical feet, it’s neither the toughest climb in the area nor even a mandatory must-do for the serious cyclist’s tick list. You want tough? Take a little spin up Snake Mountain and enjoy the 18-20 percent grades near the top.

Don’t miss
The beautiful sections of the Blue Ridge Parkway that run through the area, particularly the dramatic Linn Cove Viaduct. And a quick spin up nearby Mount Mitchell is a good idea, too.

Ride
Blood, Sweat and Gears, June 28. This may be the toughest ride in the area – and that’s saying a lot. 100 solid miles, 13 thousand feet of climbing and as a bonus, the God’s Country Century Challenge route includes Snake Mountain. bloodsweatandgears.org.

Stay
Just about anywhere. This is a very touristy area and you’ll have your choice of campgrounds, cabins, bargain motels, or upscale B&B’s.

Eat
We could get all health-righteous and recommend only the fare at Tupelo’s, but if push comes to shove we’ll take the pizza at Mellow Mushroom any day. Also in Boone, the new Stick Boy Bread Company is getting raves.

Brasstown Bald, Georgia

If it weren’t for the Tour de Georgia, it’s likely that no one outside of a 50-mile radius would have ever heard of this savage little spike of a climb near the ultra-tacky tourist town of Helen. But the five years of “TdG” battles that have been fought out on this 3.5-mile, 1,800-vertical-foot monster have securely placed it in the repertoire of must-do rides for all self-respecting monument collectors.

“What, you’ve done Mont Ventoux but you haven’t done Brasstown Bald? The shame.”

Unless you schedule your assault for the same morning of the tour stage, you’ll likely be alone – very alone – while you work your way up slopes with grades in the vicinity of 25 percent. Ouch! It’s not a long climb, just a very, very tough one, topping out at 4,784 feet, the highest point in Georgia. Fit out your bike with a very large cassette and prepare to tack back and forth across the road during the tough sections if you’re not on top of your fitness game. You can always pretend you’re slowly reading the fading names of cycling greats like Armstrong, Landis, Leipheimer and Danielson that are painted and chalked on the tarmac.

Also in the area for our fat-tire friends is the seven-mile mountain-bike course at Unicoi State Park. This rolling loop has hosted events at the World Cup and NORBA level, so it’s a quality circuit – but one that even solid beginners can navigate… for the most part.

Don’t miss
Yes, we make fun of Helen, the nearby faux-Bavarian village and tourist trap, but it’s really a fun place to while away an evening after a serious day of cycling. Plenty of cheap eats and mindless diversions, plus you can fly-fish and – get this – pan for gold right in the middle of town on the Chattahoochee River. The Convention and Visitors Bureau would like us to stress that they don’t know of anyone actually finding any gold, but the quest goes on.

Ride
The Brasstown Bald Buster Century was May 17. Okay, you get a pass this year, but that’s fine because you’ll need a full year to get ready for this hundred-miler. It includes a generous 14 thousand-plus feet of climbing and adds the very nasty Hogpen Gap to the concluding climb on Brasstown.
www.brasstownbaldbustercentury.com/Ride.htm

Greenville, South Carolina

Quiet little Greenville, tucked away in the northwest corner of the state, might soon be rechristened Hincapieville. Such has been the influence of brothers George, the famous cyclist and Rich, the impressive entrepreneur/race promoter. The New York natives long ago relocated to the area and made it home base for their Hincapie Sportswear clothing company, which puts out Euro-quality cycling kits, both branded and custom.

The brothers were instrumental in the stunning move of the U.S. Pro Cycling Championships from its longtime home in Philadelphia to the Paris Mountain course right outside of Greenville. And if that wasn’t enough, they’re hard at work on their biggest project yet, a housing development/world class cycling performance center called Pla D’Adet, just north of the city. Look for some great cycling routes in the Greenville area – visit the Hincapie site (www.hincapiesports.com), then click on the Pla d’Adet link and select the new cycling course tab. Be forewarned – these guys can put together some really, really long routes.

Don’t Miss
Climbing Paris Mountain. The ramps up the 2.5-mile climb zoom nearly 1000 vertical feet. While this may not provide it with legendary status, it’s still cool to say that you climbed the course where Leipheimer and Hincapie annually school the rest of the U.S. Pro peloton.

Ride
The Assault on Marion, June 9. We would recommend the simultaneous Assault on Mount Mitchell, but if you don’t already have one of the 1,700 precious tickets for this legendary Century, you’re out of luck. Do Marion this year instead and work your way onto the Mitchell list. Both rides start in nearby Spartanburg. www.freewheelers.info/assault.html

Monterey, Virginia

How far out there are you willing to go in search of a good ride? Monterey is so rural the website for the local century warns you to be extra careful, because the closest hospital is 55 miles away. Located in Highland County and known as “Virginia’s Switzerland”, this is the kind of place that celebrates its history and isolation with community events like the Maple Festival, Battlefield Days and Hands & Harvest.

We’re captivated by the thought of a cycling trip that includes a farm stay as the preferred choice of lodging, so we called up Elizabeth Hefner, proprietor of Bobbi’s Bed & Breakfast just outside of Monterey. Mrs. Hefner allows that she does indeed get a few cyclists bunking at her place for the Mountain Mama Road Bike Challenge, but she reassured us that “they don’t have to work” on the sheep and cattle ranching operations to pay for their stay. Sixty bucks will give you a place to rest your head and a continental breakfast to get you ready to roll out the front door.

As for the riding, one Mountain Mama participant had this to say: “I have done Mt. Mitchell, Blue Ridge Extreme, Mountains of Misery Double Metric and 3 States, 3 Mountains; this course was by far the most scenic and challenging.”

Adds Kirk Billingsley, director of the ride, “Highland County is the least populated county in Virginia. Route 84 is the least traveled road in the state. The people are very considerate and you wouldn’t believe how quiet the roads are. But… if you like the flats, don’t even come.”

Ride
The Mountain Mama Road Bike Challenge, Aug. 2. Here’s the tantalizing description: “Two states, three counties, nine mountains, over 100 miles and 13,720 feet of climb!” bikemountainmama.homestead.com

Stay
Weren’t you listening? Call up Mrs. Hefner and give her B&B a try. 540-468-2308 or http://users.htcnet.org/bhefner.

Eat (or Stay)
The Highland Inn, “Pride of the Mountains” since 1904. www.highland-inn.com.

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