Clubs inaugural 'proper' road ride.

Having a proud dad moment now. I’m sort of involved with a http://www.lbcycleclub.org.uk which was set up under the cycling town scheme to attract local cyclists, in particular total novices to all types of cycling.
Anyway I’ve been helping when I can since early winter. And today we did our first proper club ride over Luton CCs 100km reliability trial route. We kept it together in true club style and got round in 3.25 which isn’t STW standard 🙄 but I can tell you it was very very windy out there today and that’s a respectable time for the conditions.
Well done chaps

Next is to help two guys that want to race. And try and get some BC assistance with some loan cyclocross bikes so they can have a taster at that.

It’s nice being nice sometimes 😀

😀 Nice one!

Well done! I can confirm that it’s been pretty windy round that way today 🙂 3.25 sounds pretty good to me!
I went for a run and spotted a few fat people pushing carbon road bikes up a hill as part of an oxfam charity ride. I had a bit of a word with myself after smiling at the though of a STW conversation on the relative merits of pushing carbon or ti roadbikes up hills, as at least they were out pushing them rather than at home watching telly.

They were like naughty kids today, and ruined a good ride.
Just takes one to show how fast they can go up hill or sprint down a lane to rip a group apart.
End result 35 mile ride at just over 15MPH average, what a waste.

Hate to stereotype people, but it was a few Trade kit wearing Pinarello riders.
Don’t know how to sort this out, but at least I’ve proved to the rest that we can ride further, faster and longer if we keep together.

Don’t know how to sort this out, but at least I’ve proved to the rest that we can ride further, faster and longer if we keep together.

I think the normal technique is to turn off onto another road or trail as the group transgressor sprints away.
Well, it’s what I do 🙂

Just takes one to show how fast they can go up hill or sprint down a lane to rip a group apart.
End result 35 mile ride at just over 15MPH average, what a waste

Hang on – mucking about trying to beat your mates for a laugh is a ruined ride? 😯

I think the normal technique is to turn off onto another road or trail as the group transgressor sprints away.
Well, it’s what I do

That works…

or don’t let on the full route and only announce turns as they come up,
or
Let it be known that the fast guys buy the drinks at the cafe stop …. you do have a cafe stop , don’t you

Hang on – mucking about trying to beat your mates for a laugh is a ruined ride?

I’m guessing what he means is that if a ride is down as saying being roughly 4 hours long, and everyone knows that beforehand that it’s going to be that long, then it’s a right pain when you get riders who jizz their load off in the first hour, and then everyone else has to hang around because they’ve blown.

But if you muck about and blow too early, then it’s your responsibility to get yourself home surely? If I did that I wouldn’t expect anyone else to tow me home. That would be out of order. If they do that kind of thing then it’s their issue.

As oldgit says, the whole point of a club ride, especially one for complete novices is to help them, show them the ropes, welcome them to the club, that kind of thing. Not show off how great you think you are by riding off the front. Everyone tries to keep up = group blown to smithereens. Total waste of time for all concerned, it puts off newcomers who think they’re not good enough for the club so they never come out again and it’s incredibly annoying for the organiser to see all their hard work wasted. All very well explaining to everyone that it was just a laugh but that’s no good when “Mr Pro” has blown his doors off and has to be pushed home or when Mr Newcomer gets dropped on the first hill and feels all lonely and unwelcome.

Don’t tell anyone the route, try and spread the faster guys around in the group a little bit as well so that if one goes off in a sprint for a road sign or whatever the rest can’t go with him and make it clear that anyone doing that waits at the junction. They’ll soon get bored of that and just ride tempo.

I guess it teaches them that by pacing themselves they can ride longer/further.

In February I took over the Sunday club run and have found it really difficult to get some people to realise that a steady out / tempo back ride where everyone stays together on the flats and ride as preferred up and down hills is considerably better and faster than spanking out at 95% blowing after 45 minutes and then spoiling everyone else’s ride because they’re completely toast with absolutely no idea where they are and how to get home. Also that constantly riding off the front without knowing where the route is adds a good half hour on to the ride as I have to keep riding after them to bring them back on course. TBH it’s made me think about stopping leading the runs as it’s so tediously annoying.
Good on you oldgit for stepping up and taking your guys out.

if one goes off in a sprint for a road sign or whatever the rest can’t go with him and make it clear that anyone doing that waits at the junction. They’ll soon get bored of that and just ride tempo.

Setting a policy that bores your riders seems a bit unfair and probably counterproductive – why join a club if you’re only going to get bored on the ride? IMO a better tactic would be to split into two groups, fast and slow riders – and ideally set the faster riders off on a slightly longer loop and let them catch up on the ride’s big climb.

If the faster riders are training, get them to drop 100m off the back of the group and sprint to rejoin.

crazy-legs has it.
One guy shot off, and one of the group followed. The result was a missed turn for the best bit of the ride 😥 by the time I’d sorted out the straggling group Mr Fast took us onto one way slip road and onto a dual carriageway…nice.

Thing is Sunday club rides have never been ‘race training rides’ that’s always been a seperate ride with the outfits I’ve been in. Or if not we’ve always made it clear that the pace would be high.

However this is a totally new group, not even a club really. But the guys loved the 100k I took them on last week, and were grumbling about todays.
And to cap it all off. The guy that takes out the sit up and beg – sandwich packing – anorak wearing group did just 6 miles less than us at only a 1/2 MPH less average

I think the normal technique is to turn off onto another road or trail as the group transgressor sprints away.

nail head. Nothing wrong with sprinting up the odd hill or for the odd sign post as long as people wait for the group to regather and sit on the front doing the work for a bit. It takes time learning how to set the pace on the front though, so maybe people just need telling when to ease up. Having a point on the return leg at which people can start the race for home but a few old hands will makes sure everyone else gets back ok is a good idea too.

I miss riding my bikes 😥

I think if anyone raced off the front on the flat in our club it would be assumed they’ve gone off on their own. Whoever is at the front should ensure the rest are close behind, if not slow down to let the group reform. Everyone should be able to take climbs and descents at the pace that suits them but everyone waits and no pressure.

unless its the fast group in which case you should just shut up and pedal 😈

Otoh if you explain to newbies that they have to toe the line and can’t do anything fun they might also get bored and not bother coming out again. I know I would 🙂

I don’t understand why anyone would think they have a right to be towed home when they’ve been messing about sprinting.

Contrary to popular belief, some people don’t ride fast to show how great they are. Some people just do it because it’s fun 🙂

No wonder MTBers think roadies are miserable sods. It’s chalk and cheese, isn’t it?

Fair enough everyone can go fast for a few seconds, but when your fun means a 60+ mile ride is halved and your superior speed has actually in the long run slowed the whole thing down, and you bugger off past the best bits of the route i.e missing the Ridgeway descents for a spell on a dual carriageway then keep asking for the best and quickest way back home, your out of order.

That left me having to sort out the fast twins whilst riding back down the road to collect the two ‘very’ newcomers.

Next week we’ve got a 75 miler over some very hilly terrain, if they turn up and act the same again, they’re on their own and they certainly won’t be getting any food and water off the others again.

That’s a fair point, but if Mr Speedy has blown can’t you leave him to get home on his own? I would, and I would expect to do the decent thing if it was me that had blown.

I’d feel terrible if I’d spoiled it for everyone else, there’s no way I’d make you wait for me.

EDIT: these folks are local adults, aren’t they? As in, they could be expected to know their way around the neighbourhood?

Maybe you should have just let them go the wrong way and taken the rest of the group the right way?

I’d feel terrible if I’d spoiled it for everyone else, there’s no way I’d make you wait for me.

Well as much as it annoyed me, I do realise it’s down to lack of experience. With a bit of (dare I say without sounding a big head) guidance they’d be good riders.

EDIT: these folks are local adults, aren’t they? As in, they could be expected to know their way around the neighbourhood?

Within five miles they were totally lost…no idea.

Maybe you should have just let them go the wrong way and taken the rest of the group the right way?

I felt like telling them how it was, you know being a bit blunt. Hopefully they’ll tow the line next week.

You had a talk with them before you started? About what to expect?

If the fast lads want to trash themselves racing each other, take them MTBing next time 🙂

For the club ride I’ve been leading, I’ve put it in the group email that its a club run and exactly what we’ll be doing, I tell everyone at the start what we’ll be doing, how and why, and they still ride off.
By doing this they totally disrupt the group and spoil it for everyone else, it’s just the same as people riding off the front of the group on every single turn doing through and off -it feels much faster but is actually slower.
Nest week if they turn up and do it again I’ll stop the group and tell them to bugger off. I’ve even had to ask people if they’ve seen pictures of the sky team riding double line, and that if the professionals can do it – why can’t they?

We’ve decided to have a ‘training’ session this Thursday evening.

Call me childish, but I’m out punish them. I’m pretty sure they were giving it their all/showing off on our club ride. And I know that one of them has raced…badly.
So Thursday I’ll warm up on my turbos, ride out to the start in warmers. Let them wind it up to as fast as they want and I’m just going to sit next to them.
Then when I go into the drops (the equivalent of Clint Eastwood flicking his poncho to one side) I’ll deliver, see how they like hanging on for an hour.

Could go pear shaped of course 😕 but I’m pretty confident.

Careful now oldgit – the wind has dropped…
I might go up to Hillingdon for the sufferfest of Thursday night mismatched group riding.

Lol@oldgit.. roadie clubs are like dog packs it seems 🙂

Oldgit: I want a post after your “training session” describing the outcome in detail. 🙂
If you have video footage of them disappearing off the back, that’d be even better. Extra points if they’re on more expensive bikes than you or are wearing Rapha. 😉

.

Extra points if they’re on more expensive bikes than you

That’s not going to be hard, PX SL/Ultegra man me. They’ve both got those Pinarellos that look like Dogmas, but with most kit. Don’t know if they’re expensive or not.

Prediction. They’ll fluctuate at 18-21. Then I’ll take it to 21-24. First hill they’ll get to the top possibly ahead by a few feet. Then it’s two more climbs in succession, guarantee the elastic will snap on the second.
Thens theres a massive flat ride home that you can get up to 34’ish on.
I’m such a ****er I’m treating this like the race of the year.

They didn’t show the bus stop w*****s, bit of rain and wind…pah.

You simply can’t stay indoors when the weathers bad here, or you’d never get out. Strangley it was pretty good for some of the time…eye of the storm?

Hah, win by default – although they probably don’t see it that way 🙂

Hah, win by default

Yeah…high five.

Better today. 100Kms over the Claydons inc Brill Hill.
Started out a bit like a Chimps tea party, but soon settled down. So much better, and 18.3MPH average, again very good for the windy conditions.
Having a meeting this week to see if we can turn it from a local group to an affiliated club.

Good.. perhaps they’ve been reading this 🙂