Cycling clubs

Are people in here members of cycling clubs? I'm looking to vary my riding a bit and I think I could pick up loads of hints and tips at a cycling club, but I'm not sure if I'm good enough for a club. I cycle 2-3 times a week to work (but only in the daylight, I don't like cycling in the dark but may give it another try this winter). I like to go out on a longer ride at weekend (as my weekday evenings are all busy with musical hobbies) and I enter the odd event .... not sportives but Manchester to Blackpool last year (60 miles), Great Manchester Cycle this year (26 miles) and in September I'm doing the Manchester 100 - but have opted for 100K this time and not 100 miles!!

I found a local club to me in the UK which looks ok - North Cheshire Carrions. Seems they do a Saturday morning ride which isn't as tough as their Sunday ones and is for people to learn and improve group cycling skills. And you can go on a couple of rides to see how you fair before deciding whether or not to join.

I don't have a road bike (yet - that's my hope for next summer if the Cyclescheme is still running) - but have a pretty good hybrid which is closer to a road bike as has rigid forks and slimmer tyres (it's the Specialized Vita Elite 2012). Would that be good enough or do you need to be a serious roadie?

Just interested to hear other peoples' views on cycling clubs?

Cheers,
Fran

Replies

TheBigYin

I'm going to assume you mean North Cheshire Clarion, rather than Carrion... I'm sure I'd sooner be identified with a Trumpet Call, than Roadkill :laugh:

The National Clarion Cycling Club ( http://www.clarioncc.org/about.html ) has a bunch of regional Clubs - I used to be a member of the Wakefield one... Calder Clarion

Frannybobs

Haha, yes, oops, North Cheshire Clarions - don't know where I got carrion from - isn't it a type of crow?!!!

TheBigYin

it's a generic word for "dead animals" iirc - hence my "roadkill" comment. :laugh:

If the North Cheshire is anything like the Calder used to be, it's not a bad choice - they had a fairly "mixed bag" of members - from the outright road racing and time-trialling nutters through to people who were mainly there for the "social" and club run side of things.

They used to do some fairly memorable things - I remember the Christmas Morning Club 5 mile TT - fancy dress optional (though encouraged) - half of the people pitched up either hung over or still drunk... This was my one and only Time-Trial ridden on a (borrowed) Tandem - A friend and I rode it in a "Pantomime Horse" costume... God only knows what the car drivers who saw the pantomime horse flying down a 1 in 10 hill on a tandem thought!

Having had a quick look at the website, I'd give the club secretary a quick email and ask to have a chat, or perhaps drop in at one of their meetings - if you're going to be spending quite a bit of time with your fellow club-members, it certainly pays to spend a little time "shopping around" to find a club where the members are friendly and you have something in common with...

KitTheRoadie

Hey Franny!

I have just recently joined a club so I can race in TT's.

They are a really friendly bunch, although I haven't been out for a group ride with them yet they have been very welcoming and helpful. Apparently I will get discount in local bike shops once my membership card comes through too, which can't be bad!

I think it's a good move, I've done quite a few events (charity, audaxes and sportives) and the camaraderie between fellow cyclists is something to be relished.

The other day I was cycling to my mums and I caught up a girl who I suddenly recognised from our by-weekly time trial meet. We chatted for a bit and then went our separate ways when the time came. It is a great way to meet new people and make new friends who have a common interest.

Good luck in your search and happy riding!

TheBigYin

Hey Fran - have you been in touch with any of the club's yet ?

Frannybobs

In the end I decided I need to build up a bit more confidence before doing it - perhaps it's the wrong way round but I thought perhaps at the start of next Spring I'd have a look at contacting a couple then I've got a few months rather than doing it at the end of the summer. Probably daft logic but I'd hate to be the one at the back all the time, so I decided to lose a bit more weight and get a little fitter first ... this time next year I'll be doing TT's. Haha!!! :laugh:

TheBigYin

I'd say that late in the season (usually after the club "hillclimb TT") is one of the best times to join - all the racers are winding down (apart from the cyclo-crossers of course - freaks!) and looking to do something gentle and social on clubruns. Plus, the sunday clubrun is a great motivator to get you out riding in the winter, a bit of company, and someone to sit with in the cake-stop cafe is always welcome.