Group Ride #1
 

Well I went on my first group ride last night. There ended up being between 40-50 people out there, so it was a little intimidating at first. I was also the only one without a jersey, helped me stand out more. Anyway it turned out very well. I ended up riding with 3 ladies, had to put the male ego in check. :rolleyes: They were very friendly and helpful for the whole ride! They actually said I should probably be riding with the big group, once I get rid of my cage/clip pedals. :( We ended up riding just over 30 miles and averaged 18 mph. I had a great time and look forward to the next time out. Also went and rode 10 miles this morning before work. I think I'm ADDICTED! :D

that's a GOOD thing. keep it up!

Why they hell wouldn't you be able to ride in the "big" group with clips? Glad you had a good first group ride, but that sounds silly.

Congrats ... that's actually very good! Hang with it ... it is one of the best kinds of addiction IMO! ;)

I thought so too! Maybe it's a image thing although I'm really not sure...

It's good to see that you have found out that you can ride with some awfully nice ladies if you just supress the testosterone. Don't be in too big a hurry to go out and buy all the latest equipment. It's nice to have but not at all necessary to have a good time.

A couple of weeks ago I was riding with some friends, one of whom is around 50 years old. He was wearing tennis shoes, an old T-shirt, and some old swimming trunks. A group of A-level riders went by and we jumped onto the back of the group for a while. After a few miles most of us could not handle the 25+ mph pace and dropped off. The last we saw of Joe and his tennis shoes he was pedaling happily in the middle of the pack telling stories as if he was sitting on the couch at home.

It's all about the engine.

I also went for my first group ride last night. Well, sort of: the only other rider who showed up was a Cat 2 guy on the local club team. We went for 40 and averaged 22.4mph. Would have been faster but the wind was in our faces the entire time, due to the prevailing south-west wind on the way out, and then shifting as the storm came in from the north on the way back (which was definitely not appreciated).

It was a great experience, but I didn't really gain anything in terms of riding in a pack, or drafting, because we rode side by side the entire time, talking about riding, racing and drafting. We made it back just in time too, despite violent winds, because the tornado sirens started going off about 10 minutes after I got back to my apartment. Scary stuff when there is no place to hide in the middle of miles of soybean and corn fields. Needless to say, we dropped it into the 53-12 in the last mile or two, and despite the wind, REALLY cranked it in. Oh, and he dropped me like a bad habit, into the wind, but I knew that was coming. I just don't have POWER yet, and that's fine with me. All in due time, right?

Overall though, it was great to actually get to ride with someone of higher ability, get some nice mileage in, and move pretty well at certain points. As the OP said, I too am ADDICTED.

Congrats to all. Groups rides are one of the things that keeps me out there. Af2nr - you did great for your first time. I know you'll keep at it. Watch out for those cocky buggers that think they run the pack. You'll meet 'em, just ignore them. Stick with the ladies ... they'll keep things interesting ;) .

Pete
http://www.viovio.com/anthropete

did u calibrate ur speedo? ur doing 22 average and ur wondering if uve power? i know guys who do triathlons and average bout that.the guys in the tour de france average like 25 over a century on average and u want more power?
sounds interesting

Af2nr, glad you had a good experience, a group that large is bound to have a pack of riders in your range, that you found some women to ride with is even cooler! (Yeah, I'm one of those who prefers to ride with the ladies; kinda keeps a lid on the TdF wannabe hammerfests). Keep it up!

yeah, it's calibrated. i just don't have any top end speed (or the power to get up there) or the really high end speed endurance just yet. i have decently strong legs and great endurance from years of running but cycling is taking some getting used to. i also am 5' 6", and also very flexible, so i can get down pretty low and cut a very small swath in the air. so its not really that hard to get moving for me. the difference between myself and guys in the TdF is that i was on near-flat roads in the midwest, and those dudes are cranking up MOUNTAINS. it's not really a viable comparison.

Thanks to everyone and I can't wait for the next ride, although it will be next Thursday before I get that chance again. Then I should be able to swing 2-3 rides a week with them. On another note about the TdF hammerfests. The ladies actually raced each other on some of the hills and sprints. They said it was there little TdF thing. I just kind of tagged along. Didn't think it would prove anything if I won one and sure didn't want to lose one! :D

Hahaha, reading this makes me laugh at myself on the groupride yesterday. We were swapping off pulls on this hilly section, and the guy in front motioned for me to pass him, so I pulled out in front. We'd been averaging about 20 or so, so I thought, what the heck, let's have some fun, so I hammered for about a half mile, looked back and there was NOBODY there... oops... Then we got to the next portion and my legs were shot, I got dropped like a rock for about a mile, then caught up at a red light. I was like, "if anybody sees me do that again, throw a water bottle at me, that was ********" we all had a good chuckle about it.

Perhaps a noob question, but when can you tell if people are wanting to have some fun and hammer a bit to keep things quasi-competitive? I guess I should just watch for a few weeks more to learn the group.

AF2NR

congratz on your group ride! Don't feel bad about riding with the ladies. I am dropped on a regular basis by several women on one of my weekly rides! Yet I keep coming back for more!!

Cheers

Way to go dude! You took the first step to becoming a hopeless cycling junky! :D

I remember when my long ride was a solo 12 miler and I thought, "WOW!" Then I went out with a group one day and did 30. I've never looked back. :D

That was me on this ride. I had done 3 rides by myself before this one of 7, 16 and 13 miles and thought I was doing good. 30 wasn't so bad with other people though...