Reminder: Tuesday Chaingang

[Marcus]

A huge turnout which considering the threat of rain was great to see.

We all left CSS together and it wasn't long before the A team disappeared up the road and BP ( who didnt seem hindered after his pie eating contest at the weekend) led the large B team.

Serge and Ant where there to keep the group in order and keep the pace down in the early stages so that no one got dropped. This was great for me as it meant I was able to hang on but maybe not so good for the faster riders.

I was able to hold on until the Shell garage whereupon cramp and loss of energy got the better of me.

Rode through this and rejoined the B team at the turn but unable to gang on due to cramp ( is it best to accept the pain and ride on until it disappears ?)

Got second wind and solo'd to Coulsdon where I saw the group ride past me whilst I was mending a spoke.

Thanks to Serge and Ant. for controlling the pace and keeping the group together.

Hope the weather holds out do that we can have many more of these.

[Phil H]

Maybe cramp is infectious? I'd held back a bit until after the Merstham drag and when it started to get silly on the home straight, Serge went so I jumped on his wheel and we started to go clear at about 30mph (according to the computer) but then cramped - probably annoying the hell out of the people I'd just passed. Sorry guys. Stretched on the pedals and slowed down and it went. Maybe shorts were back idea, but it really wasn't cold.

With a large group, it can get a bit easy towards the back. Is it worth trying to get the T&O running smoothly with quick changes, then building the speed? Just a thought. Or what about splitting into three groups - A, B+ and B?

[Dan_K]

Great ride with the B chain allstars last night. Had no idea who anyone was really so should start learning names!
Started off nice and steady, huge turnout. Maybe a little too big to go out in one group as it was a bit frantic and ragged. Think that we should split into 2 smaller groups if it’s the same next week.
Pace was pretty comfortable until the turn and then it started to stretch a little as we came back over the hills. Did a few big turns on the front and then dropped in on the final drag before the dual carriageway over the top of the Merstham drag. Went to the front again as we hit the carriageway and was keeping a steady 28mph until it all went mental behind me and the attacks started coming. Guessing this was Serge and Ant? Managed to jump on as they came past and hung on back to Coulsdon where I went straight on over the bypass rather than going to the station as I needed to get home. Will make the effort to be a bit more social next week and stop for a chat at the end.
Garmin’s got it down at a 20.3mph average, 20.6mph moving average.
Pretty happy with that!

[Sylv]

Good workout - jelly legs this morning : )

What's group A's distance CSS to CSS? Something not right here, both Peachey and I started and stopped the Garmin at the same place, yet there's a 7km difference in our files

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/51851706
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/51853281

I'd like to think his is right, but somehow I don't think we averaged 41.5km/h ..

Difference seems consistent throughout, his turning point is 24.2km mine 20.7

[Amy]

As already mentioned - bit raggedy for the B team. Didn't realise it was so big Definitely agree with Phil and need to get the rotation in place before hitting the accelerator. The problem was gaps kept opening up and either people were waiting for the rider causing the gap to move back up or couldn't make the move to overtake... Certain riders did keep jumping up and down the group in a somewhat erratic manner which didn't help...

And even if car drivers do idiotic things to and around us - don't do them back - and certainly don't think you're being clever or funny

Other than that I enjoyed the ride - not too many red lights though I caught them after I dropped off near the top of the Merstham drag

Not looking forward to next week - I'm back at work

[Dan_K]

There were quite a few gaps at times.....
I'm new to the whole chain gang thing but what's the correct etiquette? Wait for the person at the front to peel off or jump up to the front if you're feeling strong and the line's not going as fast as you want and leave a gap for others to close?

Should you just wait in line and shout rotate?

[Marcus]

[quote="Dan_K"]There were quite a few gaps at times.....
I'm new to the whole chain gang thing but what's the correct etiquette? Wait for the person at the front to peel off or jump up to the front if you're feeling strong and the line's not going as fast as you want and leave a gap for others to close?

Should you just wait in line and shout rotate?

[Sylv]

Maybe just as well to discuss it on here to have different opinions and time to think about it

I'd reckon about 8 would be the max size? 5 ideal

The idea is not to attack but smoothly come to take turns at the front with a constant hard effort. Well we do push it a bit more on the hills on the way back but not by sprinting off. Think we had a case of that last night near Gatwick which resulted in Matt getting dropped just after he's taken a turn.

For rotation we do tend to use both ways which have goods and bads, with peel off on the DC usually

* peel off on the right side with riders coming through the left: it's hard to get it right, as you shouldn't give 100% before you peel off, as you'll then have to carry on at almost the same speed until you can find your place at the back (the bigger the group the harder), it's good to let that rider know you're the last man as they're coming down to you. If you ease off too much you WILL get dropped, and no one will hear you scream in the night
It seems to be more effective in keeping the speed high and the rotation flowing, as you can easily time your effort at the front. Up to you, anything from 10s to a minute, depends on terrain too
It might not be as safe on narrow busy roads as you can't really see what traffic is coming from behind before peeling off.
It gets everyone to have a workout
Can be a little dangerous if the left side of the road is in bad condition and you're stuck to someone's left.

* come from the back, or from inside the group, to the front. Good as you can push the pace once you see it's starting to go down (or the rider in front signals with their elbow they've had enough).
If coming from last position you can usually glance back at traffic before moving up.
Can be a bit more ragged but I'd say easier for beginners. Also not everyone has to take a turn which might be better for some.
Good to signal beforehand if you're going to move to the front from somewhere not at the back

Sylv
senior chainganger?

[Peachey]

Map my ride says 28.5 miles ish.......

[Mulberry]

Sylv

I would generally suggest you vary the direction you peel off according to the wind. However if it's a long line of 5-6 riders and you're just doing 30+secs on the front, then peeling off (ie not going T&O) then I would suggest the front man always peels off left as he is then protected by the line of riders coming past on the right (traffic side). The peeling off guy must then get to the back ASAP and then line moves slightly to the left again. Otherwise you risk sending the front man out into the busy traffic on the A23 which is not always a good thing.
That is certainly the way I've always done it and deffo if you're peeling off on a DC. Almost all T&O in handicap races move up on the right side and drop back on the left as a default unless the wind is from the left.

I made these points below last year and they still stand:

I would suggest you just ride it like a normal chaingang as I'd tried to encourage before. Basically you ride steady-ish on the way out and hard on the way back.

1 Ride smooooothly thru and off on the way out.
2 Ensure you stay together and let the next man come thru - don't force the pace so they can't get up to the front.
3 If there are only 4 of you then perhaps do longer turns and peel off. If there are 6 you should be able to do a proper chain.
4 Wind up the pace on the way back but still keep it smooth, just harder.
5 NB It's much safer to ride in a group so don't shell people out in the first couple of miles.

By the way I would also reccomend you all have 2 rear lights minimum - one flash & one constant (not pointing up into riders faces though!). And if it's wet, then mudguards help you ride closely together as everyone tends to spread out in the spray without mudguards - you should of course be on winter bikes anyway.


If you want oodles of information / advice on CGs then check out Wyre Forest CRC [url]http://www.wfcrc.org.uk/?p=78[/url]
Lots of other good stuff on there too for coaching and it might give you guys some ideas of what ACC could do too.
Marcus

[Sylv]

[quote="Peachey"]Map my ride says 28.5 miles ish.......

[Del]

Well, that was my first time in the Chain Gang.

I really enjoyed the evening, even though the logistics are a bit odd for me. I live almost at the turn at Horley, so had to drive up to CSS and then back home at the end, otherwise I was going to have to do the whole ride twice. I suppose we could stop at my place for a coffee next time?

Got back with the B group wth a 20.3 mph average on my Garmin. Wondered whether I would keep that up for the whole ride, but felt strong and comfortable in the group.

I'd just echo what the other new guys have said, that I wasn't quite sure what I should be doing, clockwise or anti-clockwise rotation, riding up from the back, attacking or is it ok just to take a rest in the pack if you need it?

Would echo that Ant and Serge (I presume) did a good job of keeping the group together, which was very generous considering that I blinded Ant with my extremely bright Lumicycle lamp before we set off from CSS.

I can confirm that Phil seemed to be free of any pie-eating after effects and that Marcus carried out a quite impressive u-turn to re-join the group at Horley. And apart from a loon at Redhill who decided to tuck into the group, the car drivers were generally ok, although I stil wonder why some people think its hilarious to wind down their windows and shout something ever-so-funny as they pass a cyclist?

[Sylv]

So, is Thursday's CG still on then

[Antloony]

ok couple of things learnt from last night. Kasper is a pain in the rear and some people obviously need to get themselves off down to specsavers pretty sharpish as they couldn't see a bus coming around a roundabout from 20 feet away

Large amount of mixed abilities last night meant it was difficult to get a smooth T&O going plus I don't think Serge and I made it as clear as we could have done as to what was expected and how it was going to work so apologies for that. I did a very long turn on the front last night just before the turn just to make sure everyone was happy with the pace and being as the group stayed together pretty much then it was obviously bang on. Sorry it got a little messy on the way back as I tried to wave people through to start a T&O though it was good to see the stronger riders in the group not afraid to set the pace and sit on the front for perhaps longer than they should. Good that people seemed to enjoy it though, that's the main thing.

It will get better guys, might take another week or so but soon you'll all be pulling together and the speed and smoothness will increase till you've got it down to a fine art. What was great about last night is the enthusiasm everyone brought along with them so well done all who came along.

One suggestion I have is for the regulars who are going to be coming along is that it might be worth while doing a sat CR with just yourselves so once out in the lanes you can practice the T&O in the day light on roads you know really well and those who've done them before teach the newbies. Just an idea guys, not trying to teach you to suck eggs or take over, just trying to help.

Cheers.

[Nick W]

I thoroughly enjoyed the run. A really good workout.

I must confess I was a bit unsure as to what to expect and I think that the mixture in abilities and inexperience made it more difficult for Ant and Serge to marshall ( but many thanks to them for keeping the pace up). That said if the idea is to do your turn on the front, for a greater or lesser period depending upon how strong you are feeling (and so's all get a good workout), and one then drops off (left or right as agreed) then that sounds simple in principle.

I'll definitely be back.