club ride etiquette?

Hi all,

I just recently joined a club, and have been on one easy Sunday ride and 3 training rides so far. I have a few etiquette questions. The level I'm riding with is the easiest training level, but still full of guys (all guys :rolleyes: ) with ambitions of some sort. Which means somebody, at some point, is going to get dropped or lost. And they're not really good at setting definite rules, so I have to kind of feel my way.

First question: should I know where I'm going? The group so far has been 20-30 riders. We meet about 10 miles from where I live and go on maybe 40 mile rides further out, in an area I do not know my way around. Even if I did know a few roads I've discovered that in a pack I'm too focused on keeping the right position to really notice where I'm going. So far we've split into groups of 4-5 riders to do the intervals or whatever. I've then told my group - please make sure I'm with you, because otherwise I'll get lost. Is this a bit presumptious of me - should I study the route sheet and make sure I can find my own way? I also tell them that I'll always find my way home alright, I carry a cell phone and some cash, and a couple of blinkys.

Second question: how to handle a flat? There's already been a bit of bickering about this, because on last Sunday's ride (I wasn't there) the weather was horrendous with sleet and snow, and 4 people had flats. Apparently about half the group waited, and ran up and down the road to keep warm, while the other half kept moving. To me this sounds sensible, no need for everyone to get hypothermic, but who waits? And how many? Yesterday one guy flatted TWICE while we were warming up, the last guy waited with him, and I turned around to help, figuring a small group would be better. The 3 of us then had to ride like idiots to catch up with the others, and I had to start intervals already exhausted :mad: Shouldn't maybe the last 4 or 5 riders stop, and then create their own group?

Third question: ditto, but getting dropped. If you're really out of shape, or just having a bad day like I was yesterday - should you just say "Sorry, can't keep up" and turn around and go home? I ended up being towed in the final stretch by a friendly guy who didn't feel like going fast either.

Sorry for being long-winded, but I'll still be able to think of more stuff to ask :D I'd be grateful for any input.

Good for you for joining a club and going out on their rides.

If it is a group ride, expectations should be set up front about all of your questions. But here is my take (and I've been leading club rides for a lot of years).

No one gets lost. Especially when they make it clear that they don't know where they are. Stronger riders need to regroup at the top of hills and major turns. Period.

Flats stink, but they happen. At least one other rider should stay so the person has company. I have, at time, stopped the whole group, but that is often impractical. If people do wait, many thanks should be offered, and your ride should continue WITHOUT the expectation that you will catch those who continued.

Re: getting dropped - it is ok to let folks know that you aren't having a good day, and will just do your own thing. Of course, see the first point about knowing where you are ;). I will often slow a group when I am aware of this, or at least try to encourage the person to hang in - putting them in the middle of the pack, and no pulls.

Of course, that's just my $0.02. If you are new, they should definitely be accomodating, especially if you are riding in the appropriate group.

SheFly

I think your best bet is to identify someone friendly in the group and ask him your questions. Every group is different and, even within a given group, you'll find that different people have different attitudes about etiquette. You'll also find--or at least I have--that guys are often more inclined to help a female cyclist than a fellow male cyclist. Chauvenism or chivarly? When I need some help on a windy day, I really don't care! I'm just sure to be profusely thankful for their help.

At my training ride, there are days that they're willing to slow down for someone who's falling off the pack and other days where everybody is just out for themselves. When it's the latter, it can be frustrating, but I've learned to just roll with it. Thankfully, our training course is marked so if you fall off, you can easily find your way home. The same holds true for flats. We usually just ask if they have everything they need and then the pack moves on. If the weather was poor or light was diminishing, I would prefer that at least one person hold up. I've thankfully never flatted, but if there was any doubt in my mind that I wouldn't be able to fix it on my own, I'd ask someone to stay with me. While our ride leaders don't necessarily stay with the slowest riders, they will sweep the course after the ride if someone doesn't come in as expected.

Beyond asking someone in your group for advice, I would definitely do what you can to be and feel prepared. Study the route sheet, carry all that you need to fix a flat, etc., etc., If someone chooses to help you, then great. But if they don't, then you won't need to panic. Regardless of the group's expectations, it's also up to you decide what kind of rider you want to be. I generally like to be the person who offers to stay behind with a slower rider or help someone with a flat. It's good karma in the least.

Finally, I'd note that, at least from my experience, I have different expectations for training rides than I do for more social rides. At training rdies, I expect to be on my own if I can't keep up. At more social rides, we usually all stay together. If someone flats, we stop. If someone starts lagging behind, we slow down. As you ride more and more with these guys, I imagine you'll start to get a feel for their approach to things.

Good luck and have fun!

The advice previous to this has been good.
I suggest you make friends with some of the guys. On group rides that I've been on, if you have a flat or a mechanical, a friend or two generally stop and help.
on a bigger ride, they generally do not wait up, so you are better off staying with your smaller group.
So it helps to be friendly with the other riders. DO get a route sheet in case you get lost, it DOES happen even with the best ride leaders.

Is the club organized to the point where there are club officers and meetings?

It sounds like there needs to be definite rules stated.

What they said :)

I don't think it's presumptuous to be new and say "don't lose me" - but then you should learn the route so you can be independent on training rides, unless you can find compadres who want to hang together.

And with flats... when we're on a beginner's ride then it's a demonstration of how to fix a flat, and we all stick together (usually), or if it's our usual sized group of 6 or 7 and it looks like it's not going to be an ordeal. Otherwise, there's just no point in 30 people standing around or riding around in circles!

LOL I'd get performance anxiety having to fix a flat and having 30 cyclists doing circles around me! I would much rather be left with a select few than an audience. ;)

Thanks everybody!

The ride leader gave me and the other guy props for waiting up with the guy who flatted, on the club forum. I was about to post a reply, but I changed it to an email directly to the ride leader. I suggested that we could split up into smaller groups already at the ride start who would all stop if somebody flatted, as we were bound to have more flats. There'a a lot of crap out there on the roads still, and some people are taking their road bikes out for the first time. Then that group could be a bit more self-sufficient if they didn't catch up.

He agreed, sorta, and had already thought of splitting the group up into max 10 people, but for traffic issues. He found it "very surprising" that this guy had flatted twice - which isn't really that surprising when you know that he didn't find the culprit changing the first flat :rolleyes:

Anyhoo. I'm already making a few friends. That's why I stopped, actually, I've chatted a bit with the guy who flatted and he's really friendly. Well - I'd like to stop for anyone. Good point about what kind of rider do you want to be.

And I AM going to make an effort to get to know my way around! I'll print out a pocketsize map to take with me, and try and study the route beforehand. Most days I won't have trouble keeping up, I think, but I could still easily take a wrong turn.

Thanks for the feedback!

lph, do you use the same route for each training ride? If so, you might ask the ride coordinator if there's any benefit to just marking it with spray paint. As I indicated in my previous post, our training ride routes are marked with "Dan Henrys." In fact, almost all of our club rides, be they training or weekend, are marked. It's a bit labor intenstive but also very helpful. We have maps, too, but the markings are very reliable and we almost always just follow them. The other nice thing about them is that I often use them when I just want to go out for a ride somewhere by myself.

Anyway, if you offer to take the lead on it, they might go for it. When we mark a course, we usually put a marking about 200 to 250 feet from the intersection, another one closer to the intersection and a confirming mark after the intersection. White spray paint usually lasts the longest in my experience. Orande and yellow are easier to see, however.

Kudos to you for joining the group, by the way, and offering suggestions to them about how to run the rides. It sounds like a good group!

K-

lph, It's common here on cub rides, especially rides posted as "easy" whether they are no drop or not for there to be a "sweep". Someone volunteers to bring up the rear so nobody gets lost. Sweeping is not only a good way to train but can be swapped, one person sweeps till the turn around then another.

I suggest that be brought up to your club :)

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Originally Posted by indysteel

just marking it with spray paint.

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I've had non-cycling public folks give me an earful about spray painted Dan Henry's (that I was not involved with painting!) and how rude cyclists are for painting them permanently. They last a LONG time if you don't use the DOT approved paint that wears away. Just something to think about when we're trying to consider the image of cyclists in the community.

Not everyone is a fan of permanent markings on the roads.

I would LOVE a marked route, (so, what are "Dan Henry"s?? :confused: :D ) but as far as I can see it's a different route each time. Or more likely they have 6-8-10 different ones they cycle through. Pun intended. But each route is described ahead of time on the club forum.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by lph

I would LOVE a marked route, (so, what are "Dan Henry"s?? :confused: :D ) but as far as I can see it's a different route each time. Or more likely they have 6-8-10 different ones they cycle through. Pun intended. But each route is described ahead of time on the club forum.

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Dan Henrys are the cyclist markings (named after the guy who first used them)...you'll see them on supported rides near intersections so that cyclists get a bit of advance notice about upcoming turns or are directed to continue straight ahead...so they're on the road surface, and you've no doubt looked down in front of your bike on the curbside and seen others previously. Similar to this:

Wow! Learned something new!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Henry