[rns61373]

Originally Posted by edot1983

Waterbury, CT

I'm also in CT

[John_V]

Riding solo is my personal preference. I do ride club rides, but they are very informal rides and do not involve pacelines. I only ride paceline rides with people I know well and have ridden with before, like my cycling team.

[superj]

Originally Posted by John_V

Riding solo is my personal preference. I do ride club rides, but they are very informal rides and do not involve pacelines. I only ride paceline rides with people I know well and have ridden with before, like my cycling team.

Same here, minus the cycling pace line part

[bjjoondo]

We really wanted to be club riders but for us, being in a club was a "Epic Fail", LOL, first it was like we were the only one's without carbon fiber frame and fork road bikes, then it's, were 50+ and NEED to use the restroom more often then the club riders!! We were the ONLY Car Free bicyclist so we didn't have a car to get to some of the farther ride start points and we were a bit tried from the start of the ride. The last was the my wife, is SLOW, she can ride for HOURS but her pace is 8.5 to 9 mph avg. the Club Social riders seem to run a 14 mph or higher so she was always last and got a lot of grief from the other members.

So it's SOLO from now on or just me and the Mrs. I'll leave the Club to the racer boys and girls, it just ain't for US!

[LarryM]

Originally Posted by bjjoondo

We really wanted to be club riders but for us, being in a club was a "Epic Fail", LOL, first it was like we were the only one's without carbon fiber frame and fork road bikes, then it's, were 50+ and NEED to use the restroom more often then the club riders!! We were the ONLY Car Free bicyclist so we didn't have a car to get to some of the farther ride start points and we were a bit tried from the start of the ride. The last was the my wife, is SLOW, she can ride for HOURS but her pace is 8.5 to 9 mph avg. the Club Social riders seem to run a 14 mph or higher so she was always last and got a lot of grief from the other members.

So it's SOLO from now on or just me and the Mrs. I'll leave the Club to the racer boys and girls, it just ain't for US!

Or maybe offer to start club rides for people who want to go at a more liesurely pace?

[John_V]

BJ,


The club rides I am involved with are completely the opposite of what you described. The Saturday club is more of a social gathering on two wheels. Any level of rider and any kind of bike is welcome, including box store bikes; if that's all you have. The rides are structured and they do have certain rules, but there is no minimum speed that a rider must be able to do. Most of the riders that do these rides are 50+ and many of us being 60+. When they say "No one left behind", they mean it.

The Sunday group is almost like the Saturday group except their rides are a bit longer and a little faster. However, if you can't keep up with the majority of the riders, they will slow down to your pace. Most of them are over 50.

What you might want to do is start your own ridding group. It doesn't have to be a formal club (neither of these are) with officers and all that, just a bunch of people that like to ride. Whoever comes up with a ride route is the ride leader so it doesn't become monotonous and everyone gets the chance to lead.

You can put flyers in local shops and eateries to get a rider base going. You would be surprised how fast the word travels if you have good and interesting rides.

[tanglewood2son]

Originally Posted by LarryM

Or maybe offer to start club rides for people who want to go at a more liesurely pace?

It's silly to suggest you don't fit in because you're not fast enough - surely at one time or another even those 'fast boys' would have been slow...?
For me cycling has to be fun or it becomes an unwelcome chore that ill begin to resent, and some days all I want to do is trundle along at a slow speed - and my fast speed is in all honesty slow.....but I really don't care because that just how I roll
My club is riding the way 'I' want to ride and if it's wrong or if I don't fit in then they can just jog on
:-)

[bjjoondo]

Originally Posted by LarryM

Or maybe offer to start club rides for people who want to go at a more liesurely pace?

Well to be honest we couldn't seem to find anyone that rides a slower pace in the local club! This group seems to be all about, training, century rides, etc. Nothing against them it just that their attitude is that, "We need to keep up with the majority" and my wife just can't do it and I can just barely do it so the rides aren't FUN, when we arrive, they all head out so we get "no rest" and as stated, these folks NEVER stop for restroom breaks unless it's at a planned stop, which by the way are quite rare.

There's no use in US, being a anchor and weighing the majority down so it's better to just "bail" and ride by ourselves. JMHO.

[bjjoondo]

Originally Posted by John_V

BJ,


The club rides I am involved with are completely the opposite of what you described. The Saturday club is more of a social gathering on two wheels. Any level of rider and any kind of bike is welcome, including box store bikes; if that's all you have. The rides are structured and they do have certain rules, but there is no minimum speed that a rider must be able to do. Most of the riders that do these rides are 50+ and many of us being 60+. When they say "No one left behind", they mean it.

The Sunday group is almost like the Saturday group except their rides are a bit longer and a little faster. However, if you can't keep up with the majority of the riders, they will slow down to your pace. Most of them are over 50.

What you might want to do is start your own ridding group. It doesn't have to be a formal club (neither of these are) with officers and all that, just a bunch of people that like to ride. Whoever comes up with a ride route is the ride leader so it doesn't become monotonous and everyone gets the chance to lead.

You can put flyers in local shops and eateries to get a rider base going. You would be surprised how fast the word travels if you have good and interesting rides.

John, glad you've got such groups, that would be really good but LOL, it seems that all the groups here in C. Springs, seem to be, "train for pain", Yes the ride is called "Social" but only IF you can keep the pace set by the majority. Even on the "no drop" rides we've been on, if you slow the group down, you get grief and grumbling from those that stopped at the corners, etc.

We even usually "volunteer" to be Sweep Riders and still my wife get's "grumbled" at. I did think about "starting" a very mellow bicycling group on Meet Up but got a almost no one showing up so we kinda gave up. We can't even seem to find "a few other couples" to ride with so far? So far the fickle finger of fate has decided we should "ride alone".

[newleaf150]

Originally Posted by bjjoondo

John, glad you've got such groups, that would be really good but LOL, it seems that all the groups here in C. Springs, seem to be, "train for pain", Yes the ride is called "Social" but only IF you can keep the pace set by the majority. Even on the "no drop" rides we've been on, if you slow the group down, you get grief and grumbling from those that stopped at the corners, etc.

We even usually "volunteer" to be Sweep Riders and still my wife get's "grumbled" at. I did think about "starting" a very mellow bicycling group on Meet Up but got a almost no one showing up so we kinda gave up. We can't even seem to find "a few other couples" to ride with so far? So far the fickle finger of fate has decided we should "ride alone".

With that kind of treatment, it's hard to blame you and the wife for being 'solo' cyclists! Along about the time I hear grumbling about my own or a companion's speed, I think my group participation would be abruptly terminated in favor of a solo effort.

I've always had the view that part of agreeing to go cycling with someone is the expectation that we will actually ride together. I've no need to show off my superior athletic conditioning - assuming I'm the fast one.

If a more fit companion has to prove it, the first time I get dropped tends to be the last time I agree to ride with that person.

I like the sound of John_V's group rides. Need to see what the local scene is like, I suppose, but I just haven't felt the draw. I'm happy cycling by myself or with Mrs. Newleaf.