Finally located a Victorville-based, bicycle-club.
Thread started by
bentstrider at 03.1.08 - 7:44 pm
And these guys don't look like fun and games at all.
From the sounds and looks of it, they're a typical, spandex-wearing, jersey-sporting set of roadies who are in it, to win it.
Most, if not all sport only road-bikes, and all of their rides take place during the day, and start in the early morning.
I was going to get onto their forums to start discussing rides of MR-caliber, but they're forum-boards are more, lock'n'key than what we got going here.
I'm still waiting for admin-approval!!
As for the night-riding thing, I perused some of the pics in their gallery and found a Dave Nocera, winner of a race from Victorville to Fort Irwin.
A pretty, good cyclist, but all around dickhead.
He was a speech/debate/English teacher I had back in high-school.
He's the sunglasses I circled.
Anywho, I might give these guys a shot, but from the looks of things, it won't be as fun as going along on a WPH run.
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Lets just say I don't like that guy all too much.
Not to mention that this Nocera dude acted like I wasn't the cycling type.
He also said he "doesn't do night-riding."
The rest of them might seem cool enough to catch on though.
We'll see what happens.
If I show up at HWY18 and Apple Valley Rd (richtotheie and samhain rode this one with me a few, months ago) and homeboy isn't there, I'll see how much power my Hummer could dish out.
I get off at 12, so if I skip the gym tonight and just show up there in the morning, I could have a post-ride report, just for you RBI, by tommorrow.
Oh, and they also have this gay, accident-release waiver you have to sign for each ride too.
So, there's another thing to consider about this troupe of "C.O.R.E. elites".
bentstrider03.1.08 - 8:41 pm
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Well I hope they take well to riding with your crazy ass. If not, then they are not worth it. You always have us freaks to ride with.
Joe Borfo03.1.08 - 9:49 pm
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Yeah, buddy!!!
Despite the rantings of Jeff, these guys might actually be slower than Tren Way.
bentstrider03.1.08 - 11:08 pm
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Convincing club riders to come out on an MR ride is tough. While some will readily go, most will take some convincing. It took me over a year to convince my mountain bike group to come out. Beer and night riding is not new to many of them. We've been meeting for night rides and beer every Thursday for over 15 years.
Road clubs riders are a little tougher to convince and for several reasons. The weekend is the only time many have for training, riding the night before can wipe out a weekend of training. Many think that MR riders are all fixie hipsters and the most common remark I get is " I can't go because I don't have a fixie". But once they show up, they'll be back.
I've convinced shop owners to come out and ride. They come back from the rides with a better understanding and soon their shops become fixie friendly. I've convinced hard core elitist racers to come out and many rediscover why they cycle in the first place; it's fun.
The approach that I works best for me is with an attitude that MR is another genre of cycling. Respect and understand their type of cycling and convince them to try something different. If you try to convince people by saying MR is the best type of riding, you've lost a few because you not only challenged them but also minimized what for many is a lifestyle. It's not easy but the rewards are great.
sc_nomad03.2.08 - 7:41 am
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PS
It works the other way too. I've convinced several Ridazz to try road racing, many have tried and been really successful. Cycling is a tough, painful sport, you gotta find something to love to stay in it for a long time. Often I have to rotate through each genre to keep interested
sc_nomad03.2.08 - 7:48 am
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Well, I'm fixing a co-workwer's computer right now, helping him install simple shit.
As far as the ride goes, I had to miss it.
But, I'll go ahead and try it out next weekend, just to get a feel for how these guys operate.
I often thought about road-racing, but I'm more of a commuter when I really think about it.
I'm totally under this impression that aggressive roadies still refer to fixed-gear riders as Hipsters, while average, utility types like myself are seen as a "Fred".
But, I could care nonetheless.
bentstrider03.2.08 - 11:19 am
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Well another thing seems to be that MR is slow and many roadies just aren't into that. Many don't know that you can just cork and catch up if you want to ride fast.
cabhauler03.2.08 - 4:18 pm
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Must cycling be a sport, user "sc_nomad"?
PAM03.2.08 - 5:19 pm
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@cabhauler.
-That's why I never really intended to go into cycling as a form of sport.
I may do enough gym training and ride enough miles every day of the week to do a race once in awhile, but the full-on, training/nutrional requirements are too strict to adhere to.
I'm 170 with mostly lean, muscle mass, but then I often wonder how I'd look if infused a diet-regimen into my weekly, gym-sessions.
bentstrider03.2.08 - 8:44 pm
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@ PAM,
No cycling doesn't always have to be a sport but it is for many. For many on this forum, it is utilitarian; and some ride just to ride. I don't think I have to explain the last two since I'll be preaching to the choir.
To me there are two kinds of people, those who ride and those who don't. My purpose is to convince as many people to ride. What bugs me is cyclists attacking other cyclists. Like I've said so many times before' It does not matter why you ride, ".
I tend to defend roadies in this forum because they get a bad rap. Some of the stereo types are probably true but they still are as passionate as anyone about cycling. I am just trying to explain another perspective that many miss, cycling for a majority of Americans is a sport.
sc_nomad03.2.08 - 10:23 pm
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I'll say one thing for the True Roadies: they know how to ride with other riders. It was refreshing this morning being able to derby around LA without having to worry about some fuckwit swerving into me or hitting his brakes without warning.
PC03.2.08 - 10:42 pm
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Let me clarify further by what I mean by a sport. It does not really mean a formal competition, sometimes the only competition is yourself.
Take mountain biking(MTB) for example. It is for the most part an individual effort. Many MTBer's don't compete in any formal races but train just as hard as those who do. For many the only thing they are trying to beat is their personal best. Whether it is scaling a mountain or clearing a technical section, a certain level of fitness and skill is required. To attain the fitness and skill, one has to train/practice. Training and practicing are basic elements of any sport.
Even on some of the regular MR rides, some level of competition is present. Just last Monday, I heard someone say, on an MR ride, the record time from point A to point B is 32 minutes. And sure enough, there were several people who raced to beat it.
sc_nomad03.2.08 - 10:53 pm
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Ridazz Roulette!