Once upon a time, before the days of Reddit and Zwift, before Strava and Youtube tutorials: cycling was the domain of gatekeepers and clubs and semi-secret societies. For those welcomed into the fold this meant that individual support and mentoring tended to be very strong, and rarely were novices faced with too many choices or confusing narratives. Today’s landscape is exhilirating in terms of the DIY online resources for training, route design, and event discovery - but for many folks it’s all very overwhelming and lacking in context.

What are the best events in the region for novices? How to categories work? Are there practice/inexpensive options? Are there events accessible by public transit or by bike?

In this 45 minute clinic, we’ll discuss amateur bicycle racing (and its variants) within the context of the much broader universe of events (gran fondos, gravel rides, centuries, bike packing, etc) particularly as these worlds are beginning to merge. Should you join a club? How is the scene in Chicago different than other regions? What timeline should you allow yourself for improvement? Do you need a coach? What if you hate numbers? Is aero everything? How do I avoid burnout? Why do I make everything in my life a competition? Is everyone in this sport a jerk?

Space is limited to 9 attendees at once. RSVP to reserve a spot. This is a repeating clinic. There is no fee.