Was I wrong?
 

We had a club event yesterday of 1/4, 1/2 and full metric century rides. The group I went with, about 25, left at 0800 for the full that had 3-20+/- mile sections. After a mile warm-up the paceline started and as expected some people started dropping off. After the first section there was 6 of us who did a ride through the stop and kept going while others took a break. We worked together and one dropped so 5 were left by the time we made the end of second loop. This time we stopped for water replenish and off we went. Heading out we passed a couple of riders who decided to hook on the draft. At that time we had a tail wind so the new guys each took a quick pull and everything was fine. We rounded a U-turn and started into the headwind with the pace being held at 21mph. One of the new guys is up for his turn and immediately the pace starts dropping. It gets down to 17mph and is held there for a hundred feet when I YELL....pull out. The guy pulls off and we leave him in the dust.

Just wondering if I was wrong for yelling?

Wow. On the 41 there is a thread named "we're going to yell ay you". http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...to+yell+at+you This kind of stuff is probably covered.

I would have broken out in tears.

I've been dropped, but I've never been yelled at. Of course, the only time I'm leading a paceline is when the others are, like me, not-at-all-fast.

It doesn't matter whether you yelled or not. If he continued to take pulls he likely wouldn't have lasted. If a slower rider gets stuck on the front or someone rides slower than the normal pace I would just go around them. You don't need to say anything but it's not a big deal either way.

If you join a group/paceline, you should know the intentions of that group. If you don't like the group's rules, don't ride with the group. I'm not a fast rider so I stick with groups that set a moderate pace and are fairly tolerant of individual skill levels. On a couple of occassions I've gotten in with a group where I hung on as long as I could but couldn't keep up. At that point I'll pull or drop off telling them that I'm fine and to go ahead, I'll meet them at the shop etc. so I don't hold them up. Wrong group or just a bad day, I'm not going to hold up a group ride / paceline. If I want a no-drop ride, I'll join a no-drop group.

Doesn't sound fun at all.

I know there is the 41 Thread, but just wondered how the 50+ riders would feel. We were simply trying to maintain a good flow and speed for 3-51yo, 1-54yo and myself a 63yo riders. Have no idea how old the guy I yelled at was and the other guy didn't join us after the ride.

As to doesn't sound fun at all.

We had a blast and finished in 2:51:21, so not real fast but fast enough to make these legs smart today.

I probably would've either waited until he pulled out on his own or maybe said "go ahead and pull out early" if you were trying to meet a goal in some century or event. Actually I've never yelled at anybody other than saying "nice bike" to a guy walking his bike up a hill in a century :D ......My young impertinent moment when I was in some kind of better shape. That's a pretty fast pace in a headwind and anything should be expected go with the territory in a group that fast though.

He would probably burn out if he tried to cycle through another turn. You might've done him a favor. He probably would feel embarrassed to join you after the ride. If he did I would've tried to explain it to him somehow.

The rider who was definitely in over his head was gone as soon as he pulled out. He was hurting trying to hold 17. It's the other guy who didn't stop at the end even though he hung back about 15 feet behind us the rest of the way. He never took a pull just hung back.

Yeah I've taken my turn in groups that are too fast for me just to say I did it. I sure wasn't with them in the second half though and couldn't even manage to latch onto the group I should've been riding with.....not one my better times in a century although I managed to keep the pace while I was there.

What you don't want him to do is get weary enough to crash you guys out.

Exactly my fear. The slow down caused wheel overlap and brake checking and that is not a good thing. After the ride I checked with the younger boys about the old man giving the yell and they said the slow down bothered them and were glad I got him to clear the front.

I know the guy must have felt lousy but pretty sure he understood once we just kept going away at a good clip.

Sometimes I yell at people like that, though I prefer not to. Another thing I've yelled at inexperienced people about is pulling by effort on the flat, instead of holding the cadence. The front rider mustn't slow in the gusts or going over little bumps because that totally screws with the paceline.

If I'm running the group, I make clear what the goal time is on the front, which is never over 3 minutes if we're trying to move the thing. Weaker people pull the same pace but shorter. If someone new to the group doesn't get that, I'll just come up and tell them, rather than yelling at them. So that's another thing to think about: if you have a strong opinion about something, you should also be strong enough to ride up and talk to the rider about it, unless there's some danger. If you're not strong enough to do that, maybe it's not a problem. If it's a rolling paceline, it's fairly easy to talk to anyone as they go by.

Being wrong is usually determined by your Wife. and typically answer is , Yes..

Words of wisdom indeed.

I like riding alone, but when I ride in a group we are friends and we all know each other's ability. For us riding together with friends is far more important than some mythical "record."

Your mileage may, of course, vary.

Depends on your club and the purpose of the ride. If it was a part of a goal oriented, race specific training then no, you were not wrong. If it was a season end social ride or an ego stroker then maybe you could lighten up a little.

I don't know if there is some kind of accepted protocol for this situation but it sounds like your group had a plan and someone joined in. It was your ride. You are entitled to ride it the way you planned.

No, you were not wrong.

I wouldn't expect a thank you card from the guy you yelled at.

I think you probably already know the answer to the question or you wouldn't have asked it. You knew it was right to get the group back up to the speed at which is was before. And, it was right for a variety of reasons, including the safety of the group. So, the real question is not should you; it is how should you do that. In hindsight, if you could rewind the whole situation, are there better ways you could have done it?

I like that. :thumb:

Dagnabbit, hadn't thought about. :(

please PULL OUT! Yup, that would have been better. :lol:

I would have said "on your left" and gone around him. The rest would normally follow you.

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13"

I find this really irritating. Is it really necessary? After all this is a biking, not a religious forum, so I don't really care if the supernatural strengthens you. I don't mean to be offensive, but I find your tag line offensive.

Maybe there's more than meets the eye here.

If this were simply a cookie/charity ride, then you done fine. I for one always ask for permission to join what looks like an organized paceline. I've not always been given permission, which is fine as I would have slowed them down.

If this were a timed competitive event, then perhaps you were wrong. The rider was trying to improve his own time. Does Cavendish ask for permission to join a sprintline being formed by an opposing team? Isn't it the group's responsibility just to deal with it?

It kind of smacks of the Cinzano treatment if this were a competitive event.

I would say this.

Was this "club event" a race? If yes, then I'd say not wrong.
Was it a social ride? If yes, then I'd say you could have been more polite and/or different.