^ This

I want to love group rides, but I haven't been on a group ride for well over a decade. I certainly don't hate them, but there's a host of reasons why it's always just easier to ride by myself:

• Safety: When I ride alone, I follow the rules of the road and try to make safety a priority over speed. My experience with group rides is that the group feels that road rules don't apply to cyclists. Then there's the issue that not all cyclists know how to ride in a group, potentially making it dangerous to ride in a group even if cars aren't an issue.
• Motorist Rage: As a motorist, I know it's much easier to pass a single cyclist than it is to pass a group... and that's assuming the group is following the rules of the road. I feel super anxious when riding in a group on a road where it's going to be difficult or impossible for motorists to pass the group as so many roads aren't wide enough to accommodate slower traffic like cyclists (i.e., no shoulder.)
• Questionably Social: Wind and other noises makes it really hard to be social while riding. I often find that I'm almost yelling the entire time that I've tried talking to someone else on a ride.

I do have fond memories of group rides in my past, but I've decided that the only way I'll do one again is on an organized / sponsored ride on a course where vehicle traffic is being monitored or controlled so at least that issue is off the table. Riding as a group on some trails works OK, but most asphalt trails are multi-use and having a pack of high-speed cyclists zooming down a path covered with children and e-devices (bikes, boards, scooters, etc.) sounds like a recipe for disaster.