April Rides

[ny biker]

We have a "back-door cold front" here, meaning weather coming from the northeast rather than the west or south. Which means cloudy, damp, cold, periods of rain, generally unpleasant. So I cancelled my post-work ride tonight. Tomorrow will be more of the same, weather-wise, so no rescheduling to tomorrow.

I just bought the Sonic Highways dvd that was released yesterday -- don't have HBO so I haven't seen any of it yet, though I've listened to the CD many times since it was released last year. So maybe I will put the bike on the indoor trainer tonight and pedal through an episode or two. (Or maybe not -- I'm going to run some errands first, and don't know what time I'll get home).

The weekend here looks good, too. Saturday morning is our club's annual Cherry Blossom ride. I won't be taking part, because I have things I need to do that morning, so I'm thinking about a solo afternoon ride instead.

[Helene2013]

finally should be nice next weekend for Montreal as well. We'll probably get our old hybrids out to test road conditions. Does not look that good (leftovers from snow, holes, sides are dirty), etc. So test-driving it before taking our good bikes out will be a good workout as they are much heavier too.

Right now it is very cold, waiting for some rain to fall any moment, which will transfort into snow during evening. Hard to believe we're almost mid-April with this kind of yacky weather. It was expected though with all the great lakes solidly frozen due to record freezeing temperatures of this past winter. So it will be a verrrrry slow spring to arrive in many areas as the lakes will take to time to get rid of their ice and cold water = pushing cold air east. bummer.

[Blueberry]

Tried to go for a group ride today - it didn't go well

We have a local Luna Chix ride, and they are awesome. This came out on their list serve, and it thought it was that. It wasn't - but it was billed as a no drop, no expectations womens' ride. One of the local Luna Chix was there, but the ride leader was an undergrad student (not that there's anything wrong with that - other than lack of experience). It was hot (86F) - and it hasn't been until now. A PT (not my usual one) lowered my seat by 1.5 cm (not a good idea - there went all my power and there came back all of my knee pain). I started out doing OK - I was sticking to the back of the group and (sort of) keeping my heart rate under control. Then a "helpful" person (couldn't tell is she was supposed to be assisting with the ride or not) started asking me questions - I was spinning up a hill (still having knee and hamstring issues and I cannot mash) - and she thought I was spinning too fast (about 80 rpm). I explained I was doing what I needed to do for me, thank you. Then she asked if I knew how to change gears - I told her that yes, in fact, I have many thousands of miles under my belt and know how to operate my shifters. When I explained I had been injured and had a different saddle position that was causing me to be a little slower than usual, she said I shouldn't be riding at all (ummm...my PT knows I ride and has said it's OK). Basically, she never would believe I had been on a bike before and actually knew what I was doing. I'm sure she thought she was trying to be helpful - but it really came across as condescending. I let the Luna Chix rider know I was splitting off and not to look for me, fixed the seat height, and did my own ride - but GRRRRR....There is such a things as too helpful!

I felt bad for another rider who showed up - it was her first group ride. She was with the front group, so I bet she did OK. But no one told her about hand signals, group etiquette, anything. I told her a few things (after asking what she already knew) - but I would think they should have covered that at the first ride of the season with someone who said it was her first ride.

After I left them, I had a nice ride. Hoping to get back out soon - but there's a lot of rain in our forecast.

[Owlie]

Rode to work and back today. I'm enjoying the fact that I can leave at my usual time (before 7am) and it's light outside. I won't be enjoying it in another month.

Stopped to help someone out with a mechanical problem. Some guy who knew very little about bikes, with a 10-15 year old road bike with some major brake rub issues. Well, it wasn't the brake. Somehow he'd popped a spoke nipple off (probably very loose to begin with) or broke it, which caused a major wheel wobble. The wheels on this thing were the kind where the spoke nipple sits inside the rim itself. You could hear it rattling around inside if you turned the wheel. I made sure that he had a ride home before heading off. (This city just seems incredibly rude. I was the only one to stop and ask if he needed anything. No one announces that they're passing. It's weird.)

[Crankin]

Blueberry, that sounds awful. I am on the Luna Chix email list, too, but I have never gone to a ride because I suspected stuff like you described would happen. I am probably too slow for them now, anyway!
I hate that "helpful/condescending" attitude. Like when people yell, "good job," to someone who is struggling up a hill or just near the back of a ride. To me, it has always meant "Good job for a slow/fat/old person." There's a variety of reasons an experienced rider may be at the back, so now, if I am checking in on someone, I do it with a humorous comment. Of course, I have been on the receiving end of this many times and I want to scream F-U.

[Blueberry]

Blueberry, that sounds awful. I am on the Luna Chix email list, too, but I have never gone to a ride because I suspected stuff like you described would happen.

I'm SO glad someone understands this! I sort of felt like I was being super cranky yesterday. The "official" Luna Chix ride here struck the right balance the one time I attended. It is all inclusive (there were people doing 20+ and people doing under 10, and a lot in between). I'll probably try one of those again just to see - but if this happens again, I'm back to happily riding on my own. Unlike most of the local cyclists here (and some of the ride leaders yesterday), I don't feel the need to ride in a group "for safety."

[lauraelmore1033]

Boy, there is nothing I find more irritating on a group ride than a leader who takes it upon himself/herself to "instruct" me on how to shift/pedal/climb! Someone saying "good job!" when I'm climbing comfortably comes a close second. People make such insulting assumptions.