A Thursday Morning Prospect Park Group Ride
Introducing Dawn Patrol, a fun weekly training ride open to all women
Leg Day is a newsletter about the pursuit of joy as a city cyclist. I recently decided I should start cataloging all of the best recurring group rides that take place in the city. If you join or lead one you think I should feature, get in touch by replying to this email or commenting on this post with more details.
Today, we’re highlighting Dawn Patrol, a Thursday morning ride in Prospect Park for anyone who would self-select to race in the women’s category. Riders gather at Grand Army Plaza at 6:45 am to ship out at 7 am. After five to six laps, the ride ends at Winner in the Park. Organized by members of the Continental Ostroy racing team, the training ride is usually ridden at a fast and friendly pace. When the group is large enough, it is split into two so that people who are seeking something spicier can push the effort.
I. Who Are You
To get the full story of the ride, we spoke to four Dawn Patrol regulars. There’s Anna Carlson, 42, based in Windsor Terrace; Franzi Auer, 33, in Gowanus; Hannah Stambaugh, 31, in Crown Heights; Jules Spector, 25, in Park Slope; and Les Burnett, 43, in Bed-Stuy.
How long have you been riding bikes?
Anna: 20 years, intermittently.
Franzi: I’ve been more seriously road biking for about 4 years now, but have always commuted by bike to school and work.
Hannah: About 6 years in triathlon, 2 years of road.
Jules: About a year of road cycling, but have been commuting by bike for a while.
Les: I've ridden my whole life, but it wasn't a lifestyle, priority or financial problem until 2020 (pandemic cyclist). Riding replaced my regular yoga studio and became my greatest joy.
Are you associated with any cycling clubs or teams?
Anna: Continental Ostroy
Franzi: Continental Ostroy
Hannah: Continental Ostroy, Brooklyn Triathlon Club
Jules: Continental Ostroy
Les: After enjoying a couple seasons on Continental Ostroy team (formerly Skratch Labs Ostroy), I'm founding a new, female-owned WTF team that will be focused on giving back to the NYC community alongside riding and racing.
What do you do for work?
Anna: I'm an oncology nurse practitioner, but currently stay home with my two kids. I also assistant coach a kids' tri team (Big City Tri) and serve on the board of Brooklyn Tri Club
Franzi: I'm a neuroscientist.
Hannah: I'm a lawyer working in tenants' rights
Jules: I’m an editor at Phaidon Press
Les: I’m a freelamce creative director and graphic designer, CRCA Board Secretary, Rapha Ride Leader & Clubhouse Assistant.
II. The Ride
In one sentence, what’s the vibe of your ride?
Anna: Women riding bikes for joy!
Franzi: Inclusive and welcoming community.
Hannah: Our ride is flexible, relaxed, colorful (seriously, the kit fashion is amazing), and open to wherever people are at in their cycling journey
Jules: We are open + welcoming to all, while also being a little spicy…
Les: It's not a ride, it's a party! We're here to have a good time, and we just happen to be working out a bit. Our two main advertising taglines are “This ride belongs to you” and “We love that you work out with us.” We put a huge emphasis is on building community and having a positive attitude about supporting each other’s goals.
When is your ride?
Les: Every Thursday, 6:45am. If weather looks dire, we announce an indoor alternative: a Zwift group ride with Zoom video, still connecting as fully as possible. Indoor riding gets so easily demonized, it's actually super fun to chat like this, instead of missing social time altogether. To maximize inclusivity, we allow athletes to join with any workout, so they can hit a treadmill, lift weights or do yoga with us on Zoom, eliminating the financial privilege barrier of having to own a trainer.
What’s the route? Please include start and end locations, as well as total expected distance.
Les: We lap our beloved Prospect Park six times (21 miles), sometimes calling it a lap early. Starting at the top of the loop near Grand Army Plaza and ending at Winner in the Park. We cool down while enjoying coffee and gossip before reluctantly admitting that we should probably get to work. Having more social time afterwards ensures everyone can catch up, regardless of who you lined up with in the double pacelines.
Who is the ride for?
Les: It's for Women in New York City. And we mean All Women: cis women, trans women, plus non-binary people who self-select to race in a women's field. We're honored that we've seen solid participation from non-binary + trans friends as regulars over the past year, because the importance to have safe spaces for all people, not only to feel allowed or accepted, but to actually welcomed, celebrated + needed, cannot be overstated.
On a scale of 1 to 10, how hard is your ride?
Anna: Usually pretty easy (2-3) but we recently started splitting riders into an A group and B group. The A group will be more challenging.
Franzi: We recently changed the format a bit and added an A and B group, Id say B group ride is around 1-3, the A group 3-6. It depends on who shows up and the weather situation.
Hannah: I'd say between 2 and 7. It depends. A lot of this comes down to your own fitness. I think most recreational riders would be at a 2-4 in the B group, and up to 7 or 8 in the A group. Skill and handling is a different question. This ride would be hard to anyone who is not comfortable in a paceline in a crowded park. That said, if you've got the basics down, this is a great ride to practice those skills in a low effort environment.
Jules: Anywhere from a 3 to an 8?
Les: I choose 5 / dead-middle, because there's no way to know what someone's personal fitness journey or setbacks may entail or allow at any point. Some people may struggle or sweat a bit more to hit the minimum of our pace range, others will use it as a soft recovery hour. It won't be a problem for who's in which boat either way. We're fortunate to attract a wide variety of ages, experience levels and interests here. While we predominantly see many athletes from our local race scen—our initial intention was to use this ride to get to know racers on other teams in a non-competitive landscape—we've also gained regulars just from park riders observing how much fun we're having. One of our teammates mentioned they'd been training for awhile specifically to join the ride + keep up with our pace, which is the most earnest thing I've heard in awhile; now, that person's crushing at races + continues to rack up insane weekly mileage. I myself am recovering from my second major injury in six months (depressing!), so this ride will start off as a bit of a challenge once I'm outside again.
Do most people ride clipless or flat pedals?
Jules: Clipless, although not exclusively.
Les: We're in a mostly clipless, road/race bike territory here, but we have people on all types of bikes (road, gravel, mtb, track, time trial, single-speed), and they're all equally welcome.
What else do you think people should know about your ride?
Anna: Cycling is a VERY male dominated sport. It's special -- and rare-- to be in a peloton of all women. Especially such a huge one! And I think we all really savor that during this ride. This ride is also what made me take the leap to try road racing. Part of the reason I initially came out is because I was curious about racing and knew that some of the women in this group race. I asked questions and became less intimidated to try racing after talking to women who were already doing it.
Hannah: I'm really proud of what we've done this year in attracting a real variety of women to our ride - it's been a joy to watch people get comfortable in a peloton, join teams, and try racing for the first time. As for the future, I hope we are able to attract an even more diverse group of riders. I state the obvious when I say there's a whiteness problem in the sport, and I want this ride to be a space that counters that.
Jules: Being able to participate in this ride was a HUGE motivator for me when I began cycling. I saw this peloton in the park when I went out and really wanted to be fast enough to join. It is such an incredible opportunity to be able to ride in such a large group of women and nonbinary people. It was also a major factor in my decision to start racing—I ended up joining the team because of the women I met on this ride. I am glad we are making it more inclusive by adding another pace group; I am so excited to meet new cyclists who join from week-to-week!
Les: This ride is a powerful example of why women are specifically needed in sports, as well as why they deserve equitable measures to be supported there. We've attracted such a dynamic following who genuinely wants to see each other succeed and grow, it's just beautiful. We consistently held it together through winter when open group rides seemed to become a lot less available to the general public, and it's a great sign that not only do regulars return week after week, we always have newcomers joining in to see what it's all about.
Why is it called Dawn Patrol?
Les: We wanted to focus the event branding on celebrating the women who attend it, as much as the people who run it. Originally a military aviation term, we're more like surfers - just beating the crowd to have a good time. These athletes could all still be cozy in bed, but they choose to commute from as far as the Upper West Side or Queens - when it's cold, when it's wet, when it's dark... on a weekday - just to ride with us for an hour at sunrise. We think that's so damn cool.
III. Bonus Round
What are you ordering at the coffee stop?
Anna: Plain old coffee with some half and half
Franzi: Cold brew (black) and coffee cake
Hannah: Basic hot coffee with cream and sugar. Year round.
Jules: Iced latte w oat milk + whatever pastry is vegan
Les: Anything with oat milk (I know I know, moderate glycemic index)
What’s the snack you crave most while riding?
Anna: Chips
Franzi: After a long ride, any type of "real food" … definitely something savory
Hannah: Fritos.
Jules: Peanut butter on a spoon.
Les: During, it's Skratch gummies, maple syrup and peanut butter. After, it's all about warm, melted cheeses: burrito, enchiladas, pizza, mac + cheese.
What’s in your water bottle?
Anna: Gatorade endurance forumla
Franzi: Celsius… I need a lot of caffeine to function. (They do have a powder mix.)
Hannah: Skratch super high carb, NeverSecond high carb, or Gatorade endurance formula
Jules: Hummingbird Fuels or a panic purchase of Gatorade after running out of carb mix midway through a rideI
Les: I typically mix my own 2:1 ratio from bulk products bought online (everytime I finish an 8-lb tub of Carbo Gain, I feel 10 ft tall), but my new obsession is Hummingbird Fuels.
Dawn Patrol happens every Thursday morning in Prospect Park. Riders gather at the Grand Army Plaza entrance at 6:45 am to start doing laps at 7 am. The ride ends at Winner in the Park, after about five to six laps. The lap is open to all riders who would race in a women’s field, explicitly including cis women, trans women, and non-binary riders.
If you join or lead a recurring group ride you think I should feature, get in touch by replying to this email or commenting on this post with more details.
Omg love this I’m 100% going to check them out!!!! Thanks for sharing their story 🤩