The Beacon Message Board

WEEKLY UPDATE:

So we've been having some discussions about whether we adopt a formal 'Club rides are cancelled' dictat when the temperature forecast is below 3c, and as usual with everything that is discussed, there are pros and cons, and people for and against. Take yesterday for example, the weather forecast looked really cold with potential for ice, so under these terms, formal clubs runs would have been cancelled, and only advisory own-risk rides would have occurred, but although it was cold, there was no ice, lanes were fine and winds were light and club runs went out...so you never know. If we put this to the vote, 25% would be in favour, 25% would be against and 45% couldn't give a monkeys, with 5% oblivious to everything, but if you do have strong views either way, let me know.

Anyway, thanks to Matt Hale and Mick Stanford for leading rides, even though Mick did advise that it was at riders' risk.

It's only 4.5 weeks till the Sunrise/Snowdrop Audax, and I'll be calling for helpers very soon, but it has been good to see a few Beacon riders entering over the weekend. Did you see Pete Norman's appeal on the message board for C-riders to get together and enter and ride together on the SNOWDROP (which leaves at 9am)...here's his call out:

Hey if you want to join a C Ride paced group ride for the Snowdrop Audax on Saturday 22nd February, then enter by signing up for the Audax. Let us know if you want to join me and Alex (so far) for a great day out! TOGETHER we can do this, no one left behind!

...so why not join the group even if it's your first audax, it's 75miles long so doable in a social group with FREE hot food and coffee at the finish.

...and you may have noticed that our new Instagram feed is up and running and should be active throughout the year with cycling-related content. This doesn't replace our message board / Facebook messaging approach, but hopefully adds to it...oh and I repeat the request...is anyone interested in being our Communications Secretary? ...and a good communications secretary would communicate that they would, so communicate away.

Have a good week, and hope to see you out on the road soon.

Phil

It was 1°c at the Black Horse on Sunday morning and I think there were 18 of us

'If we put this to the vote, 25% would be in favour, 25% would be against and 45% couldn't give a monkeys, with 5% oblivious to everything' That's called democracy. There's nothing wrong with it.

It's good to have a discussion on the topic of when to cancel club runs. I can only express a personal view, which is that I don't like dictats in general, and I don't like this proposed dictat in particular. And surely *all* club runs are "at own risk"?

Back in the day we had a list of gritted routes that we frequently rode on the colder days. Anyone for Cobhouse Fisheries via main roads this weekend?

North Worcestershire website have a map of gritted roads, however there was no guarantee they were gritted! https://gis.worcestershire.gov.uk/websi ... g%20Routes

Think that it's down to the discretion of the leader, and their responsibility to check the road/weather conditions before the run starts, canceling the ride on the morning of the ride is no big deal as most will just hope on zwift or go out a little later. As ice on the roads is not ditacted by just the temperature but several other factors, so just looking at the temp and making a decision on whether to ride will give time where it is canceled when you could of gone out.

I've known riders, including myself, come off in the ice, for me black ice (ice disguised as water); when you have zwift, it does not seem worth the risk to be out if a probability of ice - certainly would not want, as a general rule to lead others out on these conditions.

I tend to use 3 degrees overnight as a need to think about whether to call ride off. This comes from my BC Guided Ride training.
If 3 degrees or below in brum then country roads could have ice on them, a Guided Ride would need to be called off in these circumstances due to insurance purposes.
Most clubs also call their rides off at these temperatures for the same reason. I really don't like doing this.
I led the Sunday ride where it was 1 degree at the start. There had been no rain the day before so roads would be fairly dry and much less likely to have any ice.
What I do at these temperatures is call it as a drop in and ride so club ride leader insurance doesn't kick in if anything did happen. There is no official ride leader, we are all responsible for ourselves. Obviously also each other too as any other ride, club or not.