I finally managed to make a Charlottesville Bicycle Club ride this morning and I am SO glad I did. What a wonderful group of people! Aden was absolutely correct in his blog post - they are social & laid back and no one gets dropped for good. At some point the faster group waits for those who are lagging behind.
One of my fears was being the slowest and then holding everyone back. What I found was that I am squarely in the middle - this morning there were two groups: the fast group (including Bates & Aden) & the slow group. Oh yeah, and me. I was in "no man's land" squarely in the middle. I could hang with the big guys on the flats (and pass 'em downhill!), but what goes down must go back up and that's where I would see them fading in the distance ahead of me. Slow climbing aside, I got to ride "my ride", I got to talk with some fun people, and I was on my bike for 46 miles on a gorgeous late-summer morning. Bonus - I was not last!
I think the temperature probably topped at 83 degrees by the end of the ride. No breeze to speak of and brilliant sunshine and low humidity. The route we took was what we MadCyclists like to call the Scuffletown Loop (the short route because it did not go into Orange from Somerset). Instead of going through Orange, we headed back on Rt. 231, to Tatum School Rd. and then up Locust Grove Church Rd. to Good Hope. I hate that climb but for whatever reason it felt good today. Following the ride most of us refueled at the "Piggy Steak".
These guys are lots of fun and I am looking forward to another ride with them soon. I hope anyone reading this will try and do the same. See you on the road!
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Jane's too modest to admit it, but the C'ville folks wisely opted to let the "local yocals" lead the way, and Jane pulled the whole group for about the first half of the ride--she's made of tough stuff. Well done, Hammer Girl!
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