deacon mark

I have been riding of years and running. In the 1990s had group I ran with on weekends but had to really make plans to get a group run. Seem to after awhile be a hassle just want to get out when I could be then get on with the day. Well now as I ride more I would like a group ride it would be cool but frankly in the end solo just seems to be the pace.

I get out when I want, which is very early sometimes even before sunrise but not later. I can be on a country road in less than 4 minutes and never put my foot down for anything other than bathroom break for 50 miles. I keep trying to tell myself that while it is solo no company, in the end that really is the way to ride if you value time and the rest of the day.

Moral...........how many just love solo riding because you are absolutely free with the minor problem of loneliness when it would be ok? So here we are just a solo rider. I am I the only puppy who things this?

unabowler

I don't completely understand your post, but I enjoy riding by myself if that's what you are asking.

caloso

I love the local group rides, but they often don't jibe with my training schedule or work or family commitments. So I'll often go out early, do my intervals, and listen to podcasts and other voices in my head. If I am able to make the group ride, it's like a treat.

deacon mark

Nothing to understand at all just thinking out loud and wonder if others have similar thoughts or experience.

Silvercivic27

Nope. I hate riding solo. I will do it when I have to, but I don't enjoy it nearly as much as a group ride. Now I DO enjoy solo riding about a million times more than riding the trainer though, so there's that...

FLvector

Weeknights after work I often ride alone, sometimes intervals or other times just tempo. It is great therapy to get out to unwind, get a good workout, then back to the real world. On weekend mornings and one night per week are riding with groups. Not always the same group since I like to mix things up a bit. There's several groups in the area to hook up with, so I can choose my pace and level of pain.

Lazy Dog

I'm primarily a soloist for the same reasons. I'm not a racer, don't care about average speed and love being on my own. I'll ride with friends or groups occasionally, but feel caged in when I'm in a pace line.

stlcowboyfan

I absolutely love riding alone. It's my time. I listen to music and podcasts. So peaceful. Don't have to worry about all the etiquette and pretentiousness. Definitely not against riding with a group, but for me personally, it's more enjoyable alone.

stlcowboyfan

yep, you articulated it better than me...I have no aspirations to race. I ride in several charity rides every year with friends or a team from my job, but thats about it.

rms13

I primarily ride solo and enjoy it. I like being on my own schedule and enjoy being alone and for some introspective meditative time on the bike. I like the occasional group because it inflates my ego by getting faster times on Strava while working half as hard thanks to drafting.

Vicegrip

Like riding solo but I also like riding groups. Solo is nice as I ride my ride my pace stop when and where I want. Groups are better in either small doses or small but good groups.

My longest rides are solo rides but some of my most memorable are small good group rides. Never feel lonely as I have a full house and life. They all ride with me in my thoughts.

rpenmanparker 

Solo for me or with one friend just to be congenial. I want to go where I want to go, as fast as I want to ride, when I want to. I am not interested in anyone else's capability or speed or who can make whom suffer. My ride is about me riding. Full stop.

bleui

for me group riding is all about going fast, while riding solo is more about pushing my limit e.g. while climbing

Lazyass

I'm just like you. I'm awake by 0430 and on the road in the country at sunrise. I could just about go a whole ride without unclipping if I want. I like group rides, but that's a 35 minute drive away for me.

milkbaby

I enjoy both riding with friends and riding solo. I don't have and family obligations other than spending time with my gf, so I'm not in a hurry tho most times my weekend ride starts at 8 am. My weekend group run starts between 5:30 to 6:30 am depending on how far it's going to be.

Riding solo is a very different experience to riding with a group for me. Most of my group rides have a solo component since I usually ride to and from the ride solo.

bt

when I ride alone, I prefer to be by myself.

MikeyBoyAz

I agree with the OP. Taking the time and adjusting the schedule to ride with friends is not worth the energy anymore. I do make the time to ride with the better half... totally worth the extra effort there.

DrIsotope

Easily 90% of my mileage is logged solo. I frankly find group riding often tedious. No one ever keeps the same pace, stays grouped for long, etc, etc. I have my music while I ride (Boombot for life!) and will go out and ride as much as I want as fast as I want for a few hours, whenever I feel like it, without having to wait for anyone or hurry for anyone. Maybe I haven't found the right group to ride with. But then again I'm not exactly looking.

TrojanHorse

90% of my rides are solo too but you just described a side benefit of a "group" ride. You still get to ride your ride and regroup for some light socializing periodically. Works for me. Unless you feel the need to be in a tightly controlled paceline to call it a group ride, in which case I rarely do that anymore.

kbarch

I've discovered that there are plenty of clubs and charity rides and races around, so I can get my fix of social riding if I want, and if I want, it's worth the effort. If it's too much effort, I guess I don't want it so much, right?

But on the subject of cue-sheet or other more paceline-oriented rides, I've found that it's easy, and most are agreeable to letting the group split up and let people "ride their own rides" now and then, e.g., "OK, gang, whoever wants to attack this hill, have at it! We'll regroup at the gas station." That's always fun, and especially nice when the leader takes the less aggressive option. In contrast, it always sucked when people would start to ride their own rides on a motorcycle group ride, because generally speaking it wasn't something that was agreed to or arranged, and usually the leader was among those abandoning the less spirited riders.

OldsCOOL

I ride alo-one. Yeaaaaah, all by myself. You know when I ride alone, I prefer to be by myself.

chaadster

I ride both ways (solo/group) every week, and enjoy both.

I love being on the road alone with my thoughts, but nothing pushes my fitness and allows me to explore my abilities like the group rides. I do race a bit, so I kinda need the group rides, but I really enjoy 'em, too.

Additionally, I like having all the Strava friends from the groups I ride with, I find seeing their rides motivating, and get lots of ideas for new routes and challenges.

mobilemail

I'm 40 miles from the nearest bike club/group, and could only ride with them on weekends only. But where I live are miles of country roads out my front door. So I ride mostly solo, and use the saved drive time for family. There is definitely value in group riding, but it just doesn't fit well right now.
Oddly, I can't talk my trail riding counterparts into burning a little gas to ride in the real world. Bird in a gilded cage?

scplus5

I really need alone time to keep my sanity. I don't really like to be around other people more than I have to. I don't care to ride with others. I want to ride at my pace without worrying about whether someone else is keeping up or if they are having to slow their pace. I like sprinting when I feel like it and taking it easy when I feel like it. I like turning where I want to turn and going where I want to go. I like riding when I can, which is often very early, so I'm not away from my kids too much on a weekend. It's a chance to be selfish and nobody else matters for a little while...I'm naturally a loner with selfish tendencies and its one time in my life I don't have to fight it to make others happy.

tarwheel 

I thoroughly enjoy group rides -- with the right group -- but find that more and more of my rides are solo. I get about half my mileage from bike commuting, which is always solo. On the weekends, I try to ride with groups when it works out but more often than not end up riding solo due to scheduling conflicts, differences in goals, etc. The group that I used to ride with on weekends likes to start rides very early and ride shorter distances than I prefer. My daily commute is about 30 miles, so I try to ride at least 50-60 miles on weekends and most of the other cyclists in the group do not want to ride that far. They also tend to ride the same 1-2 routes over and over again, and I like exploring new areas.

What I like about groups is the socializing and joking. It's also nicer being able to ride at faster pace with less effort. On longer rides, I really appreciate a good paceline.