it’s usually regarding a route or portions of a ride or an entire ride...nearly always in a low info/intel area. someone will come across a ride i’ve done recently that they’re curious about. tire size? support? parking/bathrooms? dirt/gravel/paved percentage(s)? difficulty?...i’ve done the same in researching out of town rides. sometimes invites get extended. sometimes not. sometimes bike forums applicable regional forum rides to the rescue with these questions. i know if i finally make it up to the pnw and hit north cascades or rainier or olympic or the like and posted applicable questions about the area, you’d likely be as helpful as always. i probably overshare in the socal forum but i figure someone else probably has the same question about the same area. some of the regional forums are pretty ded. occasionally, the touring forum comes up huge with info. i ride solo about 95% of the time so it’s a nice change for
me. seems like most of the riders I’ve met this way usually ride with at least one other person.
i don’t have any issues playing tour guide if necessary. some people seem to prefer riding with someone that has ridden the area before vs winging it on their own.
meeting up with people ends up being like a forum ride, except on a micro scale.