FrenchFit 

So, "friendly group" ride, maybe 17mph rate, no drop, 6-8 riders. The guys in front burn a yellow-red light, 2 at the back stop for the light (me for one) and the group keeps going, maybe even increasing their rate. So, I hammer and catch up, pulling the back riders....and they do it again. Second light was more of a judgment call, but ignoring it seemed a little foolish to me. The group hammers on, disappears around the bend.

Sure seemed like a total dick roadie move to me. I mean, really..., what in the world is the rationale for busting a "friendly group ride" at traffic lights. Am I nuts?

bghill1

No, that was a dick move on the part of the riders in front.

hueyhoolihan

ya, BS. find a new group.

of course it could have been accidental, ya never know.

chasm54

You're not nuts. Wankers.

dru_

+1. Dick move by the ride leaders and immature as hell by the leading group.

achoo

Complete dick move. What part of "no drop" do they fail to understand? Are two- and four-letter words beyond their comprehension?

shelbyfv

Who decided it was "no drop?" Seems as if they didn't want to ride with you....

knobster

Many times a "no drop" ride means that the group leader won't drop his buddies. Newcomers beware. Best to discuss it before the start and ask if there will be a group up later in the ride so everyone can catch up.

lsberrios1 

+1. That really sucks. No drop around here means, hang on until you are very very close to the regroup point.

Elvo

I thought no-drop means that the group will wait for the stragglers at the regroup point?

bjtesch

I've been on those- they say "no drop" but yet I got dropped, and I wasn't slow. Fortunately I knew where I was so I picked my own route home. I would guess that only a group of older riders out for a casual social ride would really be "no drop".

FrenchFit 

LOL, that's what it was. Faster geezers, supposedly social. Jeez...

velomack

talk to them, very likely completely ignorant to their responsibilities of the group when they lead...........

FrenchFit 

I wish I had the emotional intelligence to pull that off. I tend to be confrontational by nature, I fear I would cause them to go immediately defense and want to argue and rationalize, or make them feel like crap. Perhaps I should get my wife to talk to them....ha, ha, ha.

My thought process is - - if that's their thing, it's their thing. I just won't be riding along.

RISKDR1

Very inconsiderate and poor group leadership (if there IS any leader). A "no drop" ride means just that. Whenever a group busts a light it should check behind to see if anyone got stuck at the light.

you need a different group.

J.C. Koto

LuckySailor

Yeah, same sorta stuff here when I rode with a group from the LBS. About 2 dozen riders. It was a road group, and I show up on a hybrid, not really. It's a mountain bike with a rear rack. I tried to get a conversation with several people on 3 different weeks….nothing. Barely a hello. The second week, team leader drops back and makes a comment about how much harder I'm going to have to work to keep up. I just smiled and told him, I'm here to ride, so whatever it takes I can handle it. And so for 4 weeks, I consistently came in at then end in the middle of the group-no problem. ..l.. screw off! I don't understand snobby. No groups this year. Happy to go by myself.

RISKDR1

well, never bring a knife to a gunnn fight. Riding a mountain bike in a clearly dedicated road bike ride is going to hold up the group unless you are very strong. That might be considered inconsiderate.

Cyclosaurus

Really anti-social behavior. Not just rude, but unsafe...the leaders are essentially encouraging those in the back to blow the red light with their "we're not waiting for you" routine. The decent thing to do is to say, in word or in deed, "don't take risks at the light, we'll let you catch up". I'd bring it up, but if you get any excuses or defensiveness, take it as a sign that they don't give a rats a** about you being on their ride.

Retro Grouch 

Group rides tend to develop their own personalities. Regardless what they say, you'll never know for sure what that personality is until you ride with them. I'm not a fast rider but I've ridden with some no drop groups that drove me crazy by stopping every 5 miles or so to re-group. I've also attempted to ride with some groups that dropped me like a stone right out of the lot.

I don't try to change other people. They are, after all, just trying to maximize their own enjoyment. I just drift from group to group until I find the ones that suit me.

GP

In the club I usually ride with, on no drop rides we try to keep everyone together but if you just cannot handle the pace, we'll make sure you know where you are and how to get back. Most people don't want to hold up the group and will tell someone that they're dropping off or turning around. I've been there myself many times.

Dropping people at a light is a bad move. Someone should have yelled ahead that people were back so the front group can slow pedal and gossip about the slackers that are sitting at the light.

CharlyAlfaRomeo

Did you read the whole post?

fietsbob

Hang with a different group, or go solo..

get the ride to actually start past the last stoplight .. Meet there . ride in the country side.

Retro Grouch 

I must have the T-shirt for that somewhere in my drawer. If you can't keep up with the pace, you essentially have 3 choices:
1. Hold the whole group back to your pace.
2. Let the group designate a "baby sitter" to ride with you.
3. Either turn around or continue on as a solo ride.
I ALWAYS choose #3 .

spdracr39

Wow a consensus !!! The paceline leader is responsible for safe crossing of intersections. Sometimes part of the group gets stranded but soft pedaling on the other side is in order till they catch up. Ride with other people, these guys are asshats.