Race Rain?

[Tek]

I'm new to this. If its raining, will they still run the race? Any tips for racing in the rain besides be careful?

[Waverly]

I know there is a big ride here in Ga called BRAG and they still ride when it rains. The local group I ride with some here in town does not do any riding in the rain so I guess it is just up to the individual groups.

Jessie

[KkAllez]

I guess it depends on the organizers. Yesterday at the HHH 100 there was a huge thunderstorm that lasted until sunup. The lightening was incredible. I asked another cyclist if they would cancel it and she said, "Are you kidding me? Not hardly". I guess when over 8000 people show up they are committed.

When we were all at the starting line I told my husband that if God didn't like cyclists now would be the time to eliminate a huge number of them with one stroke of lightening. He agreed, especially with all the metal cleats on the ground.

If you do ride in the rain, and it hasn't rained in a few days or weeks what you need to watch out for is the slick roads caused by dust and oil. Especially on the curves and corners. That is the number one issue you'll need to be aware of. Also, we put extra Pedro's Ice Wax on our chains before riding.

[pedalfaster]

Most races and organized rides are held "rain or shine".

My tips for road-riding in the rain:

Watch out for paint and metal (e.g. manhole covers, center lines) as these surfaces become very slippery when wet.

Tap your brakes from time to time to clear the gunk off of the rim. Otherwise your brakes may not "be there" when you need them.

Always carry armwarmers and a vest if the weather looks "iffy". 60F and wet can be pretty darn miserable when riding.

Clear (or yellow) lenses will give you the best visibility, but be prepared to ditch them if they become useless.

Make sure you practice your wet-weather riding on group training rides before you race. A race is not the time to learn new bike skills.

Have towels (one for you and one for the bike) at the finish. Change out of those wet cycling duds ASAP.

[caligurl]

Originally posted by pedalfaster
Most races and organized rides are held "rain or shine".

that's what most of them around here advertise....

being too new still.. i, personally, wouldn't set out.. however hubby rides in the rain.. on the few occasions we see it...

[yogabear]

Rain is frequent at Michigan races and I'd much rather race in the rain in a mountain bike race. I think when it rains for the road though, one thing I noticed is I get splashed a lot by other people and this makes my legs cold, so maybe leg warmers? Also, don't wipe your glasses with your gloves...it does have a tendency to smear the glasses and it never clears...Ugh! Also, someone said to avoid paint...definitely second that one...lines painted in the road can get treacherous...

Or, you can ride between the raindrops...

Hugs,

Lisa

[skibum]

Right now, my plan is to ride in the Savannah century this Sunday. Savannah is on the coast of Georgia and is in the middle of the projected path of hurricane Frances. The hurricane is expected to hit land Sunday morning. They advertise the ride as rain or shine but I'm fairly certain that a hurricane is a little too much rain, not to mention the wind. I know I won't be there if there's a chance I'll get caught in the middle of it.

Looks like I'll be a Weather Channel junkie over the next few days as I track the storm. I'm hoping it will change course. I don't want to miss my ride!

[emily_in_nc]

skibum,

We had a similar situation up here in NC a few weekends ago when Hurricane Charley remnants were coming our way. Heavy rain and high wind conditions were forecast for Saturday, 8/14. Our bike club's annual century (1000 riders) was scheduled rain or shine that very day.

I found out from the folks in the club that organized the event that the ride simply can't be postponed due to rentals (port-a-johns, tents, tables), city permits (to use various parking lots that day for setup and parking), volunteer commitments, and the tons of food that has already been purchased and/or homemade. So, it's rain or shine....but, they do take public safety into account.

What they ended doing was canceling the 100 and 62-mile loops and only allowing those 50 or so intrepid riders who showed up in torrential rain to do the 20- or 31-mile loops. This way they could clean up and send the riders and volunteers home safely by noon, while still fulfilling their obligation to hold the ride. (As it turned out, we didn't get hit nearly as hard as the weather folks forecast - after hard rain in the morning, it eased off by noon, and we never even got wind!)

I'm going tonight to meet with a group of club volunteers to mail out event t-shirts and bandanas to the many riders who didn't show up. It's tough for participants when things like this happen, but even tougher on volunteers who have worked for months to plan and stage an event only to have it be severely affected by storms. I give a lot of credit to those volunteers who showed up in the rain to support the riders that morning. I hear there was a 1:1 ratio of volunteers to riders!

Emily

[skibum]

Emily,

I was so caught up in my own disappoinment about possibly missing the ride that I didn't even think about all the hard work that has gone into planning the event. All of the logistics, volunteers, food for rest stops, t-shirts. Wow!

Like you said, public safety will come into play. If the rain is too hard or the winds too strong, they may have to cancel. But, I can see where they will try to hold the event if possible given all the planning that has been done. I just don't see myself as being hard-core enough to try to ride in a torrential downpour.

I admire all the volunteers that put in so much of their free time to plan and stage events like this, especially when the weather conditions turn out to be less than optimal. I did a century about a month ago and it was very hot that day. A couple of the rest stops had no shade at all. The volunteers were out there for hours in the hot sun with no complaints... just a big smile as they welcomed the riders. Talk about kudos... those people were awesome!

Beth