First ride with Fredrikshof IF Cykel
Went on my first club ride yesterday with Fredrikshofs IF Cykel ( Short Swedish lesson: IF = idrottsförening, idrottsförening = sports club, Cykel = Bicycle).
After riding mostly alone or with a small number of friends riding with a pack was really fun. I'm already looking forward to next weeks Thursday Ride.
today's ride was short, 30-35 km + 15 km transport to and from the starting location. Forgot to reset my computer so the numbers are approximate. Usually the ride is 65 km long but since we live pretty close to the polar circle the sun set at 19:44 today and the ride started at 18:15. However the days are getting longer and longer an in about two, three weeks i guess we can ride the whole distance.
The weather today was +7 c and overcast. The morning started with light rain that continued until 16:00 so i was prepared to use my fender equipped Kona. But the good weather kicked bad weather's butt and i could finally dismount my Cannondale from the trainer for some serious road work.
About 12-15 people showed up and two of them were newbies like me. Usually they split the riders in a slow, medium and fast group but since this was the premiere ride and peoples skills were a bit rusty they decided to form just one group and go easy.
Riding in a pack was a new experience for me. They didn't hold any introductory lessons at start so me and the other newbies just tagged along and learned during the ride. Learning the different hand signals was not so hard. Our winter battered roads are full of potholes so you learned the obstacle signals pretty quickly. I missed one though and hit a hole but managed to stay on the bike.
Hardest part was "Do Not Stare at the Back Wheel in Front of you". Keep your vision high so you can see the signals early and react in a more controlled manner. I guess it will come with more practice and experience.
Arggh 6 days and counting. I already long for next Thursday!
After riding mostly alone or with a small number of friends riding with a pack was really fun. I'm already looking forward to next weeks Thursday Ride.
today's ride was short, 30-35 km + 15 km transport to and from the starting location. Forgot to reset my computer so the numbers are approximate. Usually the ride is 65 km long but since we live pretty close to the polar circle the sun set at 19:44 today and the ride started at 18:15. However the days are getting longer and longer an in about two, three weeks i guess we can ride the whole distance.
The weather today was +7 c and overcast. The morning started with light rain that continued until 16:00 so i was prepared to use my fender equipped Kona. But the good weather kicked bad weather's butt and i could finally dismount my Cannondale from the trainer for some serious road work.
About 12-15 people showed up and two of them were newbies like me. Usually they split the riders in a slow, medium and fast group but since this was the premiere ride and peoples skills were a bit rusty they decided to form just one group and go easy.
Riding in a pack was a new experience for me. They didn't hold any introductory lessons at start so me and the other newbies just tagged along and learned during the ride. Learning the different hand signals was not so hard. Our winter battered roads are full of potholes so you learned the obstacle signals pretty quickly. I missed one though and hit a hole but managed to stay on the bike.
Hardest part was "Do Not Stare at the Back Wheel in Front of you". Keep your vision high so you can see the signals early and react in a more controlled manner. I guess it will come with more practice and experience.
Arggh 6 days and counting. I already long for next Thursday!
posted by Johan Mörén at 9:52 am PermaLink
2 Comments:
Do not stare at the wheel in front of you! This is your new mantra.
Hehe, yes i guess so. Hopefully not for long.
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