Any good cycling clubs around the Ruislip or Hillingdon area

sampras38
sampras38 Posts: 1,917
edited August 2009 in Training, fitness and health
As the title says, I'm looking to join a club around this area for the odd club run. Can anyone recommend a club?

Anyone a member of Hillingdon Cycling Club, as I guess this looks like an obvious choice? If so, what sort of club runs do you do, mileage, speed etc, and where do you ride?

This'll be my first club but I have ridden on a few club runs in the past as a guest. Mostly in the 40 to 70 mile range, and I'm a regular visitor to the hills around Box Hill and have been on a couple of French Alps rides.

Any advice much appreciated

Comments

  • Aggieboy
    Aggieboy Posts: 3,996
    See here from a previous post. Not far from you and Sunday riders come from all over the place. Check out their website.

    http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtop ... 0&start=20
    "There's a shortage of perfect breasts in this world, t'would be a pity to damage yours."
  • Gavin Gilbert
    Gavin Gilbert Posts: 4,019
    We're based at the Hillingdon Circuit and have the most stylish jersey in the division :wink:

    http://www.archer-rc.cyclists.co.uk/
  • Aggieboy
    Aggieboy Posts: 3,996
    Gavin Gilbert wrote:
    We're based at the Hillingdon Circuit and have the most stylish jersey in the division :wink:

    http://www.archer-rc.cyclists.co.uk/

    shapeimage_8.jpg
    Ahem!!!! 8)
    "There's a shortage of perfect breasts in this world, t'would be a pity to damage yours."
  • Gavin Gilbert
    Gavin Gilbert Posts: 4,019
    Aggieboy wrote:
    Ahem!!!! 8)

    Yours certainly attracts the deer :lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:
  • sampras38
    sampras38 Posts: 1,917
    Gavin Gilbert wrote:
    We're based at the Hillingdon Circuit and have the most stylish jersey in the division :wink:

    http://www.archer-rc.cyclists.co.uk/

    Hi there,

    What sort of club runs do you do, how long and where to?

    Do you have different groups at different paces, and do you stop half way for cake stops? At the moment I'm trying to avoid the half way stops if I can.
  • Gavin Gilbert
    Gavin Gilbert Posts: 4,019
    We do have a Sunday Club Run but only during the 'winter' months starting in November and continuing until the 'reliability' season starts in late February. This is because most of our members race or take part in Cyclosportive events at the weekend. Whilst some of the larger clubs offer weekend runs throughout the year during the summer these tend to be for the slower riders and are held at 'touring pace' with tea and bun stops (often multiple tea and bun stops, not that I'll name and shame :wink: ). This is all very civilised, but it doesn't help at all with race training.

    The club run starts from the gates of the Hillingdon circuit. If conditions are rideable but really foul it's not unusal to spend as much time as we can stand lapping the circuit. No stops other than for punctures; the normal form is to stop at a cafe either Hayes or Acton at the end of the day before heading off home.

    Send us a mail via our website and one of us will get back to you with more details.
  • sampras38
    sampras38 Posts: 1,917
    Gavin Gilbert wrote:
    We do have a Sunday Club Run but only during the 'winter' months starting in November and continuing until the 'reliability' season starts in late February. This is because most of our members race or take part in Cyclosportive events at the weekend. Whilst some of the larger clubs offer weekend runs throughout the year during the summer these tend to be for the slower riders and are held at 'touring pace' with tea and bun stops (often multiple tea and bun stops, not that I'll name and shame :wink: ). This is all very civilised, but it doesn't help at all with race training.

    The club run starts from the gates of the Hillingdon circuit. If conditions are rideable but really foul it's not unusal to spend as much time as we can stand lapping the circuit. No stops other than for punctures; the normal form is to stop at a cafe either Hayes or Acton at the end of the day before heading off home.

    Send us a mail via our website and one of us will get back to you with more details.

    Thanks for the reply Gavin. I live in Ickenham so not far from Hillingdon, or any of the areas you have mentioned. My only problem is I really want to try and avoid any kind of cake stops so it doesn't sound like it's a good time to join the club. As with most people my long rides are limited to the weekend and I'm trying to get at least 60-70 miles without a stop, including at least a couple of hills, and around 18-20 mph average. I'm guessing that this probably isn't the right time to join your club. I ride as much as possible but am still new to sportives, having done my first Wales dragon recently in 7hrs 30. Currently now training for the Southern Sportive in Sept.

    I've ridden with a couple of clubs on the odd occasion, such as the Hownslow Wheelers, but they were doing cafe stops too and it didn't really help with my training. They also do a training ride without stops but I haven't been able to make one yet. Seem like a nice bunch but a bit too far for me to join long term.
  • Gavin Gilbert
    Gavin Gilbert Posts: 4,019
    It's a bit hit and miss if it takes place - but there's normally a fast bunch that leaves Shanes Nursery on the A40, just past the A40.M40 roundabout junction, on a Sunday morning at 9:30

    They don't take prisoners and if you can't hack the pace you'll be left dead in the road.
  • Aggieboy
    Aggieboy Posts: 3,996
    Gavin Gilbert wrote:
    It's a bit hit and miss if it takes place - but there's normally a fast bunch that leaves Shanes Nursery on the A40, just past the A40.M40 roundabout junction, on a Sunday morning at 9:30

    They don't take prisoners and if you can't hack the pace you'll be left dead in the road.

    Sampras38, there are a few groups that leave from the nursery at Denham. If you pop into 'The Bike Shop' North Harrow, they will have all the info as they go with one of them. I think even the fastest group have a cake stop though iirc
    "There's a shortage of perfect breasts in this world, t'would be a pity to damage yours."
  • sampras38
    sampras38 Posts: 1,917
    Aggieboy wrote:
    Gavin Gilbert wrote:
    It's a bit hit and miss if it takes place - but there's normally a fast bunch that leaves Shanes Nursery on the A40, just past the A40.M40 roundabout junction, on a Sunday morning at 9:30

    They don't take prisoners and if you can't hack the pace you'll be left dead in the road.

    Sampras38, there are a few groups that leave from the nursery at Denham. If you pop into 'The Bike Shop' North Harrow, they will have all the info as they go with one of them. I think even the fastest group have a cake stop though iirc

    OK, thanks for the tip.
  • ridelikeapro
    ridelikeapro Posts: 139
    If you're training for a race then no cake stops on a training ride for sure, but if your training for a Sportive I'd have thought you could allow yourself a bit of leeway to enjoy your riding a bit more and incorporate riding and general conditioning with a bit of socialising and a bit of a craik - go easy on yourself buddy. Anyroadup if you think you're ready for a cake stop and feel you can handle it - then for all year Sunday rides from Bushey check out http://www.gregarios.co.uk PS. If you want to train, then come down to our training group at the Hillingdon Circuit on Thursdays. ciao :D
  • sampras38
    sampras38 Posts: 1,917
    ridelikeapro wrote:
    If you're training for a race then no cake stops on a training ride for sure, but if your training for a Sportive I'd have thought you could allow yourself a bit of leeway to enjoy your riding a bit more and incorporate riding and general conditioning with a bit of socialising and a bit of a craik - go easy on yourself buddy. Anyroadup if you think you're ready for a cake stop and feel you can handle it - then for all year Sunday rides from Bushey check out http://www.gregarios.co.uk PS. If you want to train, then come down to our training group at the Hillingdon Circuit on Thursdays. ciao :D

    Thanks for the tips, and I might just join you on the track at some point. I must admit I've been a little obsessive about my training, but then i've always been like that. The fitness has always been more important to me than the crack. Ex bodybuilding background, then tennis, so it's sort of in my nature. I've felt a little bored on a few of my recent club runs and felt like I needed to doc more when I got home. I've done that on a couple of occasions..;-)

    I think the main problem is that the club runs I've been on don't usually start until around 9am, and that takes up too much of the day for me. I'd prefer to be out the door around 7, so even if I do a long ride it doesn't impact on the family so much. i did 75 miles yesterday in just under 4 hours, by myself.
  • ridelikeapro
    ridelikeapro Posts: 139
    Ah, well I guess you've said it. You either need to bend a bit, relax, chill, and "try" and enjoy riding with others - or maintain your solitary riding existence if you're really that focussed. But c'mon guy - they're only Sportives after all - glorified club runs.... and who are you trying to beat anyway? It sounds to me like you need to race. Is this something you've considered? If you train at Hillingdon say Thursday evenings while its running (till end of September or so), and do a few circuit races on Tuesday evenings together with some evening or Saturday Time Trials... then maybe you'd be knackered enough to try and force yourself to enjoy (?) "the club run"? Buy hey, some of us like Marmite some like honey, some like Dylan some like Boyzone - it wouldn't do if we were all the same. There's no right way here - it's what you want to do - but I'm pretty sure there's no Club Run in the UK that fits your current remit. Have you considered battering yourself from 7am and then arriving at the Club Run having already done your hard work? The thing to remember is that most Club Runs are generally just that - the guys on the ride will mostly be doing their training and racing on other days. Good luck anyway!
  • sampras38
    sampras38 Posts: 1,917
    ridelikeapro wrote:
    Ah, well I guess you've said it. You either need to bend a bit, relax, chill, and "try" and enjoy riding with others - or maintain your solitary riding existence if you're really that focussed. But c'mon guy - they're only Sportives after all - glorified club runs.... and who are you trying to beat anyway? It sounds to me like you need to race. Is this something you've considered? If you train at Hillingdon say Thursday evenings while its running (till end of September or so), and do a few circuit races on Tuesday evenings together with some evening or Saturday Time Trials... then maybe you'd be knackered enough to try and force yourself to enjoy (?) "the club run"? Buy hey, some of us like Marmite some like honey, some like Dylan some like Boyzone - it wouldn't do if we were all the same. There's no right way here - it's what you want to do - but I'm pretty sure there's no Club Run in the UK that fits your current remit. Have you considered battering yourself from 7am and then arriving at the Club Run having already done your hard work? The thing to remember is that most Club Runs are generally just that - the guys on the ride will mostly be doing their training and racing on other days. Good luck anyway!

    lol..yeah, I agree with everything you said, and I will do some club runs when I get the time. And you sound like a decent bloke too. cheers. I don't always ride on my own and sometimes they'll be 2 or 3 of us.
  • ridelikeapro
    ridelikeapro Posts: 139
    Well you'd all be welcome if you want to do a couple of guest rides with The Gregarios Superclub Ciclista http://www.gregarios.co.uk (you can always turn back early if you need to). The Thursday night Hillingdon Circuit training sessions would be a good bet also. Start 6.30 / warm-up from 5.30 onwards (you need to sign-on from 6pm at the wooden cabin to the left of Goals building). ciao :D

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