Details & RSVP for the February "All About The SIG & STS" Club Meeting will become avilable soon
Cue Sheets and GPS files for the B-SIG rides will be distributed via email during the week preceding each ride.
Need help with registration? Instructions are here.
Do you want to ...
- Learn how to ride safely in a group?
- Learn good bike-handling skills?
- Improve your strength, speed and stamina?
- Learn how to work as a team to make any ride easier and more enjoyable?
- Get to know some great NYCC routes?
- Meet lots of friendly, enthusiastic cyclists of similar abilities, some of whom will become your best riding buddies?
- Learn the best places to go for a cold beverage after a ride?
If the answer to a lot of these questions is YES, you'll love the B-SIG.
Here’s what previous year’s B SIG participants said:
“I think the SIG is fantastic – dunno how else to put it.”
“Loved the SIG!”
“I loved every minute of it. I had an amazing time and improved a lot. I could tell the difference by week 3. All that I learned will be with me for years to come.”
“The SIG brought me great happiness and new friends.”
“Fantastic program and it was well worth the time commitment.”
“Best thing I’ve done for myself if a while.”
“Phenomenal.”
The B SIG is a 10 week progressive training program in group riding and cycling skills. Our goal is to create safe, competent and confident riders. But by participating in the B SIG, you’ll also improve your conditioning, get exposure to a world of cycling knowledge, explore some of the best riding routes in the tri state area and get high quality instruction in bike maintenance, bike fit, nutrition, stretching, flexibility and first aid. Best of all, you’ll have the opportunity to enjoy the camaraderie of a great group of leaders and fellow SIGgies.
The B SIG is a structured program with a set curriculum. Here's an overview of how it works:
The B-SIG is divided into 3 pace levels: B 16, B 17 and B18.
Note that 16, 17 and 18 refer to sustained cruising speed over flat terrain, not average speed over an entire ride.
Don't worry; we'll place you in the proper group.
When you sign up for the B-SIG you do not choose a specific pace level; you simply sign up for the B SIG. The first week will consist of an indoor orientation session followed by a 6 lap ride around Prospect Park (approximately 18 miles). We’ll time you for this ride and assign you to an appropriate pace level based on your time. Each pace level consists of teams of +/- 12 SIGgies, a team leader and 2 -3 co-leaders. When you're notified of your placement, you'll be told both the pace level and the individual team that you've been assigned to.
These initial groupings work out quite well for about 90% of our participants, but we’ll fine tune the groupings over the next couple of rides. By ride # 3, all of the groups will be pretty well "dialed in."
Once you’re in the proper team, you’ll ride with that same group for the entire program. That way, with everyone riding at approximately the same level, you'll all progress faster. And everyone will be happier!
Each team will actually start riding the first few weeks at a pace a few mph below the “advertised” pace for its level. This is to give everyone time to get comfortable riding with each other, and also because we know that a lot of folks are just waking up from winter hibernation and may not have gotten in a lot of riding prior to the start of the SIG.
What to expect each week.
Each week's ride emphasizes a particular skill, and each of these skills is outlined in the B SIG Riders' Guide, which you’ll find online on the B SIG web page. You'll be asked to read the appropriate section on that skill in the Riders' Guide prior to the ride date. On the morning of the ride itself, we’ll spend the first 10 -15 minutes going over that skill before taking off. The rides are coordinated with the day's lesson, so you'll be practicing what you've learned in class. Also, the skills are designed to be cumulative, each one building on the one before.
Each ride will be broken up with a mid morning pit stop, a lunch stop and possibly one more mid-afternoon pit stop. At the end of the ride, there will be a brief review of the day’s ride with the leaders before breaking up to go home.
The rides get a little longer and a little harder each week. But don't worry -- you'll be getting stronger and more skilled as you go along.
How far do we go?
Our first actual group ride will be week 2 and will be approximately 43 miles with about 2,300 feet of climbing. Each week the rides get a little longer and a little harder. By week 9, most of the groups will be doing a true century -- 100 miles. (If that sounds like a lot, don’t worry. If you stick with the program, you’ll do it!). Week 10 is our gorgeous graduation ride, which takes in beautiful Harriman State Park and Bear Mountain.
How long do the rides take?
If you haven’t had much experience with group rides, you should understand that group rides take longer than rides of similar distance that you do by yourself or with a small group of friends. And SIG rides will take even longer – perhaps a lot longer. Rest stops and lunch stops take longer. Your group may stop for coaching from time to time along the way. And with a larger group, there’s naturally going to be more opportunity for flats, mechanicals and health issues to slow things down. In the early weeks, you might get back to Manhattan as early as 3. But in the later weeks, as the rides get longer, you may not be back till 5 or even later. A good rule of thumb is to stay flexible and not make early evening plans on SIG days.
Attendance
Signing up for the B-SIG means you have made a commitment to spend 10 consecutive Saturdays cycling with us this spring. You will not be permitted to miss more than 2 of the group rides. In addition, you cannot miss more than 1 of the first 2 group rides. However, if a Saturday ride is cancelled due to weather and you can’t make the Sunday make-up, your Sunday absence won’t be
counted against you.
If you do have to miss a ride, we urge you to try to make that ride up before the next one if at all possible. In addition, missing 2 rides in a row may present a challenge to you in being able to keep up with the group when you do return.
Safety, safety, safety
Group riding carries with it the need for enhanced safety rules and skills, and these may be above and beyond what you're used to when you ride alone or with just one or two companions. The New York Cycle Club and the B-SIG are very committed to making our group rides as safe as possible. Therefore, we will emphasize safe cycling habits throughout the program, and safe riding techniques and instruction are an integral part of the curriculum. As a B SIG participant, it will be your obligation to learn these rules and adhere to them on our rides. We take this very seriously. Any rider who, in the opinion of the leaders, is not cooperating with our safety guidelines, or is otherwise creating unsafe conditions for the group, will be asked to leave the program.
Dates
The B-SIG begins on Saturday, March 3rd. Our first meeting will consist of an indoor orientation session that will last about 90 minutes, followed by the timed laps described above. The actual group rides will take place over the next 9 Saturdays, culminating in the graduation ride on May 5th. If a Saturday ride needs to be postponed due to weather, the ride will be made up on Sunday. We schedule one extra week in the SIG calendar just in case we have to miss an entire weekend due to weather. If we don’t miss an entire weekend, the extra week will be reserved for an optional ride, to be chosen by each group and its leaders.
Your Commitment
When you sign up for the B SIG you're making a major commitment. In addition to the commitment to be with us for the full 10 weeks, you are also committing to cooperate with and be respectful of your fellow SIGgies and leaders and to be good ambassadors of the NYCC and of cycling in general. You’ll hear a lot more about this commitment at orientation and in the B SIG materials. One of the most important parts of this commitment, however, is that you're also making a commitment to give back to the club. Towards the end of the B-SIG, the leaders will make suggestions on organizing and leading club rides. While the SIG is free, we expect that each participant will give back to the club, preferably by leading a ride or by volunteering for a club activity after the SIG.
For more details about the B-SIG, email bsig@nycc.org.
It's serious.. but Fun!
The B SIG is a serious program. Each year, dozens of NYCC volunteers spend thousands of hours planning, organizing and leading the program. In return, we expect a serious commitment on your part as well, in terms of preparation, participation, training, effort and, after the program concludes, willingness to "give back." But if you make that commitment, we assure you that you'll be rewarded many times over with a fantastic and fun experience.
Will the B-SIG be challenging?
It sure will!
Will the B-SIG teach me really good cycling skills?
Absolutely!
Will the B-SIG be fun, friendly and rewarding?
You can count on it!
Hope to see you out there!