Successful group ride!

I just got home from tonight's LBS group ride and even though I was one of the very last to finish, I completed the whole route. And I am FINALLY starting to feel like I'm really in control of my bike. Yahoo!

I was nervous about this ride because I wasn't familiar with the roads. Plus it's only the second time I've ridden with a group. The route was 21.5 miles with a total of 2,100 feet of climbing. My average speed was 14 mph, which is really quite fast for me on a route with that many hills. And I didn't even drop my chain once! It was great motivation to have other people to keep up with. I'm learning a lot from all the more experienced riders and everyone was nice and encouraged me along the way. All in all, a really great ride. I'm looking forward to the next one!!! :D

Here's kind of a cool link that shows the route:
http://www.beautifulvista.com/Bike_R..._town_loop.htm

Congratulations! It's always a good feeling to stay with the group on a ride where you're not sure you will. I've only gone on two group rides myself (this past Tuesday and the one before) and the first one was a huge relief because I was able to stay in the middle of the pack rather than struggling to keep up like I thought I would--I've felt pretty slow sometimes riding around town. BTW, you're ahead of me as far as speed and distance on your group rides--mine are 10-12 miles and average speed tends to be around 12 mph (the routes have rolling hills--can't avoid those here). Now you must be looking forward to the next one!

That's an excellent speed!

Mine averaged only 11.8 last night :( but I'm working on my downhill technique, that may bring it up a bit.

Thats a good training pace over a hilly course Sara.

Well done... glad you enjoyed it...

Yes, I agree that is a very good pace. I did my first ride on my own today (not on a tandem or along side my husband). I went 20 miles and averaged 11.7. I don't know what the elevation was, but there was definite elevation. Lucky for me, I feel pretty decent on the downhills. I got up 25 mph a few times, which is about as fast as I feel comfortable right now. DH and I have gone 45 on the tandem and I don't know if I'd EVER feel comfortable doing that on my own! :eek:

I don't plan on doing any major group rides on my single any time in the near future. I certainly don't want to be the one holding everyone back! I did a 10 mile "easy" group ride with some friends yesterday and was still the one bringing up the rear. Good thing I have the tandem with a superstar cycling husband to keep me in the front and looking good! If I felt I could do 14 mph average for 20 miles, I might feel okay about doing a group ride. So, good for you!!!

Hey there again Jiffer

If you are unsure about group rides because of your endurance at that groups speed, then how about buddying up with a few of the riders from that group and having small training rides with them, and slowly work on increasing the length of time you can maintain a speed.