Riding solo
 

Humans are social creatures and I'm no exception, and that's why I like riding with groups. Plus I find that I push myself much harder with group rides than alone (despite drafting). Even when I'm redlining and silently pleading for a red light or for the group to slow down, I really wouldn't have it any other way. But I see a lot of posters here ride alone... I'm curious, how do you keep up the motivation to go it alone?

I try to catch up to people that I see on the road in front of me, do the same route and try to improve times, listen to music and enjoy the scenery, pretend someone is watching and cares how fast I am going... basically just play games in my mind to stay motivated to improve. Then there are times when the wind kicks my a$$ and I return home early, like Monday...

I was doing about 50/50 split between solo rides and group rides.

Oh, that's easy.

I have a blog, so I know tons of people are watching my every move :)

Can't say I've ever had a problem with motivation. Whether I'm fast, slow, or just trying to cover distance or elevation, I'm always riding my own ride and enjoying the cycling Zen.

No blog here, but I just got a new strava cycling app on my iphone so even if I'm riding alone, I can always post my rides on facebook. That might be a good motivator :) the only problem is that it's accuracy is just about nonexistent.

During the week I just get out and hammer. I couldn't do that in a group, at least I couldn't set my own pace, determine when I'd start & finish, hammer & recover. It's more spontaneous that way too... for instance today the wind was into my face for the outward leg so I decided to try & improve my FTP. (Yay, I did it, now I want to puke). For longer weekend rides, I just focus on my output and daydream. I can't imagine that I'd be chatting if I was in a group so the social aspect would have to come in before & after the ride and I'm usually pretty spent after. I would ride in groups if I could find one that was riding when & where I ride. Until then I can do it alone.

I am with people all day long. Listening to their problems, providing guidance, wishing they would stop their whining, etc.. Alone time on the bike is the motivation and allows for decompression.

That's a silly question, no offense. There's no accounting for taste. I like Bach and not Mozart, and I like Indian food but not pasta as much, and, either way, I can't really explain why ... it's just stuff that does it for me. Same goes with solo riding. I'm motivated to do it because I enjoy it.

But if that's not a good enough answer, a photo is worth a thousand words, and each of these came from solo rides that no one else wanted to join me on.

http://landscapephoto.us/Events/Icic...k/DSC01164.jpg

http://landscapephoto.us/Events/Leav...p/DSC00933.jpg

http://landscapephoto.us/Events/Leav...p/DSC00967.jpg

http://landscapephoto.us/Events/Rain...s/DSC01534.jpg

http://landscapephoto.us/Events/Cash...y/DSC01815.jpg

Plus I don't have to look at some other guy's butt or listen to anyone's problems.

My main motivation is health. Second is seeing myself get better. I also enjoy setting goals and meeting them. I have a yearly milage goal I'm hoping to hit. also have monthly goals. Yesterday I wasn't totally motivated to go ride but I was 20 miles short of my goal of 600 for the month so I went for a ride. Clearly it was motivation enough. Oh, and so far, I've done all my miles solo which is about 5500 since in started about 20 months ago. I enjoy the freedom of solo rides: go when I want, where I want, as fast or slow as I want, change mid-ride as I want, etc.

Strava and garmin connect have been huge for me, I am not trying to beat others, the goal is to get better each ride. Even on bad days I will force myself to get a PR on a minimum of 2 segments.

I am too slow for group rides, and dont have schedule that will accommodate a set ride. But I found the motivation to ride to be easy, and the motivation to push each time to beat myself to be easy. Its the motivation to push myself in a rough head wind to be my downfall.

No offense taken. I can see how my question would seem silly if you live there. Not trying to be a smart ass here, just saying you're lucky to ride out of your garage and have views like this.

+1 on catching the person in front of me, it's never let me down. I even made a friend on one ride when I caught him, and he introduced me to the club I now ride with every Thursday! :)

I try to pass the person in front of me. Most of the time it's a guy that I pass and when they see me passing, they tend to bike harder and pass me. Also, I try to beat my time on strava.

Motivation? cycling itself is fun and just being on the bike is enough motive

I like going when I feel like it, and I almost never end up taking the route I intended when I left, so it is easier alone. I can also monitor progress better, as it is all on me.

sometimes hard to get motivated to actually get the bike out the door, but once I hit the pavement motivation is no problem. I just really enjoy it.

I really don't understand how a person has no motivation if they can't ride in a group. You have everything from making a new best time to catching the person off in the distance to climbing that monster hill.(again and again) This weekend I was doing a usual route. I ride a C & V steel bike with a 52/40/32 triple and a 14-16-18-21-24 freewheel. Typically on this route I have to go onto to 32 ring on some of the hills and climbs. Not this weekend. I was staying on the 40 and on the 21 or 24. I got to the base of the steepest hill and tried to dump onto the 32 ring and it would not go there! I said, "that is life but I am not turning around!" I HTFU'd and made it up the hill on the 40 ring.

There is plenty of motivation out there without a group.

Now if you are talking about training that is another story. When I am on the bike all I want to do is ride as fast as I can then take a rest. Then repeat, and repeat again. So my training is done in spin classes at the gym with an instructor barking out orders. That is a lot more effective for me than trying to train on my own.

I'm definitely faster when people are ahead of me, even if it's obvious I'll catch them.

Riding solo has its place, riding with a group has its place. If you have specific wattage/HR/time goals as part of a structured training plan, it's very hard to hit those targets in a group ride. On the other hand, I can push myself so much harder to hang onto a wheel than I ever could staring at a Garmin display. Plus, you'll never develop pack skills on a solo ride.

All of us kids, (six of us), were raised by our parents to be "independent". I don't ride in groups because I would be a danger to the group's safety. The motivation I have to cycle is primarily for the health/fitness benefits, challenging myself, and exploring new places at my own pace, be it fast or slow.

Your photos are killing me. I used to live in Maple Valley, now I am in Chicago and riding just isn't the same. :(

I ride solo cuz if I wanna ride I have no choice. my riding partners often live to far away for us to ride together frequently.

Motivation is not a problem because it IS about the bike.

I assume you realize I was joking, right?

I am almost 66 and have only been biking for two years. I ride 100+ miles every week, mostly for physical conditioning. I weighted 240 when I started. Now weigh 194. Not exacly a lightweight, but a heckuvalot better that it was!
I have never ridden in a group becasue I am afraid I will not be able to keep up and I don't know exactly how to ride safely with a group. I average about 15-17 MPH on rides of up to 50 miles.
Group riding sounds like fun. I probably should just give it a try and stay on the rear of the pack if possible.

Wayne