Club ride average speeds, could i keep up ?

[cyberknight]

Are you allowed to join with an electric bike or is that a no no

seriously even if you did based on some club rides i have been on apart from the hills you would be dropped unless it was an illegaly moddded bike as they cut out at 15.5 mph, i know the mtb section of my cc guys do turn up on e mtb for the off roading.
TBH i cant see a problem myself dependant on the pace of the group and the drop policy of the ride although some strava kom monkeys might get their noses out of joint.

 

[Ridgeway]

seriously even if you did based on some club rides i have been on apart from the hills you would be dropped unless it was an illegaly moddded bike as they cut out at 15.5 mph, i know the mtb section of my cc guys do turn up on e mtb for the off roading.
TBH i cant see a problem myself dependant on the pace of the group and the drop policy of the ride although some strava kom monkeys might get their noses out of joint.

Dead right, flat = 35-40kmh here and unless it's a pedelec (is that the right term?) then after 25kmh you're just lugging a load of extra weight around. Yep the uphill would be the place, anything above 5% and i reckon and you'd be at weight break even point so to speak. Keep in mind though that every rider in the group will make a point of ensuring to beat any leccy bike

Last week on the way to our club ride meet point i zipped past an e-bike at the foot of a hill (1km ave 5%) about half way up he zoomed past me smiling i hadn't noticed his registration plate that was stealthily tucked around his seat post, registration plate here = 45kmh no way way i going to follow that

 

[G3CWI]

Are you allowed to join with an electric bike or is that a no no

there are some ebike riders in our club. However as others have indicated, you may find an ebike to be a disadvantage. I use mine when riding with the slowest group. Ebikes are welcome on all our rides apart from the mountain bike rides. They have fragile egos I think

 

[T.M.H.N.E.T]

Amateur tip - on group rides a little quicker than yourself, hang back a little at junctions etc and fall in towards the back.

Do this every junction, but roll through and take a turn (shorter)where the road rises but try to be near the front approaching climbs.

Or, try to be first/second wheel on the nearside which also has the same effect, both maximise your time in shelter

 

[Ridgeway]

I'm learning the group etiquette and some tips like the one above from TMHNET are really useful. I like how riders in front point out road obstacles so making those behind who maybe can't see them until the last minute are aware of what's coming up.

I've started to take more and longer turns on the front, usually on the flats as i can power along pretty well on those and people seem to appreciate some taking the lead on those long open roads, on the climbs i'm still right at the back clinging on to my defibrillator really need to improve my climbing speeds !!! i suppose that's mainly a lack of stamina or just overall fitness ? Yesterdays example was a 2.5km climb of average 5% that i could only manage an ave speed of just below 16kmh and i'd need to be around 20kmh to keep up with the group. Time to loose some more timber and work out how to get fitter

 

[Sharky]

Another tip. When it is windy and you are riding two a breast, take the position on the leeward side.

 

[Ridgeway]

Missed a few weeks through the Summer vacation period with either being away ourselves on vacation or travelling with work but managed to get out tonight with the boys. As long as the climbing isn't too long and steep say above 5% for more than 2km then i can more or less hold my own now and keep up, it's taken me all Summer to get fit enough to do so oh and loosing 10kgs has helped This evening i was more on the front than ever and we had a really nice 75km loop with about 800m in there, averaged around 30kmh which is now within my range.

Not sure how long the guys here will ride until, i get the distinct impression that anything less than 20º is considered as needing full Winter kit but hopefully we'll get a few more weeks in yet.

This evenings team:

One things for sure that this weekly club ride has certainly helped me improve my fitness !

 

[straas]

Amateur tip - on group rides a little quicker than yourself, hang back a little at junctions etc and fall in towards the back.

Do this every junction, but roll through and take a turn (shorter)where the road rises but try to be near the front approaching climbs.

Or, try to be first/second wheel on the nearside which also has the same effect, both maximise your time in shelter

Depending on the size of the group, being at the back can be a real disadvantage - by the time you're through the corner, the riders at the front are back up to speed and you're having to put an effort in to keep up. Can really tire you out after a while.

Sometimes I sit at the back if I want to throw in some sprint intervals, for this reason.

 

[kingrollo]

One of my biggest regrets is not joining a club earlier.

Club I am in does touring rides - and training rides - the slowest training ride has a no drop policy. Which works great for me !!!

 

[Ripple]

I really would like to join a cycling club but ...

Club No.1 - first ride with them and I've been left immediately. I can't do 40 kph across the town. Club states "we have a no drop policy".
Club No.2 - got personal invitation from my manager, a founder of the club. First ride, 36 - 45 kph across the town and speeds well over 50 kph outside town. One member told me "I think there's no space for you with us". Well ok, I apologized them nicely after 25k and went home on my own.

Both clubs were informed about my age, fitness level etc and I was told everything is ok. Both clubs have got "we don't drop slow riders" BS. I wondered why did they let me in if they knew immediatelly that my level is waaaay below theirs.

It looks like all clubs in my area are for serious racers only.

So oh well, things happen. I keep cycling on my own.

 

[cyberknight]

I really would like to join a cycling club but ...

Club No.1 - first ride with them and I've been left immediately. I can't do 40 kph across the town. Club states "we have a no drop policy".
Club No.2 - got personal invitation from my manager, a founder of the club. First ride, 36 - 45 kph across the town and speeds well over 50 kph outside town. One member told me "I think there's no space for you with us". Well ok, I apologized them nicely after 25k and went home on my own.

Both clubs were informed about my age, fitness level etc and I was told everything is ok. Both clubs have got "we don't drop slow riders" BS. I wondered why did they let me in if they knew immediatelly that my level is waaaay below theirs.

It looks like all clubs in my area are for serious racers only.

So oh well, things happen. I keep cycling on my own.

My club started off via facebook looking for people interested in riding in the area but there needs were not catered for by existing clubs,
They started out with a few riders and now after 2 years they now run 3 groups on a saturday and one on a sunday catering for varying levels of fitness, the main aim has always been to have fun and no drop no matter what level.Sunday we were even prepared to alter the route of our planned century to accommodate riders who were struggling .

 

[Noodle Legs]

It may pay you to contact the club chairperson/secretary directly and explain your circumstances. It may well be that the speeds quoted are a generalisation based on previous experience but you may find that they actually just ride to the slowest rider’s pace, as our club often does, within reason.

 

[Ridgeway]

I kinda knew or at least suspected that i'd be off the pace at my local club, seeing the guys pass by my house at decent speeds already gave me that impression. Having said that i did make a bit of progress on my fitness before joining, nether the less i was still shocked at the difference in pace although most of the time the guys waited at the top for me. Roll on 4 months and i can now keep up, take my fair share on the front and we average about 30kmh over a 60-75km ride with usually 800-1000m of climbing in there. Still no way i can keep up with the young guys but i give it my best shot

 

[straas]

I really would like to join a cycling club but ...

Club No.1 - first ride with them and I've been left immediately. I can't do 40 kph across the town. Club states "we have a no drop policy".
Club No.2 - got personal invitation from my manager, a founder of the club. First ride, 36 - 45 kph across the town and speeds well over 50 kph outside town. One member told me "I think there's no space for you with us". Well ok, I apologized them nicely after 25k and went home on my own.

Both clubs were informed about my age, fitness level etc and I was told everything is ok. Both clubs have got "we don't drop slow riders" BS. I wondered why did they let me in if they knew immediatelly that my level is waaaay below theirs.

It looks like all clubs in my area are for serious racers only.

So oh well, things happen. I keep cycling on my own.

Have you accidentally joined some professional clubs? 50km/h is not a normal club speed

 

[Ripple]

Have you accidentally joined some professional clubs? 50km/h is not a normal club speed

Nope.

The first club I mentioned do take part in races but they also do "moderate pace rides" as per their website.
Another one was such a new club that members even didn't race in any of races.

I do agree my gender is a problem (I'm a woman) but they knew that (first club was contacted by email and everything was explained) and still why on Earth they let me in?