Zel's back!!

I had told everyone that today's Vita club ride would be a social Cafe and back to Eureka. Surprise surprise things didn't quite go to plan! After I had posted the ride details on Twitter and Facebook, and sent a text to those who don't dabble in social media, Dave (coach ) called me and offered to lead the group, on a new loop to the cafe, that in his words "had a bit of everything". We haven't had the pleasure of Zel for a while, and some of the lads haven't ridden with him before, so I thought it best to keep it as a surprise for the morning!
A lot of the usual riders are away this week, but there were still 13 of us who set off from the shop. Those who know Zel were already saying to me "what about the social easy ride?" before we had got to the end of the road, and those who don't know him were learning fast! We haven't been riding as a disciplined Peloton at weekends, we save that for the week day evening rides, and there were a few dodgy moments when Zel blew his whistle for a change at the front, and people either sprinted off or didn't move at all!! It didn't take long to get into the swing of it though and pretty soon we were spinning along at a good pace.
Once again I forgot to stop my Garmin at the shop, which means my average for the ride is showing 13.6mph, but I can assure you it was a lot faster! When we got to Eureka most of the lads Garmins were showing an average of over 18mph.

Dave (Connor) enjoying a well earned (rather large) drink at Eureka

I enjoyed the efforts we were putting in today, and I can really see a difference in my riding style. It has certainly paid off getting the miles in during the winter, I even nearly managed to beat Ross up a small climb today, If only Zel hadn't shouted an encouraging word to me and alerted Ross of my futile attempt to sneak a wheel past him! I did manage to get a PB up another climb today, Boathouse Road from Parkgate is one of my least favourite hills, and I managed to drop 30 seconds and increase my average speed by over 2mph. (It must be the Giro Shoes!)

I think the new lads in the Club who haven't ridden with Zel before enjoyed the ride too, Especially Dave (Badders) who seemed to attract more than his fair share of attention from Zel, and the words "Come on Dave" seemed to ring out loud across the Wirral lanes.

With the weather back to it's normal dampness, the bike will need a clean, I much prefer the warm dry weather! The bike almost looks like it is paying homage to the brave riders taking part in the "Hell of the North" Paris to Roubaix race tomorrow. I suggested in the shop when we got back that maybe we should ride the Paris- Roubaix sportive next year. I cant write here what most of the lads said, but it wasn't that positive!

Today's inaccurate ride details: http://app.strava.com/rides/6331944