Would Joining a Cycling Club be Right For Me?

[matticus]

I have a terrible track record for giving people misleading directions. I don't do it deliberately but I overestimate my directing powers. Then just as the directed party sets off it dawns on me "hang on, that's not right. It should be second left. First left is the bandit infested road leading to a sheer drop. Oh well ..."

mark Twain said something like:
"as soon as you ask a man directions, you put yourself entirely in his hands."

 

[PaulSB]

Have helped out twice, but I always offer, it annoys me when riders just flash past ignoring me standing there. That's life though, we're all different, I tripped on a run a few weeks ago and still have a lump under my knee. Shortly after it happened I was leaning on a fence blood running down my leg, arm and hands scuffed as well. Young fella ran past and never stopped.

Everyone I ride with would offer help. The usual practice is to slow and call out "everything OK mate?" "can we help?" or similar. I'd say 99/100 times the answer comes back as "no, I'm OK."

 

[PaulSB]

I had an absolute classic once. I was on a gravel sportive. My hub failed, I managed to limp to a pub and call the backup team. While I was hanging around this happened:

A rider stops: "Are you OK, mate?
Me: "Yes, I'm fine. Hub's gone, I'm waiting for the support vehicle."
Rider: "Hard luck. I must crack on"

Five minutes later the rider reappeared.

Rider: "Don't suppose you've got a spare tube?
Me: "Sure, I'll get it"
Rider: "After all you won't be needing it."
Cheers, I thought. I gave him the tube and got the response "Thanks mate. I'd offer to pay you but I never carry cash." I said something generous while thinking to myself "Well, f*** y** mate"
🤣🤣🤣

We've laughed about that one over coffee and cake many times.

 

[Dogtrousers]

I had an absolute classic once. I was on a gravel sportive. My hub failed, I managed to limp to a pub and call the backup team. While I was hanging around this happened:

A rider stops: "Are you OK, mate?
Me: "Yes, I'm fine. Hub's gone, I'm waiting for the support vehicle."
Rider: "Hard luck. I must crack on"

Five minutes later the rider reappeared.

Rider: "Don't suppose you've got a spare tube?
Me: "Sure, I'll get it"
Rider: "After all you won't be needing it."
Cheers, I thought. I gave him the tube and got the response "Thanks mate. I'd offer to pay you but I never carry cash." I said something generous while thinking to myself "Well, f*** y** mate"
🤣🤣🤣

We've laughed about that one over coffee and cake many times.

I've handed out stuff (tubes, quick links, instant patches ...) to people on the road. My means of "payment" is to extract a promise that they will put a fiver into a charity box for me.

I hope that these acts affect the structure of the universe such that when I need help someone will magically appear.

 

[PaulSB]

I've handed out stuff (tubes, quick links, instant patches ...) to people on the road. My means of "payment" is to extract a promise that they will put a fiver into a charity box for me.

I hope that these acts affect the structure of the universe such that when I need help someone will magically appear.

Yes, I agree and do hope the gods will repay me as I've done similar. In my little story, which did and still does, amuse me. It was the fact the guy rode off, thought to himself I'll ask that chap for a tube in full knowledge he had no cash that irritated at the time. If it had been me I would have asked on the lines of "Look I'm sorry I haven't got any cash, could I take a tube and I'll send the cash later"

 

[ColinJ]

I will dig up one from the CycleChat archive...

Here you go:

I acted the Good Samaritan yesterday at the top of the Nick o'Pendle. I'd winched my way up there and decided to stop at the summit to stretch my back and enjoy the view. After a couple of minutes, a chap (later found to be named Jim) came over the brow of the hill pushing his bike and holding what looked like a dead black snake coiled round a stick. In a slightly forlorn voice, he asked "Can you do anything with this?" Why did he think I needed a dead snake? As he got closer, I saw that it was in fact a dead oily chain. This was a job for Bicycle Repair Man! Since BRM wasn't available, I decided to volunteer my services instead...

I'd practiced using my chain splitter recently when shortening a new chain for my Basso. I put my newfound skills to good use and had soon taken out the broken link.

It wasn't long before Jim's bike was ready to ride again and we set off on the descent together. Even though the sun was shining, it was really nippy on that side of the hill, dropping down into a cold wind.

We stayed together for the rest of the ride and it was nice to have some company for a change. I usually tend to ride alone on audaxes because I'm slower than most, but slightly quicker than the slowest.

Jim insisted on paying for my cake, Coke and water at the control cafe in Waddington. Later on we encountered a couple of his mates and joined up with them for the ride round to Coldwell.

I took about 90 minutes longer than last year (partly because of doing the chain repair, and partly because of waiting for Jim's mates on the later climbs). I actually enjoyed the ride more so I think that I might make a point of going slower when the weather is nice.

I bumped into Jim again on the same event a year later. I jokingly asked if he knew how to fix chains now. He smiled, whipped out his chain-splitter-equipped multitool and told me that he had practiced using it!

 

[Reynard]

I've always got tools and spares with me. How much depends on whether I'm going further afield or staying close to home. I'd rather have stuff and not want it than need it and not have it.

Part of the issue with me, is that my bikes have small wheels. While I could possibly take a tube from someone else and fold over the excess, I certainly wouldn't be able to give someone a tube. But I always have patches, a couple of quick links (8 or 9 speed) and a few other useful gubbins tucked away in my bar bag.

 

[screenman]

One of our elderly club members is in a nursing home this week, so far in the last seven days six club members have visited him. A lot of the bad reviews on this topic come from people on pretend races, or sportives as you may call them, maybe that says more about sportive racers rather than pure club cyclists.

 

[Illaveago]

I asked my brother about my local club today. He had joined a few years ago and went along to their club house. He said that he wasn't impressed and gave up. He said that the members he saw didn't know anything about bikes and talked about other things. I think that after going along a couple of times and not many turning up he gave up.

 

[screenman]

I asked my brother about my local club today. He had joined a few years ago and went along to their club house. He said that he wasn't impressed and gave up. He said that the members he saw didn't know anything about bikes and talked about other things. I think that after going along a couple of times and not many turning up he gave up.

So why did your brother expect others to do everything for him? Could he not have put a bit of effort into making it a better place? On another note out of the 150 members in our club only very few turn up for meetings, some turn up for road races, some for cyclo-cross races, some for time trials, some for reliability trials, some for social events, some for what they call wrinkly rides, and the list goes on. I suggest most on here have very little real idea of some cycling clubs.

Anyway, you seem to know what you want, you seem convinced that nothing like that exists, so why not build it and invite others to join, grow it over 100 years like many clubs in the UK, and leave a legacy behind.

 

[Illaveago]

So why did your brother expect others to do everything for him? Could he not have put a bit of effort into making it a better place? On another note out of the 150 members in our club only very few turn up for meetings, some turn up for road races, some for cyclo-cross races, some for time trials, some for reliability trials, some for social events, some for what they call wrinkly rides, and the list goes on. I suggest most on here have very little real idea of some cycling clubs.

Anyway, you seem to know what you want, you seem convinced that nothing like that exists, so why not build it and invite others to join, grow it over 100 years like many clubs in the UK, and leave a legacy behind.

If it didn't seem welcoming why would anyone want to join?
You would expect the members to ask what bike they had and to show some sort of interest, it's what we do at our mens shed.
We are trying to get a few more of our friends to join us on our rides. We are compiling a list of places to stop for tea and cakes. Lacock is a favourite as you get a tea pot per person instead of sharing a pot.

 

[Illaveago]

Give it a try. The club I'm in has about 140 members; quite a few go off on their own rides in club kit and don't speak to others. That's their choice.

A decent club should have rides for all abilities, be welcoming and there should be a ride you can fit into if it's big enough. A British Cycling registered club covers you on their insurance for up to three rides, which should be enough to work out whether you're getting on with them. Most have a 'beginners' or 'introductory' type ride that's aimed at new members, although I do have to remind some of mine when we've guests who might not know where they're going.

However, from your posting above you may already be in a club without making it 'formal' . Now I'm wondering whether you're Compo, Cleggy, Foggy or Nora Batty (the later ones are irrelevant to me).

I think I would be Compo. Paul would be a spitting image of Clegg.

 

[screenman]

If it didn't seem welcoming why would anyone want to join?
You would expect the members to ask what bike they had and to show some sort of interest, it's what we do at our mens shed.
We are trying to get a few more of our friends to join us on our rides. We are compiling a list of places to stop for tea and cakes. Lacock is a favourite as you get a tea pot per person instead of sharing a pot.

Do domino players only talk about dominoes?

 

[Flick of the Elbow]

Down in England my old clubs from the 80’s and 90’s both had well supported ‘Autumn Tints’ sections, these provided easy paced mudguards and saddlebag rides for the over-50’s, almost all with long experience of club riding throughout their younger decades. These looked very enjoyable and I always hoped to be able to transition into similar rides myself when the time came. Alas I’m now 60 and I find there’s no such thing in these parts. The only easy paced rides provided by the local clubs are all badged as ‘development’ rides aimed at beginners. And I’ve had my fill of riding with beginners.

 

[fossyant]

There are a lot of community or social cycling clubs these days. In Manchester you've got a choice of racing clubs all the way to social clubs who ride at a much more sedate pace just enjoying themselves. Pick one that suits the riding you want to do.