TANDEM, TANDEM, TANDEM!!!!!!!!!

The tandem is the best way for you to ride "with" each other and not worry about either one of you being left behind or not getting the workout they really want. You can each push as little or as hard as you want.

My husband and I ride both singles and a tandem. Most of the time we ride separately on our singles, but when we want to be "together", we ride the tandem. It's also a great way for me to get to hang with his faster riding buddies. We have friends who ride tandem as well, so we do rides together, all four of us, which would be completely different if we were all on our singles. The guys wouldn't be getting as much of a work out and the girls would be huffing and puffing to keep up. The guys have said over and over again that it's like a dream to be able to ride "with" their wives like that.

As for riding together on singles, my husband does ride with me from time to time. He will usually stay on his big ring and do a different sort of work out. Climb a hill slowly on his big ring, with the goal of keeping his heart rate as low as possible (while I'm dying, of course!). Sometimes he'll get ahead and then turn around and come back.

I've been training for a century with a friend lately, who is stronger than me. Sometimes she stays with me, maybe on a harder gear, and sometimes she'll just stop at some point and wait for me to catch up.

However, I often just ride alone. No worries about holding anyone back. Don't have to feel bad about myself that I'm not going faster. I like the variety of doing all three. Sometimes the tandem, sometimes on my single with someone or a group, and sometimes all by myself.