We all have questions.

A group of cyclists on touring bikes, gathered in a park in front of a canal. Nearly all of them are facing the camera, but looking back at a rider in the far middle of the shot.

And this is the FAQ.

What is this?

This is the website for the Pretty Ride: a two-day ride from Boston to Provincetown. This year's ride dates are TBD.

The Pretty Ride?

Yep! Technically it's "The Pretty Jimmy Ride, brought to you by ARC Reliable Shaft Drive", a name we dreamed up on one very hot ride full of smack talk and joking around. Explaining the joke would ruin it, but feel free to laugh anyway.

The idea for this ride started around 2015 or so, when the weather was nice and George + Simon got tipped off to this whole giant peninsula they could ride their bikes down. Over the years it's evolved into an all-levels social bike tour down the back roads of Eastern MA and Cape Cod.

Is this like, a real ride?

In the sense that we really ride our bikes to a Ptown, yes.

In the sense that we're professionals running an event, no. We are just some people with a wacky hobby (wacky!), doing a thing with our friends and our friends' friends. Please don't expect a big organized ride - just some guyzos who know where the campsites, Houses Of Pizza, and other local attractions are.

OK that seems fine; how long is the ride?

About 150 miles, split 85/65 between two days. You can learn more on the "maps" page.

I am not very athletic. Is that like, a distance normal people can do?

Dogg, I look like Bob Hoskins the day after a big cookout. "Not very athletic" is sorta my vibe (I don't love this but it doesn't make it any less true). This ride is extremely accessible to the not-very-athletic. There's some real physical challenges, which you can train up for, but the big challenge is believing in yourself (also preventing chafing, known colloquially on the ride as "ass radishes"). We have a proven training program and multiple people have done their first ride while not-very-athletic. You can probably do this.

I have a very normal and not sporty bike. Should I count myself out?

If it has gears and mount points for a rack/cargo basket, we can probably make it work. See the mechanical checklist for

Cool. How do I sign up?

The sign up link is available on the home page.

I am signed up. What should I be doing now?

The things which every rider should do are:

  • Pay the entry fee ($50 all-inclusive), once payment info is up.
  • Train up! Details in the Training Schedule.
  • Make sure your bike is ticking like clockwork. See the Mechanical Checklist and/or "Shakedown Ride" section of the Training Schedule.
  • Make sure you've got the gear you need to ride, camp, and enjoy your time on the cape! The Packing List is probably what you want.

When do we roll out?

We usually leave around 8-10am on Saturday and most people take a Monday ferry back from Provincetown. You really need to rush on the second day to get the last Sunday night ferry back so we recommend staying until Monday if you can swing a day off work.

What is "touring"? What is "cAmPiNg"?

Touring is like riding your bike, except there's stuff attached to your bike, specifically stuff in this packing list. It isn't particularly hard and we (ride leaders, can you believe it?) can help you with some of the gear.

"Camping" in the context of this ride is rolling up to a campsite which has amenities such as flat ground, trees, a grill/fire pit, and showers! Showers! This is not a drill! You will be expected to set up your tent/hammock and to not antagonize the rangers, who are generally pretty chill but don't like it if you bring beer into public parts of the campsite.

Wait so, do I need to bring my own food for camping?

Luckily, no - we are riding in an area which is mostly great for resupply points and food. Food situation is:

  • You get a light breakfast and pizza/beer dinner on Day 1
  • You will want to pack snacks if you're peckish between supply points (miles 23,45,60) on Day 1. You may want to bring enough to share (we award good snacksmanship)
  • You get a bagel and some coffee once you tear down your tent on Day 2, and we will direct you to the brunch rendezvous
  • The rest of Day 2 you will be riding by ice cream places, clam shacks, bers with nautical pun cocktails, etc. You will not need to pack food for Day 2.

What about hydration?

I once rode this ride with only one water bottle and I absolutely hated having to stop a dozen times a day for refills, so I recommend having 2L of water capacity or more. I like:

  • Two big bike botles (in the packing list), or
  • A hydration bladder such as the kind hikers like. I like the fannypack format but the slim backpack format also works well.

What kind of shoes should I wear? Do I need to go clipless?

You can do this ride in regular sneakers, and you can do it in clipless (which is just the worst misnomer jfc) bike shoes. The latter isn't required; I rode clipless for the first few rides and it reduced foot fatigue a bit but I'm not fast, and clipless didn't make me faster, so I swapped back to plain sneakers.

What does work (for me):

  • Closed toe shoes. Two people have done this ride in Tevas/Chaco style sandals, so it's possible to do it in sandals, but consider if you will: not stepping into the skudge which you might see on the shoulder of a suburban road. I'd recommend closed toes but you do you, buckaroo.
  • Stiff soles. You can get a lot of the value of clipless shoes without installing clips (again, worst misnomer, jfc etc) in them. Stiffer soles let you put down more power without tiring out your arches or ankles. Fresh skate shoes and running shoes with full padding are popular and work well.
  • Flat soles. If you're not comfortable walking in clippity-clop road shoes, this is not the weekend to try them out. Fast people, you do you (y'all do y'all?).
  • Good socks and foot powder.

I have other questions.

Tell them to Jimmy: b64:amltbXlAcHJldHR5LmJpa2U=