Gainesville Cycling club...
 

Hey everyone. Not only am I new to this forum, but I'm also new to Florida, and Gainesville to be specific. I'm not new to cycling though. Been BMXing since I was old enough to, and commuted via cheap mountain bike a few years back. I'm just getting back into it now.

I can't swing the kind of cash for the nice road bikes I was looking at. Fuji Newest 3.0, Felt Z100, Nashbar AL-1, steel Specialized Allez... However, I did find a decent used mountain bike, complete with Bontrager slicks on it already. I'm outfitting it for my 27-30mile round-trip commute to work and back.

I'm usually not the most social type, but I've decided that I need to get out more and start doing more. I'm a computer geek by trade so getting out isn't really something I'm accustomed to. I was looking at possibly joining the local cycling club to meet like-minded cyclists, and to go on group rides and such. Is anyone here a member of the club?

This might sound stupid, but the pictures all showed what appeared to be experience cyclists on high-end road bikes and going very fast. Would a normal commuter like myself fit in?

TLG, no specific knowledge about the G'ville club except showing up for some of their "event" rides, (I'm down in the Tampabay area). But as to clubs in general, yes they tend to be populated with "roadies" more than anything else.

DO NOT let that discourage you, however! Many of those "roadies" are also commuters! The clubs also typically have a range of rides, both in distance and speed, one of which I'm quite sure you're more than capable of participating in with current equipment!

And the benefits for someone in your position would be enormous! New friends immediately, instant knowledge of the better roads to ride, a social scene, access to a wealth of mechanical knowledge as well as, (usually), availability to a wide assortment of used parts and even bikes! (Might find that "new to you" better used road bike there for half of what a new road bike costs!)

Good luck to you, and welcome to Florida.

There are lots of different sub-groups in the GCC. They have group ride from the painfully slow to the painfully fast.

OP, based on your commuting miles, you might enjoy some of the many Century rides and bike fests (link) in the area. They all have different mileage options, and you won't get "dropped" There are people of all skill levels at these rides. Also, they offer full support, snacks, breakdown assistance, etc. I can't speak to the Gainesville club rides, but the Horse Farm Hundred is good fun.

I'm also in G'ville and at the moment I don't belong to GCC. But I have been riding with a group from UF's College of Veterinary Medicine called Team VetMed. They have been doing a 23 mile Wednesday afternoon ride from the Vet school down 441 to Wacahoota Rd to Willistion Rd and back. Normally they roll at 5:30 PM, but they're trying a 3:30 ride now, but turnout has been sparse. The ride started as a prep for the Horse Farm Hundred, and since that's over attendance dropped. But the early departure time is probably a factor as well.

I have heard of group rides coordinated by bike shops. I'm pretty sure Bikes and More, Chain Reaction and Mr. Goodbike have their own ride schedules. I think even Critical Mass is doing something. For Team VetMed info use Google. Both Century rides of GCC are laid out well and can easily be tailored to fit the distance you'd like.

And since you have a mountain bike the San Felasco Hammock is a great place to ride. It's just south of Alachua. The trails are great as well as the scenery.

Thank you all for the warm welcome and I appreciate all of the good advice. I think I'll definitely be joining up for some group rides and other cycle-related events. A friend told me of Critical Mass here in Gainesville but just like other social things I'd like to attend, I get out of work as it starts and it's a 45 minute ride from my work, :(. Looks like I'll need to have a conversation with my supervisor about some earlier shifts a few days a month.

I'm still building up stamina. I literally just got back from my longest ride which was 13.9 miles in 38F weather. I have a goal of a 21 mile trip, but that will be a few more weeks before I try tackling that.

Thank you all again!

If you're under 40, go for it. If not, forget the "goals", and just ride! The "no pain, no gain" stuff is for the young and the conditioned athlete.

Cycling is a life-long sport. I do century rides, (100miles), with guys in their 80's and 90's, (and I'm pushing 60 now!) You can do that too, but if you want to still be riding tomorrow, your ride today has to be FUN! So forget the goals, and go ride today for as long as it's fun. When it quits being fun, go home!

That way, you'll continuously be looking forward to the ride tomorrow. And you know what? Doing it that way, the time difference between you and the "goal" guy to get to the 25, 50 and 100 mile mark will be inconsequential. Matter of fact, the "goal" guy might not even make the 50 mile mark cause he quit because his rides weren't fun!

That sounds like a better way to look at it Onegun! Ride until it's no fun, then go home? I can do that. I'm still making my bike fit me better. I'm having some seat issues, and I'm also getting really tired of the messenger bag and getting racing strips in wet weather. Hopefully Christmas will bring me a rack/pannier combo and some fenders.

As for age, I'm 22, so I don't think I'll have any problems getting shape faster. Also, thanks for the the clarification on what a century ride was. I was too lazy to look it up, but 100 miles seems fitting.