My Simply Cycling Experience….. by Kate Williams

I saw the signs for simply cycling last year and I thought it would be a great way to improve my fitness, to meet new people and to get out & about. I would have an average level of fitness but no great experience of cycling other than very local spins. I had a bike, an old pair of cycling shorts and decided to go along to the first week to check it out.

I was amazed by the number of people who were there and there was a lovely friendly buzz about the group. The team from Ratoath Wheelers were all really encouraging, very generous with their time and super organised. Initially they covered the basics of road safety, bike maintenance, weather conditions, hydration, cycling gear and most importantly how to fix a puncture (which I’m still not sure I could do!).

After that we were on the road for a short cycle to get a feel of how the cycling group operates / behaves while on the road.
There were six Simply Cycling sessions over July & August 2022. Over the Simply Cycling program, experienced cyclists lead out each group, ensuring group safety and building cycle distance from shorter spins in the early weeks to longer spins of about 35km / 45km by the end of the program.

The lovely thing about the beginners group is it goes along at a nice pace, the group is kept together on the road and it allows you to build up your speed, distance and road awareness over time.

But the best bit is the coffee stops and the experienced cyclists know all the best coffee shops for miles around!
Over the program I met some really nice people who had a shared interest and I managed to go from couch to 45km/50km spins with the encouragement of the experienced cyclists.

So, when the program finished I joined Ratoath Wheelers in September 2022, they are such a really nice group of people and have been so welcoming and so friendly. Since then, I’ve done Saturday/Sunday morning cycles, summer evening cycles, winter turbo training and sat drinking nice coffee having nice chats. The great thing is that you can dip in & out as life demands.
I would highly recommend the Simply Cycling program, it’s been brilliant for me. It’s really all about the people and the Ratoath Wheelers are just first class in every way.