In my previous post I described that I’ve Joined a rec cycling club for the first time. At the kick-off welcome meeting, club leaders gave us helpful tips and explained that the annual membership gives riders access to club routes in the app Ride with GPS.

I dutifully followed advice to get my bike tuned up early in the season at a friendly bike place. Then I bought cycling gear. So, at the first sunny day I had no excuse but to try it all out.

From the app I chose the shortest all- pavement route: 26.5 km and a mere 95 m of elevation. It seemed like a manageable trip for me as a novice cycler before my first club ride.

What I Did Not Do Right

• Ignoring the repeated reminders from the club leader during the kick off meeting, I failed to bring energy snacks. (I imagined the trip would be so short I would be fine without.)
• Thinking it would be too chilly, I did not wear my padded bike shorts (or consider the even smarter option of wearing bike shorts under pants).
• Because I bought a repair kit, I removed loose Allen keys from my handle bar bag. Then I inexplicably left the bike repair kit at home, so I had no way to adjust my seat height.
• I did not think to review the route to note where there may be road closures (so of course I encountered was one that totally blocked the planned route).
• Not anticipating how quickly the GPS app would deplete my phone battery, I didn’t bother to charge my phone (so ran out of power before the ride end).

What worked out okay

Thanks to the tune up, the bike was in great shape to ride. I had gear: a new phone holder for navigation, a water bottle for hydration, and a streamed audio book to keep me from grumping about how darn windy it was (until the lphone died, of course). Also, I was nervous about road cycling, but there wasn’t much traffic and the route had a shoulder for much of the way.

When I got back to my start point I noticed a chip wagon had opened, so I hungrily ate delicious chips and vinegar while I recharged my phone in the car. (No picture available: chips devoured too quickly).

Lessons for next time

While I am sure that many of these things can happen to seasoned riders, my rookie mistakes made the trip feel longer than it was. My first lesson from this first time out is to prepare for every cycling ride like it will be a long one, even when it might not appear to be. Next time I will more carefully mind my supplies, especially when I go out on my own: it’s better to carry what I didn’t need than to need what I didn’t carry.

My second lesson is that I need snack suggestions from the FIFI community. What snacks do you prefer to take with you when you are out exercising?