A sobering sat am ride

[Losidan]

So there I am this morning, giving it the beans on my ten mile tt route on my old 12 speeder. I knocked two mins off my off road tt time last week so was thinking I was seeing some progress.

Next thing I hear some voices and 10 superfast lycra clad missiles cruise past me just having a chat......
A harsh reminder I have a long way to go

 

[rich p]

I have that experience sometimes but I don't have a long way to go as I'm never going to get there. Good to have challenges though!

 

[bonk man]

Yep we all have these experiences, I was doing a 10 mile club event and really hammering along [ for me it was hammering along... ] when Liam Killeen floated past sitting upright whistling to a tune on his mp3 player... grrrrrrrr

 

[paddy01]

Happened to me just this morning, went out for a couple of hours and just after setting off from home I passed the local club (really must go and say hello) gathering for their Sunday club run.

I must have had a good 10 mins head start but as I'm grinding my way over the first real climb 4 of them tootled past barely getting into their stride.

I really must join them as I think I might have hit a bit of a plateau riding solo.

 

[MajorMantra]

So there I am this morning, giving it the beans on my ten mile tt route on my old 12 speeder. I knocked two mins off my off road tt time last week so was thinking I was seeing some progress.

Next thing I hear some voices and 10 superfast lycra clad missiles cruise past me just having a chat......

Console yourself with the thought that they're quick because they're sharing the load in a group. Naturally you could trounce each and every one of them on an equal footing.

Matthew

 

[GrumpyGregry]

I have that experience sometimes but I don't have a long way to go as I'm never going to get there. Good to have challenges though!

Regularly get scalped by chain gangs from Brighton Mitre on Sat mornings. I was young once too!

 

[peanut]

had the same experience myself this morning so you have my comiserations.
Arrived at the start of an easy 40 mile Audax to see them all leaving 5 minutes early.
By the time I'm ready for the off they have 5 minutes on me and I don't have a clue about the route.

Its pouring with rain and blowing an absolute hooley. Two old gits like me are late of so i tag on with them . They decide to take a different route to the rendevous at Tiverton ....the hilly route

Stick insect on the front sets off at a bistering pace 12mph up steep hills on a main road with a gusting headwind enough to blow you off your bike. After 5 miles or so they are creeping ahead on every hill and when I make it to the top of a minor mountain they are history .

I'm too knackered to get off the bike I'm gasping like I'm going to have a heart attack and its 10 minutes before I can take a swig of my bidon.

Stick insect must have weighed about 7 stone nothing and I weigh 17 stone There's nowhere to hide from the wind behind him either

I pootle back to the start and on the way a young fit looking bloke is behind me on a MTB so I put me head down and manage to do a wind assisted 5 miles with matey in tow. I hear him scrabbling through his gears desperately trying to keep up with me on the hilly bits and smile.
Payback


Hope you all enjoyed your ride today. I'm on a cabbage water diet from tomorrow.

 

[Losidan]

Console yourself with the thought that they're quick because they're sharing the load in a group. Naturally you could trounce each and every one of them on an equal footing.

Matthew

Sir, I like your thinking

 

[Jonathan M]

Before my current health problems I was probably fitter than I'd been for the last 10 years or so.

I did a ride at the back end of last year that took in a couple of halfway decent climbs in the west Pennines, and at the bottom of the last one I'd stopped to take of my windproof and have a quite bite to eat. A guy on a Trek rides past, little nods exchanged, and I saddle up meaning to have a chat - I'd been out for 3 hours already at this point and oddly there didn't seem to be too many cyclists out to have a chat with, but it had been raining for 2 out of 3 hours, so that might have something to do with it!

Anyway, just as I'm making progress Trek man looks behind, sees me, stands out of the saddle and distances me. Fine, sod off I thought, and just carried on in my merry way. But towards the top of the climb he'd either got tired or had backed off, becuase I started to make progress on him again, and within a hundred yards of the top of the climb I passed him, naturally I let onto him but was no longer in the mood to chat.


I'm a sad git, that will aways be a defining moment of 2008 for me!!!

I know it isn't the same as the OP's experience on saturday, but I just wanted to share it again, especially as I've been unable to ride since february and certaily couldn't get up that climb now without getting off & pushing.

 

[MichaelM]

As I was grinding my way up Dunning Glen yesterday, another cyclist appeared at my side and gave a cheery hello. We had a little chat, mostly him talking and me gasping a one word reply. Turns out he's ..... seventy f ucking 2 !!!!

 

[Proto]

I was doing a club 10 one night when a bloke cruised past me. Nothing unusual there, but he happened to be chatting on his phone at the time.

 

[jez smith]

Well you can console yourself with my favorite cycling quote which is from Greg Lemond when someone asked him when cycling got easier and he said ' It never gets easier, you just go faster'

 

[ASC1951]

Greg Lemond ... said ' It never gets easier, you just go faster'

He's spot on there. We all tend to exercise at our discomfort threshold, which remains fairly constant.

My most recent humiliation is swimming, not cycling. I'm doing my 120x25m-an-hour swim last Sunday, with the Swimming Club in the next lane. I'm doing front crawl with training fins and giving it big licks, in my mind similar to Mark Spitz in his prime. Just before the far end I am overtaken by a 12 year old girl who has given me half a length start - and is swimming breast stroke!

 

[jez smith]

He's spot on there. We all tend to exercise at our discomfort threshold, which remains fairly constant.

My most recent humiliation is swimming, not cycling. I'm doing my 120x25m-an-hour swim last Sunday, with the Swimming Club in the next lane. I'm doing front crawl with training fins and giving it big licks, in my mind similar to Mark Spitz in his prime. Just before the far end I am overtaken by a 12 year old girl who has given me half a length start - and is swimming breast stroke!

I hate it when that happens ;-)