Road Cycling - the "boss" of the group ride

today was a group ride with a LBS. as always there are 3-4 cyclist who always have to push and lead the group. this doesn't matter to me or bother me at all. further more, these 3-4 individuals are a woman and a couple of older guys (50's). this too is perfectly fine with me. we always end up droping the newbies and inexperienced riders. myself, i am into this only 7 weeks now and have just now gotten to the level of staying with the group for the duration of the ride (30 miles : avg 19-20 mph).

today, as the "bosses" were pushing hard up front they were making it hard for the group to work together in a pace line. it was a little staggered and slopy. we have 4-5 big climbs on some tough hills and on one of the last climbs me and 3 others put a hard acceleration in and "blew the field apart". we dropped the "bosses" big time. at a traffic light when the group caught us one of the older guys looked over at us and started complaining that if we had done our share of work at front and pushed some he would not have had such a hard time up that hill. then he goes on and states how he is twice our age and is doing all the work at front.

do any of you have some fun "boss" types on your rides who get a little upset when they get dropped or put into difficulty?? i couldn't believe this guy.

and by the way, i did every turn up front that our pace line made....granted it was a sloppy and unorganized line for most the ride. these guys just hated to be in the back of the group!

jf

That sounds like a group ride, someone pissin' because he(Usually a stronger rider that punishes newbies) suffered(translation: got dropped) when everyone did not do their share(translation: I was not paying close attention and got gapped)

Why in the world do you ride with these people? They sound unfriendly, unwelcoming, and like genuine asses. Not to mention that a sloppy, uncoordinated, paceline, is a serious accident looking for a place to happen.

Paul

That's why I haven't ridden in any group rides yet. I figure there will always be guys or gals up front really pushing the group. I'll wait until my AVS gets up a few more mph. Hoping to catch up with some cool riders in my area soon. And I agree with Oregonbound, why ride with those people?

Seems to me riding is supposed to be fun. I'm sure you had fun dropping those turkeys. I would have taken great pleasure in it myself. But realisticly, who needs them? Talk to other riders in the club and break off into your own groups. Ride with people you enjoy riding with and are around your skill level. Some of the best pace lines I've ever been in had four or five riders.
Life is to short not to enjoy it. Have fun and ride safe.

Jim

well it's the only group ride in my town. and it is fun. i don't mean to discourage anyone from riding with a group. i have learned so much about riding with this group. i got dropped and left the first 3-4 times i rode it. but each time i was able to stay further with the group and was able to measure my progress each week. this was a great way to physicaly see my improvements. and there are still a lot of friendly people on this ride. and i love that these "bosses" push hard because it forces me to become better and a stronger rider.

i think today was just one of those days....they are not always this mean! :D

jf

Welcome to the club!

According to Phil Liggett, that "fellow was put into a spot of bother" LOL!

Don't ride too long with them or you will fall into the trap of beating deadbeats and you'll plateau your fitness.

Our "bosses" usualy set an easy pace for the first half hour and then pick it up some after that. They control the ride for what kind of training the majority of riders need that week. There is usualy another "boss" that rides at a slower pace to keep the "B" group together and get them home without getting lost. Maybe jf would like to drop down to the south side of town to ride with us.

the 'bosses' shouldn't all bunch at the front of the group. it is just as important to 'collect' the group and make sure the less experienced riders are riding safely in a pack. i've been on rides where you can be yelled at for drinking from a water bottle while in a pace line....reason? safety. i've also been pushed by the saddle by a boss to 'get up with the group. don't lose that wheel!!'
most good groups realize that new riders could be tomorrow's training partners or members.

There is always people like that in any group.. people who will try and hold you back, and then get pissed off if you take off... in the group I ride with... there is one guy that always tells me to slow it down a bit when I'm up in front... tells me my pace is too fast for the rest of the group... occasionally it is... but I get into a groove, and just pedal... usually I ride with the "B" group to our halfway point, usually a coffeeshop or whatever, and then try and head back out with the "A" group, since the route back is always the same for both groups... I seem to do pretty good keeping up with them, and would probably ride with them on the weekends if I could pull myself outta bed an hour earlier to leave when they do....

"i've been on rides where you can be yelled at for drinking from a water bottle while in a pace line....reason? safety. i've also been pushed by the saddle by a boss to 'get up with the group. don't lose that wheel!!'
most good groups realize that new riders could be tomorrow's training partners or members."

Hi RiPHRaPH, your post reminded me of stuff I have enountered. I have been told by a "boss" to "not lose a wheel" but he was the team coach on a closed training ride. Haven't encountered that on an "open" ride yet, probably will someday. Funny about drinking--he would yell at us for drinking at stoplights as there "are not stoplights in a race!" There's no way anyone could drink at high speed in the drops, so we'd drink as we pulled out of rotation.

if the problem is riders of different abilities, why not just split the group? the rides i've done, there's ALWAYS a "slow" group and a "fast" group.

that being said, in those rides it's definitely considered poor form to take the "glory" spots without doing work. for example, one guy who always takes the sprint after not having done a single pull the entire ride is universally regarded as being a major ass. i'd say if y'all want to "attack" on a group ride, go ahead and do it, but don't then try to fall to the back of the group to be pulled along for the rest.

I generally don't give a crap what they think. I drop the entire fast group every single week. They can't draft off me anyways. So far though the comments have been good. They say it gives them some motivation to push harder and try not to lose sight of me. Last night, 3 of them banded together and pushed a pace of 28mph for 6 miles trying to drop me. Didn't happen. Beat them all back by 8 minutes. 32 mile ride.

it's not that i dont mind my turns at the front....i love them! but these guys push so hard that when we are on flats our pace avg is in the 20's mph. most of the people in our group (the slower of the 2 group rides) can't handle that pace for more than 6 miles or so. and the "bosses" never want to drop back to the rear for a rest; the only time you see one go back is if we are in a pace line.

now the funny thing is that these "bosses" suck wind when going up good hill climbes. and i really excel at climbing. so here is my big time to push and jump out in front and lead these guys up a hill. do i fly up too fast and too quick? yeah, i do... but that is what i am good at. its boring as hell to wait on these guys to get up a climb. as soon as i am up the hill i sit back and wait for the group to catch up. i stay in front for as long as i can to block wind for everyone as they recover from the climb, then i drop back to recover. i'm not about stealing glory...it's a fun group ride after all...but i think some of these guys think it's a cat 5 race! and i also think that there is a general feeling among some cyclist that they "own" the group ride.

but through all of this...i really love the group dynamic. there is a lot of personality with a group ride (some good and some bad); and the fact that these guys are so serious on their ride really elevates all of us.

jf

Originally posted by jsfountain
but through all of this...i really love the group dynamic. there is a lot of personality with a group ride (some good and some bad); and the fact that these guys are so serious on their ride really elevates all of us.

jf

Yup, that's why I enjoy group rides @ least once/week. It's the motivation, the conversation, and the competition!

BTW, I'd drop that guy (like 3rd period French class) on the 1st climb of your next group ride. Let the games begin! :D