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Another pre-teen/teen tandem team ride
Gorgeous weather today, June-style weather, sunny, lower sixties, a day you
ride in your shorts and ss jersey. All the plum trees were in bloom. I had two tandem teams show up -- one team had been on one of these rides in the training series before. The other set was a family -- mom, dad and kid. I had some concerns. Dad was riding on a single, a beat-up Schwinn that had to be at least from the mid-80s if not earlier. Mom and kid were on a fat-tire tandem, a brand I did not recognize. None of them had bikie gear: no bike shorts, no gloves, flat pedals -- and the parents' helmets also looked about 25 years old. They had never been on a club ride before. So, I made sure they knew the distance. I made sure they knew the pace. They said they were ready. So we took off. As it turned out, they really couldn't maintain a 15 mph pace. They were more like an 11 or 12 mph pace. Since the other team was much more experienced, and knew this particular loop we were doing very well, I figured I would pace to the slower set of riders. The other team eventually let us know that they would ride on without us, which didn't surprise me in the slightest, since we were so slow. They had problems with shifting the tandem, which wasn't going into its granny gear unless it was manually lifted into the small ring. Rose did a constant yakity-yak with me, since we were indeed going slower. Usually we're silent in our grim determination to keep the ~15 mph rolling. Since she wasn't gasping for breath, she was filling my ear about life in the 6th grade. I was also nervous because when you loop around the lake, there's really no way to shorten the ride -- the big barrier of the lake means shortcuts are impossible. But the slower group did complete the entire ride. They'd like to join us again next week, but I know we'll have some faster paced riders for sure next week, and I don't know exactly what to do. One thought is to try to con my husband into ride leading with me -- I just don't know if he wants the responsibility. We can split into a fast group and a short group. Sort of silly with so few riders, but it's one way to tackle it. The other possibility is to discourage them from riding with us. Do you have thoughts about this? Also, as a sort of postscript, we ran into (not literally) Dane Jackson along the way -- met him in the bike tunnel. It's always fun to see someone you know as you ride along. With this weather, though, *everybody* was out there on their bikes. It was pretty amazing. -- Warm Regards, Claire Petersky Home of the meditative cyclist: http://home.earthlink.net/~cpetersky/Welcome.htm Personal page: http://www.geocities.com/cpetersky/ See the books I've set free at: http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky |
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#2
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Claire Petersky wrote:
Mom and kid were on a fat-tire tandem, a brand I did not recognize. None of them had bikie gear: no bike shorts, no gloves, flat pedals -- ..... They'd like to join us again next week, but I know we'll have some faster paced riders for sure next week, and I don't know exactly what to do. ..... The other possibility is to discourage them from riding with us. Interesting. My wife and I showed up at the last club ride the local bike club had last year on our fat-tire tandem with little biking gear pulling our kid in a burley trailer behind us. It was a short family ride, and we were the only non-club people there. After the ride there was a brief discussion about the 2005 ride schedule and it was apparent to me they were really not in favor of that, although they didn't outright say so. Perhaps one of them are awaiting a response to this as well... Rich P.S. I know we can't currently keep up the pace with the trailer fro 20-30 miles, and given the cyclocomputer is on the stoker's handlebars I'm pretty sure my wife is aware as well. We'll either not show up at another club ride or do so without the kid & trailer. We're not in super shape, but I think we can keep up if the road is flat, given we're on a tandem. |
#3
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On Sun, 6 Mar 2005 14:21:47 -0800, "Claire Petersky"
wrote: They'd like to join us again next week, but I know we'll have some faster paced riders for sure next week, and I don't know exactly what to do. One thought is to try to con my husband into ride leading with me -- I just don't know if he wants the responsibility. We can split into a fast group and a short group. Sort of silly with so few riders, but it's one way to tackle it. The other possibility is to discourage them from riding with us. Do you have thoughts about this? Also, as a sort of postscript, we ran into (not literally) Dane Jackson along the way -- met him in the bike tunnel. It's always fun to see someone you know as you ride along. With this weather, though, *everybody* was out there on their bikes. It was pretty amazing. Have the slow group start out ~10-15min earlier than the fast group, you leading, then you switch over to the fast group at the meeting point? Everyone ends up at the finish within a few minutes. jj |
#4
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On Sun, 6 Mar 2005 14:21:47 -0800, Claire Petersky wrote:
Gorgeous weather today, June-style weather, sunny, lower sixties, a day you ride in your shorts and ss jersey. All the plum trees were in bloom. Not warm enough for me but I'd be in a sweater, long riding pants and no long finger gloves. I had two tandem teams show up -- one team had been on one of these rides in the training series before. The other set was a family -- mom, dad and kid. I had some concerns. Dad was riding on a single, a beat-up Schwinn that had to be at least from the mid-80s if not earlier. Mom and kid were on a fat-tire tandem, a brand I did not recognize. None of them had bikie gear: no bike shorts, no gloves, flat pedals -- and the parents' helmets also looked about 25 years old. They had never been on a club ride before. Bad sign. As it turned out, they really couldn't maintain a 15 mph pace. They were more like an 11 or 12 mph pace. Right now I'm leading a 16-17 mph avg pace and I have to wait for straglers. But the club rules also state that come prepared with a fit bicycle. If the rider or ride is not fit that ride lead can ask they consider a slower ride until they et things in order. In a few weeks the pace will pick up and I won't have to wait for stranglers. I generally do anyway but I warn them. I was also nervous because when you loop around the lake, there's really no way to shorten the ride -- the big barrier of the lake means shortcuts are impossible. But the slower group did complete the entire ride. At least they're not likely to get lost. One of the things about my ride is that I have no cue sheet. I make the ride up on the spot depending on wind, weather and want. They'd like to join us again next week, but I know we'll have some faster paced riders for sure next week, and I don't know exactly what to do. One thought is to try to con my husband into ride leading with me -- I just don't know if he wants the responsibility. We can split into a fast group and a short group. Sort of silly with so few riders, but it's one way to tackle it. The other possibility is to discourage them from riding with us. I assume you have an advertised ride pace? If they can't keep it let them know that they are ruining it for everyone else and that they should consider riding at a pace that more closely fits their current needs. The needs of the many out weight the needs of the few. -- Linux Home Automation Neil Cherry http://home.comcast.net/~ncherry/ (Text only) http://hcs.sourceforge.net/ (HCS II) http://linuxha.blogspot.com/ My HA Blog |
#5
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"Claire Petersky" wrote:
From the bit I've gathered about who /you/ are, Claire, I'm guessing that--in the end--you'll opt to be INclusive, rather than EXclusive. Perhaps other riders can be located whose pace more closely matches theirs? Perhaps they can help in that endeavor?? Splitting into groups, by pace, doesn't sound like a bad idea, particularly if there's a cool cafe along the way where the whole lot of you can meet for coffee en route.... |
#6
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"Claire Petersky" wrote in message
... .... Rose did a constant yakity-yak with me, since we were indeed going slower. Usually we're silent in our grim determination to keep the ~15 mph rolling. Since she wasn't gasping for breath, she was filling my ear about life in the 6th grade. I cherish the memory of this type of ride with my daughters on an old Schwinn Twinn tandem. They'd pretend to pedal, and the intimacy-yet-privacy of being behind the captain led to lots of good discussions. Of course, I wasn't trying to lead a ride at the time. They'd like to join us again next week, but I know we'll have some faster paced riders for sure next week, and I don't know exactly what to do. One thought is to try to con my husband into ride leading with me -- I just don't know if he wants the responsibility. We can split into a fast group and a short group. Sort of silly with so few riders, but it's one way to tackle it. The other possibility is to discourage them from riding with us. Fast/slow may be the realistic alternative, with regrouping at some agreed-on spot. Perhaps there is a way to add a couple of miles to the loop for faster riders so they can "fall behind" and catch up again. If you settle on a slow pace, the fast group will stop showing up. If you drop the slow riders, they will feel left out. In a couple of weeks, they may show up in bike shorts, be in better shape, etc. -- although they probably won't show up with a new tandem so quickly. Another alternative is to gently suggest some more appropriate bicycling club (tandem or not), since there may be several in the area. |
#7
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"Claire Petersky" wrote... They'd like to join us again next week, but I know we'll have some faster paced riders for sure next week, and I don't know exactly what to do. One thought is to try to con my husband into ride leading with me -- I just don't know if he wants the responsibility. We can split into a fast group and a short group. Sort of silly with so few riders, but it's one way to tackle it. The other possibility is to discourage them from riding with us. Do you have thoughts about this? Also, as a sort of postscript, we ran into (not literally) Dane Jackson along the way -- met him in the bike tunnel. It's always fun to see someone you know as you ride along. With this weather, though, *everybody* was out there on their bikes. It was pretty amazing. -- Warm Regards, Claire Petersky Is this a fun ride or a training ride? What's the advertised pace, if any? Giving the slower group a head start as another poster suggested is an excellent idea. The faster group should be able to function on their own for at least part of the ride, being a ride leader does not (IMO) require hovering over each and every group member like a mother hen, and a group ride doesn't not necessarily have to ride in close formation for the entire ride. If they show up next week, a few kind words about the benefits of bike maintenance and bicycle specific clothing from the ride leader might be in order, if they haven't already taken care of these issues. Did you talk to them about this when they expressed an interest in coming back? With a little encouragement and helpful feedback, this family might turn out to be a fun bunch to have around on your group rides. They did, after all, finish the ride in spite of equipment problems and a lack of cycling experience, and they did show an interest in spending more time on their bicycles. If they don't address the bike maintenance issues, and if they don't maintain a pace that is at least closer to the group's pace, you might be justified in discouraging them from riding with you. -- mark |
#8
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"Claire Petersky" wrote in message
... They'd like to join us again next week, but I know we'll have some faster paced riders for sure next week, and I don't know exactly what to do. One thought is to try to con my husband into ride leading with me -- I just don't know if he wants the responsibility. We can split into a fast group and a short group. Sort of silly with so few riders, but it's one way to tackle it. The other possibility is to discourage them from riding with us. I thought I'd post a follow-up. As it turns out, they did come to the ride again, yesterday. This time Mom and Dad were wearing bike shorts :-), and Daughter did not wear bell bottoms. My husband and younger daughter came. The idea was, we'd ride together until the first major rest stop, which is about a mile 10. My husband would ride sweep with my older daughter, and I'd ride in front with the younger. Then, the plan was, we'd switch kids and split into a slower and faster group. As it turned out, a few miles before that rest stop, the tandem my husband was on suffered a major blow-out on the tire sidewall. I was with the faster riders already at the rest stop, and we had been hanging there for a while when this happened. So the slower family joined us at the rest stop, my husband booted the tire, and rather than risk the rest of the ride on the bad tire, he turned back. Until the second major rest stop, I rode with my younger daughter. This was her first ride of the season, and I knew it was a bit of a struggle for her as I pushed on at the advertised pace of 15 mph. The slower family wasn't as slow as last week, and we waited a few times for them to regroup with us. When we got to the rest stop, I let the faster riders go. The route from there back to the start point is pretty obvious, and one of the riding teams knew it very well. My younger daughter and I then paced with the slower family, which suited Emma just fine. My husband, who had fetched lunch and was hanging out at the park where the cars were, said that they really weren't that far ahead of us. It was nice for Emma and I to arrive and have a lunch all ready for us. We then ate while David put the bike on top of the car and packed all the stuff away. So, it worked out OK. The family is now very excited about participating in other club rides. Since they live in Tacoma, I suggested they try out the Tacoma Wheelmen's Daffodil ride, which is coming up next month -- they'd have no problem completing the shorter loop, based on what I could see of their rides with us. -- Warm Regards, Claire Petersky Home of the meditative cyclist: http://home.earthlink.net/~cpetersky/Welcome.htm Personal page: http://www.geocities.com/cpetersky/ See the books I've set free at: http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky |
#9
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Claire Petersky wrote:
I thought I'd post a follow-up. As it turns out, they did come to the ride again, yesterday. This time Mom and Dad were wearing bike shorts :-), and Daughter did not wear bell bottoms. ....snip... So, it worked out OK. The family is now very excited about participating in other club rides. Great job finding a way to include them. The more people are on bikes the better things are. Rich |
#10
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Neil Cherry wrote:
On Sun, 6 Mar 2005 14:21:47 -0800, Claire Petersky wrote: As it turned out, they really couldn't maintain a 15 mph pace. They were more like an 11 or 12 mph pace. Right now I'm leading a 16-17 mph avg pace and I have to wait for straglers. But the club rules also state that come prepared with a fit bicycle. If the rider or ride is not fit that ride lead can ask they consider a slower ride until they et things in order. In a few weeks the pace will pick up and I won't have to wait for stranglers. I generally do anyway but I warn them. ------------------------------------------------------^^^^^^ I'm sorry Neil, you seem like a nice guy and all. But if you have *stranglers* on your club rides, I won't be showing up anytime soon. -- Dane Jackson - z u v e m b i @ u n i x b i g o t s . o r g "Felix navidad:The cat has a boat." |
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