I'm out. Need sleep

I'll be there at 8 at BB

Sorry about the apparent no-show. After dragging myself out of bed on time, I arrived at the bike path to await the BB group, only to discover my inner tube peeking out through a hole in the sidewall of my front tire. Went back home, mounted a new (old)  tire and rode up to GWB, where I missed the group by about 5 min. 

How would you guys rate the Sunday rides on 9W?  I never had a ride up there..

Joseph Ng said:

How would you guys rate the Sunday rides on 9W?  I never had a ride up there..

What is your rating scale ?

Joe,

Check out the Prospect Park training rides. I suppose those should help sort everyone out.
http://kissenacycling.vanillaforums.com/discussion/193/pp-weekday-morning-training#latest

as a member who only joined in january, i can agree with @dstokes that you should not underestimate the intensity of the group ride if you are new to race-oriented cycling.  i live in brooklyn, so getting to GWB is about an hour.  add that on both ends and the ride is about 4-6 hours long.  must bring food to eat on the ride (clif bars, gels) and adequate fluids.  i agree with the substance of @mperlberg's suggestion regarding ride intensity, but the specific benchmark of 50 mile rides may not be true for everyone.  i had not done a 50 mile ride in several months before i joined the club and i was able to manage group rides.  you need to be in shape, as hopelessly subjective as that sounds.  your legs and lungs should be accustomed to putting out considerable amounts of effort for a sustained time.  a benchmark i would offer is if you can do 3 laps of prospect park averaging 20+ mph by yourself (not in someone else's draft) then you're likely to be comfortable on the group ride as long as you keep yourself properly hydrated and fueled.  your legs will complain the first couple times, but your lungs will be capable of keeping pace with the group.

To add to the discussion:  

All this, "is the group ride too hard for me" talk, has encouraged me to revive an idea I've floated in the past. And despite all the nice guys on the club and the general "no drop" rules, the mere length of the group ride, to say nothing of the intensity that happens anytime you get more than a couple of club members together who think they are riding easy (easy for them, not so easy for others), from Brooklyn can be too much for some riders. Myself included.

Because if you are talking 5 hours in the saddle, that's just a lot. I don't care how fast or slow or whatever you think you are going. The suggestion to draft is all well and good, and an important skill to learn and practice, but we've all been in situations where you are slobbering on your top-tube just to keep up with the wheel in front of you.

I'll let the team know when I'm going to lead the easy (for reals) no drop ride starting on the New Jersey side of the GWB. You will know when you are on this diff't ride, because you will no longer have to go anaerobic trying to catch up with guys who have dodged traffic and are hammering away up the first rise before Strictly Bicycles . Certain folks on the club will be banned from this ride to ensure reasonable pace throughout.

@Marc Good point. While I'm not the fastest guy out there (by a longshot), I've been riding the weekend routes for about 15 years now, at least 5 of which have been with Kissena, am a decent bike handler, can teach the basics of pacelining and have the requisite patience (I think) to deal with disparate levels of experience among riders. All by way of saying that if the club wants to promote an across the bridge ride for less experienced riders I'd be happy to guide or co-guide or otherwise help them along.

I'm with you Marc.

All of the suggestions have merit. My experience on my first group ride was with Jules, Nathaniel and one other who I can't remember. I wasn't a member yet and tagged along to get a sense of the club. We met at BB and went up the west side highway. As Jules told me it was mid July and everyone was in in good form at that point. I found that out quickly. We were riding 2 x 2 and as soon as my pair put our nose in the wind I was finished, all before getting to the GWB.

I say that because all of this makes you better and gives you a yardstick to measure yourself by. There is no shame in having to turn around early either because of time or fitness constraints (or both). Just speak up and there will likely be one or more people who want to take it easy for one reason or another and will happily lead a more relaxed and/or shorter ride.

Lots of people will offer advice on sticking it out with the strong guys or knowing your limits... The key in all of it is to be responsible for yourself. That means ride within your limits and bring appropriate gear (food, water, clothing, spare tubes etc)

i'll put my hand up to join and/or co-lead a newer/less experienced member ride, too.  newer riders will also benefit from the opportunity to practice basic group riding skills, start to learn how to do simple pacelines, and just share general etiquette (how to point out road hazards, no half-wheeling, hold your line, etc...)

 for new guys not familiar with these roads yet, to put in perspective:  at my pace (which is way slow at this point compared to our most fit racers) the traditional brooklyn - piermont and back ride (60 miles, give or take) took me about 4 hours last time out....and that included a stop for a salty caramel donut and espresso at mattie's shop.  

Riding with guys who are faster than you is really the best way to improve. But of course, it can be tricky, because if they are TOO much faster it can be counterproductive. 

I've had to beg people to leave me behind - usually unsuccessfully.

And then there was Keith on his b-day after 98 miles getting a flat and telling us to go ahead.
We didn't comply.

Hmmmmm.  A few weeks ago when I was cramping and I told you guys to go ahead, no one seemed to blink an eye and kept on going...... ;-)

Seriously, it was a perfect example of what Ryan is talking about.  I joined a ride that normally would've been fine for me, but when you have barely ridden for 6 months, I made sure to bring all the crap I needed just in case.  The last thing I wanna do is hold up guys who have been training hard all winter and getting ready to start racing (or getting ready to race CX worlds!).

I've turned back dozens of times to help along dropped riders on casual rides, but at a certain point, some guys have to get back home.  And splintering off of huge group rides is fine as long as you just let people know what you're doing and no one is really in danger of completely bottoming out.

And getting lost can be fun.  If you don't have phone mapping service, just ask at a gas station!  The first few times I went to bear mountain by myself, when I had just moved here, were totally wandering explorations.  Sure, it took 7 hours, but I learned and saw the country!

Tomorrow (Saturday) 9:30 BB, 10:30 GWB. Some hard stuff. Home by 2.

Unfortunately I have to be in LES by 10am tomorrow, so I'll be doing some laps in Central Park 7-9am.

Whitey, I'll see you at 10:30 GW.

Anybody on the BB at 8 am tommorow ???

Thierry Bonnaire said:

Anybody on the BB at 8 am tommorow ???

Depending on how this evening's drinking goes, I will almost certainly be there.

Mourning the loss to Wales???

Depending on precipitation, I will be there.

Looks like I will be there. Going long.

Bethel baby