Group ride

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david1701

Well-Known Member
Location
Bude, Cornwall
Hi all,

I met a group of cyclists on Tuesday on my way down to open the shop and got chatting to a lady there, they ride off at 10-1030 every Tuesday from a car park. They say they pootle 20-30 miles over a few hours and come back, most of them look fairly 'aged' (failed to think of a nice way of putting that) so I'm thinking they mean it by pootle as I'm dead unfit and my furthest ride to date is 10 miles and it nearly killed me (but was dead hilly).

Do you think I should go along on my next free Tuesday morning and go with them because riding in a group will be good for me or should I hold off lest I embarrass myself or irritate them? I'm trying to improve my fitness and my road skills as I'm not comfortable in traffic.

They're part of the triathlon club but say they're the slow cycling group, this worries me as the triathlon is proper hard work :s
 

chris-s

New Member
Location
Truro
Absolutely go along and try them out. When I started cycling last summer, the first thing I did was to join the local club and go out with the 'easy riders', the best thing I did.

Chris
 

ianrauk

Tattooed Beat Messiah
Location
Rides Ti2
Go for it. You never know unless you try.
If it's the slower/pootling group of the club rather then an out and out road racing don't worry about being slow or unfit. These type of groups will always wait for you and help you along.
 
OP
OP
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david1701

Well-Known Member
Location
Bude, Cornwall
Its a big club so I think there are proper fast groups and slower groups :biggrin: I really like the idea of more sociable riding and atm next Tuesday morning is free .....
 

Fnaar

Smutmaster General
Location
Thumberland
If it's a question of ettiquette, 'don't touch anyone's bottom' is always a good starter...
Seriously though, go for it. Nowt ventured, nowt gained etc.
 
OP
OP
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david1701

Well-Known Member
Location
Bude, Cornwall
:biggrin: drat that was the plan Fnaar :tongue:

is there anything else it would be worth taking in mind (or just taking) asides from munchies and water and normal crap that lives in the pannier?
 

Cubist

Still wavin'
Location
Ovver 'thill
or Haribo.



You can spend a fortune on energy gels etc, but jelly babies, haribo or whatever simply give you a boost of sugar when you need it and are far more fun that energy gels.
 

PpPete

Legendary Member
Location
Chandler's Ford
A single packet of jelly babies should be ample for a 20-30 mile ride, and a single water bottle.
Take a spare inner tube, tyre levers, pump.
Ditch all other superfluous weight - including those panniers you mentioned, and the rack they sit on.
 
OP
OP
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david1701

Well-Known Member
Location
Bude, Cornwall
I carry my laptop most of the time so the rack at least stays :biggrin:

my issue is where to put the stuff if I don't have a pannier, backpacks are uncomfortable and I don't have a frame pump and I have the one pocket on my jersey (which I reckon would max out on phone wallet and keys)
 

Arch

Married to Night Train
Location
Salford, UK
Go for it - you might be surprised at what you can do - riding in a sociable group can often feel easier than riding alone - partly because you get to slipstream a bit, and partly because all the chat as you go along helps you forget about the effort you're putting in.

Have you ridden in a group before? If not, be aware of not getting too close to anyone else - we alll need wiggle room to avoid potholes and so on. Keep your brakes covered if you're directly behind someone, but also, don't stop suddenly without warning. Other experienced riders will probably point out bad potholes or mud on the road - this might be with a fairly minimal wave at the offending item, or a shout. And there'll probably be calls (at least in the rural bits) of 'car up' and 'car down' (I can never remember but I think 'up' is coming from behind, and 'down' is oncoming - I just shout 'car!') so that the group can single up if necessary. Listen and watch out for how they do it, and you'll soon find yourself helping too.

I favour chocolate raisins, myself. And tea and cake at any opportunity.
 
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