Group Ride Problem

Doug over at http://mnbicyclecommuter.blogspot.com/ had commented that the Monday group ride and the sponsoring club has really dwindled in participation. With more and more people biking these days, you would think just the opposite would be happening. Here's some of my drivel on some of the possible reasons.

• Could it be the other bike shops are selling a lot more bikes, thus people are more aware of the rides that they "sponsor"?
• Not enough or ineffective promoting of the various rides.
• Older riders have drifted away from the sport, and the newer riders are more interested in the MTB or urban scene than road riding. Newer riders may also be intimidated by group dynamics of riding in a bunch.
• The watering down of the group rides. Every night of the work week seems to have several options, thus without a bigger base of cyclist to draw from, less people per ride.
• The fear of not being able to keep up, though many rides are advertised as "no drop"

I'm sure there is more, but this is what came to mind. For me, it seems SWMBO always has found something more important for us, so I end up riding alone a lot and am hit and miss on the group rides. Any thoughts out there?

EFS Rant

That means "every forth Saturday". Why? Because I have to work every forth Saturday, which is a complete waste of time. Instead of doing something productive (money producing), I'm sitting here twiddling my thumbs. I've cleaned my road bikes chain and pulleys, sprockets and what not, lubed the chain, and shined her up. Burned a couple of bike racing DVD's for friends, and took care of a few quick lube customers. Yee-haw.

I could be out riding, slow and smooth, no climbing, or hard effort but still riding. We'll see after the scope job on Thursday how my summer schedule will go. Which brings me to another point. I can't always ride from home. Any ride from my house involves climbing. Stress on the knees. I have to ride to flatter areas to get in a low stress, recovery paced ride. I guess it could be worse, no riding at all. I've taken to driving halfway to work, then riding the rest of the way. This lets me avoid the Col De Glenwood and the Koppenberg(Arrowhead Road) climbs. At least I'm cutting half of the gas consumption and emissions.

Lastly, who are the bike fashion police. Are there rules on what to wear when commuting? After seeing pictures of yesterdays ride to work gathering at Minnesota Power Plaza, I'm not so sure. All types of bikes and kit showed up. With commuting becoming so popular, maybe a committee should be formed to establish some sort of ground rules for what is appropriate attire for the morning ride. Can I wear my MTB shoes if I ride my road bike, or must I wear the road shoes? Baggy MTB shorts have always been taboo on the road, but spandex shorts are ok on the trail. Seems like a cycling double standard to me that must be addressed. Sounds like a puzzler for the Bike Snob New York to weigh in on....