Well, what a lovely morning I had! I started off quite nervous - as Hayley texted me saying she wasn't really up for it as she'd done 110km the day before so I set off on my own to the start of the Club Run, hoping they'd be friendly and they were! As I was on the road looking for the house where we were starting one of the guys asked me if I was looking for the Wheelers and then showed me where I needed to go, lovely!
When I got there, everyone greeted me - I think they knew someone new was coming! I met the guy I'd been emailing in the week and I set off with the B group who were aiming to average 16mph over 40-45miles. We had a nice chat and I got introduced to some of the others as we went along. I sat mostly at the back of the bunch, sometimes in the middle, getting used to the calls and hand signals. Before I had a chance to take my turn on the front the group split with 5 going off ahead and the rest of us playing catch up. This was my first experience of "getting dropped" and it was weird watching the gap grow and grow and knowing that I wouldn't be able to bridge it without completely tiring myself out. Me and one other dropped the other three behind us accidentally and the two of us battled on for the last 20k or so, into the wind which was tough but it was good to be out. I enjoyed doing a route I would have never done otherwise, and each week the Wheelers route starts from a different persons house which throws in some nice variety.
When we got back there was a feast waiting for us. It had been advertised as tea and cake but in reality it was a full spread of party food - incredible. I'd go again just for the post-ride snack!
I had a great experience out with the Wheelers and I'm defiantly going to join the club. Not sure if I'll get out much with them in the coming month or so, as the hockey season is coming to an end and we have lots of Saturday & Sunday fixtures but come the end of March once hockey is over I'll be there every week. I also got told about the local 5mile time trial coming up in the spring which I will look at entering just for a bit of experience. Now I'm off to give my legs a rest - awesome.
Ride Stats:
Distance: 60km (37.3miles)
Time: 02:27
Average Speed: 24.8kph (15.4mph)
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