Hi All

Does anyone know of any road cycling clubs in the Zurich area where the members may speak English. Just arrived in Zurich and living in Wetzikon where English speakers are not common.

Also interested in cycling with anyone who wants to hook up for a day or a weekend to explore different cycling routes in the area.

Finally a competition to find who does the longest cycling commute I do Wetzikon to Wallisellen about 12 miles. Done it just a few times so far and it is a long way but great for fitness.

Best wishes

DJC

Can't beat you on single journey distance, my commute (Binz to near the airport) is about 7 miles but I do it both ways every day which is 70miles a week. Don't know about english speaking clubs but I'd be interested as well.

I don't road bike, but if either of you guys are interested in going mountainbiking on Pfanensteil of an evening then let me know.

Hello all

I do Lausanne to Vevey every day all year my lowest tempture was -8

its 38km each day thats 23.6 miles, and works out to 190km a week or 118 miles a week, i have been doing it since july last year, I average only 28km/h in the winter and i was doing about 32km/hr in the summer, its a commuter bike rather than a road bike as i have to carry things but its a lot of fun

Sam

Not a daily commute but I regularly do Goldbrunnenplatz - Bahnhof Oerlikon Ost on the bicycle which takes some 25 minutes, depending on direction, traffic and traffic lights. The joys of cycling in the city.

I'm not sure if the English skills in the different cycling clubs vary so much – What makes you think the one closest to you only has members who don't understand English? It's at least worth a try contacting them.

32kmph is a pretty decent average on any kind of bike. Either that or I am very slow, probably the case, as I usually average below this even on a road bike. Probably why I stay away from group rides unless it involves going uphill.

Kudos to Sam for leading the contest so far (and for riding every day through rain, freezing temperatures, etc, despite the train offering an easy, lazy alternative). As for cycling clubs in Zurich, check out this thread: Competitive Cycling in Zurich.

But you should all know that its Thanks to ChrisW that i took up riding last summer, so really its thanks to him

and he still beats my time to vevey and back

Thanks all for these replies. Also to ChrisW for the link and your long post ages ago on cycling in switzerland which was very useful. I will try my local Wetzikon club to see what they are like (I think there is a pro team based there also). But I am keen to see how many folk on the ESF would be interested in a group ride on a weekend all day Saturday or across a weekend. I know there are some serious amateur road bikers around and I am just getting into road biking after years of using a hybrid for a London commute. Would be great to do mountain biking also but havent got one at the moment unless I put mountain bike tires on my hybrid but that has no decent suspension. Perhaps I should post a group road bike ride as a social event in the calendar?

I will be doing the 176km ride around Lake Geneva again this year you should come on over to the french side for that, its a really good ride last year we had 7 of us doing it

Sam

I would be interested to cycle on the weekends. Haven't been cycling here yet. Used to do at least 12ish miles/day commute in the rain/snow & occasional sunshine in Seattle. Managed a few triathlons and some interest in the track, but no road racing yet.

Post a ride with mileage, route and approximate speed? It would be fun.

Hi

I commute from Thalwil to Opfikon - with deviations (as I don't really know my way around) it's about a 23 mile round trip. This is on a hybrid bike - Specialized Sirrus. I haven't donw a full 5 days of it yet but I am to next week - and the weather forcast for Zurich looks good for next week too.

If it gets to -8 or really pees it down I will get the train I ain't proud.

Good luck with the club, family commitments mean I can only really use the bike for commuting.

Lake Zurich (go clockwise), 2:41, ca. 67 km; velocity: post-Christmas (25 km/h)

I have a pretty average bicycle... I haven't time to re-do this before the end of March though.

Sounds great! I was thinking of doing the same kind of thing this spring/summer in the Zürich area too... Maybe also during a weeknight after work, if we can find a route that doesn't intersect with too many drivers commuting home.

You can always post a ride with mileage, route, and approximate speed as Johanna suggested and see how many people show up... I'll be there if I can, at least as long as it's not around Lake Zürich (too flat and too much traffic for my pref).

This will be fun!

hello :-)

Are any of you guys/ladies near Zug?

I have just got back into cycling and manage to do between 80 and 120km on Saturdays and again on Sundays. I have not raced for about 10 years, but now that I am back in Europe I decided to get back into things.

I have my eyes set on the Marmotte cyclosportive in July. Training has been going ok these days and so I think I will also try to do two other cyclosportives in Italy (maybe the GF Pinarello and the Fabio Casartelli)... Question is whether there is anybody out there with whom I can train?

Whilst the scenery here is great, I find it terribly boring to be cycling on my own all the time... Also when I pass local cyclists (or more usually when they pass me), they dont seem very talkative. I've been on the back of "trains" of cyclists going around the Zuger lake where nobody talks to anybody... and nobody "goes through".... Its as if the lead guy is just towing everybody around the route...

Anyway, I'd love to get in touch with fellow roadies, in Zug, Zurich or anywhere...

Also, plan on going to some big pro races this year if anyone wants to plan a trip -- I am also a freelance photographer and I also help with rabobank rider Thomas Dekker's official website.

Ed.

I am biased but the Zurcher Oberland is a great place to do a weekend ride and has a good mix of flat and very steep hills with great views if you are heading south.

The trickiest thing about organising a group ride is gauging how fit/fast everyone is as I dont want to slow down people who can keep up with Landis on an inhaler... (that doesnt mean Im slow though )

However that shouldnt stop us - I will post something in the social calender for early March along with suggested route. Ed I suspect you fall into the too fast for me category but we can find out. Also really interested in trips to the Pro Tour or one of the big three - saw the Tour de France when it came through London for last years Prologue.

Took the first spectacular crash of my cycling career last week with muchos road rash caused by a raised brick barrier alongside a cycle lane that I drifted onto.

The US based cycling club I know has different levels of rides based on average miles per hour - Group A averages 20 mph+ and Group B averages 18 - 20mph. Though, doubtful that we are large enough for that as example- though that is generally a flat road average.

I would like to do Group rides as well but again don't want to slow anyone down. I love going uphill compared to flat rides but at 84 kilos I am not really a natural climber.

Zurich Oberalp is where I ride 4 to days out of 7 in the summer. Weekends I try to get into the actual mountains. My main training rides last summer for the Maraton Dolomites and the L Etappe consisted of trips up the Pfannenstiel, rinse, repeat, rinse, repeat, etc.

Hey DJC

I took a bad tumble myself two weeks ago on what must have been the worst day on the bike I had since I was 11.... 3 punctures and a snapped chain.. The snapped chain caused the fall but I was lucky I didnt damage too much of myself. The chain snap happened as I was in Pfaffikon, so I could at least get the train back home to Zug... otherwise I was screwed...

As for group rides, I agree that the respective fitness of the riders will determine how good the group is... but to be honest groups can always go much quicker than a person on their own. i dont think I can ride that fast, but I am trying... and to be homest coasting along with a group at 30kmph and having a chat is the best fun to me - it makes the time and the miles go faster and fitness can be incrementally improved...

Even though I am aiming for the marmotte, I am not a climber by any stretch of the imagination. I am about 82kg, 181cm and the hills tear up my lungs... but I'm getting better :-)


Ed.

I am keen to do a ride with anyone interested perhaps in the first or second week in March. Can anyone suggest a route. A ride around the Griefensee lake and some of the hills south of there is one idea. Just wondering if someone already has a route that they like.

I would be keen too - although I have a baby due 2nd week os March so won't be too available. As for fitness I am probably average _ I commute from Thalwil to Opfikon which includes some steep hills but have never been on the mountains.

I guess that after a ride or two we will know what the group is - and if you pencil this one as a training ride for the unfit ones and a recovery ride for the very fit ones it wont matter too much

Hopefully meet some of you in March