BVC-CHAT Flagpole Ride tomorrow

[Jean Marie Linhart]

I was planning on the Flagpole ride tomorrow, if any other B riders
were thinking of showing up.

As a guide for the uninitiated, the Flagpole ride is a training ride.
There are fast riders, who probably average 20+ mph out to Caldwell,
usually dropping members one by one on the trip out there (survival of
the fittest, especially on Angel Tree hill, after the cemetary leading
in to Caldwell, and on city limits sprints).  There are a (few)
slower-than-that (B) riders who do the ride, though generally a
modified route, and often without trying to keep up with the uber-fast
after the gas station at Hwy 50 and Hwy 60.  The B riders either go to
Caldwell (about 55 miles round trip) or Cook's Point (45 miles round
trip) or split up if we can't agree.   I've been on B rides that were
so fast I was unable to keep up after a while (17-20 mph), with 4+
people we often average 16+ mph sharing the work;  I generally average
14-15 mph on my own (no drafting & no faking -- that is my odometer's
reading of my average speed not my estimation based on when I looked
down at the computer and liked what I saw -- I've met numerous people
who tell me they  "average 18 mph" but who ride slower than I
do...yeah, right).

A *compatible* set of B riders will often (but certainly not always)
stick together for the entire trip.

If you know you are not amongst the uber-fast and are looking for some
guidelines as to whether this might be a good ride for you:

1) you should be able to ride the distance or know when *you* need to
turn around and head home (regardless of what anyone else does)

2) you should be self-sufficient on your bike -- carry what you need
and able to fix flats, know the route to get yourself home, call
someone for help, carry some food on you just in case

3) you should have enough inner strength so that if you are dropped or
otherwise separated from the rest of the group you can deal/have a
good time/not have it ruin your day

That's my 2c.  Please correct or disagree if needed -- I could always
use some straightening out.  :)

Jean Marie