Why I chose to join NCCC

[Jason Stratton]

If you've found this post and are considering joining a cycling club, I would like to explain why I chose NCCC a little more than a year ago.  First, I was looking for a group to ride with so that I would have some motivation to get out and do some exercise.  I had seen some of the other groups around town on my rides and looking at their sites, it seemed like they were a little more geared to racing...let me be clear that at around 270 pounds, racing is not something that is very likely in my near future and training for racing, even, was beyond my max speed.  With that being said, I never felt that a really slow century was beyond my reach and training to get to that point was a sight I set for my future.  So, before ever going on a ride with a group, I emailed NCCC to find out a little bit better whether I could even hang with the group and was invited to attend a Saturday ride.  Leading up to the ride was a test on my nerves as I had never ridden with a group and wasn't sure what to expect.  I really wondered if I would be left in the dust or spend every bit of energy I had just trying to keep up...it was a relief to be greeted as if they really wanted me there and to find out the ride was not intimidating at all and that there is someone riding just about every speed out there.  Route slips detailing every turn are handed out at the start of the ride so getting lost wasn't really a concern, either. 

Another consideration for me as to why NCCC was more interesting to me was the variety of the rides.  Every Saturday is a different route, as opposed to other clubs that ride the same way every week.  I need a little more variety in my life to keep it interesting.  Take a look at the Saturday ride offerings....each week has 3 different variations of a standard ride, or you can go longer if that is what you want to do.  During daylight savings I have really taken advantage of Tuesday evening rides which have a different route nearly every week.  For me, it doesn't get old this way.

If you haven't come out for one of the rides you should do it, just to get a feel for your fit with this group.  Also, if you have come out for a few rides with the group, you really should join.  It is inexpensive when you compare it to the cost of other forms of entertainment.  Don't wait for someone to invite you, just take some initiative and fill out the forms on-line.  It is good for the group.

What would I like to see improved?  I think that the group should take advantage of a site like Facebook (are there any others that do the same thing?) that would allow members to post photos of rides and hopefully encourage a little more active participation.  It is fun to see photos and with cell phones we can add them nearly instantly.  I know I would be happy to take few shots at break points if I had somewhere to post them.  I am also happy to help out in any way that is needed for the club in general.  I really think everyone is doing great with the website right now so please don't take this as a criticism.

If anyone does facebook (I know I am too old for this but it can be kind of nice for sharing info and photos) find me at www.facebook.com/jason.stratton2  I think the only reason I stay with Facebook is for all of the cycling updates that are available.

[karlos]

Great idea regarding making photos a little more instantaneous. I will look into getting a Facebook icon on each page for Facebook users. In the meantime, if you have a photo on your computer and you would like to include it in a Message Board post, I have re-enabled adding photo attachments. In the Website forum section, I have put an example post (nice Cruisers shot) with instructions on what to do - click here to go directly to "Photo attaching to posts re-enabled". This is not as instantaneous as the phone/camera directly to Facebook route, but it is quicker than the full upload to the NCCC Photo Gallery, which also requires me as an intermediary - instructions are here if people have forgotten about this.

Any one else have some fresh ideas to add?

Karl

[karlos]

Jason - It is possible to add Facebook share buttons to our website, but that's not too exciting as I seriously doubt people want to share NCCC website content on their walls. Another possibility is a NCCC Facebook account, but I don't like that as it would put content in two places - our website (Message Board) and Facebook and would lock out NCCC members without a Facebook account. Even for those with Facebook access, I think it would be annoying to have information in 2 different places. I will look for a component that actually integrates in with our site to complement the Message Board - such a component simply may not exist, as a cursory research last evening showed. In the meantime, the Message Board is still the best way to keep everything together and now you can add some photos to posts as well, although they first must be on your computer and the direct link to your phone's camera will not work unless your phone has a way to browse for photos as files stored on the phone - if anyone has a phone with this capability (mine and Jason's doesn't) please reply here.
-Karl

[Dave Bennett]

Hi gang, just wanted to say that it was nice to meet some of you this morning on my first ride with the group, and afterward at the cafe.  Looking forward to many more. 

Dave

(Attached is a picture of me and my lovely wife Joan who was doing her third ride with the Club today)

[Paul Meehl]

Jason,

I just read your post, and since I had just joined the club on-line, sight almsot unseen, 5 minutes earlier, I was happy to see that I appear to have joined exactly the right group. I am relocating from the Twin Cities to Carlsbad in less than a month and figured joining a club like this would motivate me to get off my butt more often and might have the added benefit of introducing my wife and me to some new people in the area. Hope to see some of you on rides later in the summer!

Cheers,
Paul