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I'm hardly a "real" cyclist, but I will say that a lot of cycling is mental. You'll get some great training advice from other ladies here that will help to improve your stamina, bike handling, pedal stroke, etc, but the first thing to do is squelch those doubtful comments in your head. You're going to have bad days. You're also going to have awesome days when you feel strong, empowered, and can't imagine having so much fun doing anything else. Hold onto those days, and learn whatever you can from the bad ones. There's no reason you can't aim for any goal on the bike that you choose to set.
When is your RAIN ride?
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Thread: Shameless Begging
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06-09-2007, 07:50 PM #1
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Shameless Begging
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Okay, I read these forums for a year before I got up the courage to actually join because everyone else seems like a "real" cyclist, and I'm just... well... not so "real". Anyway, you're all incredibly good at cheering each other on and encouraging one another -- a big, strong sisterhood (with a nod to the males, also) of warm fuzziness, so to speak.
So, now that I've made it official and registered for RAIN 2007 (one-day, one-way, 160-mile ride across Indiana), and now that I'm doubting my sanity, and now that the voice in my head is starting to whisper (okay, more like scream) all those niggling, doubtful comments... any words of encouragement from all of you whom I look up to?
Honestly, you're all an inspiration!"If we know where we want to go, then even a stony road is bearable." ~~ Horst Koehler
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06-09-2007, 07:58 PM #2
Ride your ride.
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"How about if we all just try to follow these very simple rules of the road? Drive like the person ahead on the bike is your son/daughter. Ride like the cars are ambulances carrying your loved ones to the emergency room. This should cover everything, unless you are a complete sociopath."
David Desautels, in a letter to velonews.com
Random babblings and some stuff to look at.
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06-09-2007, 07:58 PM #3
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I'm thinking if you registered for and are training for that ride, you should seriously consider awarding yourself "real" status.
When is it?"My predominant feeling is one of gratitude. I have loved and been loved;I have been given much and I have given something in return...Above all, I have been a sentient being, a thinking animal, on this beautiful planet, and that in itself has been an enormous privilege and an adventure." O. Sacks
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06-09-2007, 08:01 PM #4
They call me Crash
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Mr. is wanting to do this ride!
Tell us more about you and your training!
If you get on a bike and wear a helmet, you are a REAL cyclist, so let's not hear you say you're not again.....OK?
"Being retired from Biking...isn't that kinda like being retired from recess?" Stephen Colbert asked of Lance Armstrong
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06-09-2007, 08:09 PM #5
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You're a real cyclist
I know what you mean though, I look at some of the people here and feel so...amateur.
I also want to hear about your riding and your bike.
And yes, it is so mental. You need to be able to be on your bike for that period of time, of course, but if you tell yourself you can do it, you can.
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06-09-2007, 08:47 PM #6
f/k/a Mr. S.
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I aspire to this ride...
Keep in mind that although it's long, Central Indiana is fairly flat.
I think that if you signed up, you are a sense that you can do it! I say go for it with vigor!If you don't grow where you're planted, you'll never BLOOM - Will Rogers
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06-09-2007, 10:57 PM #7
Powered by Rossignol
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Commitment is 90% of the trick. Make sure you've got shorts that will go the distance (I'd highly recommend a chamois cream, like Assos, or Butt Buttr (or whatever it is called) or something), but you ARE a real rider, just to even consider it. Stay hydrated, and stay cool (dump water on your head on a regular basis if you feel yourself getting hot), and keep fueled. You'll be fine. More than fine, in fact. You will be a Cycling Goddess!!!!
Melior victus per venenum
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06-09-2007, 11:55 PM #8
TimeTrial Wannabe
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OK... I don't and can't "do" RAIN... (location, location, location...)
but...
I need to say something...
I need to reiterate what some of the other women have said...
If you have a bike and want to ride it...
If you like to ride so much than soon after you finish a ride you start thinking about the next one...
If you like to talk about bikes... or about your cycling ventures...
If you commute, or race, or tootle, or cyclocross, or go off-road...
If you know that "drops" are a noun not an adjective
If you know that a "stem" holds your handlebars, not a flower
If you know that a post isn't part of a fence, it has a saddle on it - and that saddle does not fit on a horse...
If you have a bike and you ride it...
You ARE a real cyclist...
PERIOD
Enough self-deprecation ladies, we are cyclists, all with different interests, goals and intentions... but we are def cyclists... REAL cyclists...Last edited by RoadRaven; 06-09-2007 at 11:59 PM.
Courage does not always roar. Sometimes, it is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying,
"I will try again tomorrow".
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06-10-2007, 04:52 AM #9
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I second the mental comments. It helps to have someone to ride with ... you can keep each other sane ... if any of us are sane that ride these distances!
I have ridden this ride twice. It is an exercise in pacing and nutrition to go the distance. I've attached the stats from my Polar for my 2005 ride (I was out of the country in '06 and planned other events this year) as well as the Delorme profile. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions. Each ride is a learning experience no matter how many years I've been cycling!
Susan
Try not. Do or do not... there is no try.
Yoda
2004 Airborne WASP (road)/Selle An-Atomica
2010 Bike Friday New World Tourist (commuter)/Selle An-Atomica
2010 Bike Friday Pocket Rocket Pro/Selle An-Atomica
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06-10-2007, 04:59 AM #10
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Absolutely
Originally Posted by RoadRaven
There are a lot of unwanted, unloved bikes out there - go on give a bike a good home
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06-10-2007, 06:41 AM #11
f/k/a Mr. S.
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Wow, I'm shocked at the elevation assent...guess it doesn't seem that way in a car!
I agree with all that's been said...I think you should train well and go for it!If you don't grow where you're planted, you'll never BLOOM - Will Rogers
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06-10-2007, 06:54 AM #12
"Ride lots!"
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Originally Posted by Mr. Silver
That is REALLY flat.
Flat is hard because you never get a break.
V.
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06-10-2007, 06:59 AM #13
f/k/a Mr. S.
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Originally Posted by Veronica
I agree...what I should have said was I don't recall ever seeing a hill in Central Indiana....I thought it was totally flat
If you don't grow where you're planted, you'll never BLOOM - Will Rogers
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06-10-2007, 07:06 AM #14
"Ride lots!"
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I can imagine how you wouldn't see it as a hill in the car. I don't think any ride is truly flat.
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V.
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06-10-2007, 07:24 AM #15
f/k/a Mr. S.
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In the metric century yesterday, SilverSon and I had 2,800 ft of climbing in about 1/3 the distance. To me, while a couple of the hills seemed tough, they were only about 3% grades, and the difficulty came from the fact that I was going slow for SilverSon.
Seeing this, I'm wondering if we could shoot for RAIN this year????!?!?!?!?If you don't grow where you're planted, you'll never BLOOM - Will Rogers
