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Can I Do This Race?
First Time In A Group Or Paceline
Can I Do This Ride?
First of all, our training rides are generally open to non members so you don't have to join to find out how much room for impovement your have. It is hard to say exactly what your individual performance must be to succeed in a given group ride. Assuming you (the novice) have little or no group riding experience, you may be surprised at what you can accomplish as part of the group ("pack" or "peloton").
A talented bike handler with good drafting skills can cover many more miles at a much higher average speed in a group than he can maintain by himself. At 25 miles per hour, a drafting rider saves 30% of the energy of the rider setting pace in the wind. This assumes he is being efficient (smooth pedal stroke, comfortable aerodynamic position, propper cadence, etc.). So you can see how a big group of riders can accomodate a wide diversity of fitness levels
With some endurance training, skill development and determination not to "get dropped" (fall off the pace to be left behind) a novice rider just scratching the surface of 100 miles per week can "sit in" the group and finish a 50 or 60 mile ride with much stronger riders.
The things you'll need to work on are: endurance -- being able to go at a level effort for longer periods of time. efficiency -- being able to conserve energy when the pace is steady. aerobic capacity/recovery -- being able to make the extra effort when the pace jumps up a notch or two momentarily (such as getting over a short hill or reacting to a sprint).
Endurance comes with time in the saddle. Efficiency you'll learn by asking and watching riders that are better than you and practicing group riding skills. Aerobic capacity/recovery comes from interval type training. If you aren't doing your intervals, you'll have only your determination to keep up with the group and benefit from the draft.
If you come to do one of the training rides, be self sufficient (pocket money, pump, spare tube, etc.), but introduce yourself to a club member and let them know its your first time on the ride. I can't guarentee it, but that should be enough to get some one to keep half an eye on you. The real benefit of being a full fledged member is that the riders in your club are more likely to stop and help you or wait for you at a regrouping spot. This generosity only goes so far with a non member -- it depends on the patience, interest and personal training objectives of the individual that day.
See you on the road (?) - Back to top
First Time In A Group Or Paceline
The most important thing is to be sensative to safety issues. As a novice (to group riding) you will be treated a little as suspect because when riding handlebar-to-handlebar and wheel-to-wheel, everyone's safety in the group depends on control and predictability of each rider. You would sense this without my having mentioned it. If you are like me you will want to start out riding at the back of the group or off to one side. As your confidence grows you will work your way in and enjoy the full measure of drafting and group efficiency.
Here are some bike handling and paceline skills to work on:
- Keep your upper body relaxed --firm grip on the handle bars, but loose shoulders and bent elbows. Overreaction is the number one cause of accidents and a stiff upper body is the number one cause of overreaction.
- Keep your focus two riders up the road. Watch your following distance behind the wheel in front of you using only your peripheral vision. A relaxed upper body will allow your bike to travel in a straight line. Remember how a bike goes straight even when you ride "no hands"? It is the same affect when you relax your upper body. A forward gaze and relaxed upper body will cause your bike to track nice and straight. You don't drive a car down the highway with a death grip on the stearing wheel, staring out your side window trying to keep a constant distance from the lane marker --don't ride your bike that way either.
- Don't overlap your front wheel with someone's back wheel. If the person moves sideways and crosses your front wheel you will go down.
- If you don't feel ready to pull through and take your turn at the front of a paceline, don't mix into the rotation. Stay at the back and allow riders to rotate in ahead of you. The paceline loses its smoothness when riders hesitate to pull through. Riders lose their patience when the paceline loses its smoothness.
- Now get out there and enjoy the ride… Back to top