Mountain Biking - A lonely rider

Do you usually ride alone or with others? I almost always ride alone.

I'd say I ride alone most of the time when I'm commuting but when I'm riding for pleasure, it's almost always with my best friend.

When I started I rode alone only. But last year I started riding in packs. A lot more fun and way better for progression

Cant stand it, the people in my club are to slow on flats and to fast on climbs.
Plus they have little regard for trafic/trail laws.
~X-Zen~

I rarely have anyone to ride with, so alone. Sometimes my mom or dad, or my neighbor will go on rides with me, but only about once or twice a month on average.

Cant stand it, the people in my club are to slow on flats and to fast on climbs.
Plus they have little regard for trafic/trail laws.
~X-Zen~

Ummm you in a road group?

The only time I ride alone is when Im commuting back and forth otherwise Im with atleast 3 people but usually around 5 or 6 people in a group. I cant stand riding by myself it gets boring.

No, it's a MTB club; why?

Just curious. It sounded like a road group. I am just not used to people saying things like "they are slow on flats and fast on climbs" except from road racers.

When I started I rode alone only. But last year I started riding in packs. A lot more fun and way better for progression

I enjoy riding alone, plus my schedule makes it sort of a necessity. But undoubtedly, riding with others would help me push myself and help me gauge my skills.

In the spring/summer months, I ride alone 25% of the time. The typical group size is 4.

In the fall/winter months, I ride alone 85% of the time. With the "cooler" weather, you can't blast some of my ride buddies out of their homes with dynamite. And we live in Southern CA, where winter is probably 60F! Also, I enjoy night rides and when darkness hits, TNT wouldn't even blast them out. I'd be lucky to get one other rider.

I only know two ride partners that would be the same 'standard' as me. It is really quite difficult to find riders that are the same degree of riding that you do. I found two and thats good enough, i dont really like packs that much, 2 is the ideal size for me :)

I ride with a range. couple beneath me, a few equal (but maybe better in areas) and a couple of REALLY good riders.

I'm too slow for a club so I either ride with my friend, or ride by myself...I try to cram about as much riding time in with my friend as possible...it always seems more fun.

Yeah, it's a lot more fun if you have someone to talk to and whatnot when you're out riding. It's ok to ride alone, but I think riding with a friend is more fun. Too bad we don't have any other friends who'd be willing to ride with us. It'd be kinda cool to get a little group together and go riding.

I'm sure we could convince Dwight and Steve to ride with us :D

hahaha... not likely... as much crap as they give us for riding as it is.. I just can't see either of them even remotely considering a bicycle.

I could hear them complaining about their knees or whatever :D

I ride alone, mainly because I enjoy having time to myself. I've always enjoyed solo sports, and mountain biking is no different.

Also, when you go solo, you have ultimate freedom in terms of route and pace. You can dawdle along, or hammer until your lungs explode. And when you finish that first loop, you can 'go have another' if you wish.

It's true, however, that your skills will progress faster when riding with other, more experienced riders.

I ride alone, mainly because I enjoy having time to myself. I've always enjoyed solo sports, and mountain biking is no different.

Also, when you go solo, you have ultimate freedom in terms of route and pace. You can dawdle along, or hammer until your lungs explode. And when you finish that first loop, you can 'go have another' if you wish.

It's true, however, that your skills will progress faster when riding with other, more experienced riders.


Yup! I, too, like the solitude of riding alone in an otherwise busy world. I do tend to ride aggressively and I've tackled some things, like first time steep descents, I really shouldn't have done alone. A broken bone would have meant crawling out for miles; not too wise, I know.

I usually ride with the same two guys; one is an animal and leaves us in the dust. He spins like a maniac and just motors up the longest climbs. Trying to stick with him is a major workout. The other guy is in good shape, too, but is pretty skitterish about taking risks. Crazy stuff is my strength so we make a good mix. :D

I like riding with With a group because i porgress so much more quikly, but if i want to go for a nice xc ride, i usually do it on my own, I ride XC to chill out, and compared to djing and street, its relatively safe compared... So i can still push myself with XCing, even if im on my own..

I usually ride in a group of more than 3.

Me, my uncle, 3 sisters, 5 younger cousins and my dad.

Thats a huge group of little kids lol:D

Occasionally I do go out and ride by myself though. Usually thats when i want to push myself and hammer it out in the drops. The group rides with my family are more leisurely and not solely oriented around speed/HR/technique.

EDIT: oops! thats for my road rides, for got I was in the mtb forum :p

My mtb rides are mostly me and my uncle. My sisters/cousins don't like it, "It's too bouncy and dirty!" are their words. My dad doesn't like it, says it hurts his joints(he's got bad knees from years of running and playing tennis) so it's me and my uncle that get to go out and play in the dirt.

Thats a big biking family...wow

Thats a big biking family...wow


yeah it's a big group but it's also really great when we can all go out together. Lots of fun for the young(er) kids and the adults get to ride slowly and chat while I watch the little kiddos and make sure they stay on their side of the bike path.

On Christmas day were getting about 8 or 10 up for a ride. I hardly ever ride alone.

I always ride alone and always push myself hard.

I agree that riding in a group can have some benefits, but only if the riders are better than you are. Unfortunately, that is not an advantage for them, so getting compatible riding partners is difficult.

IF the riders are good, they will generally still have fun. Unless you are really beneath them. I find most good riders accomodating.

I love riding with my friend who is way slower than me. I pace myself to him and end up being able to ride all day. Alone I wear myself out in a half hour and need to take a break and sit down for a while :p

I ride alone.
I like to just go out and do it and I live so close to great trails that waiting for a friend to drive/ride over just kills me. I do ride with people every now and then but usually i'm faster than them and I know the trails much better so I don't get caught up in the technical (though not hard once you know it) parts. However, I like to ocasionally ride with people that are great because they definately help to push you and if you have any questions about how to do something they'll help.

I have 2 main riding buddies who I ride with almost all the time. We all started at about the same time, and as of now are all of about the same skill level. I like it this way because when one of us makes advances, it pushes the other two. Once a week I go with a big group of 6-10 riders who all vary in skill and that's a blast because we're just out there having a good time, no one feels pushed or has to worry about falling behind.

... I really shouldn't have done alone. A broken bone would have meant crawling out for miles; not too wise, I know. :D


I agree, it is safer and wiser to ride with someone else. Too many things can happen even when riding in a flat and easy area. Unexpected obstacles or a mechanical issue can cause you to go down. I ride in mountain lion country, so that's one more variable to consider.

Do as I say, not as I do. I highly enjoy night riding and do it solo most of the time. I love the empty trails, distant lights, solitude... In my mind, I know I can get pretty messed up, so I have a few rules, like don't descend single track with alone at night. I also have to remind myself about mountain lions (although I have yet to see one in over 5 years of riding). For me, it's hard to sit home when the trails call.

I half jokingly tell my co-workers if I'm not at work, see if my truck is at the trail head.

I usually ride alone but I do ride with 2-5 people in a pack sometimes. When I ride alone i do drops and jumps on trails/street. When with my buds we do street stuff.

Most of the time, I go riding with my wife. Actually, it's usually her idea to go riding. There is also a group coffee ride we go on every week or so too. It's usually 10-20 folks depending on the weather. Lots of fun riding with people, it's a shame more of our friends don't do it.

I never go trail riding alone. I have a bad habit of crashing and someday I might not jump back up so quick.