Reorganizing a bike club

[bikerHen]

I recently joined the board of the local womens bike club. This club has been in a slow membership decline for the last few years. You all know the story, tired board members, disorganized rides, snobbish behavior, all the usual reasons. New riders come one or twice and are never seen again. There are a few of us trying to reorganize and get the club going. We are having a board meeting in a couple of week that I would like to come prepared with lots of postive ideas. The number one priority is getting women to give us another try. And, we MUST be prepared to show them a positive, fun time.

This is how the monthly ride goes. There are maybe 10 -15 riders. So, everyone goes together. Very bad! The fast ones are off like a shot the middle group tries, but can't keep up and the slow ones just feel bad. I usual ride sweep to keep track of the slow riders but the middle group gets well, lost in the middle. The slow group reels them in one by one till were all together. Then I lead them all back. The fast group does their own thing and more often than not wizz by us slow pokes on the way back.

How do you get riders into the proper group? If we say we have a fast and slow group, no one wants to be in the "slow" group, so riders end up being dropped. I've tried to address this issue but the older board members just say we can't baby sit grown women. But isn't it the job of the club to address this type of problem? There are truly a very few of us working to make this change. How do we find, encourage and teach new ride leaders.

So basically, HELP!!!! I have a few ideas gleened from the pages of TE, but would love more from thoses of you who have been there and done that.

[Aint Doody]

Lisa, we have a similiar situation in our club. We have weekly rides. This year we have a ride leader. Lots of the fast people really balked at this. But 2 of us were tired of always bringing up the rear because we didn't want to leave anybody behind. We have told people that we expect them to volunteer to be leader. So far it's working more or less. Our leader just has to know where everybody is--not ride sweep. We've also told our group that if they deviate from the ride in any way that they must let the leader know. That way the leader isn't wondering if they fell off the side of a cliff or something. We generally have a point somewhere on our ride where we eat. That way we regroup and get to visit with each other before heading out again. I honestly don't see how to keep everybody together, as we have a small group, too. I guess my only suggestion is to have a rest/eat/meet spot along the route somewhere that is fun for people to visit. And if you figure it out, let me know.

[Fujichants]

Let's face it - people who take off like a rocket and decide to go fast the whole ride are just not going to wait up for anybody. You said that you don't want to divide it in a fast and slow group. How about one day the ride is somewhat longer and harder (for those who are more advanced), and the next day, the ride is a bit shorter, there's some talk about traffic rules, how to ride in a group, how to pace yourself, etc. People will then have a fair choice without feeling like they are slow.

Do you guys have a club jersey? I know that it probably won't keep people together, but there is more of a sense of unity and being a part of something. Also, try to have fun events...like bbq's, or have every member sign up for a charity ride at least once or twice a year.

Good luck with this!

[SouthernBelle]

Don't call it "fast group" and "slow group". Say this group will ride 12-15 mph. That group will ride 14 -18, next 18 and up.

Nobody wants to be told they are slow.

& if somebody is riding out of the parameters, you have a reason to rein them in.

[snapdragen]

Here is how my club classifies rides:

Pace
SL - Slow leisurely: below 10 mph. Stops as needed.
L - Leisurely: 10-12 mph. Stops as needed.
LM - Easy moderate: 12-14 mph. Regroups approx. every 30 min.
M - Moderate: 14-16 mph. Regroups approx. every 45 min.
MB - Hard moderate: 16-18 mph. Regroups approx. every hour. For experienced riders.
B - Brisk: 18-20 mph. Stops infrequently.
S - Strenuous: faster than 20 mph. Stops infrequently

They also have rankings for how hilly or flat a ride might be.

http://www.actc.org/schedule/notes.php#tag2

[kelownagirl]

I have only been on one 'club' ride but I do now they have two groups. The A group that is very fast (strenuous on Snap's list) and the B group which is everyone else. They leave from the same place but travel different routes. Because it's hilly around here the people get separated on the climbs but there are regular meeting up points. I would say this group is moderate to hard/moderate. These groups have men and women though so that's part of the reason they separate a little.

I'd let the super fast ones in your group take off and not worry about staying together. Then have a leader for the rest and keep them together. If there's a LOT of disparity in that group, then maybe have two groups/paces for them as well.

[jesvetmed]

We have multiple rides a week, of varying "paces". Pace is stated right onthe schedule sent to everyone for the month.

However our big rides are the Wednesday night rides. At each, we have three levels, based on Distance instead of speed. Being "night", it's hard to go the long route if you are planning to ride slowly. But honestly, the divisions don't really expect riding as a group except for the fast men. If you chose to stay with the group you can, but others just "do their own thing".

I'm glad to be able to say that no one has ever been rude or snobbish to me as a newbie -- they were just the opposite. Encouraging me to do more, telling me about other group events and encouraging me to try other things (including a time trial -- mentioned on my first night out!). Sounds like they are a rare group and I am lucky!

Jes

[cyclinnewbie]

I would not be offended if I were told I needed to be in the slow group. I am slow...I have come to terms with it. I would actually be relieved, because then I wouldn't feel that I had to kill myself to try and keep up!

[shootingstar]

Was part of an organizing core group for a women's cycling group, Women on Wheels in Toronto for 5 years.

It might be useful and more fun to name each ride thematically based on what one sees enroute /type of stopover. Rethink about the purpose of the ride(s) and market them on that primary point. Our focus was exploring the city and becoming familiar with certain routes. So we didn't get into posting speed ranges. Our rides did feature leader and sweeper each time.

You might want to have a gung-ho volunteer organize regular monthly fast rides.

Annually we usually had about only 5 rides which ranged from 30 - 90 kms. each ride. That was enough for us core coordinators of only 6 women ..with a paid membership of 200 women within a 50 kms.radius. At least.

Each ride had a theme which reflected a part of the city/scenery/ stopover point. Each ride did include PART of a signed cycling route because part of our objective was to build awareness of good routes and how to integrate a signed route with diversions from it. For those who joined, it was part of the draw. Reading the cycling route map was one thing, but knowing the little tricks of a turn somewhere unmarked, etc.

Each ride attracted max. around 10 women. To us, that was enough.

The main purpose of our group was to build cycling skills for women on road, maintenance, touring,..., provide info. on women's cycling needs....really not much different than TE forums, except there were live women ...at our workshops and a women's cycling conference every 2 years, the latter attraced over 150 women over a 2-day weekend from a 100 kms. radius....that's why we barely had enough volunteer energy for more rides!!!

We did not organize races..it was another..co-ed cycling association group. But one of the lead women from that provincial association very much participated as a speaker in our workshops, etc.

I strongly suggest that if there is a major bike show, that your group be there to promote/provide info. We had an info. table every year at the Toronto Bike Show which draws well over 5,000-8,000 people. Had T-shirts, water bottles , etc. It was also a terrific way for us to run around and network with other cycling groups there during that weekend. Well, you know, cycling love..

As well some of us were well-hooked into the other local cycling groups with our own personal cross-memberships. So there was cross-promotion of our group /referrals from others.

Please don't give up. Just think abit more strategically how sell your rides/organization. And hope that every year you draw some new volunteer blood. It is critical for organizational sustainability.

[SheFly]

We have a weekly women's ride that our club puts on VERY SUCCESSFULLY. The key is having multiple groups, with leaders and sweeps, riding the same loop. This allows riders dropped from the faster groups (or suffering mechanicals) to get picked up by the slower groups still on the route.

Here is a link to our club page with all of the details. We have about 30 - 40 riders every week, and I just found out this week, that one woman is driving from Stowe, VT to Lexington, MA (about 3 hours) just to do our ride . She said there aren't any women to ride with near her, and she is tired of riding with the boys!

Good luck, and let us know how you make out.

SheFly

[Irulan]

(btw, good props to your group in this morning's paper, did you see it in the Voice section?)
Sorry if some of this is redundant to our conversation yesterday. Take or leave what you like.

BH, a subject near and dear to my heart... having founded a bike club partially based on listening to what others want out of a group, and my own experiences...

- Everyone in the group must be on the same page about ride philosophy, and if they aren't, it needs to be discussed why not, and what to do about it. If anyone cares. They may not. They may want to have their own private little club, and not really be interested in doing what it takes to grow the organization. And yes, it takes energy and commitment!!

- for the middle group that doesn't' know if they are fast or slow, this is what we are going to try at our next ride as we ran into this. We always divide into fast/slow but you end up with faster and fastest in the fast group. My idea for our next ride is to have TWO leaders and TWO sweepers. A mile or two into the thing, you can see how the middle group ( the ones that can't keep up with the fast ones) is going to shake out, and have the second leader and second sweeper break off with the middle riders to form the third group. Then the fastest ones can go off.

-ride rules for the club. Our club has a no- drop policy. Period. It can suck if someone misplaces themselves in the wrong group, but your newcomers won't feel forgotten, dropped or left off. We advertise certain rides as no-drop, social rides, with the intent that everyone have fun and want to come back for more. We host rides that specifically cater to beginners. I’ve been known to take a lap or two to get the workout in before the ride. Also, we have a "tag" policy for mountain bike rides, where each riders makes sure the one behind them makes a turn.

Consider “event based” rides. Hosting weekly rides can be a real burnout. But an ‘event’ can create a little more enthusiasm.

Make sure your board meetings are open to the public and advertised to the group. Feeling like the board has secret meetings where outsider input is not welcome will not help your organization.

If someone has an idea, create an environment where they’ll feel welcome to pursue it, and get supported. I was actually told once, “our club doesn’t do that” when asked certain things. Its not like I was asking THEM to do it, it was something I wanted to do.

I think friendliness is really, really important. Of course newcomers aren't going to want to come back if they feel like they are on the outside of an established clique.

um, that's all I can think of for now.

[spokewench]

I've been riding women's group rides for years so here is my 2cents. Mixed group rides with a and b groups can work - but usually they work better when you have large groups, and the way people have described rides above is always a good thing so that people know what they are coming for.

I would recommend that you do most rides like the ones above - i.e split into two groups, but ask that those groups each have a ride leader and that if people get ahead, they regroup. i.e. both groups do not stay together, but they regroup as group 1 and 2 so that those groups stay together. All these things need to be stated at the beginning of the ride; if the ride leader is continually chasing one or two people, they need to ask them to either abide by the rules or ride by themselves.

The other thing that is really good and supportive for all is to have at least one ride a month and more often if you can with a good ride leader. This one is a no drop ride - Usually, I keep these rides together in a double paceline kind of idea, teaching people how to ride close together, etc. the better riders are there to teach the not so experienced riders. I try to do these on wide, not too hilly routes. If there are hills, I let the riders climb at their own speed, but when they hit the top of the hill, they either turn around and escort riders back up or stop and wait and regroup.

spoke

[SadieKate]

I like the name of this weekly LBS ride

Susan B's "Don't Pass Me, or Else!" Road Ride
Monday evenings, 5:00 pm. This 1 1/2 hour social road ride is open to women and well-mannered men. 14-15mph average.

Others are:
Jacob's "I'm not a Racer" Beginner Mountain Bike Ride
Eric's "I'm not a Racer...Anymore" Intermediate Mountain Bike Ride

You might consider Irulan's event-based ride ideas and make the titles funny, incorporating speed and no-drop expectations. As far as I'm concerned, anyone who passes Susan is no longer part of that day's ride and no one is required to keep track of them.

The 2nd tells you that skills and speed are low, and the 3rd tells you that the pace requires aerobic fitness but expert skills are not required.

All the titles are more welcoming and friendly than just "Wedneday Night Ride."

[Nokomis]

You've received great feedback so far.

Things that have worked for us:

Weekly ride - so that members don't have to wait a month for the long ride. Also builds community by seeing the group frequently.

Outgoing ride leaders - to build and maintain a welcoming community. Greet the new members, set expectations for groups, chat on route. Encourage your extroverts to step up into a ride leader role; or give them leadership tasks, such as mentoring a new person.

Start & Stop somewhere social. Try riding from a coffee shop or deli parking lot (locally own & managed, if possible) so that you have a place to eat & hang out after the ride. Again, building community, both for your club and for your local community.

Small groups - breaking down the ride into speed or intensity ensures that you can start and finish together. Smaller groups offer more opportunity for conversation. Don't underestimate the power of building group riding skills along the way... this opens up many opportunities for conversation, and is the reason you're all out there to begin with!

[Pedal Wench]

We have a weekly ride, and we try to find out ahead of time if someone is new and doesn't know the route. In that case, we make sure someone's looking out for them. We typically split into two groups, but again, make sure someone's in the back group who knows the route. Lately, we've had a few folks coming back from injuries, so they've volunteered to lead the 'Z' group, so anyone who wants to come and try the ride to see if they can keep up will know there's a slower group coming up behind. When some women wanted to move up from the Z group to the main group, we made sure we had a sweep willing to ride with them. Our biggest problem was finding someone willing to ride sweep.