Triathlon - Road Bike Snobs

Today my coworker Jason and I went out and rode the 25 mile option of the Dublin, GA Spring Century. There were a few bikes we saw with aerobars mounted on them but I think he and I were the only two that were on triathlon bikes. During all of the hustle and bustle of the start we got separated and so I'm riding down the road on my aerobars enjoying the scenery and this group of riders come up along my left side and the leader rider says "Get off those things if you jump on with us". At first it didn't bother me too much but then the more I thought about it the more it pissed me off. Why did this guy make the following assumptions (1) That I wouldn't get off of the bars if I joined his little group (2) that I even wanted to get on his train in the first place. The nerve of some people. Ok, enough venting.

Some miscellanous bits of info from the ride
- my bike computer was pretty close. The stated distance was 25 miles and measured 24.7 after passing the start finish line.
- my riding time, as measured by the bike computer was 1 1/2 hours and I average 16+ MPH. This improved my time by over 7 minutes from the last time I rode this same route.
- I can't ride this fast and stay aerobic. As Coach Troy says on his Spinervals DVDs make hard days hard and the easy days easy. I decided to make this a hard day and Jason and I hammered the ride after stopping at the first, and only, SAG stop for the 25 mile route. It was my first hard ride of the year and it felt good. I really believe my hours doing the aerobase builder DVDs is paying off.
- Average HR was 150, 1 point below my AT.
- Max HR was 168 on one of the climbs.
- I burned 1280 calories according to my HRM.
- It's great fun hamming down a smooth country road at 20+ MPH with a good friend.
- I can't wait until next year.

ZackJones,
I used to take it personal when I first started riding too. I still think good/experienced roadies are snobs, however now I understand them more now. They tend to pack only with other riders they know. They are very apprehensive around new or unknown riders. Any one can buy a bike and ride. Time will give you the handling abilities and experience. Unless you are on aerobars. You have NO quick response abilities with areobars ( here inlies the problem). During large rides you have all levels of riders. Some aero-newbies and regular newbies wanting to feel their oats may try to hop on a paceline. Bad idea. Now that I have actually broken my collarbone (not my fault), and have two bikes that cost as much as a used car, I feel like I can understand why the snob factor increases around "outsiders". Hopefully this will shed some light on their mindset. If you want to shut up the post ride attitudes, invite them to a friendly 1500 meters at the pool. (Be sure you are a good swimmer first)

Today my coworker Jason and I went out and rode the 25 mile option of the Dublin, GA Spring Century. There were a few bikes we saw with aerobars mounted on them but I think he and I were the only two that were on triathlon bikes. During all of the hustle and bustle of the start we got separated and so I'm riding down the road on my aerobars enjoying the scenery and this group of riders come up along my left side and the leader rider says "Get off those things if you jump on with us

Zack,
Sounds like fun, and makes me wish todays workout included a ride outside rather than on my trainer.
Hey - living near Boulder, Colorado this is the capital of "Bike Snobery" and where Cycle Snobery is truly legendary. If someone were to say that to me while riding I would have been quick to say "either keep-up or shut-up" and make them pay, in my mind I would be thinking "Game On" lets just see how hard you can ride and for how long. If they can keep-up, I would invite them for a little 20-mile run afterward :). There has been many occation where a pack of riders (a local team) tries to catch me on my Tri bike and I make a game out of it and never let them. They have an advantage by riding in a pack, but I also have an advantage with a TT-bike, and the race experience of knowing how to push for hard for 112 miles.
It's ok to have drive, determination, dedication, persistence, perseverance, a good work ethic and yes "ego"....you need all of those things to be able to push yourself beyond your current level of ability. But to be rude, the bragging type or demeaning to others is just wrong.

I look at it this way, there are many "a-holes out there" and many of them think they are really professional bike racers or something. But...I know a few former Tour de France riders and they are pretty humble people, because they know that success comes from hard work, heart and soul, they are the real deal.....these other guys are just wantabe's with matching jerseys.

sorry to digress, but MHR: have you heard of the norseman triathlon? i think that might be a challenge for you. maybe for next year, as your 2005 schedule seems to be pretty jam packed:

http://www.nxtri.com/

it's a ironman distance triathlon in norway.
starts out with a swim in a fjord. apparently, the water's pretty deep. hearing that the water is hundreds of meters deep itself is too much for some people.
then it goes on to the bike ride through the mountains. roughly 3000 meters ascent for the bike ride.
it finishes off with a marathon. again in the mountains. the end of this marathon is a ~10k (i think it was 10k) hike/run up the face of a mountain.

it's relatively small scale in a fairly remote area. so there aren't hundreds of volunteers helping you with nutrition. you have to bring your own support team.
if you were to do it and need people to help you out let me know! :D i'd be happy to pass you your powergels from a car... ;)

just found the official course despription off the website and thought i'd share... :)


Course description

Swimming:

3.8 kilometers in the Hardangerfjord. The water temperature is expected to be between 16 to 18 degrees Celsius. Wetsuit is mandatory. Water-start after getting out of the boat.



Cycling:

180 kilometers from Eidfjord, up Måbudalen, highway 7 over Hardangervidda to Geilo, highway 40 down Numedalen and over to Tessungdalen. Transition zone (T2) is in Austbygde.



Running:

42.2 kilometers from Austbygde, via Rjukan and up to the top of Gaustatoppen. This means 25 kilometers fairly flat, and then 17.2 kilometers with an extreme climb up to 1.850 meters.



Total distance: 226 kilometers. (140.4 miles)

No never heard of the norseman triathlon...But it sounds a little like the "World's Toughest Triathlon in Lake Tahoe, CA" - which was a big-time race that thrived in the 80's featured a 2-mile swim in frigid 60-degree water, a 100-mile bike ride in the Sierra Nevada mountains that featured three mountain passes exceeding 7,700 feet elevation, and finally an 18.6 mile trail run that included a 1,000' in a single mile to a fire lookout. All the above took place at over 6,000 feet elevation, making the race indeed one of the most challenging in the world.

My friend and former training partner was like #1 out of the water there after the swim

I love challange, but next year I have Leadville-100 ultra marathon on my radar.
PS. I HATE cold water!

all i have to say is im not suprised

I suppose there's a certain stereotype going on. Road bike riders = OK to join our group. Trigeeks = not OK :(. I think I'll do my next organized ride on a standard road bike. (Old Fuji Ace with Sora and triple chain rings) What is interesting though is that two different guys said that they recognized the two of us from another ride we did a few weeks ago. I guess riding a bike that's a lot different from everyone elses does have its advantages :)

i see some of that going on as well. in particular there seems to be some sort of antagonism between mountainbikers and road-bikers. often enough mountainbikers, who i great (as i do any athlete i bike or run by) won't give me a wave back but give me this really condescending look.
but whenever a friend of mine takes me along on one of his mountainbike tours it's th other way around: roadbikers may snob me, while mountainbikers will say hi.

I don't have a problem with anybody out riding. If they are riding a tri bike/road bike/mountain bike, it's got two wheels right?

Heck, I even wave to joggers and small children.

Zack, I came as a trigeek and now ride a lot more than I swim or run. So I can see where you're coming from but my advice is don't take it personally.

Rudy the Roadie could have been friendlier but it's a legitimate concern when you're riding a tight paceline. A lot of triathletes have the legs to ride with a fast pack but not the bike handling skills. When you're bombing along the road at 28 mph with 20 friends six inches apart, you have to be able to trust those guys to be competent and cool and hold their lines. And even the best bike handlers aren't as smooth or quick to react when they're on tribars.

So that's all.

I think the thing that really chaps my ass is that "Rudy" as we'll call him has no idea if I'm a full fledged trigeek or a converted roadie. It really doesn't matter though, Rudy and his train rolled off into the distance leaving me to ride my own ride. Jason and I hooked up and were flying back the last 12 miles of the ride. That's the part of the ride I remember most. :)

For some crazy reason we've gotten it into our heads to do a metric century. Weather forcast for Saturday 81 degrees and 100% chance of rain. I might just do the 25 on an old beater bike :)

self- preservation.
That is the bottom line.

Zack,

Don't take it personally. I do both kinds of events. Experience in Oklahoma has shown me that if someone has tri-bars at at road event, there is a very good chance (3-1 by anecdotal experience) that the rider is: 1) a strong individual rider; 2) fast on the flats, and 3) not someone I would trust in a pack. That means that there are still a lot of tri guys out there that are safe and fun company, like yourself.

With that observation comes a measure of caution for self-protection. Rudy may well have been giving a veiled invitation to join the pack but it came across wrong becasue he was winded, tired, or not well-spoken. He could also have been a jerk. You can't know for sure, so just ride and enjoy.

Tyson

With that observation comes a measure of caution for self-protection. Rudy may well have been giving a veiled invitation to join the pack but it came across wrong becasue he was winded, tired, or not well-spoken. He could also have been a jerk. You can't know for sure, so just ride and enjoy.


Tyson,

Excellent points. I'll cut Rudy some slack. :)

Sorry to say, but I completely agree with the "roadie"... Don't ride your aerobars in a pack... You just don't have the extra time to reach for the breaks in a group... Dangerous for you and the others... It's OK to ride a tribike with STI's and clip-on's, as long as you refrain from using them in the pack... If you are upfont pulling, than you might be OK with the aerobars, as long as the remainder of the group agrees this is acceptable...

Since we in the states are not used to draft-legal tri's/du's, why do you need to train in the aerobars with a group anyway? Either follow the rules as set by the group or train on your own! That's what I do, and for that reason, I do own two bikes (one tri and one road).

... probably should've toned that down a bit... Sorry if I offended anyone... :o

Point remains though.. I don't see this as roadie snobbery, but rather as a safety and "comfort issue" for the others in the group. Discuss the rules with the group and follow the agreement.. Best for everyone...

the point is zack and his buddy were cruising along by themselves and never intended to join the pack

but obviously you're right...nobody would stay on his bars riding in a pack...that would be almost as homicidal as going downhill on them...

edit:

"homicidal"???? where was my brain?! *lol* i meant suicidal of course...

Sorry James, you're right... Might be better if I read first and answer second... :o

That kind of changes things... Obviously the roadie was a complete idiot and how would like to ride with anyone with an attitude-problem?

I would have hooked up with them but keep back enough not to get there draft.

I would have hooked up with them but keep back enough not to get there draft.

I've seen guys on tri bars do this at the local Saturday ride. You can be a bit farther off the back to get a little draft advantage and still be safe if the group slows unexpectedly.

Of course, if they road guys are jerks, they're going to yell at you for not taking a pull. If that's the case, let them go.

Heck,i've been riding by myself and a group will slowly pass me and then when they get by me and in front of me,the last guy will turn around and wave me off his back wheel as to say,do not draft me. I never had wanted to and was minding my own business riding alone.

what we have to do is train hard. then the next time something like that happens all we do is go *click* *click* change lanes and blast right by them, while doing your nails.... :D
(TOEnails of course!)

I too have had this happen. I'm not a tour caliber bike handler, but I'm decent. I know how to ride in a pace line, aero or not. I've gotten the "Those things are dangerous" talks and simular Stay off those around me" type things. If I'm not on your group ride, I'll do as I please.

That said, I take a popular route out of town to the hills. Lots of roadies get on my wheel, as I'm tucked and rolling pretty good. They never take a turn at the front. I hate that.

I was riding into a nice headwind,working my but off. After about 5 miles of this i turn to see if anyone is coming up behind because i need to spit. When i check there is a guy stuck on my wheel. It scared the hell out of me and i almost lost control. Only then does he get next to me and says,thats a hell of a head wind. He then takes off and after less then a mile,he turns off.

... probably should've toned that down a bit... Sorry if I offended anyone... :o

Point remains though.. I don't see this as roadie snobbery, but rather as a safety and "comfort issue" for the others in the group. Discuss the rules with the group and follow the agreement.. Best for everyone...

I agree completely with you if I had been part of the group from the very beginning of the ride. While I am confident in my bike skills I am smart enough to know to stay off the aerobars in a large group or while in a paceline.

Lots of roadies get on my wheel, as I'm tucked and rolling pretty good. They never take a turn at the front. I hate that.Hey, I'll take a turn at the front!

SteveE

Hey,i dont want to be in a pace line and i dont want to draft. I want a better workout.