group ride - recovery

If a club defines entry levels rides as 16-18mph, can I expect the recovery rides to be about 14mph for say 20 miles? This club is very intimidating. I am not sure, but I think that if you are a member, you are not allowed to smile or acknowlegde other riders on the rode! This seems especially true for males 18 to 35. Anyway, I want a group ride to challenge me but not kill me. My average now is 12-14. I am fat and do not ride in jerseys (they just don't fit me). I know I will be shunned and scorned by this group, yet I am oddly drawn to ride with them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Originally Posted by Barb

If a club defines entry levels rides as 16-18mph, can I expect the recovery rides to be about 14mph for say 20 miles? This club is very intimidating. I am not sure, but I think that if you are a member, you are not allowed to smile or acknowlegde other riders on the rode! This seems especially true for males 18 to 35. Anyway, I want a group ride to challenge me but not kill me. My average now is 12-14. I am fat and do not ride in jerseys (they just don't fit me). I know I will be shunned and scorned by this group, yet I am oddly drawn to ride with them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Well, you really need to ask the ride leader, what the average is. For each group, a recovery ride could be different. Why not go out one day and meet the group (make the effort to say hi and shake hands) and get a feel for how the ride is? Then, you can come back another time and do the ride.

I know with my group, a recovery ride is a 12-13 mph average.

Now... I don't know about where you live... but our group smiles and says hi to other riders on the road (we even encourage them to ride with us next time)... and if you ride with the slower crowd (not the hammer heads who average 22 mph +) then you are going to meet NICE people who won't SHUN you just because you don't have a jersey on.

As far as the younger, faster males not smiling... well, they are just really serious and working very hard to keep their average up. I know I can't talk to the person next to me if I am trying to keep a 17 mph average on a ride. I am barely able to breathe... much less smile or talk. So, don't take it personally.

But look, the slower riders... talk.. and smile... and I bet even a few of them will be overweight too.

You might be surprised at how pleasant it will be. Read about this ladies first group ride and how good it was:

http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showthread.php?t=7376

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Originally Posted by KSH

You might be surprised at how pleasant it will be. Read about this ladies first group ride and how good it was:

http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showthread.php?t=7376

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heehee, that's me!!

I have a theory that the steel-faced folks want to see if you can hang with them before they accept you into the group. In fact, this morning I got an email from this woman whom I briefly said hi to on the ride. She does a smaller women's only ride on Tuesday nights & she sent me the info to join them.

This group in particular has that reputation. LMAO even their former president thinks that! oh well. I may just go and see the first time.

Barb, I think that if possible, you should relocate to Gainesville, Florida. You would fit right in with the group I ride with!

I tried another group first- they advertise their average speed as 16. Fine! That's my average speed! But what that really means is they go 18-20 or faster on the flats, and slower on the hills. I kept up, but was the most sore the next day that I have ever been. Never rode with them again. I like my nice relaxed group that stops to take pictures, and waits for slower riders, and takes breaks every 10 miles.

That's too bad you can't find a jersey that fits- cotton t-shirts are _so_ horrible.

If you want people to wave, go sit on your bike up on a freeway overpass! I was waiting for people to catch up Sunday, and _all_ the truck drivers were waving and honking, and a lot of the cars, too. I felt famous!

Nanci

Considering the weather, today might not be the best day to try to lure people down to Florida...