good article on group riding

[AngryScientist]

pretty good article about group riding, and the skills you should learn in a group:

http://carolinacyclingnews.com/2011/09/01/lost-art-of-the-group-ride/

cliff notes:

To ride for months each year in the small ring.
To take your cycling shorts off immediately after a ride.
To start with a humble bike, probably used.
To pull without surging.
To run rotating pace line drills and flick others through.
To form an echelon.
To ride through the top of a climb.
To hold your line in a corner.
To stand up smoothly and not throw your bike back.
To give the person ahead of you on a climb a little more room to stand up.
To respect the yellow line rule.
To point out significant road problems.
To brake less, especially in a pace line.
To follow the wheel in front and not overlap.

[bigflax925]

First, everyone is an expert these days. The internet and a power meter do not replace 50,000 miles of experience, but try telling that to a fit forty year-old, new to cycling, on a $5000 bike...

This is one of the reasons I don't enjoy group riding anymore.

[slowandsteady]

First, everyone is an expert these days. The internet and a power meter do not replace 50,000 miles of experience, but try telling that to a fit forty year-old, new to cycling, on a $5000 bike...

This is one of the reasons I don't enjoy group riding anymore.

Hate to say it but so true!

[benb]

Great article and he outlines the reasons I don't ride in groups very often anymore..

The only one of his points I think he should have clarified more is giving people room to stand up on a climb. the corollary to that is that riders need to learn to how to get in and out of the saddle without breaking their pedal stroke...

But you're not going to teach that very easily when pulling smoothly and keeping the pace steady in a paceline is already a lost art and no one will give you 1 second of consideration unless you can completely hammer the entire group into a quivering mess.

[rustychain]

My observation is that when groups of men gather the average IQ drops in perportion to the numbers involved. If I ride in a group at all (seldom anymore) it's at most 3 or 4 friends I trust. I will never ever do a charity ride again (I'll send them my money but risking my life is not worth it) I have seen the worst judgment, lack of situational awareness and unsafe riding on these rides. Add to the mix motorists frustrations...... No thanks

[lhuerta]

Great sensible article with astute observations of what group riding has become.

Here is my favorite line: "I’ll hear fifteen repeated screams of “HOLE!” for every minor road imperfection. And then no mention of the actual hole."

So true....

Lou

[goonster]

My observation is that when groups of men gather the average IQ drops in perportion to the numbers involved.

“The IQ of a mob is the IQ of its most stupid member divided by the number of mobsters.”

-Terry Pratchett-

[toaster]

Yeah, good article.

On most group rides it would be a wise move to slip way off the back with about seven or nine trusted and experienced riders and not have to race near the front for no reason with the wheelsuckers and wannbes.

[jeo99]

I thought it was a great article. In-fact our club adopted many of the lessons and gave to all the ride leaders to follow. I quit riding in the club groups because the lack of rules. Will see if they actually put the rules into place. My $.02

:beer:

[bluestu]

The only one of his points I think he should have clarified more is giving people room to stand up on a climb. the corollary to that is that riders need to learn to how to get in and out of the saddle without breaking their pedal stroke...

That's covered in the comment "To stand up smoothly and not throw your bike back" - but I agree it's a bad one worth mentioning again in the article.

[thinpin]

To ride for months each year in the small ring.
To take your cycling shorts off immediately after a ride.
To start with a humble bike, probably used.
To pull without surging.
To run rotating pace line drills and flick others through.
To form an echelon.
To ride through the top of a climb.
To hold your line in a corner.
To stand up smoothly and not throw your bike back.
To give the person ahead of you on a climb a little more room to stand up.
To respect the yellow line rule.
To point out significant road problems.
To brake less, especially in a pace line.
To follow the wheel in front and not overlap.
I'd add
to hold your bars correctly when on the tops
to learn to ride almost touching shoulders with the guy beside you
to learn how to look behind without going all over the shop
to learn to take a drink without upsetting the pace and going all over the shop the other way round!

[fourflys]

it's funny how he talks about no one wanting to listen to those more experienced unless they can hammer them into the ground... I mentioned on a separate post a while back that one of my co-workers at the Performance I work part-time at is a former Tour rider and national level coach... I was talking to him the other day and he mentioned he no longer does much coaching because no one wants to listen and do it right, they just want immediate results...