The ’84 Olympic Loop

The Route – Olympiad, Mission Viejo

BASICS

Ride the official 1984 Olympic Road Race course in Mission Viejo, CA. This route offers plenty of climbing and vistas for a great group or training ride. We rode this route and documented the specifics in Issue #135.

SPECIFICS

Florence Joyner Olympiad Park Mission Viejo – Mile Zero

• We recommend beginning at the Florence Joyner Olympiad Park at the Alicia Crossroad. The park was named after American track and field athlete Florence Griffith Joyner, who still holds sprint records she set in 1988. The park has ample parking, water, and bathroom amenities, and you can walk around the garden area to view information on past Olympians.
• From there, ride north along Olympiad to begin the route. Within a mile, you will come upon the original starting line, tiled on the street with poles on either end. Olympiad will end into Marguerite, where the route turns right. After about 2/3 of a mile, turn left onto Mustang Run, and then the first left onto Crucero, a smaller residential street.
• Continue along Crucero to Hidalgo, and turn left onto Vista del Lago, which is a steep climb up to the highest point in the course at an elevation of about 940 feet. From here, you can get a nearly 360 degree unbroken view of the Mission Viejo foothills and lake. Descend Vista del Lago, and turn right onto Marguerite for a 2.7-mile long descent to the intersection of La Paz. Here you will find the Mission Viejo Public Library, where much of the vintage photography in this issue is archived.
• Turn left on La Paz, where you will begin a 1.4-mile climb with about 375 feet of elevation gain back to Olympiad road. Make a left on Olympiad, and one last climb will get you back to Flo-Jo Park. Mission Viejo’s roads are well-paved with generous bike lanes throughout. -VP