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The ride leader gets dropped

08.17.2008 by Ray Niekamp // 5 Comments

After a pleasant experience riding with the “B” riders in our club, I wanted to keep doing it on a more or less regular basis. But two weekends in Michigan interrupted those plans.

So now that I’m back, I stepped up and volunteered to lead a B group ride. I suggested a trip to Kyle, Texas and back — a ride I like because the turnaround spot is a little independent coffee house in Kyle, the Lucky Cup.

Two other riders indicated they’d come along. Then the guy who ordinarily leads the A group rides every Sunday said he thought the route was a good idea, and the A riders would go that way, too. About 17 of us headed out. I rode with one of the other B riders, Bob, and we fell behind, but caught up with everyone in Buda (BYOO-duh), a small town south of Austin.

Buda still retains its old downtown, although it is rapidly growing into a bedroom community for Austin and is full of the fast food and chain store sprawl common to American suburbs.

From Buda, we took some back roads into Kyle, the next town south. We reached the Lucky Cup, and sat out on the patio with coffees and energy drinks. It was a pleasant break after 24-something miles of pedaling.

On the way back, Bob and I quickly fell behind again, and then I found myself well ahead of Bob. As I hit the turn onto Burnham Road (Ranch Road 1626), I glanced back and saw that he was hanging in, but trailing by several hundred yards. I figured we would regroup in Buda as we did on the way out, and he would catch up to us there.

But in Buda, I was alone. If the rest of the group had stopped, they’d already moved on. And there was no sign of Bob. I was perplexed. Two women cyclists we had passed in Kyle crossed ahead of me on Main Street. How did they get ahead of me?

I rode alone the rest of the way back to the Starbucks where we started the ride. Most of the gang was out on the patio, enjoying their post-ride coffees. And in the middle of them was Bob. “When did you pass me?” I asked. “When you turned onto 1626,” he said. “I kept going past the cement plant. It’s a shorter way into town. I caught everyone in Buda.”

We took the more roundabout route on Burnham Rd. and Old Black Colony Road (Aside: It has that name because it was the site of a settlement for freed slaves after the Civil War). Bob’s route into Buda was more direct.

So the leader of the B ride was dropped by the B riders (Pippa, the other B rider today, had no trouble hanging with the A’s throughout the entire ride). Whatever. I did 46.25 miles at a 15.7 mph average — respectable for me. But I’m thinking about exploring a suggestion another riding friend recently made: Let’s start a group for C riders.


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Categories // clubs, Rides Tags // clubs, drops, Rides

Riding with the B’s

07.27.2008 by Ray Niekamp // 9 Comments

After last weekend’s reality check, I figured I’d be better off riding with the B riders in our club. Just a reminder — we consider A’s to be able to ride decent distances at a fast pace. B’s are slower, and don’t go as far. I know many other clubs break down riders into more classifications than we do.

Anyhow, since our B’s haven’t been very active lately, I guessed that if we were going to have a B ride, I would have to organize it. But whadya know, another guy beat me to it.

The A’s had an ambitious and difficult route planned for today. The B organizer picked a route that would follow them for a ways, then head back to our starting spot. We’d be in for some hills, but the ride itself would be relatively short.

The route on Map My Ride. The tough hill is at the top of the twisty part at the upper left.

Ride elevation. The hill most of us had to walk is at the 10-mile point.

The morning was perfect. Sunny, warm but not hot, not much wind. We set off with the A riders, so about 17 of us cut a fine figure pedaling through the neighborhood. We turned onto Barton Creek Blvd., which winds through a swanky neighborhood by a nationally-famous golf resort. I hadn’t ridden this road before, and I knew it was hilly. But the hills weren’t too much of a problem, until the last one before reaching Ranch Road 2244. That forced most of us to get off and walk.

At 2244, the A riders turned west, and we turned east for the ride home. The rest of the route was on shoulders of sometimes busy highways. Plenty of hills through here as well, as seen by this cell phone camera shot along Loop 360, but these were not difficult.

We got back to our Starbucks starting point for some FrappaMochaCappucinoLattes, or whatever, and some chit chat. Ride time: about 23 miles in 1 hour 43 minutes, avg speed: 14.7 mph. None of us could have kept up with the A group, and none of us cared. It was the kind of ride I’ve been looking for since joining the club. I’m looking forward to many more of the same, now that the B’s seem to be up and running again.


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Categories // clubs, Rides Tags // clubs, hills, Rides

Sunday morning club ride

07.20.2008 by Ray Niekamp // 9 Comments

I did something today I haven’t done in awhile — I joined up with the neighborhood club for its Sunday morning ride. The club is the Circle C Ranch Cycling Club, or CCRCC. It’s named for the neighborhood in southwest Austin where we live.

I was interested in doing the ride because it’s one I rode many months ago, and really enjoyed it. It gets out into the hill country west of Austin quickly, and features lots of rolling hills. I have also realized that I have to do more hill work if I want to complete that century in the fall.

We started off in a group of about 17 or 18, and stayed in a pack for about six miles. Once we crossed U.S. 290, though, the pack started to split up into two groups. I was on the back of the second group. Soon, I was watching the second group disappear out of sight around a bend.

We got to the main objective of the ride — Fitzhugh Road. Now, the last time I was on this route, the group stopped at the convenience store at the corner for a quick rest break. Today, no rest break. Well, it was only 10 miles out from the start. One club jersey was just reaching a bend about 500 yards ahead of me.

I followed, but couldn’t catch them. I am pretty much a 15 mph average rider, and these guys (and several women) are faster. Plus, the rollers. Oy!

One of the nice things about the Fitzhugh route is that you can pick your own distance. It’s an out-and-back route, so you can turn around wherever you like. Most people pick a cross road. The first major intersection is Ranch Road 12. I figured they would take a break there, and that’s how I would catch up. At the same time, the rolling hills were really taking it out of me. I planned to tell the ride organizer that I was turning around there.

When I approached the intersection, I could see a group of about seven of them stopped beyond it. Ah ha! I had caught them. But before I reached the corner, they shoved off. I pedaled hard, and latched onto the back of the group. It took awhile to get to the ride organizer at the front, to tell him I was turning back.

By now, the morning sun was out in full force, and the temperature was around 90°F (32°C). The breeze wasn’t bad though, and I was wearing a full zip jersey, so I could zip down and take advantage of the breeze. When I reached the convenience store back at the 290-Fitzhugh corner, I got a bottle of sports drink, stood in the shade of a tree, and finished it off. The rest of the ride was uneventful, and I got home in time to watch the end of the British Open.

I’m a little bummed that I’m not on a par with the club riders, but there are also rides for slower guys like me, so maybe there will be more club rides in my future.

Totals: 36 miles, 14.3 mph average (That’s .7 mph faster than the last time I did the ride, in January. I’m not in their league, but improvement continues).

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Categories // clubs, Rides Tags // clubs, hills, Rides

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