Clubs and longer rides ?

essjaydee

Hiya

Recently got a bike (hybrid) and started commuting to work, 24 mile round trip. Happy to do this 5 days/week now after gradually building up and getting some better kit (tights, waterproofs etc).

Am really loving being out on the bike and thoughts are now with getting a road bike, joining a club and doing some club runs on a regular basis and then aiming for a longer charity ride, sportive or audax next year. I find that with something to aim towards it helps with motivation. Few years back did this when I went through a running phase, and did the London marathon (99) and a 100km team event (14 hours), but this was back in 98 to 2001. Haven't done a lot of physical activity since then, apart from recent cycling to work for the past 2 months.

I'm a bit nervous about joining a club as the ones in my area (blackpool), even the easy rides are anything from 30 to 60 milers :!:

So what's the best way of building up to this. Been out today and done a leisurely 20 miles with no problems, and this on a hybrid. Guessing that a road bike, once acclimatised to it, will be easier to cover bigger mileages and at a faster pace, but won't be getting one till the new year. Don't fancy a turbo trainer to improve distance as I never liked a treadmill when running and would much rather get out and do it for real.

Is it worth planning some gradually longer rides on my hybrid to build up gently.

I'm 46 and slighlty overweight, but had no issues since commuting other than a sore derrier

kim10

Hi,

Nice to see you are enjoying cycling and commuting every day.

I think you are on the right track. Just keep commuting and then get out in the weekend and slowly increase your distance. You don’t mention anything about your average speed but if you get yourself to a level where you are doing 30-40 miles at 15-16 mph then you will definitely not have any problems on your average club run. You will probably find that the club has a few different runs aimed at different levels so pick the right one. If it’s a decent club they will make sure the look after you and you will also find riding in a group make things much easier.

Eventually changing to a road bike should also help you increase your mileage and speed.

Keep it up, find a friendly club and you bill be just find.

essjaydee

Thanks Kim

Average speed is anything between 11 and 15 mph at present depending on the wind speed and direction. I'm right on the Northwest coast and it's always 'breezy'

Will build up the mileage as you say, and keep an eye on what average speeds I'm doing, in case I need to work on that too

markos1963

Why worry about getting a road bike? If you can get your mileage up to 40+ at an average of 13-15mph then you'd be welcome in most clubs regardless of bike. We have a few hybrid riders in our club who keep up easily(admittedly in our slower group)

jim453

Mate, you'll be fine.

You've run a couple of marathons before so you know the drill in terms of the body being capable of WAY more than people give it credit for.

Next weekend, just set off and ride fifty miles. Take your time and eat and drink plenty. Done.

Wirral_paul

Personally i'd go for the road bike and then keep enjoying your cycling. You're really enjoying your riding so treat yourself - and why bother giving yourself a handicap by riding a hybrid for a club ride anyway when its already on your mind that you're worried about being able to ride with a club.

The commuting will obviously help but you need to gradually increase the distances and speeds, with some weekend rides or alternatively a different route home occasionally if you're up to it. Think about the your diet and energy drinks also to give yourself every chance of getting fitter and stronger. Riding with others is a big help - maybe 1 or 2 others to start with to gain confidence. Its so easy for club riders to say that riding in a group is easier, but there's a lot to learn - gaining confidence and ability to ride safely with others.

I'd also suggest a few local sportives for next spring - give yourself a target to aim for and a great way to meet others to ride with..... even if just for the day. I really enjoyed The Bay Dash in April for a fun day out up near Lancaster.

http://www.wrynose.org/route2.htm

essjaydee

markos1963 wrote:

Why worry about getting a road bike? If you can get your mileage up to 40+ at an average of 13-15mph then you'd be welcome in most clubs regardless of bike. We have a few hybrid riders in our club who keep up easily(admittedly in our slower group)

Would ultimately like a road bike do a sportive, charity run and longer club runs. Plan is to keep the hybrid as my commute bike and then have a road bike for weekend fun

Thanks for the replies all and the link Have printed off the route from link and will give that a try one (nice) weekend.

Much appreciated

andrew_s

It's probably best to join a club fairly early in the new year. Daylight restricts the length of club runs and most existing members will be at their least fit, so you can get into the swing of things in a fairly gentle manner.
If you leave it until the warm weather starts in May, the club members will be nearing peak fitness and thinking about 100 mile rides.

essjaydee

Probably be the new year until I get a road bike sorted anyway, so should fit well with your advice

Thanks

carl_p

andrew_s wrote:

It's probably best to join a club fairly early in the new year. Daylight restricts the length of club runs and most existing members will be at their least fit, so you can get into the swing of things in a fairly gentle manner.
If you leave it until the warm weather starts in May, the club members will be nearing peak fitness and thinking about 100 mile rides.

The club I belong to created a 'middle group' for that reason because we found that the regulars who had cycled throughout the winter maintained good fitness and the 'club run' (slower group) simply wasn't fast enough come the spring, or too quick for newbies depending on you look at it.

Don't forget to factor in the 'door to door' mileage if you don't intend to drive to the meeting point. A club run for me, door to door, ranges from 45 to 70 miles depending on the route of the day.

I'd recommend you get your road bike first. Getting used to the lower riding position and drop brakes is not something to be practiced on a group ride. Any excuse to get a new bike

rickwiggans

Have a look at Garstang Cycling club rides. C rides range from 25 miles flat to 45 miles over the Trough. Speed is moderate, so I'm sure you'll find it OK. You'll be fine on your current bike on these rides. Rides go on all year so you can build up towards the spring. You can then work through the "B"'s and then on to the A rides, which go up to 160 miles.

http://www.garstangcyclingclub.net/

Rick

thistle_

You will probably find you can go a lot faster on a road bike however the ride might be a bit harder. It might be better to stick with your comfy hybrid (assuming it is comfy) for commuting and use the road bike for longer/club rides and for when you get up late for work

The slow group at a club might go on 60 mile rides, but they might be out for the most of the day. They might also take 2 hour lunch stops. You won't know until you ask or give it a try

Like cadseen says, if you're doing 24 miles a day now you probably won't have a problem with fitness.

essjaydee

Thanks for the replies

Great advice as always on this site 8)

oscarbudgie

Generally I'd say doing sportives and charity rides is a step towards club riding rather than the other way round.

markos1963

oscarbudgie wrote:

Generally I'd say doing sportives and charity rides is a step towards club riding rather than the other way round.

From a personal point of view I'd disagree with that. Joining a club got me a lot fitter a lot faster. The pressure to ride at faster speeds and over longer distances meant that sportives were a lot easier and I had some cycling mates to come along with me. Very few of my group of riding friends do much over 60 miles but because we ride it regularly we can step up at any time and put in a low 5hr 100miler.

oscarbudgie

markos1963 wrote:

oscarbudgie wrote:

Generally I'd say doing sportives and charity rides is a step towards club riding rather than the other way round.

From a personal point of view I'd disagree with that. Joining a club got me a lot fitter a lot faster. The pressure to ride at faster speeds and over longer distances meant that sportives were a lot easier and I had some cycling mates to come along with me. Very few of my group of riding friends do much over 60 miles but because we ride it regularly we can step up at any time and put in a low 5hr 100miler.

erm - I think that was my point - the OP was talking about joining a club to prepare for sportives when in fact the opposite is the case - club rides will be much faster, harder and more disciplined than any sportive. Club rides are after all primarily used to maintain base fitness for racing. Sportives are just a way of charging £20 for a banana and a Mule bar.

SBezza

oscarbudgie wrote:

erm - I think that was my point - the OP was talking about joining a club to prepare for sportives when in fact the opposite is the case - club rides will be much faster, harder and more disciplined than any sportive. Club rides are after all primarily used to maintain base fitness for racing. Sportives are just a way of charging £20 for a banana and a Mule bar.

That depends entriely on the club, our club runs are not training rides, they are social club rides, and cater for all levels, from those that manage only 10mph averages, to the racing types like myself. Don't do them now, as funnily enough not good enough quality.

I joined my club before doing sportives, and club runs were not as fast as I have done sportives.

To the OP find a club that caters for all abilities, and you would be fine on your hybrid, then you can get the road bike at your lesuire.

BeaconRuth

oscarbudgie wrote:

Club rides are after all primarily used to maintain base fitness for racing.

Nooooooo! This is soooo wrong and so often a misconception amongst new cyclists. Sometimes a club may have a 'training bash' or 'chaingang' which could be used as race-prep but far far more common are 'clubruns' which are social rides for non-racing cyclists - or perhaps racing cyclists in their off-season. I can think of a dozen local clubruns which I see out on the roads regularly and none of them has racing cyclists taking part. If a rider comes to me and says they want to get seriously into racing I often find that the first thing they need to do is to stop going out on the clubrun. As SBezza says, they need to get some decent, quality training in instead!

Ruth

oscarbudgie

only 'soooooo wrong' if you don't read the post properly or believe that your experience is the only valid one. The operative word was 'maintain' ie something you do to keep a level of fitness when not racing. Just about every racing cyclist I know maintain fitness through the off season by taking part in club runs.

SBezza

oscarbudgie wrote:

only 'soooooo wrong' if you don't read the post properly or believe that your experience is the only valid one. The operative word was 'maintain' ie something you do to keep a level of fitness when not racing. Just about every racing cyclist I know maintain fitness through the off season by taking part in club runs.

You said primarily used for training, I highly doubt this for most racing riders, I would lose so much fitness it is worthless. Again it depends on the club run itself, and whether it is a social run to a cafe, or a proper training ride. Then again one ride a week, is not going to do anything for fitness, probably find most of the decent racing cyclists training during the week, and have an easier ride at the weekend

Saying that a club run is harder than a sportive is not giving a realistic view of most club runs, as on the whole, they are no where near as hard as a sportive.

BeaconRuth

oscarbudgie wrote:

Club rides are after all primarily used to maintain base fitness for racing.

This implies that the majority of participants on clubrides are using the ride to maintain base fitness for racing - which I find not to be the case for almost all the clubs I know (which is a lot). The vast majority of participants on clubrides have no interest whatsoever in racing, in my experience. Of course there is the odd club around which is exclusively very racing-oriented, but these are in the minority, not the majority in my experience.

Ruth

KnightOfTheLongTights

good thing is about Blackpool, the club runs shouldn't be too hilly!

do some research into local clubs

most clubs, expecially larger ones, will have slowish / introductory groups and I'm sure you would be OK going out with them now

some smaller clubs (though fewer) might be race-orientated with only fastish groups and would not be so suitable for someone in your position

but you are definitely on the right track as club rides are the best way to improve cycling fitness and ability, IMO.

Don't be inimidated, most clubs seem to me welcoming and pleased to have curious newcomers along fior a few rides before they decide whether to join or not.

KnightOfTheLongTights

re. the debate over club runs, the club I have been going out with has three groups: the slow or social group, the steady group, and the fast group.

For the latter two it is definitely a training ride - through and off - where the pace is pushed.

The people in the steady, however, may be either happy to remain in the steady group and not really be interested in racing, or be looking to progress to the fast and race.

Most / all in the fast group will be racers or interested in racing.

essjaydee

Two clubs local to me and both have 3 groups at varying levels, so seem to cater for all

Will arrange to go and have a ride with both and take it from there, obviuosly at the lowest level initially

Not interested in racing at all, but like to challenge myself hence interested in going for a Sportive or long charity ride, as a target to aim for. Club ride for me would be the excuse needed to get out on longer rides, not to increase my speed or pace as this would (probably) happen as a result of getting out more often and with increasing distances

markos1963

Don't view club runs as race training. My club have a specific race training ride alongside the normal 3 ability groups. Join a beginners/steady group first and go from there.