TO step up my training I had to ride with some proper cyclists. I joined Rhos-on-Sea Cycling Club's social ride, and I have to admit the experience taught me a lot about myself - primarily that I need a new bike...
The club rides every Saturday morning at 9am from the Black Cat roundabout near Glan Conwy, along the valley through Tal y Cafn and Dolgarrog to leafy Betws y Coed, then back through Llanrwst.
Rather than the lung-busting effort the club put in on Sundays, when they go for a much longer, tougher ride, the social on Saturday was the best bet for me. The scenery travelling down the valley is beautiful and you feel much more alive cycling in the breeze on a Saturday morning than lying in bed trying to battle a hangover.
The social ride also involves cake and a coffee at the halfway point, Tan Lan cafe in Betws y Coed, before riding back. Which was nice. Although by this point my legs were already beginning to ache, and on the return journey it wasn't all that "social" being stuck at the back!
Just joking of course, the rest of the lads were fine about taking on a beginner who seemed to drop further and further back with every mile. Thanks especially to Graham Jones, also a fellow member with myself of Colwyn Bay Athletic Club, who hung back to make sure I didn't get lost.
My main problem - apart from the fact that the 36-mile route was three times as far as I've ever cycled before - was that I ride a mountain bike. Everybody else had racers with "slicks" - tyres with barely any grip that speed away on the roads, while my legs were working extra hard slogging away to push a heavier bike.
But we live and learn, and our ride covered the 25km route we'll be doing in the Llanrwst Sprint in September - and then some. At least I know I can do it, even if I am dragging my heels at the back!
