I think I can...! Tour de Cure

[gocard]

So, not sure what exactly I was thinking, but on the same week I got my first pair of clipless shoes, I also signed up for a Tour de Cure ride that's coming up next month! Now I've got to go practice riding and getting over my fear of being clipped in. I figured that if I'm truly not comfortable within that time frame I'll just wear regular running shoes for the ride until I get more confident... oh boy.

This will be my first charity ride. It's kind of scary and exhilarating at the same time! Anyway, just wanted to get that off my chest and to motivate myself to get riding...and hopefully not topple over during the ride.

[Catrin]

You can do this, and you WON'T topple over I did a local Tour de Cure my first year and didn't even attempt to clip in for it, and it was a lot of fun! How long of a ride did you commit to?

[thekarens]

You can do this! Just keep practicing between now and then and when the time comes you'll be a pro!

[gocard]

I signed up for a 75k. My longest has been about 30 miles so far and we're planning to just go at our own pace and enjoy the experience (and break stops) thanks for the encouragement!

[gocard]

Little miss gung-ho over here decided she was all ready to clip in and...promptly tipped over. After lying there for a few seconds like a roly poly bug on its back, I was wondering if this was worth the pain. I had read extensively about needing enough momentum to coast before clipping in the second foot, but that knowledge went out the window the second I thought I was all ready to go.

After an hour of psyching myself up again and reminding myself that I've been able to ride a bike long before I had clipless shoes, I got back up and was pleasantly surprised to be able to take a few spins around my neighborhood without a problem. I was clipping in and unclipping, stopping and starting, and repeating the process over and over. Yay! I'm going to go for a longer ride tomorrow and see how it goes.

[Catrin]

We all tip over at first, so you have it out of the way Practice is the key here, you've got to develop muscle memory and that will come with practice. Congratulations, and have fun!

[murielalex]

I tipped over my first day coming to the end of the street to lead out of my neighborhood. I was so busy watching a car I didn't think noticed me, I didn't notice that I stopped. Plop! Of course, I did it in front of a diner filled with people watching. It gets easier.

You can definitely do the Tour de Cure. Take it at your own pace and have fun. Kudos to you for signing up!

[thekarens]

Ha! I tipped over at the end of my driveway! I still have to be careful to think about when I'm planning to stop.

[Elphaba]

Yeah I tipped over into my car the first time I got up on "Dotty" because the pad of my shorts snagged on the saddle and I freaked out thinking I was going to lose my shorts. As you said, Plop! Had a nice set of scars on my right calf from where they came down on the spokes of my back wheel. To this day, when I take her into the shop they remind me how a crashed that beauty within 5 seconds. BUT, about 6 weeks later I did ride my first charity ride, the Ride 26.2 with Donna here in Jacksonville. I am doing the TdC (51 miles) here on May 18 and if that goes well, I am going for the MS Tour to the Shore! (2 day St. Augustine, Daytona and back the next day).
You will be fine! As they say, you only fall the first million times!

L

[gocard]

As my friend told me afterwards, "You've become a statistic!" I went on my longest bike ride so far last weekend, 36 miles! It was beautiful 60 degree weather and we just kept going. I think I'm almost there for the upcoming 50 mile ride in Napa. I actually also signed up for another TdC in June, but that is partially sponsored by my company so I'll get a company jersey I'm excited! Good luck with your upcoming TdC, Elphaba!

[Owlie]

Woohoo!
If it makes you feel better, I tipped over right next to my car last week because I'd fiddled with the pedals on my CX bike and couldn't get out. I didn't actually fall (they released), but I did tip the bike on its right side (go figure!)and my left ankle and right hand caught the top tube. I have a lovely bruise on my ankle to show for it. And of course, I did this in front of three guys.

[gocard]

Whew! I finished my first 50 mile ride at the Napa Tour de Cure yesterday. What a great experience in a beautiful location! It was windier and cooler than I had expected and the last 5 miles were the toughest for me. At that point, I felt like my pedaling wasn't getting me anywhere but eventually I finished! I'm going to do another TdC ride in a month.

It was a big relief that the only issue I had during the ride was leg fatigue - I was pumping my tires and I discovered that there were two small cuts/gouges on my back tire but thankfully it didn't penetrate into the tube. I had extra tubes but no tires. I guess it's time to start looking into a replacement even though the tires have only been ridden about 500 miles so far. What is the difference between folding and wire bead tires? Any recommendations for a tougher tire? My friend recommended the Continental Gatorskin Hardshell. Tires are yet one more thing for me to learn as a cyclist!

[ny biker]

Congrats on the 50-miler. I hate flat tires. I've been happy with Continental Gatorskins and was also pleasantly surprised by the Bontrager Race Lite tires that came on my road bike. Also, a tip if you're mid-ride and have a hole in your tire that's large enough to cause problems -- American paper money is made from linen and is very durable. You can put a dollar bill inside the tire between the hole and the tube and it should get you home without problems. Note that the bill might stick to the tube and tear when you go to remove it later, so don't use a larger denomination if you can avoid it. I've also heard you can use an empty gel packet or granola/energy bar wrapper to boot a tire, though I've never tried either of them.

[thekarens]

Some people we ride with cut up old tires for this purpose. They keep a couple in their saddle bag.

[Elphaba]

Whew! I finished my first 50 mile ride at the Napa Tour de Cure yesterday. What a great experience in a beautiful location! It was windier and cooler than I had expected and the last 5 miles were the toughest for me. At that point, I felt like my pedaling wasn't getting me anywhere but eventually I finished! I'm going to do another TdC ride in a month.

Good for you! Ours is in two weeks!