I think
Velouria is
right. I rode in a short event ride this past weekend, with maybe
thirty or forty other riders. This was only my second event/group ride,
and the first I did not hold back on. (I played tail-end charlie on the
Iowa City Tweed Ride and held rear guard for some slower riders, having
turned on my tail-lights and blinkies to be nice and visible on that
grey April day).
The ride was an easy 18 miles down and back on one of the local
trails. I started towards the rear of the stream, and just kept pace
and passed other riders when I felt comfortable.
Now I was riding the only bike I have, my Felt Cafe 3. It has a
Shimano Nexus 3 speed internal geared hub, and big 700C tyres. It has a
generic mountain bike stem, and some Wald cruiser handlebars, set up
backwards and high. Much more comfortable to ride than stock. There is
no getting around the fact that I’m sitting bolt upright and not at all
aerodynamic.
The ride out was mostly a long shallow climb, and the people I passed
were all the folks on knobby-tyred mountain and what passed for
‘comfort bikes’ 8 years ago. Then I passed a few others, and some more
riders, a club I guess, pulled off for recreational libations at a park
pavillion. There were no other riders in front of me, and I relaxed just
a little and went at a comfortable pace as my metabolism and aerobics
got situated. About the fastest speed I got on the level with the
headwind, was 21mph, in third gear.
There was a series of stops, as the trail crossed some county roads,
and I waited on some traffic. At this point, a recumbent had pulled up
behind me, and some other bicyclists further back. I just kept on, and
finished the remaining few miles with the recumbent close behind. I
wasn’t pushing, just going swift and smooth and enjoying myself.
The recumbent cyclist and I pulled into the trail-head parking lot,
which was the turn around point - and we were the first two there. We
confirmed to each other that we were both riding in the event (we had
declined to wear the sponsor T-shirt), and as he looks over the Felt he
goes “Wow, that’s a three speed. You were going fast.” At this point
the rest of the cyclists behind us pull in- they all knew each other,
and he announces to all of them “Hey guys, it’s a three speed!” At
which point these six or seven other riders are all going. “Wow, that’s
alot of work, nice biking. How much do you do in a year?” Talk about
ego stroking. Two of the nice lady bikers were both enamored and
weirded out about my
Sackville seat-bag.
“It is like something- It looks like it belongs in a movie!” So
Grant, I guess that is a positive comment.
Everyone snacked and made polite conversation, I fueled up on
gatorade cut with water and baklava from my extra special favourite
local Russian Cafe.
We all rode back together, and I came up in the rear. It was
interesting to watch these riders. They were on average road bikes, or
28” wheeled hybrids. They shifted so much.
One of them remarked again,
how much work I had to be doing with three speeds.
“Not really!” And seriously, I wasn’t. Three speeds. I pick
whichever of the gears lets me keep a fast easy 70-80 rpm cadence, and I
go down the road as fast as that rpm will comfortably let me. If it is a
bit of a climb, of course I’ll end up slower than that, but otherwise
that is how it is.
I stopped for a bit to switch out of my cotton dress shirt and
wicking sport shirt to put on my wool high collar sweater, as it had
started to rain. This was still a bit bracing. (I really need to get a
shell-garment) We all went our specific ways at the end of the ride.
It was fun, and I learned some things.
