Getting dropped from a group happens to all of us. Even the best riders in the world get dropped. Pick yourself up and fight to get back on.
You can fall off the group for all sorts of reasons from reaching down to grab your water bottle for a drink, taking off a layer, getting gapped by another rider, being in the wrong position in the group, etc. For whatever reason below are some key tips to bridging back to the group.
- First NEVER give up! You never know what will happen up the road. The strong rider(s) in the group could flat making the lead group disorganized causing them to slow down. Or riders in the lead group could begin to suffer leaving the pulling to only a few riders causing the lead group to slow down. You just never know what is going on up the road so don’t give up.
- Regroup and get help. Looking around either up the road our behind you to regroup forming a paceline and work together. Many times one of the strong riders in a group will be in the wrong position getting gapped and dropped. Working together with other riders you can have enough engine power to bridge back up to the group. It is a sign of inexperienced rides who have been drooped who don’t work together but ride solo trying to bridge the gap. Don’t make this mistake. If there are other wheels around you there is a way back to the lead pack!
- Respond quickly and close the gap fast! If you do get gapped or dropped close it fast and get back on. Others are suffering just like you. Many times if you can just hold on for a split second longer or get back on the group, the group slows down allowing you to recover. Pushing air by yourself is much harder than suffering for a few seconds to get back on. It is much easier to recover riding in the pack than on your own. Put your Nike’s on and JUST DO IT; close the gap while it is small.
- Put your blinders on and go into time trial mode. If the gap is large don’t panic. Relax, breath, and don’t try to bridge the gap in one sprint up to the group. You will blow up. Ease into a steady time trial pace collecting your energy to bridge the gap over time. A group bike ride is like a book of matches. You start will a full book of matches and each time you sprint, take a pull, bridge a gap you burn a match. Eventually you run out of matches and your done. Get into a steady mode where your conserving your matches and keep the pace over a period of time with the chance of getting back on.
- Don’t sit on the back move to the front. Lastly, when you bridge the gap use your speed and the draft of the other cyclist to move to the front. Getting to the front will give you more protection to recover so you don’t get dropped again. It is tempting to sit on the back of the pack but your are risking getting dropped again. It actually takes more energy and is harder sometimes on the back of the pack. Move towards the front and sit in; ideal right behind the rotating paceline.
Popularity: 19% [?]
53x11 Push The Big Gear
Congratulations to Cyclingineer!
He is the winner of the VeloTees.com 53×11 t-shirt. Check out www.velotees.com - they have some cool t-shirts.
If you have a cool cycling related product or service and want some exposure click on the link below as to how to get your product or service featured on Ride-Strong.com.
http://www.ride-strong.com/who-free-stuff-free-write-up/
Below are some links to some products that have been featured on our site:
http://www.ride-strong.com/free-cyclesound-giveaway-write-up/
http://www.ride-strong.com/who-free-stuff-free-write-up/
http://www.ride-strong.com/free-muscletrac-write-up/
Popularity: 7% [?]
Posted on: August 17th, 2008 By: Ride-Strong Admin In:
FREE Write Up
Prius installation of rear hitch and rear bike rack. bike rack article
Have you been thinking about getting a Toyota Prius but have wondered how you will be able to carry my bike around?
There is an answer! Why not have the best of both worlds; great gas mileage and the ease of carrying two bikes around. A rear hitch-mounted bike rack is one of the best option for Toyota Prius owners or shoppers looking into buying a Prius.
Although the Toyota dealerships will install the trailer hitch for you, installation is easy and something you can do on your own. You can install the hitch in about 30 minutes or less.Things You Will Need That Are Necessary:
- Trailer hitch Curt Model 11468
- Socket wrench with a 14m and 17m socket
- Hand socket wrench with a 10m socket
- Flat head screw driver for releasing the plastic rivets holding the underbody fascia in place
- Heavy scissors or tin snips to trim the plastic under-body fascia
- Extra set of hands to help you lift the trailer hitch into place
Things That Are NOT Necessary But Helpful:
- Mechanic’s Creeper
- Drive-on Ramps
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Popularity: 41% [?]
www.VeloTees.com sent Ride-Strong.com™ a t-shirt to give away to one of our lucky Ride Strong™ readers.
Above is what the front of the t-shirt looks like (Push the BIG gear! 53×11). Or visit the link below for a better look.
http://www.velotees.com/proddetail.php?prod=53_11&cat=8
Comment on this post and leave your name, city, and state at your change to win. The size of the t-shirt we will be giving away is a size large.
The winner will be picked on Saturday August 16, 2008.
If you have a cycling product you would like featured visit the link below.
http://www.ride-strong.com/who-free-stuff-free-write-up/
Popularity: 9% [?]
Posted on: August 9th, 2008 By: Ride-Strong Admin In:
FREE Write Up
How would you like to see one of these out on the road in front of bike shops and stores?
Apparently this is a concept being tested by Trek in their own backyard of Madison, Wisconsin. The kiosk is actually operated by Machinery Row bike shop and is meant to serve customers after hours on a popular bike path. Stocked with handy spare parts like tubes, patches, and CO2 catridges (why not a free air pump instead? better for the environment), the machine also dispenses energy bars and cold drinks.
But beyond simply vending quick repair and re-energy supplies the Trek Stop Cycling Convenience Center also sports an integrated work stand and push button videos to walk riders through minor repair jobs. Maybe they could add www.roadbikerides.com to a computer screen to show riders were the best bike rides are in the area.
Popularity: 8% [?]
Posted on: August 8th, 2008 By: Ride-Strong Admin In:
Cycling News
Congratulation to RoadBikeRides.com member Dan Rhule aka drhule23 for winning the June monthly contest sponsored by www.TriSports.com. Dan will receive a $100 gift certificate to TriSports.com.
Also thank you to all of you that contributed to RoadBikeRides.com in the month of June. RoadBikeRides.com is adding members and some great ride content daily.
THE RACE TO THE YELLOW JERSEY and the $10,000 cash prize is still up for grabs. Although Dan Rhule is wearing yellow and has a sizable lead anything is possible. Prizes will be awarded through 10th place, so put on your helmets and ride for a podium spot. To learn more visit this link www.roadbikerides.com/contest.
As always RideStrong™!
Popularity: 12% [?]
This is a pretty cool article on VeloNews on some of the latest ways that riders are able to recover quicker by cooling down their core body temperature.
Watch the video below.
http://tour-de-france.velonews.com/article/80922/how-garmin-chipotle-keeps-its-riders-fresh-for-the-tour
Popularity: 9% [?]
This mornings Shootout was a fast one thanks to Curtis Gunn pictured to the left. Curtis is a professional cyclist and just got back from the Bend Memorial Clinic Cascade Cycling Classic stage race and was racing amongst top name cyclists Levi Leipheimer, Phil Zajicek, Tom Danielson, and Chris Horner just to name a few.
Curtis showed up this morning on his TT bike ready to put the hammer down. He is getting ready for a time trail and wanted to put some miles in on his TT bike.
From the start Curtis went to the front in his arrow position and drilled it. The 125+ riders were quickly strung out. Gord Fraser and a few others rotated through - That is if you could pull through at 25 mph to 30 mph+.
After the bridge the packed was down to about 25 riders still hanging on to the pace set by Curtis. As we started up the climb to the top of the sprint Team Rhino took over and set up the lead out for their teammate Kyle Akin. Kyle Akin took yellow followed by his teammate Richard Moore.
Coming back into town setting up for the sprint Curtis Gunn was drilling it from the front and Gord Fraser had his wheel with the pace around 33mph+. Unfortunately we got stopped by the light and I was slow to respond when the light turned green and don’t know who won the sprint. If you know who win please comment below.
No offense to the female cyclists but the CHICK-O-METER was HIGH today. In the old days, we us to gage the intensity of the Shootout by what we called the CHICK-O-METER. If there were female cyclists that made it all the way around the CHICK-O-METER was low which meant the Shootout was too easy. Lately I have heard some of the old timers like Peter Brown, Jimmy Ricatello and a few others refere to the CHICK-O-METER so I had to throw this in here. Again no offense to the ladies.
For a book of the best bike rides in Tucson, Arizona visit:
www.trisports.com/road-bike-rides.html
For the Shootout route visit:
www.roadbikerides.com/ride/view/shootout_/77
Popularity: 12% [?]
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If Yogi Berra were a cyclist, here’s what he’d say: cycling is 90% mental, and the other half is physical. Yet with enough self-confidence, our minds tend to stay out of the way, and we have the freedom to perform to our potential. The mentally fit cyclist knows how to assess, maintain, and build self-confidence to improve fun and performance on the bike.
By Marvin Zauderer
The building blocks of the mentally fit cyclist’s five core skills, by describing how managing your will to succeed can play an important role in your mental fitness and cycling performance. This month, I explore Self-Confidence, perhaps the most important element of every athlete’s mental fitness.
For the article The Mind of a Mentally Fit Pro, I asked pro cyclist Steven Cozza of Slipstream-Chipotle H3O about mental skills that have been challenging for him. He didn’t miss a beat:
“Confidence. It’s a huge thing in cycling. I was even told by some people,‘consider a career change.’ You can improve so much by believing in yourself. You can say, ‘I should be at the front of the race, I should be top 5.’ You don’t have to be cocky, but if you’re not confident, you don’t stand a chance. You’ve got to believe in yourself.”
Confidence. Some of us seem born with it. Some of us are lucky enough to grow up among family, friends, and mentors who help develop it in us. But for many of us, at least in certain aspects of our lives, it’s an ongoing challenge.
As I noted in the article on Goal-Setting, much of what we’ve learned about self-confidence in sport builds on the work of psychologist Albert Bandura of Stanford University (home of the current national champion road cycling team — defending their title this week!). Bandura defined self-efficacy as your belief in your “capabilities to organize and execute the courses of action required to manage prospective situations.” Roughly translated: Your belief that you can achieve your goals.
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Popularity: 8% [?]
Posted on: July 18th, 2008 By: Tyler Ford In:
Training
