[C4 Rides] C4 Back To School Update

[Earnhardt, Sean]

I'd apologize in advance for the length of this email, but you guys are probably used to it coming from me by now!  I hope this is informative and you take it as such!  See you on the road...

Tuesday / Thursday Rides:
With daylight getting shorter, look for weekly route changes / options on the Tuesday and Thursday rides in the upcoming weeks (some may even be ride time calls like last night).  I have a VERY tight schedule of changes for the Tuesday night route that we've used for the last 2 years very successfully so look for that again this year.  The Thursday night route is much less easily manipulated.  However, Tyler has some thoughts that may allow us to throw in some "loops" that will allow folks to take some sprints / intervals but allow others to ride slower or recover and then regroup and carry on.  We are still talking about this and trying to solidify plans.  Both rides will continue to start at 6 and will be some sort of "out and back" until the time changes on Sunday, November 6th.  After that, we'll still be riding a Tuesday ride throughout the winter.  If you are new to the group or new to that ride, feel free to ask for details.  The short version is that folks start doing loops around the research center in Kannapolis at about 6:00.  Once folks have time to show up, around 6:30, we take back roads with virtually no traffic, up to 152 and back.  We generally get between 20 and 30 miles even in the winter.  These night rides REQUIRE lighting though on the front and back.  Most folks ride with a rear blinker all the time but here is a link to the high powered front lights that most of us will be sporting between now and next spring on the Tuesday / Thursday rides:  https://www.amazon.com/Rechargeable-Waterproof-Headlight-Augymer-Flashlight/dp/B01CEABKR0/ref=sr_1_2/167-2057270-8168821?ie=UTF8&qid=1471617513&sr=8-2&keywords=Lumen+Bicycle+HeadLight+Flashlight+Headlamp+cree+1200

You can also simply search for "Cree Bike Light" or use this link to see some other options.  For about $25 dollars, most of us have several.  One on the bars and one on the helmet is pretty popular.  http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Lumen+Bicycle+HeadLight+Flashlight+Headlamp+cree+1200&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3ALumen+Bicycle+HeadLight+Flashlight+Headlamp+cree+1200  Also, if your light is still good but your battery is getting week, look for the 6 cell replacement option:  https://www.amazon.com/Replacement-6600mAh-Rechargeable-Battery-Headlamp/dp/B00AAQOV5E/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1471620719&sr=8-2&keywords=cree+battery+pack

Saturday / Sunday:
The Saturday rides will continue as they currently are (unless the early crew decides to fold back into the SAMBO at some point) with the SAMBO starting at 8:00.  Last year it was decided that we would change the ride to start at 10:00 to coincide with the time change.  So, look for the SAMBO to start at 10:00am beginning with the November 12th ride.  Until then, 8:00 will be the plan.

The Sunday Flowe ride will most likely start kicking back into action sometime by mid September.  Several of us are REALLY anxious to get that back going as the route and time frame (2:00 on Sunday) are perfect for several of us.  Keep an eye out for the first time the temperature will have a high below 90 and we'll probably send out a ride notice!  We may look to spruce that ride up a bit by utilizing the "old" route and the current standard route.  As long as we know that no one will be meeting us "on the route" then we may opt for the older route a few times.  Lots of folks like the scenery change even though it starts out by going ALL THE WAY down Miami Church Road.  (same hills as the SAMBO but even a few more!)  And, as is always the case, there's a pretty good group that rides from The Right Gear at about 1:20.  That ends up making that route a round trip of about 50 miles.  If you are interested in an easy warm up and an easy cool down to extend the route about 14 total miles, please count on joining us.

Cold Weather Rides:
When I first started, I didn't even know people rode past September or October and it came as a shock that the club was year round.  Now, granted, when the temperatures drop below freezing for the duration of the ride, we do tend to have less participation.  Having said that, we've had  50+ people on our last two New Years rides!  So, if you want to be prepared for that ride (usually a metric century) then you'll want to keep riding with us even into the cold.  Arm warmers, Knee Warmers, Leg warmers, thick socks, fingered gloves, and a neck gaiter should all be on your shopping list if you don't already have them!  And, if you are curious about what to wear, shoot me a direct message and I'll share my temperature matrix with you.  Basically, it shows what I wear (or carry) in 5 degree increments.  Several folks agree that I'm pretty spot on!

SPECIAL rides:
We did the 200 Miler again.  Awesome.  We tried to do another Mt. Mitchell climb but couldn't get enough takers.  I'd LIKE to do a "fun" ride on either the Va. Creeper or, to keep it closer, the New River Trail.   You could probably do the New River Trail with 25c Gator Skins on a road bike (since several of us raced it on road bikes a few years ago AND WON!)  The Creeper Trail would require a mountain bike simply due to ruts, roots, and such.  I'd really like to schedule this ride to be one of the first 3 weekends in October on either Saturday or Sunday.  My main goal here is fun and comradery.  Matt was thinking of doing it on a Tandem and Tyler was thinking about pulling his kid in a trailer.  So that'll give you an idea of the speed / pace / and distance...  Again, write me back with your input on this (preferred date, are you definitely in, etc) and I'll keep a tally going.

I'd like to do a "dedicated night ride."  Tyler mentioned this a few years ago and we never made it happen.  However, for the 200 Miler we started at 3:00 am.  There was virtually NO traffic and what little traffic we did see slowed waaaaay down because they had no idea what all of the blinking lights were!  Ultimately, I think we all felt VERY safe and seeing wasn't a problem at all.  My idea would be to start at about 7:30pm or 7:45pm from the NCRC research Center, take the back roads up to 152, and then ride out Miller Road, back to Patterson, to Millbridge, and then back in via one of the normal routes.  It would probably take us about 2 hours at a B intensity.  Obviously this would require full lighting as well.  If you are interested, let me know and we'll try to set that up soon.  (Next two weeks?)

Memorial Day Ride!  Monday Sept. 5th.  Who's interested?!?  (I'll try not to get hit by a freakin' big truck and trailer this time...)

If you have any other ride ideas, let us know.

I'll try to put notices and such on the Facebook Group page.  If you aren't a member of the Facebook page (or of the club) then you should be!  It's a great way to communicate and we use it regularly.

Also, look for a club meeting coming up VERY soon.

Thanks,
Sean Earnhardt
VP-Central Carolina Cycling Club