Sunday Cycle 16th Feb 2014

Sunday Cycle  16th Feb 2014

A very large crowd out in the car park this morning. 

A lot of the discussion before we set off was about the weather and how cold it had been during the week,  with somebody saying "Boys, it was that cowl I had to put on two jerseys, a cap and a huddie”.  "Sure that’s nothing”, was the reply,  "If you lived where I lived,  the only way to keep warm was to be on the turbo”.

Anyway,  with a frosty start, we knew we had to stick to the main roads to keep from skiting.  So,  we split into two groups with the route being straight up to Dungannon,  and the straight home again.

After an hour or so the temperatures rose a little and any signs of frost along the side of the road disappeared,  and it was a lovely day for a ccle.

Well done to all.

I made the comment last week about "… those folks whose skills on the bike have been honed to emphasise  the less financially rewarding aspects of cycling”.

People has asked me  "Whattayamean,  surely going fast and getting there first is what biking is all about”.

Well there are a few other skills associated with the sport that can, with dedication and effort, be perfected  in order to become the complete cyclist,  eg

·         Puncture repair man
The consummate puncture repair man will come to the cycling meeting with tools and enough tubes and tyres, not only for himself, but for any team member who befalls a flat.
He will keep handy a pair of surgical gloves, not just to keep his hands and the inside of his cycling gloves clean,  but also to ensure that no oil or grease fouls the rubber.
He will forsake the handy CO2 canister as this can inject the wrong sort of air too fastly into the recipient inner tube.  Instead he will use the trusty pump,  on which he will have practiced endlessly out in the garage.

·         Whistle blower
Anyone can toot on a whistle. But to do so while riding a bike and you potentially out of breathe and not swallowing the device is a real skill.
Two pea, one pea, or pea-less,  our man can use them all.
The trained whistle blower will quietly, but effectively,  monitor each member of the peloton and administer their time allocations at the head of the group taking into account such things as hill conditions, rider age/experience, wind conditions, etc   (all factors that the unskilled tooter would simply ignore).
When he has reached peak competence, our man will let the whistle do the talking in all circumstances,  giving both encouragement or chastisement with the tone of the toot. You’ll never hear the  impartial whistle blower shout things like "Hi!!, let the brake ave youse boys at the front”, or  "He’s been showing ave all day, let him sit there a while”.

·         Wind checker and Route planner
Knowing what way the wind is blowing can be tricky,  and knowing what way it will be blowing in 3 hours time can be near impossible.  But, with the aid of a high mounted fleg,  and years and years of experience, anyone could potentially soon master this skill.
It is also important to gauge the appetite of the peloton for a ride-out into the wind, or if they want to keep that as their treat for the homeward journey.    Having gauged that appetite,  the wind checker, due to his status within his peer group, will choose the way he wants to go himself.

·         Pushee –  that is,  he/she onto whom a pushing force is exerted.
A few riders who want to improve their lower body strength (and as a bonus, help their balancing skills) will often employ the use of a pushee in order to increase the resistance training.  
Most of us will be happy to just ride up a hill by ourselves,  but these pushee chaps are willing to risk being shoved off-line by inexperienced pushers,  in order to help improve the skills of their colleagues.
NB,  very few people actually master the full act of the pushee, and generally give up after a week or two.  I did see it executed to absolute perfection once on the Glen2Glen cycle run, when the pushee actually stopped pedaling completely in order to give their pusher the full benefit of the incline.

·         Jelly baby supplier
Share the sugar, don’t be trying to slip one out of your pocket when at the back of the peleton.

·         Lead out man  -  someone who cycles up front, maybe for miles, and then generously lets the boys on second or third wheel make the sprint for the 30.  Sometimes these selfless chaps will pretend to make a go for it, whilst ensuring that they are pipped at the post – thus further boosting the ego of the sprint winners.