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Did my first charity ride yesterday

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Road Cycling “It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best, since you have to sweat up the hills and coast down them. Thus you remember them as they actually are, while in a motor car only a high hill impresses you, and you have no such accurate remembrance of country you have driven through as you gain by riding a bicycle.” -- Ernest Hemingway

Did my first charity ride yesterday

Old 09-17-18, 05:54 PM
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spelger
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Did my first charity ride yesterday

did my first charity ride ever yesterday. kind of fun to ride with so many people of different abilities. it was a round trip lasting 50~ miles. will have to say that the last hill was terrible, 400 feet of climbing but it kicked me in the butt hard.
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Old 09-17-18, 06:03 PM
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I enjoy a large organized group ride sometimes.
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Old 09-17-18, 07:55 PM
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Originally Posted by spelger
did my first charity ride ever yesterday. kind of fun to ride with so many people of different abilities. it was a round trip lasting 50~ miles. will have to say that the last hill was terrible, 400 feet of climbing but it kicked me in the butt hard.
Charity rides are good for that. Where was it? Were there enough people that any of the roads were closed? That can add to the fun sometimes, but sometimes it's just kind of weird (like the 5 Borough Bike Tour that takes over the Gowanus Expressway). Any friends or acquaintances join you?
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Old 09-18-18, 01:17 PM
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Originally Posted by kbarch
Charity rides are good for that. Where was it? Were there enough people that any of the roads were closed? That can add to the fun sometimes, but sometimes it's just kind of weird (like the 5 Borough Bike Tour that takes over the Gowanus Expressway). Any friends or acquaintances join you?
The ride started just south of Reno NV and went 27 miles south were we turned around. No closed roads. I've ridden two closed roads before, celebratory events of new roads. really weird being able to ride on an interstate unimpeded. I did ride with a friend and made acquaintances with others. will most likely do more of these.
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Old 09-18-18, 01:38 PM
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Originally Posted by spelger
The ride started just south of Reno NV and went 27 miles south were we turned around. No closed roads. I've ridden two closed roads before, celebratory events of new roads. really weird being able to ride on an interstate unimpeded. I did ride with a friend and made acquaintances with others. will most likely do more of these.
That's the spirit! A lot of people like to ride alone, myself included, but I've also made some of my best friends through cycling and it can be an excellent social activity for meeting new people.
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Old 09-18-18, 07:32 PM
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Originally Posted by spelger
The ride started just south of Reno NV and went 27 miles south were we turned around. No closed roads. I've ridden two closed roads before, celebratory events of new roads. really weird being able to ride on an interstate unimpeded. I did ride with a friend and made acquaintances with others. will most likely do more of these.
So you know... But the weirdest thing to me is choosing such a road in the first place. The novelty of expressways soon wears off and I think - of all the roads I could be on, why would I want to be here?! I think that's the biggest difference between driving and recreational cycling - on a bike, you usually choose roads because you actually want to be on each one (more or less); in a car, you usually choose them so you can be off them all as soon as possible.
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Old 09-19-18, 07:41 AM
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If cycling is a significant part of your life and you would like to share it with a significant other, your choices are find another cyclist as a potential S.O. or try to develop a non or casual cyclist into an enthusiastic recreational cyclist. The second approach is challenging and requires a very light touch.

Charity rides offer an opportunity to meet people who are a little further along on the recreational cyclist spectrum.

Or just keep riding solo or with your hammer-fest mates.
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Old 09-19-18, 08:07 AM
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Originally Posted by kbarch
So you know... But the weirdest thing to me is choosing such a road in the first place. The novelty of expressways soon wears off and I think - of all the roads I could be on, why would I want to be here?! I think that's the biggest difference between driving and recreational cycling - on a bike, you usually choose roads because you actually want to be on each one (more or less); in a car, you usually choose them so you can be off them all as soon as possible.
Not all Interstates are created equal. We had to ride I-94 heading east of Steele, ND during an organized tour because there were no other paved options. We were on it for 9 miles. Only a couple of cars. A few years ago I took I-90 to get into Spearfish, SD because the other road heading into town had no shoulder and looked to have a fair amount of traffic. I've been on far worse non-highways. If you go to Google Maps, look up Melrose, MT and use Street View to poke around north and south on I-15 you will find a pretty empty highway. I have hung out under an I-15 overpass there a few times while taking a shade break and applying sunblock. Sometimes 10 or more minutes elapsed between vehicles passing overhead.

I-90 looking west towards Spearfish, SD:

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