The indieVelo "Base Camp" Route-12.5km (7.7 mi), elevation 155m (508 ft)-a solid climb to help build your foundation!
Route Description
One of the eighteen original Beta routes rolled out on The Island in 2023, Base Camp is a 12.5km route with 155m elevation.
Starting from the east coast of the Island, the route leads you to North Lake, then down to South Lake, and back to the pen in the east. The primary challenge riders face is a 1.5km climb with a 6.5% average grade and pitches reaching 10% starting at km 6 rounding North Lake.
It goes without saying that this climb is where the Avengers will drop the mere Mortals in 95% of races.
Just after the descent, there is still a one-kilometer 2% gradient false flat starting at km 9.1, where the ultimate selection among the strongest may happen if someone feels courageous enough to attack one last time.
If, in most races, Base Camp should be a 1.5km all-in give it all experience, there is one thing to remember: in rare occasions, auto-braking corners combined with solid crosswind encouraged attacks from some riders split the pack into fractured groups before the climb.
Therefore, vigilance and optimizing auto-braking and cornering are essential to avoid getting dropped and producing unnecessary and highly lactate-generating efforts to close small gaps with the most skilled riders after the corners. You will need all you have for the climb. Don’t waste your watts!
Courtesy of Beta-tester Roman Edelhelfer!
Route Profile
Route details and description courtesy of Beta-tester Andras Beck!
Apologies in advance for being that grandmother bugging you to put on your coat because it is cold outside even if it is not, but the cliché “you will not win a race at an auto-braking corner, but you might lose it there” is more relevant than ever.
To prevent that from happening, take a look at this post explaining how to master corners, weather, and wind in indieVelo.
Thanks Luciano!
Check out the indieVelo-Route Descriptions page for more useful recon information.
Semi-retired after more than 20 years as the owner and director of a private Orthopedic Physical Therapy practice, Chris now enjoys the freedom to dedicate himself to his passions—virtual cycling and writing.
Driven to give back to the sport that has enriched his life with countless experiences and relationships, he founded a non-profit organization, TheDIRTDadFund. In the summer of 2022, he rode 3,900 miles from San Francisco to his “Gain Cave” on Long Island, New York, raising support for his charity.
His passion for cycling shines through in his writing, which has been featured in prominent publications like Cycling Weekly, Cycling News, road.cc, Zwift Insider, Endurance.biz, and Bicycling. In 2024, he was on-site in Abu Dhabi, covering the first live, in-person UCI Cycling Esports World Championship.
His contributions to cycling esports have not gone unnoticed, with his work cited in multiple research papers exploring this evolving discipline. He sits alongside esteemed esports scientists as a member of the Virtual Sports Research Network and contributes to groundbreaking research exploring the new frontier of virtual physical sport. Chris co-hosts The Virtual Velo Podcast, too.
