| Show 'n Go Information |
| Written by Steve Souers |
|
Start Time Start time will be at noon on Saturday and Sunday.
Please be on time, fully dressed and ready to ride at the designated start time. The noon start time allows enough time for morning auto traffic and the sun to melt any ice from the night before and gets us on our bikes during the warmest hours of the day. If the weather forecast dictates an incoming front or a particularly warm morning and crappy afternoon changes may be made and posted on the Forum Friday morning.
Location
Each months schedule will include a few different start locations to accommodate those who live in different parts of town. There is a preference towards Homestead as it always brings out a good crowd. If you like some of the alternate start locations closer to your home make sure you show up and bring some friends. Future month’s schedules will lean more heavily towards Homestead if attendance at other locations wanes.
Note that the Flaugh Road location is designed to accommodate those in town, coming from the near northside and the Aboite area. The goal is to leave the Fort Financial Credit Union (near St. Francis) at 11:45am head out Leesburg Road and cruise past Suburban Bethlehem Lutheran? Church (Flaugh Rd. & California Rd.) at noon and then head south on Flaugh Road, turning west on Arcola Road and past the Arcola Elementary School about 12:15pm picking up folks that have ridden north from the Aboite area.
Distance and Pace
As far as pace plan on a long steady distance (LSD) ride. Regular summer riders can plan on a pace that would give my wife Cindi a good workout but not so fast as to drop her if she stays well sheltered in the pack. If you have been riding all summer and developed your pack skills you should be able to hide well from the wind and let the studs pull you along. The pace is ultimately determined by the riders each ride.
Often times we will select a route that has a long out and back section so if you are having problems hanging on and need to slow down and recover a bit you can sit up for a few miles as the speed demons head straight out for a few more miles, turn around and head back the same way, sweeping you up on the return and dragging you back home.
On particularly warm days the basement rats that have been riding their nowhere bikes on the gerbil wheels will want to come out and show off their hard work. Those days the pace can pick up a bit more but the good part is there are more riders to hide behind. If you are not sure of the pace or find a warm day be sure to call some friends who ride your pace too and form a second group at a saner pace.
Route
Route choice will be influenced by the wind, weather and where we went the weekend before. We typically try to head out going into the wind to allow for an easier return trip with a tailwind. If you feel more comfortable with some sort of map go to the Related Info section of the main 3RVS page and click on maps. Click on the 3RVS Winter Map and you will have a few 100 miles of roads to choose from. In reality you should not need to look at the map as the group rides together and the old guys know the route of the day or will make it up as they ride along pretending they really knew where they were going the whole time.
Clothing and Gear
The key to winter weather is to dress in layers and absolutely NO COTTON. The shops in town have plenty of cold weather gear and as it gets colder each weekend you can buy one more layer. Ask other riders about what works well and other hints on staying warm. We usually shed a layer at the half way point. It is also good to have a warm hat and extra layer tucked in a pocket in case someone has a flat. If you are cold the first five minutes you are probably dressed just right. There is a clothing chart you can use as a guide on the website. Click here for the clothing guidelines ( pdf ).
Speaking of flats be sure to have one or two good tubes in your bag as patches are hard to apply with cold fingers. Also have your bike in excellent mechanical condition as roadside stops are no fun in the snow. A blinky light on your bike can be nice too as shadows are longer and drivers are not expecting to see cyclist.
Looking forward to some brisk, winter rides this season so be sure to Show N Go! |
Well fall is barely here and it is already cold enough to snow. The Show N Go Rides will run throughout the winter so long as temperature and road conditions permit. Good days bring out a nice crowd while crappy days bring out the die hards. Always check the 3RVS Forum under the Touring section on Friday before noon for any changes or to post any preferences you may have. So long as the temperate is above 28 degrees and the roads are not completely covered with snow and ice there should be a few riders who will Show N Go.
