California Dreaming: BWR San Diego

Waves, skateboarders, 72 and sunny, Padres baseball… the laid-back vibe that San Diego is known for gets twisted—badly—every spring when hordes of cyclists descend on the bucolic city for a weekend of waffles and mayhem on two wheels. Yep, the Belgian Waffle Ride.

While there are now a slew of BWR events across the country (and into Mexico and Canada, in fact), San Diego exists as the OG—the one that started it all. The mantra for every BWR event: treat it like the Belgian Spring Classics, which are known for their toughness in rough weather, conditions, or terrain. The result is always going to be a tough day, but a party nonetheless. This year marked the event’s 13th annual running, with the 42-mile Wanna race, the 80-mile Wafer, and the big daddy, the 110-mile Waffle.

And as usual, it was a special mix of SoCal “unroad.” Most of the course was on paved roads, starting with a big, sustained climb just three miles in to thin out the mass start. Lots of speedy descending. Then came some dirt along Lake Hodges, under the 15 freeway to more hills, more climbing, more pavement, more speed, and a little more heat… more fun.

OBED was on point pre-race. Before the waffles, there was a packed expo where we took in the bikes of OBED riders for a little pre-race TLC, checking gears, torque specifications, and making recommendations on tire pressure.

And of course, there was a chance for many riders to see and experience OBED bikes for the first time in person. With a full fleet of GVR race rigs, a fully bikepacking racked-out Boundary, and the ever-versatile Baseline on show, we had enough flash and panache to break a few necks (and spark up some interesting conversations) in the expo… Mostly about what color their OBED would be. (Answer: our prism paint remains a fan favorite.)

Post-race (yeah, we weren’t going to miss out on the fun and went out to enjoy the Wanna), our team was stoked to see so many OBED riders crossing the finish line—filthy, thoroughly smoked, but wearing smiles on their collective faces. And with a special finisher’s trophy of local brewery IPA, many cracked open that ice-cold trophy and poured it down their gullets. We’d say we were jealous, but we had a cold one of our own to offer up a cheers and celebrate with them.

With San Diego “done and dusted” (as Dave Towle barked all day to the finishers), we look forward to the next BWR on our hit list: BWR North Carolina, in beautiful Asheville, N.C. We’ll be there with the full experience; bikes to test ride, complimentary OBED owner bike service, and… well, we soon have some news for you on that. Big news. Stay tuned…