Group Riding in Hot Weather

I rode today with the Suncoast Cycling Club. This was the Trinity Ride, about 52 miles. The weather was hot and muggy with temperatures was in the 90s with high humidity. The wind was dead still when we started but finished blowing slightly out of the west. I think today was the hottest ride I've ever been on. The last few miles were like being in a moving sauna. Suncoast is one of the largest clubs in Florida and I'm thinking one of the best. I'm not really a joiner type of a person but Margie encouraged me for some time to join a local cycling club, I guess thinking that riding solo all the time wouldn't be much fun for me. She's always looking out for me, you know. For me, I think I was more concerned about being able to keep up with the others and didn't want to be embarrassed. At that point I was riding 20 to 30 miles a ride with an occasional longer ride thrown in. I think at some point I decided to try it and went up to the Chainwheel Drive parking lot on US 19 one Saturday morning to see what group riding was all about. What I found was something I really enjoyed. Club riding is a great way to get in more miles and experience riding in a group which is usually at a faster pace than you could do individually. As it turns out, the rides are subdivided into smaller groups based on expected sustained pace. Each person decides which group they want to ride with. There's a training ride for those who want to do intervals, i.e., riding balls out for 5 minutes then slowing to bring the heart rate down for a while, then doing it this over and over for the length of the ride. This ride is for the young and adventurous, with speeds up to 30 mph. I don't go out with this group. Next is the "A" ride. This ride maintains a pace of 24-26 mph. Next is "B-Plus"; they ride at 22-24 mph. "B-tween" is next , the pace is 20-22 mph. "B" is next at 18-20. "B-hind" follows at 16-18. And finally a recreational "C" ride at 16 and below. With about 100-120 riders each Saturday, you usually end up with 15-20 riders in each group. That's a good size for group riding and keeps it much safer than a bigger group would be. I've riden with all the groups from "A" through "B" and today rode with the "B-tween" riders. When Saturday arrives, you judge how you feel and what pace you want to ride at, look at what some of the other riders you have cycled with are doing then go out and ride. When I rode with the "A" riders, the ride was "very intense". When you go out on a group ride you normally take your turn "pulling", that is leading the group at some point. Depending on wind and hill conditions, you might "pull" for a few seconds to two to five minutes before peeling off to the left while the other riders pass you on the right. When you "pull" you are expending 20%-30% more energy than those drafting behind you. When the last rider in the group passes you, you pull in behind and draft, waiting your turn for your next "pull". With the "A" group, I only pulled once and the rest of time just hung on for dear life. I'm sure I was outside my heart range for the entire ride and when I got home I was exhausted and hit the couch for a long nap in the afternoon. I did it but the ride was not a good ride. Today's ride was good. I took a turn pulling three or four times and I was tired but not exhausted. Better yet my saddle sore seems to have vanished. I want to thank Bag Balm and my 148 cm saddle. Maybe the "sauna" weather is helping too.