Chico Rules
Shermanator Results
Safe Riding
Belo News
August 6, 2011
Galesburg, Mi- What a difference a week makes, or maybe two, without our fearless leader. With Skipper in the north woods chasing the dimple rock, 13 unsteady riders rolled out from the start and continued through the neutral zone, past the adoring fans at the Klutch and up 36th and where we were delighted to see Gazelle Girl. Soon we were to 15 as Boatman joined the work toward the first sprint points and Falcon performed a tremendous lead out for the Sharkman who was awarded the honorary sprint in absentia.
The grupetto climbed Cold deTwin Lakes where we added Cheetah to our numbers and off we went to the west side of Gull Lake and thrust directly into the Pain Cave where Chico drove the train all the way to a victorious sprint at the M-43 climb reaching speeds of 28mph in the final stretch.
All was well as we made our way up Col de Norte and toward the Bible Conference, but this is where things got "tacky". It appears that someone left a box of tacks on the road for the minions to pick up and that we did. By the time the group reached Frona's it was discovered 6 bikes had picked up 7 tacks and 6 tires need to be changed. Not good, hopefully we will not repeat this on Saturday. As the pit stop took a bit longer than expected the group started to shrink as we moved toward the bay.
In order to avoid the Shermanator bike leg the remaining riders turned right on DE Ave where the group broke into 2 groups as Chico, Falcoln and Thor lead out the break and motored down 35th to 36th to the Klutch where the group had dwindled to 10 as Gazelle Girl peeled off on HJ to prepare for yet another party and mentioned something about a cat on a hot tin roof. The editor has decided to leave the rest of the story to the imagination.
Shermanator Results
The only information the Belo News desk received was that there were 390 participants and that Stryker Guy and his daughter Carrie (Skater Girl?) competed in the 5k run. Please let us know how others faired in this growing event and good luck to Thor this weekend who will be competing in the Steelhead Half Ironman in Saint Joe.
Safe Riding
As our numbers continue to grow we wanted to pass along a write up we received on safe riding. Please review this as we have had and would like to continue our safe riding.
I hope it’s not presumptuous of me to run through a few things that we already know, in the spirit of keeping this stuff front and center and keeping safety as our primary goal. (Even Tiger Woods has a swing coach (if not a caddy)):
· among experienced riders, mistakes happen when riders lose attention, and riders lose attention when they’re pressed and/or tired.
· avoid getting tired by riding within yourself.
o don’t take a pull if your conditioning is below the group average, and if you find yourself in front, rotate off quickly. don’t leave yourself in any kind of deficit getting back on the last wheel. Let the strongest guys do the lion’s share and don’t even think twice about it – that’s how we balance out the workout.
o hydrate constantly and bring a little food.
o spin it up the hills in a low gear and climb within yourself. If we lose anyone, we’ll regroup within a mile of every major climb. Do not bury the needle indefinitely to keep pace only to burn yourself out for the balance of the ride.
o If you need a break, tell us that. We probably all could use one. 5 minutes can give a big boost, especially in the heat.
· Let’s avoid pressing and accordion play with good leadership and transition at the front of the line:
o Don’t surge when your turn comes up. Concentrate on keeping your cadence at the exact pace you were riding before the leader pulled off. If a pace change is appropriate, for instance if the grade starts to slope down, make the change gradually.
o Stay fresh up front and get off the front well before you’re gassed. If you’re a strongman, don’t ramp up the pace to more than 22 or 23 on the flats – use your strength for the team to take a longer pull rather than burn everyone up keeping your pace.
o Never stop pedaling at the front. If it’s a downhill, keep pedaling and don’t stop unless you completely spin out, and then tuck for speed.
o When leading up a climb, set a steady pace that is good for the group, don’t just climb at your own strongest pace. That means you need to consider the needs of the least among us in terms of conditioning. On longer climbs, try to keep the group together at least until the last portion – for instance, keep the group together until the foot of the last big part of Bailey hill. There will be separation in the steep parts especially if they occur at the end of a climb (e.g., Michigan hill, Egypt Valley going south at Knapp), don’t worry about that, we’ll regroup.
o When you’re ready to finish your turn, make a signal (flash the elbow, tap your butt, etc) and CHECK traffic before pulling out. Do not drop your pace even a little bit until you have left the front, but don’t leave the front until you know that no traffic is approaching from behind.
o Once you’re out in traffic, stop pedaling or feather pedal until you’re almost to the back – get to the back quickly and then get on the wheel so that no one sits out in traffic for any longer than necessary. The last guy should call out that he’s the last wheel.
· Finally, let’s ride with good technique:
o keep your hands on the hoods and ready to feather the brakes at all times when you are following a bike (exception: extended climbs when the hands might go to the top of the bar to open the lungs);
o keep your front wheel a foot behind the rear wheel ahead of you – don’t cross over.
o Keep your eyes up and watching the road ahead – don’t let yourself stare at the wheel ahead, even in climbs.
o Obviously, be on the lookout for pavement issues from the front and point them out as you approach them. Keep your elbows loose and your weight off your hands so that you can point quickly and without affecting your steering.
o Don’t stop pedaling to drink or eat – commit to staying on the wheel ahead and keep your legs moving at all times. Feather your brake for distance control as opposed to going back and forth between pedaling and coasting, or better yet, choose a bigger gear and moderate the pressure to keep pace. Coasting throws variation into the line – good riders rarely coast in a paceline.
o don’t stand in the paceline – try to do any standing/stretching at the back of the line. If you need to stand to meet the pace of a climb, call it out first and then stand. Don’t call it out at the moment you stand – that’s not a fore-warning. Your bike will move back into the guy behind and you can cause a crash if you stand without fore-warning.
o Let’s obey all traffic laws and represent the sport and all riders with class as we interface with drivers.
Hope to see you all this Saturday, 8:00am sharp
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