Group Ride Advice

[Andrie]

Hi everyone,

 

I am relative new to the Hub, so apologies for potentially asking old questions

 

I am mid 40s and have set myself a tough (for me) target for the 2011 94.7. I want to complete it in 2h50 or better. Earlier this year I completed the Berg-en-Dale (102 km) in 3h01, so I think I might be able to reach my goal - if I train well for the next few months.

 

I have mostly trained on my own (from Robin Hills, through Roodepoort, Hendrik Potgieter, up Krugersdorp Hill, back with Ontdekkers, a bit through Joburg, then home), but the safety aspect is getting to me. I would like to join a riding group in the Randburg/Linden/Greenside/Parkhurst area for Sunday morning (or Saturday) rides. I would prefer to do around 3 hour rides at 30+ km/hr average speed.

 

Any advice? Should I join a club like Cresta Wheelers, or join in with informal riding groups?

 

Thanks!

 

Andre

[Andyr249]

Hi Andre,

 

To achieve your 94.7 goal I would suggest that you get racing. To get that time you will need to start with a higher bunch.

 

As for riding I am sure we could make a plan. I am in the Bryanston/Fourways area.

What sort of distance are you riding at the moment?

[Andrie]

Andy,

 

I have done several races (as stated). I also did a race in VanderBiljpark (80km) in 2 hr 10 min (average of around 36 km/hr), but there are not so many races during winter close to Jhb (I missed the Benoni race on 16 June as I am still shaking the flu). I have lost a bit of condition due to flu, but should be able to pick it up fairly quickly.

 

I do interval training on my spinning bike two nights a week (1.5 hours). I also do upper body gym two other nights a week. Then on a Sunday I do 80 to 90 km (on my own) including going up Krugersdorp Hill (these days I go via Kloofsicht, so I go up it from the other side - it seems tougher). I average around 29 km/hr on my own over this route.

[Andyr249]

Sounds good. But you need to do races which are 94.7 seeding races.

 

Sounds good. Maybe we can do some weekend rides together.

[Andrie]

OK, I see what you mean. I certainly intend to work up my starting group. It's not so easy for me to do the far away races (Tzaneen, etc) due to other week-end commitments. I target the Dome-to-Dome race on 4 September as an important race. Looking at the previous year's results, it seems I need to get into starting group D or E to enable me to finish at a pace of around 33 km/hr.

 

Just a question. Is it OK to target Racetec timed races, or will other timed races (e.g. Championchip) also help with seeding?

 

Cheers

[Minion]

Racetec races are the only ones that will officially help with your 94.7 seeding (i.e. you will be seeded automatically based on these). If you're prepared to pay a reseeding fee you can, however, use your Championchip results to get them to manually reseed you. You will need to email them once you get your official seeding or else apply for reseeding at the expo. I think I paid R250 for a reseed last year.