Greetings from Penticton! Really big update for everyone this week, as our rides are gathering steam.
You may have seen rides being posted on strava now - I wanted to explain how our rides (and how they are named) will work, going forward. For more detail, you should check out our website, where full details on all rides and how they are run will be posted. More details will also be available on all ride descriptions. Not all rides will be available every week, and will be highly dependent on ride leader availability.
First off, hills will continue to be mixed ability - we encourage you to come to the hills route that fits you and where you prefer to start and finish accordingly. We will continue to have our ride leaders enforce the pace between hills to be inclusive, with regroup points. The hills themselves you may complete at a pace you want. This also applies to interval nights, where it will also be mixed ability, with efforts being individual.
Now, onto the changes!
We are now adopting more general guidelines to all of our group rides, to help you better decide what sort of experience you want that day.
We have decided to give all of our group ride options an A or B naming scheme, with B being shorter and more relaxed in the given pace and distance range, with A being on the higher end of the ranges. This will give you a better opportunity for us to manage group sizes and overall pacing. Be prepared to do the pace and distance it says on the ride. The only exception is if everyone on the ride, including the ride leader agrees to change the pace. The ranges also overlap on purpose, to give your the ability to transition between groups and tailor your expectations. By default, if a ride does not have a A or B designation, the ride is a B.
Women’s Rides - these rides will continue to be a supportive learning environment, for those who want to be a part of this ride. Rides to be 25-33 km/h, with distances from 30 to 90 km.
B will be 25-29 km/h, 30 to 50 km, and as many breaks for bio/snacks and mechanicals as required.
A will be 28-33 kmh, and 50-90 km. No hard cap on breaks, however they will tend to be more focused on refueling and bio breaks, based on leader discretion.
Lite Rides - these rides will continue to be a supportive learning environment, for those who want to be a part of this ride. Rides to be 26-32 km/h, with distances from 50 to 100 km.
B will be 26-29 km/h, 50 to 70 km, and as many breaks for bio/snacks and mechanicals as required.
A will be 28-32 km/h, and 60 to 100km. No hard cap on breaks, however they will tend to be more focused on refueling and bio breaks, based on leader discretion.
Tempo Rides - These rides will continue to be the core of our weekend riding. Rides to be 29-36 km/h, and 70 to 120 km.
B will be 29-33 km/h, 70 to 100 km, with at least 1 gas station stop, and a handful of regrouping points.
A will be 32-36 km/h, and 60 to 120km, with at least 1 gas station stop, and a handful of regrouping points.
Shootout Rides - These rides will be oriented to those people who want to race, want to have a race simulation like ride, or for people who can manage the pace, but have a tight schedule. These will start at 35 km/h, and 80km, with no defined maximum speed. There will be no gas station stops, and 1 or 2 short regroupings for bio needs, based on leader discretion. The group will not be waiting if you lose contact with the group, and if you do, you will need to notify the leader your intention of no longer continuing with the group.
B will be 35-38 km/h, 80 to 110 km. These will generally be steady effort rides.
A will be 38+ km/h, and 90+ km. These will have random intervals and attacks for a true race-like effort!
Photo: Weekend Gravel Ride Photo Credit: Michelle Clymer
Club Updates:
April 29 or May 6 - Our Skill Sessions will start once the roads have been swept and the evenings are warm. We will be putting together a learning plan shortly. Keep your eyes peeled on strava.
May 2 - Season Opener Social - at Plaza Bowling, at 7PM, for $5 you get a drink, shoe rental, snacks, and 3 hours of bowling time. A meal is not included, so please come fed, or Plaza Bowl will accept deliveries for pizza, etc. You can RSVP here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ertc-season-kick-off-tickets-1312011414459 and guests are welcome, but they will have to buy a ticket for $10. The coupon code for a discounted entry is available with the email this is attached to.
May 9 - Bike maintenance 101 happening at the Argyll Velodrome. Check out the link here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/bike-maintenance-101-tickets-1330314680019 The coupon code for a free entry is available with the email this is attached to.
Ride Updates:
Tired legs need a break? Our social ride Wednesdays are starting up, led by Leo. A cruise, friends, and snacks. What else could you wish for? Check it out on strava.
April 25 - First Track Night of the year! Interested in the track or want to see what the T in ERTC is about? Come out! You don’t need a track bike, just a helmet, pedals, and a seat. Feel free to come and just watch as well, and consider hopping on next time! Learn more on strava.
April 25 - Urban Gravel Night - Conflicted about this vs. track? Come to the track night, we will be running another Friday Night Gravel Ride soon enough! If you are interested, check out strava.
Racing Updates:
Learn to Race Seminars put on by the ABA are now posted at https://www.albertabicycle.ab.ca/learn-to-race-calendar - If you have not held a license before and want to race this year, we cover the cost of these seminars. Just shoot me an email if you are interested. These are going to be the cheapest and easiest upgrade points you’ll ever get!
Remember to sign up for your racing license if you are wanting to race this year at https://zone4.ca/register.asp?id=37150
If you are interested in racing and haven’t before we will be arranging an information session soon. If you are interested in racing this season and haven’t held a license before, you quality for our Intro to Racing Program - you can sign up here: https://forms.gle/TViRPiGo1pqd6zEr9
First Race of the Year is Hay City, May 3, down in Calgary. More info here: https://www.albertabicycle.ab.ca/alberta-race-calendar
General Reminders:
Official Rides are posted on strava. If you haven’t requested to join, please do so here: https://www.strava.com/clubs/2845 if you’ve applied and haven’t heard back, e-mail me, but first, make sure your strava name matches your registration name.
Day to day communication and general chatter is via slack. You can join here: https://join.slack.com/t/edmontonroada-7u36621/shared_invite/zt-1t5qvezds-JotWB~e_EJcXrD9NArQarA - this is where you can get real time updates about unofficial rides, talk bikes with club members, and sell your stuff to other club members! If you identify as female and would like to be included in the WoERTC communications and event announcements, please message Heather Curtis on Slack to be added to the private WoERTC channel. Please remember to use the “reply in thread” feature when using it!
This is also a reminder to review your insurance needs for the season if you registered before March 31st (if you registered after, it will have been an option on your registration. No action means that you will be covered for group rides only. You can learn more here: https://www.albertabicycle.ab.ca/insurance-info
Have a cool photo from the last week you want featured? Send it to me and I’ll make it the header photo! Cool way to show off what you’ve been up to!