Title: First Group Ride

I started cycling in mid May this year. After riding alone three to five days a week for the last six months, I road my first group ride at the American Diabetes Association's Miami Tour de Cure this past Sunday. I road the 27 mile course out of the 10, 27, 62 and 100 mile choices. It was a fun learning experience, and I think I'm ready to start riding with groups during the weekend. Here are the highlights, including the almost mugging:

*I registered at 8 AM, about an hour before my coral was going to leave. I was supposed to receive and ride with a grey bike jersey for raising over $500 for the ADA. But they only had the Red Rider jerseys (for diabetic riders). I explained that I didn't have diabetes, but they said it was the only color they had. So I wore it. After explaining a dozen times I didn't have diabetes, I turned into the Madegascar Penguins and just, "smile and wave."

*My wife and two of her girl friends drove the 100 miles to Miami to surprise and support me in my first ever group ride. It was a really nice surprise. Note: One of her friends is the local police chief near where we live-- this is important later.

*We start the ride, and almost immediately there were four of us riding at a comfortable pace. I let them know this was my first group ride and spent most of the first three miles just looking at the guy in front of me. I was concentrating on being close enough, but not too close. The next thing I know, the rest of the pack is no where to be seen. OK. Now I'm committed to these guys.

*The four of us get to the first rest stop and wait five minutes for the rest of the group. They never show up, so we get going again and soon realize that the course is poorly marked. I just kept following the guy in front of me. After a half hour, it's now just two of us. We have no idea where the other two guys went.

*(See the picture below) After about 30 minutes of no signs, my wife and friends find us to cheer us on. They also provide us a map of the course. Finally, we stop on North Miami Ave, under the 395 overpass to get out of the sun. We don't know it, but we are two miles south of where we should be... in this very bad neighborhood! My wife and one friend get out to help us with the map. As we are trying to figure out where we are, suddenly, Crackhead Johnny appears out of nowhere and begins to approach us. I have no idea he's behind me. The story I'm told later is that our police chief friend scares him away, preventing a potential mugging. Hey. If I have to admit that a girl saved my ass, at least I can say she is a police chief!



*Finally, my new friend Brian and I double back, find the course and finish with the other two guys we lost earlier. Brian and I cycled 29.3 miles instead of the planned 27.1, and we were the second and third to finish. It wasn't a race, so take that with a grain of salt.

*Lastly: When we finished, I explained to the three guys that I was beginning to fatigue the last two miles and was riding a bit sloppy. I mentioned that I wanted to train a little more and investigate some C group rides near me. They provided me with the boost I needed when they all agreed I need to forget the C group. They all said I was a solid B rider. For me, that was the icing on the cake for my first group ride.