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Building up to club riding for a newbie

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  • August 9, 2015 at 11:28 am #24576
    Groggy PM

    Having ridden MTBs through my 30s, I haven’t ridden anything for at least 3 years. I’ve just pulled the trigger on a new road bike and wondered what a reasonable distance was to begin with to build up to club rides / sportives etc.

    I have a decent level of basic fitness, but I do remember getting dropped big style by my riding mates who were also roadies on big Tarmac climbs :/

    Cheers for any thoughts and advice B-)

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  • August 10, 2015 at 8:43 am #856367
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    Groggy PM

    Woldsman wrote:Groggy PM

    Woldsman wrote:
    Groggy PM wrote:

    Just one thing: what the hell is a ‘noddy hat’? =))

    Presumably a term used for a cycle helmet by those who choose not to use one.

    How dull? It was much funnier in my head.

    August 10, 2015 at 8:38 am #856365
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    Woldsman

    Groggy PM wrote:
    Just one

    Groggy PM wrote:

    Just one thing: what the hell is a ‘noddy hat’? =))

    Presumably a term used for a cycle helmet by those who choose not to use one.

    August 10, 2015 at 8:30 am #856363
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    Groggy PM

    Thanks guys, really
    Thanks guys, really appreciate all thus information and advice – so useful! I’m going to look into all of those different options.

    Knowing the guy who got dropped by my local club, he won’t have started with a beginners ride – he’d been riding on his own for a while and had a nice bike – big hat, no cattle syndrome.

    Just one thing: what the hell is a ‘noddy hat’? =))

    August 9, 2015 at 4:51 pm #856361
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    Groggy PM

    This will be on my commute
    This will be on my commute and is something I can incorporate into some timed rides – there’s a few options for getting there and back as well.

    Thanks Simon.

    http://veloviewer.com/segment/3640938/Terrington+Bank+-+steep+bit

    August 9, 2015 at 4:26 pm #856359
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    Simon E

    A local club with no-drop
    A local club with no-drop intermediate rides sounds ideal. Give it a try.

    If riding solo why not think of it in terms of time as well as / instead of distance?

    Find a couple of roughly 1.5-2 hour routes you can manage (for variety as much as anything). Once you’ve ridden them then try to ride each more quickly.

    August 9, 2015 at 4:08 pm #856357
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    Groggy PM

    Cheers doc, there’s some good
    Cheers doc, there’s some good stuff on there!

    August 9, 2015 at 2:39 pm #856355
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    Groggy PM

    Eeeep! Better get on the bike
    Eeeep! Better get on the bike then! 😉

    August 9, 2015 at 1:43 pm #856353
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    Woldsman

    An event at the end of the
    An event at the end of the holidays not too far from you if you are at a loose end:

    http://eastyorkshirectc.org.uk/september-6th-2015-challenge-rides

    Not mountainous, but a few hilly bits away from the Vale of York 🙂

    August 9, 2015 at 12:43 pm #856351
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    Groggy PM

    Thanks. My local club looks
    Thanks. My local club looks pretty cool, judging by their page – they have steady rides, but with fitness as a focus as well as learning about group riding. People don’t get dropped on these (although I’ve been told to take thus with a pinch of salt by some).

    For the next four weeks, I’m planning to do around 100 miles a week (teachers’ holidays are awesome) after that it will depend on work and weather, but I’m planning to do my 14 mile commute pretty regularly, so that should see me right.

    Thanks again.

    August 9, 2015 at 12:23 pm #856349
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    KirinChris

    Check the local clubs you’re
    Check the local clubs you’re planning to ride with and see what they do would be the be first step.

    Most clubs will have a range of rides from say 60-70km starter rides to 100-120km group rides, but even they will range from moderate to hard pace. A sportive may be a bit easier because you can do it at your own pace.

    The starter rides will be no-drop so that’s a good place to see how you go and get some feedback face to face.

    A rule of thumb I’ve found is that whatever your average weekly riding total is, you can ride up to half as much again in a single ride.

    So if you’re doing 80km a week on a regular basis you could manage a sportive of 100-120km. You might not crush it but you’ll get through.

    Bump that weekly up to make it a one-to-one ratio and you should get along comfortably.

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