Comments on: My First Ride Is Tomorrow – Walnut Valley Here I Come! http://roadtobikeacrosskansas.com/my-first-ride-is-tomorrow-walnut-valley-here-i-come.html busy mom's journey into long distance cycling Sat, 12 May 2012 13:29:52 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Tee http://roadtobikeacrosskansas.com/my-first-ride-is-tomorrow-walnut-valley-here-i-come.html/comment-page-1#comment-85 Tee Sat, 26 Sep 2009 20:20:25 +0000 http://roadtobikeacrosskansas.com/?p=168#comment-85 I'm so excited for you! There is some wonderful advice in the comment above mine. Above all, don't forget to have fun! Make this a memorable experience you'll want to have again and again, which means not pushing too far out of your comfort zone. Push, yes...but no so hard that it becomes something you never want to do again. I'll be thinking good thoughts and sending you good energy. :) I’m so excited for you! There is some wonderful advice in the comment above mine. Above all, don’t forget to have fun! Make this a memorable experience you’ll want to have again and again, which means not pushing too far out of your comfort zone. Push, yes…but no so hard that it becomes something you never want to do again. I’ll be thinking good thoughts and sending you good energy. :)

]]> By: Randy http://roadtobikeacrosskansas.com/my-first-ride-is-tomorrow-walnut-valley-here-i-come.html/comment-page-1#comment-72 Randy Sat, 26 Sep 2009 17:49:22 +0000 http://roadtobikeacrosskansas.com/?p=168#comment-72 Sounds like you're ready! One suggestion: Ride at your own pace. When riding with a group, especially when you haven't done that a lot, it's easy to find yourself riding a lot faster than you're accustomed to. Maybe there's someone you're chatting with who's going at a slightly faster pace and you're trying to hang on. Maybe you look at someone older or heavier than you, and think "Gee, I should be able to keep up with them." Perhaps your competitive instincts kick in, and you just <em>have</em> to keep up for some reason, even though you know it's not a race. Maybe you're ready to ride a good long distance at a higher-than-normal speed, maybe you're not. But if you're not, and you've burned yourself out trying to keep up during the first half of the ride, those last few miles back to the car can be brutal. That's the way it was for me, at least, until I learned to "check my ego at the door". Even now, it's something I remind myself of at the start of a big ride: Don't go out too hard; don't ride too fast; save some for later. You'll do great! Sounds like you’re ready!

One suggestion: Ride at your own pace. When riding with a group, especially when you haven’t done that a lot, it’s easy to find yourself riding a lot faster than you’re accustomed to. Maybe there’s someone you’re chatting with who’s going at a slightly faster pace and you’re trying to hang on. Maybe you look at someone older or heavier than you, and think “Gee, I should be able to keep up with them.” Perhaps your competitive instincts kick in, and you just have to keep up for some reason, even though you know it’s not a race.

Maybe you’re ready to ride a good long distance at a higher-than-normal speed, maybe you’re not. But if you’re not, and you’ve burned yourself out trying to keep up during the first half of the ride, those last few miles back to the car can be brutal.

That’s the way it was for me, at least, until I learned to “check my ego at the door”. Even now, it’s something I remind myself of at the start of a big ride: Don’t go out too hard; don’t ride too fast; save some for later.

You’ll do great!

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