[Wherewolf]

Is it just me or is the bar being raised a lot here? Previously the A-Ride was the Punisher, the B-Ride was ?? Now the B-Ride is the Punisher.

I'm just sitting here dreaming of summer Tahoe rides and I happened upon the '07 Tahoe Gathering thread. Rather than clutter that up I thought I'd start a new thread with my question.

I'm just curious as to opinions on what constitutes an A, B, C ride? Is it duration, climbing, technical aspects, altitude, speed, attitude, and/or other? The Punisher certainly is a really tough ride. And at "only" 25 miles I find it considerably more difficult than the 40 mile Mt. Rose to Burger/Kingsbury. I would think a B ride might be something like Mt. Rose to Spooner via the Flume.

 

[MrCrash]

I like the rating systems on mtbguru.com and mtb.live555.com. You've probably seen them - each one uses an overall rating, a technical difficulty rating, and an aerobic difficulty rating.

 

[wg]

I'm just curious as to opinions on what constitutes an A, B, C ride? Is it duration, climbing, technical aspects, altitude, speed, attitude, and/or other?

Yes to all items. It is somewhat subjective but if I see an A ride posted, I know that it will probably be longer, more technical, and faster paced than a B/C ride. At prior gatherings/ and random MTBR rides, I watch who's lining up for each ride. Since I may know how some of those characters ride I can place myself accordingly.

 

[grrrah]

While I agree with wherewolfs idea on what our opinions of ride types SHOULD be, it usually ends up being that people pick rides they know/think they can handle, and then depending on the size of the group, they split up in to these groups:

C- think they are slow, but are actually faster than they think.
B- fast, but want to get to the beer before the anyone in the C group.
A- stupid fast.

Occasionally a D group will form (Just wanna have fun, don't care if they arent as fast as C, but can still ride well)

Anyone that is actually slow won't show up for a punisher or coe ride.

 

[Wherewolf]

I don't know

While I agree with wherewolfs idea on what our opinions of ride types SHOULD be...

I don't know, that's why I asked.

Anyone that is actually slow won't show up for a punisher or coe ride.

I did six Punisher rides last summer and I am certainly not fast, nor an A rider

 

[zorg]

I don't know, that's why I asked.

I did six Punisher rides last summer and I am certainly not fast, nor an A rider

From what I've seen and read, you're the energizer bunny of this forum. You just keep going and going and going...

 

[LT4mula]

I need to go for a ride with from someone who wants to give a new guy pointers... I'd like to go to this but not if I'm the ******* who everyone is pissed at for screwing up the rythem.

 

[Plim]

I need to go for a ride with from someone who wants to give a new guy pointers... I'd like to go to this but not if I'm the ******* who everyone is pissed at for screwing up the rythem.

I think a lot of people don't show up for rides because they fear they'll be the slowest and thereby piss off the group. I think that a lot of times that fear is misplaced. Yes, sometimes it is a problem, especially if the speed difference is extreme, but lots of people are fine hanging out and talking while regrouping. I know I don't mind riding with people slower than myself and often do rides where I'm the slowest and the fasties don't mind (although I still feel bad).

If you want to do a ride, but think that maybe holding the group up will be a problem, post or PM a question to the ride leader about it. You may be surprised at how often it'll work out fine. That'll get you riding more, which'll increase your speed, and soon it won't be an issue.

 

[Plim]

Oh, and:

A Ride: I'm dying trying to keep up and probably get left behind anyway, only seeing other riders at regroups.
B Ride: Just about the right speed for a good workout without being too unpleasant.
C Ride: Pure fun. Most riders view of themselves is out of whack with reality - they're better than they give themselves credit for.

Yeah, there are a lot of factors that aren't captured by the A, B, C designations. For example, I like to ride way longer than what's considered a B distance. But I do it a chunk more slowly than the A pace. So rarely do group rides fit my riding style exactly. Doesn't matter. Still fun.

 

[zorg]

Oh, and:

A Ride: I'm dying trying to keep up and probably get left behind anyway, only seeing other riders at regroups.
B Ride: Just about the right speed for a good workout without being too unpleasant.
C Ride: Pure fun. Most riders view of themselves is out of whack with reality - they're better than they give themselves credit for.

Yeah, there are a lot of factors that aren't captured by the A, B, C designations. For example, I like to ride way longer than what's considered a B distance. But I do it a chunk more slowly than the A pace. So rarely do group rides fit my riding style exactly. Doesn't matter. Still fun.

The only thing I'd add is to know how many feet of climbing you're good for. As a slow C rider, I know I'm good for 3K and not much more. Some of the fitter A riders will tackle 5-6K rides without blinking twice. Most of the rides posted have an estimate of what to expect in terms of mileage and climbing, and if not, you can always ask. So, as long as you know what you're capable of, you should easily be able to find a ride that fits.

Despite all the bickering in the last 2 weeks, I've yet to meet an unpleasant MTBR rider on the trails.

BTW, bringing a cold six pack of a micro brew for the "apres-ride" will earn you major karma points.

 

[bigboulder]

Here is how I rate em...

when it comes to Tahoe rides....

D Group....25% Chance of being left "up on the mountain" when it's getting dark
C Group....10% Chance of being left "up on the mountain" when it getting dark
B Group....50% Chance of finishing in time to get some of the post ride beer that the A group has been drinking for about an hour.
A Group..... "hik, best ride ever"

Steve, this is only half joking....when it comes to riding in Tahoe I think things are a bit differnet....To me A,B and C groups are all capable of completing a ride like the Punisher....A group will finish in 5 - 6 hours, B group no more than 6.5 and C group as much as 8+.

D Group are those folks who...regardless of "speed" can not or will not complete a ride of 20miles or more at any elevation.....

Most of the folks who show up for the Tahoe gathering will be either A, B or C riders.

 

[CHUM]

A = what i wanna be
B = what people think i am
C = where i really belong
D = is where i wish i was in the middle of an "A" ride

 

[jrm]

alot of road bike clubs

use a simple alpha numerical denotation based on terrain, lenght & pace.

 

[fred-da-trog]

Someone should use a watt meter/GPS/altimeter/clock formula and calculate this out and design some charts and graphs.

 

[grrrah]

I don't know, that's why I asked.

I did six Punisher rides last summer and I am certainly not fast, nor an A rider

what I meant was that I agree that the Punisher is more than a B ride, and Mt. Rose to Kingsbury is probably a long B, whereas Rose to Spooner may be an easy B.

your not a speedster, but your certainly not as slow as you think. Based on my descriptions, I would but you in the B group because of the mileage and difficulty of the rides you do, but you don't like the beer.

Agree with what Big Boulder described, but he is wrong about the A vs B. The A's are stupid fast because they are fast, and stupid enough to take on an insane amount of mileage (spooner to kingsbury before the punisher), while the B group drinks their beer! (I'm just jealous of them A-holes, I mean A-riders)

 

[Wherewolf]

Beer lust would put me into the A group?

your not a speedster, but your certainly not slow. Based on my descriptions, I would but you in the B group, but you don't like the beer.

So it's the lust for the beer at the finish that makes an A rider?
My German stepfather always had a cold keg on tap and even when young we could have beer whenever we worked hard, which was a lot! But I never could stand the taste and carbonation. I guess I have an A attitude, because I'm stubborn, in a C body. So I that averages out to a B

 

[wg]

A = what i wanna be
B = what people think i am
C = where i really belong
D = is where i wish i was in the middle of an "A" ride

I like this one.

If there's beer at the end of the ride its all good.

 

[cohenfive]

So it's the lust for the beer at the finish that makes an A rider?
My German stepfather always had a cold keg on tap and even when young we could have beer whenever we worked hard, which was a lot! But I never could stand the taste and carbonation. I guess I have an A attitude, because I'm stubborn, in a C body. So I that averages out to a B

i think that sums you up just about perfectly!!!

 

[rodar y rodar]

`Scuse me for butting in here as I`m a little bit off topic. It`s just that I`ve heard folks mention the Punisher quite a few times and I don`t know what it is. I tried a search and a bazillion threads came up but I got tired of reading them before I got to any that explained it. So, what`s the Punisher? While I`m at it, what`s a Coe ride? Have a swell winter!

 

[Wherewolf]

Heavenly Ski area down Toads

So, what`s the Punisher?

Tahoe Rim Trail, Heavenly Ski area down Toads. Many descriptions and photos on my site. Start here: http://arnica.csustan.edu/mtbike/Punisher/
Coe is Henry Coe State Park.