Riding with a weaker friend.

[suzeworld]

How do people deal with this?

Fair play to my mate, we go out and usually within 5 miles he's out of his comfort zone, but obviously I want to get the most out of my ride.
.. But I'd like to give myself a workout.

Any ideas how I can kind of get more out of my ride without leaving him for dust? Obviously I could leave him when we get back and do another ride, but I'd prefer to maximise my gains whilst helping him along.

Such a bloke --

my wife has been cycling with me for 22 years, she has always stronger up hills than me .. but she never stops, nor slows down ... she just goes back behind me and does some or all of the hill again .. simple ... she has done this on local rides in the Peaks and in alpine climbs too ..

is that solution too obvious? We both get the work we can cope with and she stay close enough to me to feel like we are riding together most of the time .. but when I am really puffing I am glad if she is not on my wheels, tbh!

 

[Racing roadkill]

Beast him at every opportunity, it's the only way. Make sure you speak in a very loud voice, that way everyone else who's around will know how awesome you are as well. When he gets off the bike at the end of the ride, give him a hair shirt to wear, and make sure he kowtows three times.

 

[mustang1]

2 options:
1. If you're riding a loop, tell him you'll catch him up. Loop him as many times as required. (Only works for small loops I guess).
2. On the hills, who!e he's still riding up the hill, you blast up the hill then go back down from where you ride up. Reach your friend and turn around and blast back up the hill again. Repeat.

 

[Big Dave laaa]

Let some air out of his tyres and get his back brake rubbing. It's character building. Ride with him shouting RSM style words of encouragement. He'll thank you for it one day. Probably

 

[blazed]

What you're doing is about right but if he starts slowing you down too much and affecting your progress tell him you can't ride with him until he's improved, don't let anybody affect your sparkle.

If it was me I know the only reason I would be riding with him anyway is because I love rubbing in his face how much better I am, so I would just tell him to cycle far out from the kerb and cycle in circles around him the entire ride.

 

[Crandoggler]

Thanks guys. There are some really good suggestions here. I think I'm going to go up the hills and turn back, and shoot past him again. Hopefully after a few goes he will get the message that I am far superior than him and not want to come out with him anymore.

 

[T.M.H.N.E.T]

I think you should take the good with the bad. Do you ever ride with someone who's better than you, who may have to wait or ease off at certain points of the route?

Nobody improves without pushing themselves, my mate (female) was swearing at me for most of our ride yesterday, but later sent me a text saying thanks for the ride, route and most importantly breakfast

 

[Mugshot]

My regular ride buddy is slower than me, I know it, he knows it, I certainly don't feel the need to rub his face in it everytime we go out for a ride. If I'm out for a ride with him I'll ride with him, that's why I went out with him, I don't see the point in racing away from him at every opportunity. If I want to push myself and ride more quickly than I know he can I'll go out on my own.

 

[Norry1]

In this situation I usually ride on the front and maintain a pace that both can stay with. On hills I do my own thing and either wait / slow down at the top if they are short or repeat part of the hill if it is long enough.

If I ride with faster people, I try hard to keep up but if/when they leave me (usually on hills) I don't feel they are being nobs.

 

[Crandoggler]

In this situation I usually ride on the front and maintain a pace that both can stay with. On hills I do my own thing and either wait / slow down at the top if they are short or repeat part of the hill if it is long enough.

If I ride with faster people, I try hard to keep up but if/when they leave me (usually on hills) I don't feel they are being nobs.

That's pretty much what I do. Maybe it's the best thing.

 

[tmif]

I'm not great at cycling... but i am significantly better than 2 friends who I sometimes go out with.

...i go out with them because they're my friends. I twnd to drop my speed by about 1/3-1/2.

It's frustrating, but if I whizzed off into the sunset I might just as well have gone on my own.

I usually go behind them so that they go at their speed... We chat a bit, I tell them to try a bit harder, I get annoyed when they need to stop for a drink etc...

But about a year ago this was me. I was going out with a third friend who was probably constantly irritated about my slowness and perceived lack of effort... although truthfully I was trying as hard as I could. Thanks to her patience I now love it so I'd love to be able to share this with my current new to cycling friends.

 

[Dogtrousers]

Not so daft, I now use the Brompton on mellower rides or with newbies, or the old MTB just to make it more of an effort. It's better than using a race bike as I tend to stay with them more at my natural riding pace.

Reminds me of a woman on a FNRttC Whitstable once. She was zooming along on an MTB with nearly flat knobblies. I suggested that she might want to use the track pump at Strood. She must have been a tough nut as she was unaware there was even a problem.

For the OP: Choose flatter routes. Your friend can draft off you and you can flog yourself.

 

[screenman]

Cran, how much real racing are you doing? Also why do you need a year to get ready for a half ironman, I would expect most servicemen should be able to do that without too much training.

 

[jefmcg]

Most of the time I get up the hills as quick as I can, then slow down the descent to allow him to speed up. However, recently I've had to actually stop and wait for him. Again, not a problem! It gives me a break if anything... But I'd like to give myself a workout.

I remember walking with someone much fitter than me. They'd shoot ahead of me on an incline and disappear. I'd round a corner, and see them sitting on a rock, sipping a drink, nibbling a muesli bar, enjoying the view, generally chillaxing. I'd wheeze to myself "Just another 200 metres, and you can get your breath back". But as I got within metres of my goal, he'd jump up and say "Ok, off we go", so the person who didn't need a rest has just had a 10 minute break, but the person struggling is supposed to keep moving without even stopping for long enough for the black spots to clear from her vision.

So these days if I am out with someone less fit and I stop, I let them stop when they catch up with me and let them tell me when it's time to move on.

Of course, I don't need to prove my dick is bigger. And if I am interested in the size of my buddy's, I do not think this is a good way to investigate it.

 

[Milkfloat]

I would expect most servicemen should be able to do that without too much training.

RAF