My first group ride! (long)

[badgercat]

So, yesterday, with the Arizona BikeMS only two weeks away, there was finally a training ride happening within 100 miles of where I live! My boyfriend and I decided to go (the MS Society email said to meet at this grocery store at 7, and breakfast would be provided...) so we got there at 7. Didn't see a soul that looked like they were about to go for a ride. We went in the store to look for people, we sat in front of the store, we twiddled our thumbs, and then at like 7:15 tons of people on bikes started zooming past from the BACK of the store! Well, being told to meet BEHIND the store might have been helpful. It turns out this wasn't really organized by the MS Society--a local cycling club had just offered up their Sunday rides as "training rides" and somewhere along the way, some vital bits of information were lost in communication--we didn't even realize there was a back parking lot at all!

In a panic, I ran over and flagged down some riders--fortunately, they were the group going on the 25-mile route we wanted to do. When I explained our confusion, I was told to "Saddle up, girl!" and they waited for us to run all the way across the parking lot to my BF's truck, hop on the bikes, and go.

Neither of us had ever done a group ride before, so we were already really nervous that we were going to be left in the dust / make some kind of faux pas and be made to feel like idiots for it / even if we were able to keep up, no one would make any stops and we'd keel over / someone would be snarky about the fact that I'm doing a ride on my hybrid with bar ends and a rack / etc. Add to that the fact that we had each only eaten a banana and had a tiny bit of water, and suddenly we were scrambling for our bikes and making a bunch of people wait for us to go on a ride of known length but unknown hilliness!

We positioned ourselves near the back and I warned the sweep that I'm "pretty slow," which she responded to with "the faster you go, the colder it is! We ride to have fun." Ok, that made me feel a little better. We get out on the street, and guys start zooming around people in front of us. Ok--nerves again, I'm really going to be holding up the whole pack, and that woman was just being polite, right?

Nope. My BF and I were part of a little pack of 7 riders probably miles behind the rest of the group for pretty much the entire ride. The guys directly in front of us set a very comfortable pace (according to BF's cycle computer, we averaged about 13mph). My BF said he overheard that one of the gentlemen of the bunch is 72 years old. One of the women has MS herself. (another woman had a beautiful PINK Orbea that I was coveting the whole time. ) We all chatted as we rode (hills go by so much faster that way!), and everyone was very encouraging to us about our riding skills and helping us learn group-riding etiquette.

We regrouped before every big hill or odd thing in the route to talk through what was coming up, we made a nice water/bathroom stop at a cute park, and my BF and I got a bunch of snacks to take home courtesy of the MS Society, because we were apparently the only ones who showed up for it specifically for the MS ride training. My only disappointment is that I'll be out of town next weekend and won't be able to ride with them again before the MS Ride! I think my BF and I are definitely going to try to make it a habit, though, to happily bring up the rear with some of the nicest people we've ever met.

So, things I learned:
-Check for back parking lots.
-get there well before the meeting time, in case you need to find said back parking lot.
-I can ride 26 miles with a few significant climbs on nothing but a banana before, and 12oz of Vitamin Water and some plain water along the way, and not pass out.
-group rides are not that scary.
-you don't have to be a fast rider to be a STRONG rider.
-there are definitely very experienced cyclists out there who are very tolerant of very confused newbies!

[Biciclista]

great story! I'm glad it worked out for you.

[Aint Doody]

Yahoo for Badgercat! Keep it up.

[DebTX]

What a great story - loved reading it!

[Tri Girl]

Great story, badgercat! I'm so glad that you went, and that it was a positive experience for you!!!! I can't wait to hear all about the MS ride, as I just know you're going to have the BEST time!

[mayanorange]

Great story! And great job on getting out there and riding an MS150! I'm doing the one up in Boston as my first organized ride this year. We can do it! Go team!

[badgercat]

Thanks for all the kind words, everyone!

Great story! And great job on getting out there and riding an MS150! I'm doing the one up in Boston as my first organized ride this year. We can do it! Go team!

I wish I could say I was doing the 150, but I don't think I'm quite up to that yet. The AZ version allows you to pick your routes, so we're going to ride 35 on day 1 and 50 on day 2.

[mayanorange]

I wish I could say I was doing the 150, but I don't think I'm quite up to that yet. The AZ version allows you to pick your routes, so we're going to ride 35 on day 1 and 50 on day 2.

That's still a hefty ride. I'm not sure I'm up to the 150 yet either, but I'll get to the end one way or another!

[spokewench]

I'm really glad your first group ride was a successful and fun one, even with the confusing start! Great story