Fifty Plus (50+) - group-phobia

Am I the only ninny who's afraid to ride in a group?

No.
Not afraid but don't enjoy it.

There are many here who report not liking group rides - for a lot of reasons.

IMHO
If you don't start out in a group ride that matches your needs and level it may not be a lot of fun, infact it can be a down right bummer. Understand about what distance you feel comfortable riding and the terrain you like. Know what your average speed is for that distance and then contact you local bike club for an organized ride that matches that distance, terrain and speed - maybe a little less to start out with. Also make sure to tell them if you are looking for a social event or a pure riding event. The larger clubs typically have organized group rides for a wide range of people. My local one will do rides that are 15 to 20 miles at a speed of 12mph with a lunch stop in the middle - purley social, all the way up to rides which are 70 miles, very hilly and an average speed of 20+ mph - hammer head rides not social, no tolerence, lots of egos and no waiting for straglers.

So, if you want to try group rides, understand what you want out of it and then find the right group. Don't feel intimitated and give it a try - if it doesn't work out, try a few more times before you give up.

Good Luck!

Am I the only ninny who's afraid to ride in a group?

The largest group I ride in is three: Me, Myself, and I.

The largest group I ride in is three: Me, Myself, and I.

:beer:

My biggest fear is that I will cause a problem for other riders, resulting in an accident or injury

Try a relaxed group and let them know you don't know pace line ediquette and you'll be fine.

I like groups. In fact, the social aspect is a major inducement for me to ride. But I get out of groups when they start doing stupid stuff. Never been in a big pile-up, although I've gone down in a 2-bike pile a couple of times.

CF: Let's not confuse group rides with paceline training rides. They are two completely different things. At least around here they are. Those who want to ride in a group--defined as a bunch of people out for a bike ride--join Rochester Bicycling Club (http://www.rochesterbicyclingclub.com/). Those who want to ride pacelines join the Genesee Valley Cycling Club (http://gvcc.11net.com/). Even the "shop rides" around here are one or the other, but almost never both.

As for me, I ride with the RBC and lead a couple of rides with them too. The shop rides I join are always billed as "recovery rides". I know I won't be left behind on those, even though over half the riders generally are racers. Actually, as an old guy, I have a blast riding with younger racer types on their recovery ride, although their recovery pace is at the upper end of my comfortable pace.

To the OP, first, define specifically what your fears are. Some of the fears I had initially WRT group rides were fear of:

getting left behind,
not wearing the "right" clothes,
not riding the "right" bike,
getting in or causing an accident,
embarrassment in front of more seasoned riders.

I asked around and found rides and riders where these things would be less of an issue. Those are the rides I ride.

What happened was that I found "no drop" rides, and even on regular ones, there's almost always someone willing to wait for me to catch up. I've shown up on group rides wearing a t-shirt, jeans and sneakers, and riding a hybrid. Once I showed I could ride with the group, the clothes and bike weren't an issue.

I've learned how to ride in a pack without endangering myself or others. It took a while, for sure, but the first time I realized that people were riding just inches off my bars while talking with me made me feel really good about how my bike-handling skills had improved, and how other people had noticed before I had. I still don't do pacelines. They seem like too much work.

As for embarrassment, I've seen seasoned, USA Cycling (http://www.usacycling.org/) card-carrying racers make silly mistakes (like clipless falls) and laugh it off. It's helped me learn how to laugh off my own.

I'm a real introverted loner. Doing things with other people is just not my style or natural inclination. Until it comes to bikes. I like the weekly shop rides I've found, and I like the rides with the RBC. While the vast majority--maybe 80%--of my riding is by myself, I do one or two group rides a week. They're generally the highlight of my week and I really feel bad when I can't make it to one.

I can't see the point in riding in groups, but I'm not a social animal anyway. I like riding with a companion or two, but that's as far as it goes.

And these training groups? Why go to all that stress and bother to REDUCE the effect of your training (that's why pacelines were invented, to reduce your effort). I guess it must be fun for those involved.

Richard

My biggest fear is that I will cause a problem for other riders, resulting in an accident or injury

Sorry, I missed that the first time around. There are things you can practice before riding with a group.

Work on "holding your line". Keep it straight without wobbling or weaving, and learn to corner without changing the arc of your curve, and how to take a tighter or wider arc than is optimal (as if someone was next to you.) Become comfortable enough with taking either hand off the bars for a moment while maintaining your line.

Work on using all your senses--especially your ears--to tell where you are and what's around and behind you.

You can also learn how to ride at an even pace without abrupt changes in speed. (Don't take this to mean a mechanical pace that never varies, but rather, a pace that doesn't vary for no apparent reason.)

Those are things you can practice beforehand. The rest, come from experience riding with a group.

The first few times in a group--again defined as a bunch of people out for a bike ride--ride towards the back of the pack and observe the group dynamic. You'll find that in most groups, communication is what keeps people safe. Surprises are a bad thing. Riders announce and signal when they're passing, slowing, stopping or turning.

People ahead announce and point out obstacles or junk in the road. It's your job to pass that information back to the people behind you in a similar fashion. It's a beautiful thing when a leader points out glass and the entire ride steers around it while maintaining their relative positions and speed, and often, without losing a beat in conversation.

Early on I learned how to tell where riders were beside me and behind me by the sound of their tires and drivetrain. Most good riders can do the same. Near as I can tell, between announcing obstacles and intentions, and listening for other riders' positions, good group riders could be completely blind and still ride safely.

The other big thing is when following a rider, never overlap wheels--that is, never ride with your front wheel right beside their rear wheel. If they make a change in line and hit your wheel, you're the one who goes down. (Or if you change your line and hit their wheel, you still go down.) This is the reason why you also learn to listen to where other riders are beside you and behind you, so you don't do the same if you have to change your line, and it's why you announce your intention when you do.

Learn these three basics--hold your line and speed, communicate and listen, don't overlap wheels--and you'll be a safe group rider.

BTW: There are additional concerns with pacelines. The points above apply to all groups.

no

The only group rides I like are those I lead, which are for our seniors group at church.

You don't have to learn how to "arc" or how to follow, or much of anything!

I stop every few miles to be sure we are all together, and we try to have a food stop at a restaurant or a picnic lunch at time.

Besides that, and riding with my wife or one riding buddy, PHOOEY on group rides!

Why make something so much fun into something so much work and tension?

Am I the only ninny who's afraid to ride in a group?

Nope.
When I ride alone, I prefer to be by myself.

I prefer the freedom of going where and at at the speed that I choose!!!!
That's what works for me anyway.

I have to agree that I prefer to ride alone--it's easy, free, relaxing, which is everything I love about cycling. But I thought that by riding in a group, I might learn some new things, get some constructive criticism about my technique, that sort of thing. I would also like to get to know my club better. But hey, you can't have it all. Maybe someday....

Worst thing about group riding is all the riders behind you are pissing off the motorists who in turn will take it out on you

You don't have to learn how to "arc" or how to follow, or much of anything!

I'm sorry you seem to have misunderstood, DF. Safe group riding requires you don't bump into anyone. I was explaining how to do that.

So obviously, we are of two different viewpoints--me saying you need to ride in such a way so as not to cause accidents, and you saying wobbling and weaving all over the place is just fine.

Remind me to never ride within 100 yards of you.

Find the right group and the right route and group rides can be great.
The chance of having a bad group ride can be high because of all of the variables.
The chance of having a bad ride by yourself is low - because every person is usually their own worst critic, and nothing is ever our fault.

Riding in a group has greatly improved my bicycle skills. I have learned to ride smoothly and safely. I enjoy the Saturday morning rides and it gives me some motivation to get up and go. Today I didn't feel too well after about 5 miles so I dropped out of the group. Stopped, caught my breath and then did another 21 miles solo in a light rain. Felt great when I finished.

If you don't like to ride in a group then don't. To each their own.

I know with my new group riding skills that when I ride in organized charity rides that I can hold my own in the big groups. If you want to ride long distances then it sure helps to have a few riding partners to share the lead.

Mark

I have never understood why so many people here are so averse to riding in groups. Some of the comments sound downright hostile and antisocial. I often find group rides to be very relaxing and a lot of fun. About half of my rides are with groups of other people. Maybe it is partly semantics. Many people seem to equate group riding with hammerfests and competitive rides. If those were the only groups to ride in I would have no interest in it. But there are so many different ways to ride in groups and so many different kinds of groups. I often lead group rides for my club. Some of those rides are very slow and casual rides with new riders or riders who can't or don't want to ride fast. Others are faster rides for longer distances. Sometimes we ride close together as a formation. Other times we split up and ride at our own pace, usually regrouping at turns or store stops. Sometimes we work together as a paceline to help cover more distance at a steady speed.

The only group rides I like are those I lead, which are for our seniors group at church.

You don't have to learn how to "arc" or how to follow, or much of anything!

I stop every few miles to be sure we are all together, and we try to have a food stop at a restaurant or a picnic lunch at time.

Besides that, and riding with my wife or one riding buddy, PHOOEY on group rides!

Why make something so much fun into something so much work and tension?

Dnvr - I agree, leading a group ride would be a pain in the arse. This topic has been through this group before. Some of us hate group rides, some of us like them. It's too bad you have not had better luck, I have read some of your horror stories on this subject.

I like some of my local club rides because I know what I want to get out of them, and I get what I expect. The rides I go on for me are for satisfying a performance goal measurement only, they are not social. My goal is to use the ride to push my limits and measure where I am at, I try to stay as close to the front of the pack as I can manage. In the summer I do about one a month - they are typically a fast metric. If I can't keep up - I am on my own and as long as I have the queue sheet and my cell phone I am Ok with that, it is what I expect. The group does not wait. I have seen the group just pull on by when someone gets a flat, throws a chain, whatever. The club does have rides categories where no child is left behind, but this is not what I am looking for when I go.

I have a social set I ride with when I want to relax and chat and I ride alone frequently and with a buddy when we need to get each other out - particularly at 5:30AM in the summer.

If you don't get enjoyment out of group rides, you should not go. If you can find something you like about them then use them to your advantage. You should not feel intimitated, riding in a group is easy. Try it and if it isn't fun or to your advantage, don't participate . Many here will support your decision to go it alone. That is my $0.02 anyway.

Group rides will usually make a cyclist a better rider. Most people want to improve at whatever they are doing...........I think?

If the group is riding at a pace that's comfortable for you, and you don't wnat to cause problems, just hang off the back a bit.

Remind me to never ride within 100 yards of you.

Dunno mate, if you made the effort to come to Adelaide for a ride, I'd certainly try to stay within gasping distance ;)

Richard

Am I the only ninny who's afraid to ride in a group?
No, not at all...there are whole groups of 'em out there.:p

I can't see the point in riding in groups, but I'm not a social animal anyway. I like riding with a companion or two, but that's as far as it goes.

And these training groups? Why go to all that stress and bother to REDUCE the effect of your training (that's why pacelines were invented, to reduce your effort). I guess it must be fun for those involved.

RichardFirst, learning to ride well in a paceline IS training. Second, a good, fast paceline is a form of interval training. You have to push pretty hard to keep up the pace when you are pulling, and you use your time in the back/middle of the line to recover. Third, it's a lot of fun to be able to cruise at 10-20% faster than your normal solo speed. Last, but not least, it's a motivator to correct weaknesses in your riding. If you're a poor climber, you have to get better in order to keep up.

Figure out how to get over your fear. Riding in groups can be extremely enjoyable in a lot of different ways. You can meet a lot of different folks with a similar interest as you plus have some really terrific and memorable rides.

Let us know your specific concerns and possibly we can offer some suggestions for you to think about.

Some folks chose not to do group rides at all and that's okay as well. Just gotta go with what your cup of tea.

The trick to group rides is finding the right group. I've not had too much success on that.

I've ridden with a group who sprinted off when I got off of my bike at a red light because I had a leg cramp.
I've ridden with a real pleasant group but they were real slow and stopped every 5 miles or so to "regroup".
I've ridden with lots of groups that were simply too fast for me so I'd hang on for as long as I could then finish by myself.
I've ridden with at least one such group that wanted to designate a "baby sitter" to ride with me while the rest went on ahead. They get "good intentions" points but that didn't appeal to me at all.
I've ridden with folks who were literally weaving all over the road so I didn't want to be close to them.
I've ridden with a real nice bunch of mostly retired people who ride about my pace, but they ride during the week while I'm usually working.

Mostly I just ride by myself. Incidentally, the nice thing about a tandem is it solves most of the problems of group riding. You always have somebody to talk with, you get to ride at your own pace, and you have fewer issues while dealing with auto traffic.

I probably do 90% of my riding solo, but enjoy group/paceline riding when participating in club training rides, centuries, and races.

There's nothing like the feeling of being part of a well-oiled, strong working group with each rider taking a short pull at the front then rotating off.

A few years back, in Colorado, I worked with a group like that and averaged 21.7 mph over 105 miles with 5400 feet of climbing (and I won the town limit sign sprint near the end of the ride!).

Being able to ride competently and comfortably in a group is very useful in many cycling scenarios, and a hallmark skill of the "advanced" level cyclist.

The trick to group rides is finding the right group. I've not had too much success on that.

I've ridden with a group who sprinted off when I got off of my bike at a red light because I had a leg cramp.
I've ridden with a real pleasant group but they were real slow and stopped every 5 miles or so to "regroup".
I've ridden with lots of groups that were simply too fast for me so I'd hang on for as long as I could then finish by myself.
I've ridden with at least one such group that wanted to designate a "baby sitter" to ride with me while the rest went on ahead. They get "good intentions" points but that didn't appeal to me at all.
I've ridden with folks who were literally weaving all over the road so I didn't want to be close to them.
I've ridden with a real nice bunch of mostly retired people who ride about my pace, but they ride during the week while I'm usually working.

Mostly I just ride by myself. Incidentally, the nice thing about a tandem is it solves most of the problems of group riding. You always have somebody to talk with, you get to ride at your own pace, and you have fewer issues while dealing with auto traffic.

Very good points...finding the right group can be a challenge.

The local racing team is likely to be too aggressive and too fast for beginners. And the local "social" riding groups are likely to be too slow and/or disorganized. You might want to ask around at your LBS' to see if they know of any groups that might be suitable for you.

One thing I've found helpful is to put on "Paceline 101" training rides for the "social" folks. We typically meet at a coffee shop where I spend some time discussing the basics of pacelining skills, then head out on some quiet, flattish country roads where we work on on-the-bike skills (usually at 15-17 mph). It's a good way for those new to pacelining to get comfortable riding close to other riders, what it feels like to pull, etc.

I had ridden with a group rides several times, but the reason I stopped was that if you had a problem no one would wait for you. I went to "MeetUp" for my area and started posting rides. It went okay for quite awhile, but even though I would state my rides were "casual social paces rides" and tell them how many miles we would ride and the terrain a variety of different people would show up. Most of the time I would get very "newbie" riders that weren't even aware of bringing an extra tube, water and to check their tire pressure before we starting riding. Now after posting over 13 different rides hardly anyone would show up, no one else would post a ride even though I told them how. I will stick with riding by myself or a couple of other friends occasionally, makes me kind of sad it didn't work out better.

In this area we have groups that are fast, we have beginner groups, we have "seasoned" groups which are experienced, but slow and then we have "moderate" groups and they bill themselves that way. These groups fit me very well. I do not know if other areas use this term for group rides, but "moderate" works well.

Also, the groups do stop for mechanical problems, normally. I guess there are exceptions for some reason, but for the most part they help with mechanical problems. I have found that the moderate and fast rides normally have fewer problems than the slower rides. I believe this is because the faster riders are more aware of bike maintenace so they break down less.

The only group ride I have been on in the last 2 years (I think! I have slept since then) was the ride that DNVR organised. It was alot of fun, got to see a part of the trail system I had not been on before and the company was GREAT. these are the kind of group rides I like.

I'm with you, BluesDawg!

I have never understood why so many people here are so averse to riding in groups. Some of the comments sound downright hostile and antisocial. I often find group rides to be very relaxing and a lot of fun. About half of my rides are with groups of other people. Maybe it is partly semantics. Many people seem to equate group riding with hammerfests and competitive rides. If those were the only groups to ride in I would have no interest in it. But there are so many different ways to ride in groups and so many different kinds of groups. I often lead group rides for my club. Some of those rides are very slow and casual rides with new riders or riders who can't or don't want to ride fast. Others are faster rides for longer distances. Sometimes we ride close together as a formation. Other times we split up and ride at our own pace, usually regrouping at turns or store stops. Sometimes we work together as a paceline to help cover more distance at a steady speed.

+1

90% of my riding is done with a group. I've never done a paceline but have drafted with a few friends.

I have never understood why so many people here are so averse to riding in groups.

My experiences with group rides (organized by others):

1. We were to show up at the meet point. My first group ride. There was a "ride leader" there. No one introduced themselves, or said "hi." We were all given a map. That was it. I was completely on my own, as was everyone else. I might as well have been riding solo, as that was exactly what I did. I did most of the rather tough ride, then short-cutted back. That was a lot of fun (NOT) :eek:. If I had known I would be riding solo, I would have chosen a better route.

2. My wife and I went on an "easy" ride in the mountains. The Type "A" leader would not regroup long enough for those in the back to catch up before he went on. One of the riders got sick climbing a hill. Her husband and the leader could have cared less. So, I shepherded her in, and we took a short cut to catch up with the rest of the group. There was supposed to be a lunch together, except that a clique went off by themselves, and my wife and I had our lunch together by ourselves.

3. I went on a ride out east and back. Same as #1 above - I once again rode by myself.

4. Wife and I went on an easy ride - 30 miles. It was fun until after the ride when we all went to lunch and the ride leader went actually a little crazy and started shouting in the restaurant at the person we were sitting with (an old friend we had renewed acquaintances with on the ride) for some imagined offense. We finally got up and left the restaurant.

So, four negatives out of four tries (two different bicycling clubs). That is a very low batting average of "0" percent.

Now, the rides I organize - they are fun, we all have a ball. But they are "Type 'B'" rides.

I've never had trouble riding with a group and in fact, love to paceline - with the right people. I never paceline with someone I don't know and who has not proven bike handling skills to me. But with someone who is a steady, courteous (i.e. calls ou hazards etc) rider, pacelining is awesome.

I have belonged to several bike clubs for many years. There as a time every weekend I was out for a club ride. I do love the comraderie (sp?) but after a while, the craziness of club rides started to drive me nuts. I hate the fact, at least in my clubs, people would do everything they could to keep with the pack, even if that meant running red lights, stop signs, making cars wait etc. They were just too impolite and unsafe for me so over the years I have found myself riding more and more alone or with a friend or two. I still have a small group of friends that I ride with and there's just enough of us for pacelining.

I agree group riding teaches bike handling skills. You must be alert, and aware the whole time. Pacelining teaches you steadiness, cadence, smooth pedal strokes (you must do all these things to stay properly in line) and trust. My thought is to give it a try. It may take you awhile before your are comfortable in a group or can "hang" with the group but like anything else, skill must be developed and that takes time. Regardless if group rides get you out and riding, it's all a good thing.

PS: DenverFox - sounds like I would love to ride with you!!! I agree group experiences are not for those with fragile egos. Riders will get dumped. It's like a trial by fire - hang if you can. I used to laugh that even "no drop" rides were "yeah you won't get dropped... if you can hang!"

My experiences with group rides (organized by others):


So, four negatives out of four tries (two different bicycling clubs). That is a very low batting average of "0" percent.

Now, the rides I organize - they are fun, we all have a ball. But they are "Type 'B'" rides.

So, you have only tried 4 rides other than those you organized yourself. Not insignificant, but not really enough to rule out bad luck.
But the worst thing is that you don't count the positive rides that you organized yourself. What would the batting average be if you counted all the rides and not just the ones that prove your point?

So, you have only tried 4 rides other than those you organized yourself. Not insignificant, but not really enough to rule out bad luck.
But the worst thing is that you don't count the positive rides that you organized yourself. What would the batting average be if you counted all the rides and not just the ones that prove your point?


Well, if I was married four times and failed to have a good relationship four times, I probably wouldn't try it a fifth time!

But the rides I organize involve no "pace lines" or "drafting" or "how fast can we go" and are relaxed and we smell a lot of roses. I don't kow of anyone else who leads rides like I do (neither do the riders who go on my rides), so I believe they are an anomaly, and anomalies shouldn't count in statistical calculations.

However, to be fair, my wife has joined a new group called the "Biking Babes" whose rides are almost as good as mine.

Well, if I was married four times and failed to have a good relationship four times, I probably wouldn't try it a fifth time!

But the rides I organize involve no "pace lines" or "drafting" or "how fast can we go" and are relaxed and we smell a lot of roses. I don't kow of anyone else who leads rides like I do (neither do the riders who go on my rides), so I believe they are an anomaly, and anomalies shouldn't count in statistical calculations.

However, to be fair, my wife has joined a new group called the "Biking Babes" whose rides are almost as good as mine.

DNVR, you need to come ride with our club. Sure we have a few rides that are hammer-fest but most are without pace-lines, drafting and the need to go as fast as you can. Most of the groups I ride with consist of older riders (50 to 80) and we're way past the need for speed:) A few of them are ex-racers but have slowed down in recent years.

I lead a ride on Friday mornings that is a 30 mile round trip to a nearby town for lunch at a quaint little coffeehouse with the best panini sandwiches in the area. There are generally 8-12 riders and we stay together. If we see someone struggling to keep up we simply slow down....we all have those days when we're not feeling in tip-top shape.

The only group ride I do that can become a hammer-fest is the breakfast ride. It's class B/C riders and we usually split into two groups. The faster group rides ahead and does an extra loop before rejoining the rest of us for breakfast.

No one ever gets left alone and if someone has a flat or other mechanical problem we all stop to assist. We have some ex-wrenches on the rides and they usually step right up and fix the problems or at least give us directions on how to fix it ourselves:)

I try to get into a big group ride at lease twice a month and love it. Best fun I've had on a bike.

Other than when I was 12 or whatever, I've always ridden alone.
I am a friendly guy but not terribly social.
For me, riding is a time to be alone with my thoughts and the only time I have no demands on me. It's the one time I am totally free. Why would I give that up?

I like group rides, but don't like pacelines. The key is to find a group whose rides don't involve pacelines, or whose members are aware of and tolerate your discomfort with pacelines. The club I belong to here in SoCal (Foothill Cycle Club) runs many different kinds of rides, and as I've gotten stronger I do more and more of them for the challenge that riding with people faster than you can provide.

I've actually learned to ride in a paceline recently, but still don't like it, because you can't be alert to anything but the wheel and butt of the guy (usually it's a guy, alas) in front of you.

But the rides I organize involve no "pace lines" or "drafting" or "how fast can we go" and are relaxed and we smell a lot of roses. I don't kow of anyone else who leads rides like I do (neither do the riders who go on my rides), so I believe they are an anomaly, and anomalies shouldn't count in statistical calculations.

However, to be fair, my wife has joined a new group called the "Biking Babes" whose rides are almost as good as mine.

Not trying to pick on you, DF, but this goes to the heart of my point. The kinds of rides you describe are not as rare as you suggest. I and others in this thread have mentioned participating in or leading such rides. They may not be as easy to find as some of the more aggressive rides, but they are not anomalies. Your population sample is just too small.

Other than when I was 12 or whatever, I've always ridden alone.
I am a friendly guy but not terribly social.
For me, riding is a time to be alone with my thoughts and the only time I have no demands on me. It's the one time I am totally free. Why would I give that up?

Athletic women in lycra. :D

Not trying to pick on you, DF, but this goes to the heart of my point. The kinds of rides you describe are not as rare as you suggest. I and others in this thread have mentioned participating in or leading such rides. They may not be as easy to find as some of the more aggressive rides, but they are not anomalies. Your population sample is just too small.

+1 - with the large and diverse cycling population available in the Denver area, it seems inconceivable that DF couldn't find a friendly group that fits his riding style.

Gee, I really enjoy group rides. As a former racer, I have no fear of pacelines or close pack riding as long as everyone has the skills. Nowadays, my groups never fall into that category. I will not get on someone's wheel, nor do I encourage others to get on mine if they don't have the skills. It is safer for the lead rider than the follower, of course - if the guy behind you runs into your back wheel, he is far more likely to go down than you if he doesn't know what to do. We used to practice recovering from those things by doing them on purpose while riding in a field (soft landing). I really like the camaraderie of group rides and I even like waiting for stragglers or going back to fetch them so they don't need to ride alone. We never drop someone. I ride with my adult kids or my new cycling friends and don't do a lot of solo riding and no solo training. Still working on my base miles (only about 1000 miles so far after starting to ride in July). I've gone from the weakest rider in the group to one of the strongest, and that's also fun. :eek:

I also like going for lunch with the group after the ride. It makes for a great start to the day. And I've always been a lone wolf type with not many close friends. My wife says I'm going through a period of personal growth. Sounds like hooey to me. :rolleyes:

-soma5

Athletic women in lycra. :D

Well, yeah, there is that, isn't there? ;)

Maybe I just got lucky but I really enjoy the local group I ride with. As a rookie rider, I was somewhat intimidated when I first rode with them this past spring. Although I was obviously new (I was on a hybrid and had yet to adopt cycling shorts or shoes and hadn't gone clipless), everyone was welcoming and encouraging ... it didn't hurt that since I'd been riding indoors/outdoors all winter I rode at a fairly competent B pace.

We ride in rural areas in Howard, Carroll, and Frederick counties in Maryland. There are roads where you don't see a car for half an hour (odd when DC is only 20 miles away). When I was inexperienced, it was reassuring to have company when I was in the middle of nowhere. Now I ride in the middle of nowhere by myself (does this mean that if I fail to unclip I won’t make any sound when I fall over?) since I’m more comfortable with the mechanics. Our club also has a AAA-type deal where you carry a list of cell phone numbers when you ride. If you run up against something you can’t deal with, you can call another member to come help you.

Our A, B, and C groups have routes that mostly overlap. The faster groups ride longer and leave earlier so if you go out and drop off the back, you just slow down and get picked up by the next group. Even within groups, people often will split off into smaller groups depending on their pace that night. Good cue sheets, signups with cell phone numbers, and ride leaders who always sweep their rides means that no one gets left on the road even if it's just a flat ... in fact, the motto of the club is "friends don't let
friends ride alone".

Pacelines aren't common except in the A group and even there the hilly terrain makes them kind of pointless unless there's an aerodynamic advantage going uphill at 5 mph that I don't know about. The A and B groups are competent and predictable enough so that 30mph+ on the downhills is comfortable. People know the rules of the road and we didn't have a single wreck this year.

The group is fairly divergent ... flatbelly 20mph+, tri-girls, Moms, ex-racers, and old guys and gals. I think the key is that no one seems out to prove anything ... everyone knows there's always somebody faster and always somebody slower. We're all there just to ride in a beautiful setting and then drink beer and kibbitz afterward.

Often, like-minded folks split off into groups that ride at other times. The Fubar 50s started when 5 of the over-50 guys decided to do 50 miles one Saturday. We've since made our Saturday rides a regular thing and available to anyone who can put up with us. People admire the manners of the 50s as we are always eager to allow any lycra-clad IronGirls to ride in front of us …

Like most everyone, I do the marjority of my riding alone ... and I enjoy that ... it's my quiet time. But I like to have the chance to push myself with a B+ rider half my age or take it easy and sweep the C group and meet someone new to the club.

Not trying to pick on you, DF, but this goes to the heart of my point. The kinds of rides you describe are not as rare as you suggest. I and others in this thread have mentioned participating in or leading such rides. They may not be as easy to find as some of the more aggressive rides, but they are not anomalies. Your population sample is just too small.

OK.

Truth 1 - I love to ride by myself or with my wife or one riding buddy.

Truth 2 - I haven't found any groups I like to ride with.

Truth 3 - I wouldn't enjoy group rides as much as I enjoy by myself, even if I found a group ride I could tolerate (except those I lead).

These 3 truths MUST lead to some logical conclusion, wouldn't you think?


+1 - with the large and diverse cycling population available in the Denver area, it seems inconceivable that DF couldn't find a friendly group that fits his riding style.

But, why should I if I am happy with the way things are?