NOVEMBER 4, 2023Far and away the best routes in Southern California’s most scenic and most popular cycling region!
NO crowds! Great support!
LIMITED TO 500 riders
And most importantly, a portion of every entry fee will be donated to Life Sports Foundation!
Solvang Sequel is dedicated to fundraising for Life Sports Foundation.
The challenge of riding a metric century, or participating in any endurance sport, is a lot of fun; but people with disabilities often don’t have access to the special equipment and training it takes for them to pursue this lifestyle.
Life Sports Foundation is dedicated to helping people of all abilities who are facing physical, situational, or medical challenges to enrich their lives through sports. They provide opportunities for enhanced athletic lifestyles through endurance events, specialized equipment, training, competition expenses, and education.
There are three easy things that you can do to help: First, register for this event! A portion of your entry fee goes directly to Life Sports Foundation. Second, make a tax-deductible donation with your entry.
2023 Entry Fees*:
Metric Century – $125
Half Century – $115
Entry fees include: 3 fully stocked checkpoints along the route (2 for the half century), roving SAG support; route sheet and access to GPS files; post-ride lunch. A portion of each entry fee will be donated to Life Sports Foundation. Event tech tees and jerseys are available for sale with online registration. Sale proceeds will be donated to LSF.
* If you’re able to recruit an event volunteer, please email us before signing up and we’ll give you a coupon code to use during registration for an instant 30% off.
** Tandem teams that register TOGETHER may use coupon code TandemTeam for $20 off entry fees.
Please read everything below, as well as our Planet Ultra policies/rules and our event cancellation policy before registering. We’re 100% up front about what you can expect; and don’t want you to feel surprised.
Registration for our 2023 event opens on March 5th!
Use the SignUp bottom to register online and pay by credit card (which includes a small service fee).
Event jerseys by Blackbottoms Cyclewear may be ordered with registration for $90. Guaranteed delivery at the event if purchased by August 15th. Otherwise, if we don’t have your size, we’ll re-order after the ride and mail your jersey to you.
We will have a sizing kit at the event to make sure you get one that fits.
You may also purchase an Event Tech Tee with registration for $25; which will be based on the jersey design.
Start / Finish location:
River View Park, 151 Sycamore Drive in Buellton. Click here for map.
Host Hotel (and possible event check in location)
For 2023, our host hotel is likely to be the Hampton Inn & Suites located at 600 McMurray Road in Buellton, (805) 686-1555. Call and request the Planet Ultra special rate of $239 Friday / $259 Saturday ($10 less for King; and lower rates for Thursday and Sunday nights).
Our other option is the Marriott, right down the road- with a special rate of $239. Click here to reserve online. Both are excellent choices. Please check back.
Our overflow hotel is:
Pea Soup Anderson’s Inn in Buellton, (805) 688-3216 with a Planet Ultra group rate of $TBD.
There are many other local hotels. We realize hotels in this area are very expensive; so try AirBnB as well.
Rider Check-In:
TBD
Event Parking:
If you’re staying in Buellton, please leave your car at your hotel and ride to the start. If you’re driving to Buellton Saturday morning, please be respectful about where you park. Allow enough time to find proper parking; and please park legally.
How To Get There:
Use Hwy 101 to get to Buellton from either north or south. Click here for a map.
Start Times
Metric Century: Wave starts from 8am-8:15am
Half Century: Group start at 8:30am
Please no earlier starts, or you’ll get to the checkpoints before they’re open. We’ll have a staging area where riders will gather to be sent off. Come with your friends that you want to ride with, and hit the road together. We greatly appreciate your cooperation in making this run smoothly.
Time Limit
Regardless of start time, the course closes at 2pm.
On Course Support Provided
We will have checkpoints along the way to provide you with a wide variety of food choices including bananas, PB&J sandwiches, energy bars, granola/fruit/energy bars, Electrolyte drink or capsule, plus other snacks and goodies.
Route Description:
Below information is based on the 2022 metric century route, which is subject to change. The half century is the same route, minus the out and back section from Fess Parker Winery to Tres Hermanas Winery.
PLEASE NOTE: The road surfaces in and around the Santa Ynez Valley can be, and often are, pretty lousy. Expect cracks and bumps and potholes on Foxen Canyon and Ballard for sure. Please bring appropriate, wider, more cushy tires.
The event starts and finishes in Buellton, just down the road from its namesake, Solvang, a quaint, Danish village with excellent restaurants, window shopping, real shopping, horse-drawn carriages, parks, people in costume, wine-tasting, vineyards, and lots of fun things for the whole family to see and do. Bring your family and make a weekend of it. We promise they’ll all have a great time while you ride your bike!
You’ll start with a spin through Solvang, then enjoy the quiet roads and beautiful scenery around Ballard, Santa Ynez and Happy Canyon. Passing Los Olivos, you’ll head out to the vineyards, and Foxen Canyon, one of the main roads that make this area famous.
Along the way, you’ll enjoy three full SAG stops, where you’ll find a nice variety of edibles and drinks to keep you fueled and hydrated.
62 miles with 3,500 feet of climbing. Three SAG stops along the course. You may view a map of the intended route, the elevation profile and download GPS files here.
Towns/regions visited: Solvang, Ballard, Santa Ynez, Happy Canyon, Los Olivos, Foxen Canyon, Sisquoc, and back to Buellton.
Routing and Navigation
Planet Ultra route sheets include lots of useful information to help riders navigate the course. For example, we’ll let you know if a turn is at a stop sign (SS), traffic light (TL) or T-intersection (T-int). We know that riders like to have the course marked. However, many of the towns/cities/counties, and other governmental entities, specifically request that no markings are placed in the road. Some of our permits are contingent on NOT doing this. Cal Trans in this district does NOT allow marking of State Hightways; which we DO use. Be prepared to take responsibility for navigation please.
Also note: The Solvang area is host to many events, and there may be road markings all over the place – most of which will NOT be for our ride. If you don’t pay attention to your route sheet, or better yet your GPS, you’re likely to follow some random arrow which puts you off course. So please, ALWAYS HAVE YOUR ROUTE SHEET WITH YOU and be aware of where you are on the route.
This is the type of route where a GPS with turn-by-turn capabilities will come in handy. Please understand and take responsibility for navigation.
Personal SAG Vehicles
Not allowed without permission requested in advance! If you bring one, you’ll be disqualified from the event without a warning. The definition of a personal SAG is any vehicle (motor or otherwise), anywhere on the route, operated by someone other than Planet Ultra staff, that is providing any type of aid, assistance, or motivation, or taking photographs, or simply out cheering. Please understand that our permits simply don’t allow dozens of extra vehicles on the roads or at the checkpoint locations. Imagine the traffic from all those cars! If you’re bringing someone with you who wants to be out on the course, please have them contact us and join our volunteer staff.
Volunteers
We always need volunteers! Click here for info about available positions.