Living Car Free - for those who race...how do you get to your races?

okay, i'm trying to plan out my 2006 schedule and there isn't really much within riding distance until the summer time. the races nearby are in other towns and often start really early in the morning. plus, i don't think i could wake up at 3am, ride 40 or 50 miles, and then race. that's just not an option.

so, how do you guys get to your early AM races? rent a car? hitch a ride from someone? ride there?

although I'll probably do only one actual race, I will be doing many rides where the start is far away... I plan to bike to all of 'em... the ones that are over 100 miles away I plan to ride to the day before and get a hotel room... the start of the brevet series I plan to do is about 110 miles away....

I remember this past summer riding to some of the Sunday moring local club rides and being dissapointed because I was the only person to show up on a bike... some of the meeting spots were farther away than the actual ride :eek:

okay, i'm trying to plan out my 2006 schedule and there isn't really much within riding distance until the summer time. the races nearby are in other towns and often start really early in the morning. plus, i don't think i could wake up at 3am, ride 40 or 50 miles, and then race. that's just not an option.

so, how do you guys get to your early AM races? rent a car? hitch a ride from someone? ride there?
I just humm.. drive there? lol.. my bike on my truck and drive away, no matter what distance what time.. i just get there.. good luck on your races btw:)

I plan to bike to all of 'em...

Kewl, really kewl. I was thinking of trying the sport but was thinking of issues similar to the OP. knoregs, you seem to have it worked out already, good stuff!

I'm debating the same thing. I have three plans of action for this summer's road and mountain bike race season.....

Plan 1) Ride to the race...there are several races within 10 miles of my house.

Plan 2) Catch a ride with a team mate or friend who is also racing...there are several races in town, but too far to get to in the early AM. I'm sure I'll know others who will be racing. I rarely race if I don't know anyone else racing anyway...

Plan 3) I am thnking about doing a few multi day stage races this summer... I'll probably rent a car to get to these.

No problem borrowing a car for a race.

Kewl, really kewl. I was thinking of trying the sport but was thinking of issues similar to the OP. knoregs, you seem to have it worked out already, good stuff!

I'll have a very lax work schedule which will allow me to do this (by design).... taking off for a few days at a time probably not feasible for everyone...

just noticed my previous post.... I wrote "some of the meeting spots were farther away than the actual ride"... what I meant is the distance I traveled to the ride was longer than the actual ride :o (sleep deprived)

oh... do try a brevet or two... you'll be hooked

I'll have a very lax work schedule which will allow me to do this (by design).... taking off for a few days at a time probably not feasible for everyone...

Can I ask what you do for work? This is the thing I like best about my current job working in a small restaurant. Problem is, there's not much else I like about it.



oh... do try a brevet or two... you'll be hooked

For those of us who don't race (yet), what's a brevet?

Can I ask what you do for work?

tech consulting.... no office / storefront, no cell phone, just me & bike... this winter I'm also working full time doing appliance delivery and setup... hard work but this will buy me a new bike and allow me to enjoy it all summer long



For those of us who don't race (yet), what's a brevet?

copied from RUSA website... www.rusa.org -- brevet (bruh vay) - Literally, the word means "certificate", "patent", or "diploma" in French. In "randonneuring", it means two things: certification of having successfully done a randonné, --indicated by a small numbered sticker placed on a completed brevet card --, as well as, by extension the long-distance event itself (at least 200 kilometers in length). Completing a successful brevet means one's ride has been certified and registered in France, and the rider's name is added to the roll of honor, going all the way back to 1921. These challenging rides can also entitle the rider to enter longer events such as Paris-Brest-Paris or Boston-Montréal-Boston. As used in the "randonneuring" world, the terms brevet and randonnée are often interchangeable, but in common cycling usage, a randonnée might be considered to be less structured or formal than a brevet.

In my long-ago-and-far-away-carfree-racerboy days, I hitched rides with fellow team members. That way, I was not adding any (or very few) net car miles.

I also rode to al the local team rides, but that was normal then and there. It is relatively rare to see people ride to group rides here/now, but that is partly because the town sprawls so much, people and rides are very spread out.

That is what teams are for. I have been setting things up for me to sell my vehicle. Part of this was strengthening my team, building relationships and setting goals. I'm hoping by all this work i've done that catching a ride with my team mates will be no deal. Check your local shop for a team.

okay, i'm trying to plan out my 2006 schedule and there isn't really much within riding distance until the summer time. the races nearby are in other towns and often start really early in the morning. plus, i don't think i could wake up at 3am, ride 40 or 50 miles, and then race. that's just not an option.

so, how do you guys get to your early AM races? rent a car? hitch a ride from someone? ride there?

Have you thought about zipcar as an alternative for long distances...what about public trans???

At my local vintage bike shop I saw some weird bracket contraption on the forks of an old racer. The owner told me that, back in the days when you had to ride to a race it, was to transport a set of "sprint" wheels (ie lightweight tubular racing wheels).