First group ride report...

[Crankin]

Welcome to AMC, Jolt. I think you will find that we are a social group of people.
I knew this would be a perfect ride for you. If you ever care to venture east, there are the same level rides that often leave out of Concord or Lexington, also on Tuesday nights. You might also look on line to see if there are "beginner" level week end rides. I kow the Boston chapter has quite a few coming up and it probably wouldn't be much further for you to get to the starting points for some of these. The Worcester chapter also has a calendar on line, which is probably where you find the Tuesday ride.

Robyn

[Jolt]

Welcome to AMC, Jolt. I think you will find that we are a social group of people.
I knew this would be a perfect ride for you. If you ever care to venture east, there are the same level rides that often leave out of Concord or Lexington, also on Tuesday nights. You might also look on line to see if there are "beginner" level week end rides. I kow the Boston chapter has quite a few coming up and it probably wouldn't be much further for you to get to the starting points for some of these. The Worcester chapter also has a calendar on line, which is probably where you find the Tuesday ride.

Robyn

I have definitely found the AMC to be a social group of people. I joined last year and have done a fair number of the hiking trips (both Young Members and general chapter) but this was the first bike ride as I just got the bike this year. I think there are a couple of weekend rides that sound pretty reasonable as far as speed but are longer distances than the Tuesday night ones; I don't think the distance would be a problem so I might do one of those if I don't have other things going on. As for the Young Members rides, which I also looked into, forget it! The person who leads these is apparently quite a speed demon, and the descriptions usually specify "road bikes only" so I don't have the proper equipment anyway. I'll look into the Boston chapter schedule as well--maybe they will have some rides that are at convenient times and are easier ones. The one thing I wish our chapter did was rides that start in Worcester to avoid having to drive to the start--that always bugs me a bit, partly because of the gas price factor and partly because it's somewhat of a pain to load a rather heavy (30+ pound) bike into the trunk/folded down backseat of a small sedan. Maybe that's something to suggest to some of the ride leaders...

[Crankin]

I have seen a few rides that start in Worcester, but mostly the rides are in rural/suburban areas, so the car factor isn't as bad. The group I rode with today, which is part of CRW is great, but even i won't drive to some of the places they start at; it's just too far for a day trip. However, sometimes you have to do this, so you can ride in different areas and vary your routine. And yes, YM groups tend to be "fast," in both the Boston and Worcester chapters. Maybe you could start a "slower" YM group of cyclists.

[Jolt]

I have seen a few rides that start in Worcester, but mostly the rides are in rural/suburban areas, so the car factor isn't as bad. The group I rode with today, which is part of CRW is great, but even i won't drive to some of the places they start at; it's just too far for a day trip. However, sometimes you have to do this, so you can ride in different areas and vary your routine. And yes, YM groups tend to be "fast," in both the Boston and Worcester chapters. Maybe you could start a "slower" YM group of cyclists.

I'm sure the traffic factor is the reason for none of the rides starting in Worcester, although there are some places where one could start in Worcester and not have too far to go before getting into a quieter neighboring town (like along Rte. 122 going into Millbury/Grafton--the first part would be busy but the lane is wide enough to share for most of the busier section). As for starting a slower YM group, maybe eventually but I don't feel that I am experienced enough to think about doing that yet. If I do end up starting something at some point, I'll have to think of an amusing name for the group or the rides (somebody on another thread said she'd like to get a jersey made for Equipo Tortuga, a hypothetical slow racing team). It's interesting that the YM cycling group is a bunch of speed demons, because in my experience the Worcester YM hikes have generally been less challenging than those with the general chapter--either shorter, easier ones like Mt. Wachusett etc. or just slow/lots of stops. I may be slow on the bike, but I like to keep a brisk pace when hiking and that's hard to do in some of the groups I've hiked in (the larger the group, the slower the going--probably true of cycling groups as well!).

[Crankin]

Jolt, it's funny you said that about the hiking. I think the hiking adage is "go as slow as the slowest person." Generally, big groups of cyclists don't go slow, they go the speed of the advertised ride! AMC is different than most groups in that our liability rules say we have to keep the group together and no one can be dropped. This is hard on the show and go rides like you did, but generally, if someone wants to go faster, they have to tell us and then they are "off" the ride. I find hiking very difficult; I don't like heights and freak out on rocky steep sections. I do a fair amount of local hiking in conservation lands, and I have found if I bring my pole from snow shoeing, it helps. I am much faster on the bike! (in relation to my fitness level).
Maybe we can hike one day this summer (at my slow pace!).

Robyn

[Jolt]

Jolt, it's funny you said that about the hiking. I think the hiking adage is "go as slow as the slowest person." Generally, big groups of cyclists don't go slow, they go the speed of the advertised ride! AMC is different than most groups in that our liability rules say we have to keep the group together and no one can be dropped. This is hard on the show and go rides like you did, but generally, if someone wants to go faster, they have to tell us and then they are "off" the ride. I find hiking very difficult; I don't like heights and freak out on rocky steep sections. I do a fair amount of local hiking in conservation lands, and I have found if I bring my pole from snow shoeing, it helps. I am much faster on the bike! (in relation to my fitness level).
Maybe we can hike one day this summer (at my slow pace!).

Robyn

I think part of it may be that it's hard to have an advertised speed for a hike (too many variables that affect this) and it's more dangerous for the group to get split up and somebody get lost on a hike than on a road ride. Getting lost in the woods can be serious, while getting lost in a town is usually just an inconvenience, so "dropping" anyone on a hiking trip is not a good idea. As far as places to hike, sounds like you might like the Midstate Trail--it's mostly easier terrain (it does go over Mt. Wachusett but that's not hard either). Re: the pole, a lot of people use a pair of poles--it takes stress off the knees on descents and can help with balance. I picked up a pair at Ocean State Job Lot and have experimented with them, and find that they are only helpful for me on some descents (and depending on the terrain sometimes they get in the way more than helping). Speaking of snowshoeing, I got a pair of snowshoes this year and of course we hardly got any snow so I guess I'll be starting that next year instead!