We got up at 4.15am to be here at 6.30am 
The red middle bit can be twirled around.
So we participated in a 50k bike race last weekend. I don’t particularly like bike races and this one reminded me of all the reasons why I don’t like them:
- Bikes: bikes make everything more complicated. You have to transport it to the race. You have to worry about all the techie stuff. They cost 57 times more than running shoes.
- You get lost: at this race, we were split up in different speed groups and we had race marshalls (also on bikes) who accompanied each group. We were given route maps before the start. Other than that, there were no signs, no directions, nobody posted at corners telling you were to go. After about 5k into the race, some of my group overtook our leading race marshall and pulled off. I followed them in hot pursuit thinking that they knew what they were doing (they didn’t). About 5 minutes after the break-away a state trooper pulled up and yelled through his loud speaker that we need to turn around as we had missed a right turn. Sheepishly, we turned around and joined the rest of the group that was waiting for us. We got some disapproving looks.
- Yelling: “RED LIGHT!!!!” “GREEN LIGHT!!!” “SLOW!!!” “TURN RIGHT!!!!” As if it were not enough that the race marshall yells at the top of his voice, every single rider in the group thinks you might not have heard the latest bulletin. So everyone repeats the message at the top of their voice for the benefit of the rest of the group. I am never prepared for it and it scares me out of my wits every time. Add the state troopers’ sirene at every crossing and you have one big cacophony. I definitely prefer the meditative throng of silent marathon runners.
- You get cold: it was a coolish day for Florida. By the time we were finished, my body was warm but my hands and feet were frozen. Nope, this doesn’t happen often in a running race.
- Not a real workout: we stopped or slowed down for about 25 traffic lights. We slowed down for every corner. After the failed breakaway we didn’t dare a second attempt and stuck behind the race marshall. As a result, the heartrate monitor on my Garmin showed very few orange or red lines after the race. I am not a very good cyclist so I thought maybe that was because I am a slow rider. But it was the same for my husband Kai, who joined the fast group. The next day, I felt as fresh as a daisy, no tired legs at all.
- Flat tires: yep, I got a flat tire at 51k, about 3k from the finishing line (I did more than 50k because of getting lost). A very kind fellow participant stopped and try to fix it for me, but his spare tube burst when he was inflating it. The loud “pop!” sound was hilarious, but it also meant that I would need to walk the rest of the way, which was less funny.
- Not a race: there is no ranking! I am guessing that this is for safety reasons, as they don’t want riders to bolt across red lights and dangerous crossings. Acutally, I am not all that unhappy about a missing ranking – I would have probably been listed at the bottom anyhow with my glorious walking finish.
- Expensive: we paid $60 for this race. No swag at all. No T-Shirt. No free samples. I was a bit disappointed. I am guessing that most of the registration fee went to pay the costs for the 6 state troopers and their sirenes. But we did get a tasty chicken paella at the end and a nice medal which sort of made up for it.
Conclusion: Well, this biking race definitely made me look even more forward to the next running race, which will be the 5k Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving! Can’t wait!
A random bird 
The heat is back after the “cold front”
How about you? Do you enjoy cycling? How do you feel about bike races?
I am linking up with Kookyrunner and Zenaida for Tuesday Topics.
Liebe Catrina, dennoch machst du einen sehr glücklichen Eindruck auf dem tollen Foto von dir !!
Leider kann ich da überhaupt nicht mitreden, da ich zwar sehr gerne Rad fahre, den ganzen Sommer über, aber noch nie an einem Wettbewerb teilgenommen habe, aber deine Argumente sind gut verständlich und das LAUFEN ist sowiesoooooooooooooooo vieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeel schöner, von daher verstehe ich dich voll und ganz, auch dass du dich schon auf deinen nächsten Laufwettbewerb freust.
Ach ja, LAUFEN IST SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO SCHÖN !! Aber mit dem Fahrrad auch, nur für mich kein Wettbewerb.
Liebe Grüße von der kühlen See, heute wieder mal im Regen gelaufen – und gerade kommt die Sonne zurück – 6 Grad, darüber kannst du ja nur schmunzeln ! 😉
Liebe Margitta,
Ah, du läufst schon wieder! Das ist ja ein gutes Zeichen, da wirst du dich von deinem Sturz wieder gut erholt haben.
Brr, laufen im Regen bei 6°…. zum Glück bist du immer richtig angezogen. Aber es macht Spass, wenn man nach Hause kommt und weiss, dass man trotz miesem Wetter draussen war.
Yep, so ein blödes Radrennen muss wirklich nicht sein. Heute schwinge ich mich auf’s Rad für lockere 22k, ganz ohne Aufregung.
Eine schöne Woche!
I’ve never done a bike race, so I can’t compare them to running races, but I’m sorry that your bike race wasn’t the best experience 🙁 I can’t believe that they didn’t provide any swag for the price of the race!
Right?! You got a better deal at your half marathon. I should have joined you instead! 😃
I have done both and agree. I feel like when I do a running race I’m competing with myself. There are a lot less variables in running and you can judge your results much easier. Bike races there are a ton of things that can sway your results. Headwind, tailwind, drafting, flat tires just to name a few. I love the individuality of running.
Yes, exactly! So many unpredictable things outside of your control. Running is just so much more straightforward! 😊👍🏻
I love cycling but as far as races go, I much prefer running. For all the reasons you mentioned!
You are right! Cycling in itself is ok, but races not so much!
Wow, that sounds like 50 degrees of frustration. I have done one duathlon, but that’s it for my bike racing experience. I agree, running races is much more satisfying and low maintenance.
I have never done a duathlon! That sounds like an interesting experience. And yes, running is a much more satisfying experience!
This “race” sounds like a cluster. I’ve only done a handful of triathlons so the bike leg was a little different than what you describe. We had well-defined courses and no red lights/traffic to contend with, but truly the people riding the best bikes (not me) are able to ride the fastest.
I agree with you, I’ve never been able to ride fast enough outside to get my heart rate high enough for a really good workout.
Yes, triathlons are so much better with a real race course! Oh, the fancy bikes! I agree, the guys on these bikes are unbeatable.
If I was more into cycling I guess I would invest in one, but for now I think I’m good!
I definitely prefer running races to cycling for many of the same reasons. I do think cycling is good workout though. I can go for hours on a long ride and I can’t run that far.
Actually, that is a good point. Cycling is easier on the body for longer workouts. In fact, we’re doing a 3 hour cycle ride tomorrow which I would have a hard time doing running (if not in marathon training).
I learned to ride a bike as a kid, and that’s where it ended, too. So no bike races for me.
Coco (got2run4me) is an avid biker, and she does rides where they feed you really well at some of the stops. It almost makes it look worthwhile, LOL!
Haha! Great race food is always a big thing for me! Thanks for pointing me to Coco’s blog, I’ll check it out. 😊👍🏻
Liebe Catrina,
da du ja perfekt deutsch sprichst, bleibe ich mal im deutsch beim Kommentieren. Da ich sowieso den ganze Tag englisch reden und schreiben muss, freue ich mich tatsächlich über Kommunikation in meiner Sprache 🙂
Also ein reines Radrennen habe ich auch noch nie mitgemacht. Im Triathlon schon, aber da geht es ja doch etwas anders zu als das, was du da beschreibst.
Wobei es ja tatsächlich auch weniger ein Rennen war. An Ampeln anhalten und so Scherze verdirbt ja quasi den Renncharakter 😆
Klint eher so, wie diese RTFs bei uns (Radtourenfahrten) wo man sich auch anmeldet, und eine Strecke fährt, aber ohne Zeitnahme und sowas.
Das du 3 km vor dem Ziel einen Platten hast ist natürlich echt ärgerlich. So ein Platten kann schon echt eine Spaßbremse sein.
Aber, du bist jetzt um eine Erfahrung reicher, das ist ja auch schon mal was 🙂
Und warm ist es auch wieder. Zumindest bei euch.
Darum beneide ich dich echt.
Aber bei uns wird ja irgendwann auch wieder Sommer. Da müssen wir jetzt erstmal durch die kalte Jahreszeit durch
Liebe Grüße
Helge
Liebe Helge, ah, es gibt sogar ein Wort dafür: eine Radtourenfahrt! Genau so war es! Und es stimmt, im Triathlon hat man eine richtig abgesperrte Rennstrecke, das ist viel komfortabler.
Der Herbst und Winter können schon brutal sein. Aber es hat auch sein gutes: wenn man nach einem Lauf nach Hause kommt und schön gemütlich in der warmen Stube sitzen kann bei einem heissen Tee… das sind so schöne Genuss-Momente. Das vermisse ich!
Ich wünsche dir viele schöne Laufkilometer und nicht zuviel Schnee und Eis.
Liebe Grüsse
Catrina
I agree! Not a real workout! I sometimes cycle at the gym just to give my knees a rest and I swear the calorie counts I get from the bike are totally fake. I don’t know how i could be burning what it says I am when I feel like I barely did anything. (Now a cycling class I can feel! That’s a workout! But just a program on the bike – no). It’s a conspiracy. I don’t believe it. I refuse.
Haha! Exactly! They just want us to eat all the doughnuts afterwards!
I’ve never done a bike race so I cannot compare to running a race. No swag? No medal? As much as sometimes I don’t really care for the shirt or the medal, at least I know I get something after finishing a race. Thank you for linking up with us!
Thanks for hosting the link, Zenaida!
Hallo Catrina,
für mich gibts noch einen weiteren Punkt: Radfahren ist auch gefährlicher. 🙂 ich laufe lieber als ein Radrennen zu machen. 🙂
Genau, das kommt noch dazu! Und der Helm schützt nicht immer optimal.