Riding in a group

Spring is in the air! After months of miserable grey skies, we can finally play outside without fearing the cold, beenies or thick gloves. The playing outside constitutes of riding my road bike during endless hours. It just isn't my thing.


Until I got (bought) my new bike.
Again? Yes, again, but the difference between my 'old' and new road bike is significant. Off course it's a Specialized, a 2008 model Ruby carbon bike in a 48 size. A small, fast and furious little thing. With the bike, a whole new world opened up for me. It still is and will remain a form of training for me. A way of accumulating hours and base speed....
The real roadies wouldn't talk about accumulating hours; they would talk about "making kilometers", but I know better after numerous years of training with professional schedules. Schedules help and they make my life easier to get into shape....it's not just about making/ accumulating kilometers, it's the way you build it up and pace yourself.

My new bike, thus. My position is better and I tire a lot less quickly....the frame is stiff and I can now approach bends and other obstacles in a whole different way. The transfer of power is definitely more efficient.

With the new bike I can now join my collegues on the weekly lunchrides. Initially, the girls would go together and the men could head off at their usual quik pace...but I've only ridden once with one of my female co-workers. My first group ride was a nervous and exhausting affair, where my male co-workers wanted to be the first of the group. I could do nothing but follow.

In the beginning I figured that we were going to ride in turns; 'take over' head to head and I was not afraid to do my part of the job. However, it seems that my initiative was taken up by most of the guys as a signal to ride faster and faster, without much consideration for my first time group effort.
It's not all negative though. To me it is a pleasure to ride in a group to come to grips with the group dynamics of cycling. I had learned a bit during my studies in Sospel and Coustellet, but that was always to nervous; everybody had a say about how to ride and the experience building sucked that way. But now, I can feel and learn what it's like to hide behind a big back and feel the difference in energy expense; I can renew my nervous relationship with the technique of nearly touching the wheel of the person in front of you....It's cool.

It still remains a way of training and not of living though. Mountainbiking rules.
Enjoy the ride