Training Stress Fuels The Severo Society
Named in honor of Ottavio Severo a little known Colorado Springs resident, bicycle racing pioneer and fictional inspiration for the 719 Ride, The Severo Society (TSS) is an exclusive club of grimpeurs, puncheurs, diesels, mashers, granny gears and bricks united by a love for cycling and a challenge that involves roads that tilt up.
Anyone who completes at least one lap of the 719 Ride is a member of The Severo Society, as is anyone who successfully completes a DIY 719.
Members of The Severo Society who successfully complete a DIY 719 are elevated to The Order of Ottavio.
Meritorious Cyclists of The Severo Society
Bicycle racing pioneer, Ottavio Severo, participated in the first ever bicycle road race in 1869 (Paris-Rouen) and was a regular and popular participant of Six Day racing in London in the late 1870s.
Ottavio's racing accomplishments are mostly lost to history, but cyclists completing a DIY 719 are assigned badge numbers (O.S.#) that honor him, document the order of enrollment and possibly provide access to benefits yet to be conceived.
Successful completion of a DIY 719 elevates you to The Order of Ottavio and earns you a lifetime of glory and honor through extraordinary commitment, effort and determination.
The 719 Cols
Meritorious Discoveries of The Order of Ottavio
A 719 Col is any indoor or outdoor bike ride with a final distance between 71.90 and 71.99 miles and at least 7,190' of elevation gain.
How to DIY 719
- Complete a 71.9 mile ride with at least 7,190' of climbing. Distances between 71.90 and 71.99 miles are all acceptable.
- Ride anytime, anywhere, on any route. Online or outdoors. But not as a participant in the 719 Ride event in July.
- Choose any two-wheeled conveyance you power by yourself. This includes tandems. No electric boogie woogie woogie.
- Don't repeatedly go up and down the same climb. Range far.
- Record your outdoor ride using a GPS device with an altimeter or barometer, for the best accuracy.
- Complete your indoor ride on Zwift with trainer difficulty at 100% and with ERG mode off.
- If in doubt about something, make it harder. You'll thank yourself.
Ride local
Come one, come all. Wherever you are. Bring out your rested, watt-rich quads of power, yearning to be free. Send these, the hope-filled and tempest turning to me. DIY, and you will be welcomed into the magnificence of The Severo Society and The Order of Ottavio.
