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Low time riders and group rides

2K views 23 replies 18 participants last post by  waterman 
#1 ·
Well, it would seem that another rider is a victim of peer pressure in a group ride....

http://www.bcsportbikes.com/forum/showthread.php?t=71944

Not sure how much riding Paul has under his leathers but they say it was his first ever group ride. And it's possible that he fell into the trap of not wanting to be left behind while riding with a group of faster riders.

If you are going out on a group ride and you don't know what the prefferred pace speed is I strongly suggest you find out the route, where the lunch and gas breaks will be and write them all down. Then if you find yourself in over your head just fade back, ride your own pace and meet up with the group. At worst you'll only be 10 or 15 minutes behind at lunch. Far better to be late than get your own helicopter ride....

We're all getting tired of reading rider down threads I'm sure. Do YOUR part to make sure we don't need to read more of them. PLEASE!:surrender
 
#3 ·
Please speak up

Thanks Bruce, and I'd like to add:

If you join a group ride and you're unsure or uncomfortable about something, please speak up.

Not just the noobs, I mean everybody. Find out who the less experienced are, go over the do's and don'ts with them. Take the pressure off. Don't leave it up to the person who posted the ride, it's not their responsibility IMHO. Nor is it reasonable to expect an exhaustive lecture before each and every ride.

Just speak up if you feel the need, is all I want to say. A few seconds invested can spare a lot of grief.
 
#4 ·
I just can't understand why some people feel the need to try and keep up with the group. Good Christ, I ride with many of the faster people on this board, and I have never once felt the urge to try and keep up. I can't. Pure and simple.
They have more skill, and more guts.
In all the rides I've done with the aforementioned people, not once have I ever been told to speed the fuck up, and then get proceed to get ridiculed for not keeping up.
Please, people, slow the fuck down. If you lose sight of the lead riders, no big fucking deal.
 
#5 · (Edited)
The original thread dissappeared. But I'm leaving this up to hopefully make a few folks think a bit.

Regardless of the facts of this case it's just all too easy to get sucked in. Remember that when any of you feels the pressure to wick it on in order to try to keep up.

I have my own thoughts about riding that fast on the public roads let alone in a park with deer and stuff let alone on group rides. I won't say any more because I'm not supposed to use language like that.
 
#6 ·
All I would like to add is that I have riden in many groups over the past 16 years with people who were both faster and slower than me, and i have never been looked down upon for coming 10 min late nor have I ever looked down upon a person for being ten min behind me. Sure it is fun to ride fast with people of your own speed but I agree never ever try to push yourself into an uncomfortable zone because of pride or even just to keep up or whatever....Even the fastest guys in the world at one time rode as slow as the slowest guys so there is no shame in riding slow to keep in your comfort zone!I feel really really bad for what happend!
 
#7 ·
You guys speak the truth. I remember riding with a very, very fast group of people one day. We made sure that everyone knew the next stop & everyone waited there. I was the last one to arrive (as usual) and the fastest rider in the group (you know who you are) said to me "you know, no matter how fast we go you are only 5 minutes behind us". After I heard that I thought "why would I go any faster, I can still keep up and be safe."

Anyhow, great advice Bruce, and thanks for posting that up. Unfortunately today there were a few groups that headed out on their own and I don't know if anyone had a chance to talk to the newbies or the riders who were on their first BCSB ride.
 
#8 ·
Squire said:
..... Unfortunately today there were a few groups that headed out on their own and I don't know if anyone had a chance to talk to the newbies or the riders who were on their first BCSB ride.
Exactly why I felt that it would be worth posting this up. It's too late for today and it SHOULD have been common sense but if we can make a few new riders stop and think before they try to keep up perhaps we can avoid another sad incident.
 
#9 ·
SpideRider said:
I just can't understand why some people feel the need to try and keep up with the group. Good Christ, I ride with many of the faster people on this board, and I have never once felt the urge to try and keep up. I can't. Pure and simple.
They have more skill, and more guts.
In all the rides I've done with the aforementioned people, not once have I ever been told to speed the fuck up, and then get proceed to get ridiculed for not keeping up.
Please, people, slow the fuck down. If you lose sight of the lead riders, no big fucking deal.

Well said Jason. On the Mt Baker ride on Saturday you very kindly and VERY SAFELY waved a couple of us by as we climbed to the summit. I am sure it made the ride more enjoyable for all of us (mostly seasoned riders) and added to everyone's safety and enjoyment. I seem to remember there was a sticky somewhere for rules for group rides - maybe it should be resurrected.

BTW, I wasn't on the ride today but I do believe some people left the Chevron before the 'safety chat'... I do not know if the deceased was around for any instructions or not.
 
#11 ·
I just did a ride this weekend with 3 riders MUCH faster than me. Just do your own pace. You'll meet them at the next semi trailer in the twisties or piss break. Not one of the 3 faster riders made it feel like I was being the slow prick. . . even though I was, lol.
 
#13 ·
The problem is that a safety chat implies that there's a ride organizer and that the ride is sort of a semi official event. Many times that's not the case and folks are just expected to know what to do or the route is just casually tossed out for anyone that is interested.

The key is to learn to know your limits and ride well within them. Any time a rider feels like they are running at their own 90% or more ability it's dangerous since that last few % can be eaten up all too easily.

No one on a street ride should ever feel like they are using more than 2/3 to 3/4 of their abilities to deal with the road that they can see.
 
#14 ·
if we're not new riders we all once were...
being a new rider, new to group rides can be kinda of scary thing...
I just can't understand why some people feel the need to try and keep up with the group.
I can understand why some people feel the need...
but it's one of the things that julia always told us...
don't worry about the group's pace... ride at your own pace...
with these powerful machine underneath us, it's easy for us to try to ride beyond our limits... but soon enough you get a "woah, that was not comfortable... i better slow down" if you ever feel that way, should probably should have slown down long before... and you should definitely rethink where you think you pace is with your skill level...

on the giant baker ride last summer, we accidentally joined up with a group that rode faster than our pace... once we realized this, we had to leave that group so we could actually enjoy are ride...

on julia's memorial loop ride last fall, we all divided into groups of different speeds... when the group i was with was at a pace that was too fast for my liking, i let the group know, and changed to the slower/cruiser group, where i could enjoy by ride and not worry about getting a 250 to pass at a pace where it cannot generate enough power... or not worry about loosing a group because theyre pace was avg 10kph faster than what i wanted ride...

in all large group rides, people will undoubted break into groups of certain speeds... if you are a new rider, or even if you are not... make sure you pick the group that matches your pace... and even then..... you ride your own pace... and you will always catch up at the rest stops...

oh, it doesn't hurt to have a buddy in your group...
it's a friendly biker community... make some friends...
if the group is going to fast, perhaps have an easy way to communicate with your group to tell them you're going to pull back? or even better... keep an eye out for the pace of your group members... it never hurts to lower your pace to enjoy your ride with your group members... but that being said... again make sure you find the right paced group... the "fast" group will just go go go.. and won't wait for you...

anyways... that's just my two cents
from my experiences as a new rider in my first 13 months of riding before i stopped to move away

Thanks as always TeeTee...
he always brings a lot of wisdom to this forum....
and it's always great to see riders helping riders
just like julia would.

take care everyone and be safe =)
 
#15 ·
Squire said:
You guys speak the truth. I remember riding with a very, very fast group of people one day. We made sure that everyone knew the next stop & everyone waited there. I was the last one to arrive (as usual) and the fastest rider in the group (you know who you are) said to me "you know, no matter how fast we go you are only 5 minutes behind us". After I heard that I thought "why would I go any faster, I can still keep up and be safe."
Sadly Nancy that ride you mention was on the same stretch of road this rider died on. We all left the Princeton Chevron at the same time and yes, you were only a couple minutes behind us. We did that stretch of road that day at such a pace that Frank and I both lost our license plates to metal fatigue caused by wind. We were blasting. Then you ride up a very short time later at Chevron in hope. It was very clear to us that no matter the pace, the slower rider who is at their own pace, riding their own ride is never far behind. Bladders and gas tanks are too small....


It is so very rare that such a speed mismatch occurs on a ride with ultra slow and ultra fast riders pairing up. We can all smell trouble. When a group is faster than they look and a rider wants to stretch the limits, these gray areas can get crossed and sadly death ensues.


That being said, we felt comfortable leaving you to your own devices.

This whole discussion harkens back to a time on here circa 2003 when some members of this board were worried about leading group rides and liability. Heck one guy on here even had some legal troubles due to another rider mistakenly thinking the lead rider was "in charge".

Ride your own ride is very true here. I say it often. But as a person who leads a lot of rides I will say it for the leaders as well. Put the helmet on, tell the riders all the safe shit you want, then ride YOUR own ride too. You don't need to spend the whole ride checking mirrors for the n00bs or slowbies. We're all consenting adults, some choose to break the law some don't. Some choose to be safe, some don't. Choose your rides wisely. Not just as a new riders but as a seasoned one as well.
 
#16 ·
There has been several instances where I've come across another rider on the road, one whom is more experienced than me. I usually stay back a ways, but try and learn as much from them as possible (riding position, braking, etc..) There comes a point though where you reach the limits of your own abilities and have to accept that.
 
#17 ·
the posted newbie rides that are posted had a couple of thoughts in mind. the first being introducing new riders to the community so they will not be left riding alone. when the questioned was raised "who is Paul? did anyone know him?" that is a sad that not one of us knew him at all.
secondly the group ride. we are very fortunate that we have some really outstanding experienced riders that lend their time to help the new riders. that truly benefits everyone.
the most important thing is building a great community and through that building friendship and having good times to remember for always. so at the end of it all nobody will ever have say "did anyone know who that rider was?"

just remember "you get there when you get there!!!"
 
#18 ·
So far we've mostly been seeing replies here from the more experienced riders.

What about you low timers that have done a larger group day ride or are planning on one soon? What are your thoughts and feelings on all this? Has this thread helped make you stop and consider how you'll approach your riding?
 
#19 ·
This is all too sureal as I easily could have been the topic of such a thread. Since I've gotten back on I've been riding less than 40% because I still have my recent crashes in mind. I've been lucky TWICE and came out without a scratch.

All it takes is ONE time.

Please, if you're a noob like me, or even a seasoned vet, RIDE WITHIN YOUR LIMITS and do go into catch-up mode. Unless you're on a track, there is little to no justification for catching up.

Ride in Peace Paul.
 
#20 ·
I feel like I need to post up a message about 'the group that left the Chevron first'.

Julia's ride attracted an enormous amount of people, not surprising as she was a lady who left a lasting impression on anybody that met her, RIP Julia. This is also true for a lot of new riders who never met her, but through hearing about her legacy and passion for this sport, came out on the ride.

In knowing that there was going to an extremely large amount of riders on this ride, this including alot of new riders, there was a few people who organized a group to leave early from the Chevron in an attempt to not have any new riders 'try to keep up' as the pace was going to be moderate-fast. This being said, there were already numerous experienced riders that were going to be leading the new riders. While this group did miss the safety speech, they were all experienced riders who have done many group rides, and have instructed a few saftey speeches themselves. Upon leaving the Chevron there were as many as 20 bikes (who I guess believed the ride was leaving) took off following this group. Paul (RIP) may/may not have took off following this group in an attempt to not get left behind or catch up, but I wanted to clear this up as to not have any confusion as from the posts it sounds like some irresponsible riders just took off from the gas station for the hell of it.

In the future it should be noted, as it has been in another thread when on an organized ride:

- if you are new
- if this is your first group ride ever
- if you are unsure about the destination/road

Make sure you know who you're riding with, who your leader is, what the pace is, and what the route is. That way there is no taking off with random bikes when they leave, catching up or worrying about being left behind.

When on an unorganized ride make sure you know who is leading and what the pace is, as on the Hot Chicks ride there is always two groups, as there is always new riders, and nobody should feel pressured to keep up, or be worried about getting left behind, and can ride within his/her limits.

This is my fourth group ride in a row where there has been at least one crash, and it is absolutely devastating.

Ride safe everyone.

~Nikki~
 
#21 ·
TeeTee said:
So far we've mostly been seeing replies here from the more experienced riders.

What about you low timers that have done a larger group day ride or are planning on one soon? What are your thoughts and feelings on all this? Has this thread helped make you stop and consider how you'll approach your riding?

Well this was my first full season, I've been on 4-5 group rides (priceton, squamish and mission). Overall they were all pretty good experience never felt like I had to keep up, but what I find as "ride at your own pace" applies only if you know what route the main group was taking and where they are meeting up.

However what was said before is quite true from my experience. Even thought the fast group maybe "blasting" or going at a breakneck pace, I've been no more then 5-10 mins behind going at my own pace. I enjoyed my ride as much as they did. This is riding at it's best IMO.

IMO if a new rider or a rider who is being introduced to a newer riding area, may feel like they have to keep up in order to find their way around. This is were the "keeping up with the group" mentality kicked in a little as a new rider. If a group is just to fast I'll just leave the ride and go it my own pace. No harm no foul but there is no way to inform the group ahead that you've gone at your own pace or left the group.

Riding in a group IMO with some rider with more experience is a great idea. You could see their line and what type of speed they are entering and exit curve. Even though the the experience faster rider may not be infront (of me, in my case) for a long time since they tend to get ahead. It is inspiring and may push a new rider to take the extra step to be a better rider, on the other hand this sometimes borders on testing the limit of the riders ability.

My approach when I started and ended my season was to go at my own pace and to learn, learn and learn from better riders. :2cents
 
#22 · (Edited)
TeeTee said:
So far we've mostly been seeing replies here from the more experienced riders.

What about you low timers that have done a larger group day ride or are planning on one soon? What are your thoughts and feelings on all this? Has this thread helped make you stop and consider how you'll approach your riding?
As for new riders, I was blessed with having Julia as my group leader when I started, and there was no one better to learn from. Which is why it is even more important to make sure you know who you are riding with and what the pace is. When stuck in a situation where the group is going above and beyond your abilities, this happened to me numerous times, wave them by. It's better late than never.....besides when you show up at the destination on your own, you usually get more of a welcome from the mob then with the whole group :flashy
 
#23 ·
mli35 said:
My approach when I started and ended my season was to go at my own pace and to learn, learn and learn from better riders. :2cents
Ditto.....I remember my first few riders riding behind Julia & Cheri (who were riding newb friendly for me) I was like a sponge for learning
 
#24 ·
My experience with (smaller) group rides is that the last rider in the group waits at the turn-off or intersection until the rider behind has made the turn. Maybe this should be explained to new riders at the start of the ride, to reduce the pressure to "keep up".

This strategy is also good for keeping track of everyone, so that if someone doesn't show up in a reasonable time, you can backtrack to find them (hopefully with a flat, not lying in a ditch).

If there are real newbs in the ride, it is a good idea to have an experienced "sweeper" at the back.

My experience yesterday is one I never wanted, and never want again.
 
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