Group Road Ride Ethics

In fact, Zwift offers some great comparisons.
Chaingang = zwift race
Drop ride = Pace parter
Group ride = group ride (Everyone moaning. Constantly. About everything. 😉🤣)

/tongue in cheek

there’s no adrenaline for me. The only sense of ‘woah’ and ‘arrrrgghh’ is brought on by the cars, not the fun factor of trails, roots, rocks and jumpy bits.

Well yeah but that’s not got anything to do with group rides, sounds like you simply don’t get much excitement from road riding. Which tbf is completely understandable.

I’ve been struggling with getting much excitement out of it either recently tbh. I use to get bored around the 50 mile mark. Now after about 10 I’m looking forward to the end. I enjoy the end result, ie getting fit, but the journey there has lost all enjoyment, whether I ride solo or in a group

tjagain
Full Member
Thats certainly posible. My local road club are notorious for bad riding. ERC

You never get your 1.5m space when they overtake and they never warn you they are about to. One day I’LL wobble as they blast past inches from my bars and take the whole group down.

My experience is that All chaingangs are horrible to share roads with

Really!
You'll find the only ERC group ride is a beginners ride, and they don't go very fast at all.
Just because ERC are easily spottable in a group because their kit isn't black like lots of other clubs, it doesn't mean its their ride. The groups are made up of lots of different clubs and some people who aren't in clubs too.

I have never really like riding with the fast group as there are usually more people sitting on than working!, but occasionally I do for a bit, then I drop back and join one of the smaller better working groups, none of which are group rides organised by any club.

If you want to see the number of different clubs that ride around east lothian, just check out the ERC organised TT, you'll find only 7 out of the 26 riders that rode yesterday were ERC, leaving around a dozen different clubs, all of which probably go on the chaingangs too.

if you’re still there- sprint for Waitrose roundabout glory

Newbury really does lack enough signs on the edge of town. The one into Enbourne is good. I like to try and drop the sprinters over the Poggio/Enbourne hill and solo to the line!! 😄😄

Did a Newbury CC ride on Tuesday, it was great only two people!!
You still haven't told me what bike you were riding on the Sheepdrive ride yet. I would guess the Diverge given you username.

Yes I said in another post you guessed it 👌🏻

Lightman ERC are notorious for bad behaviours. Their reputation is shit. If you are a part of them you should address it

Aggressive and arrogant towards other road users. Thats their ( imo) deserved reputation

I have been on the receiving end of aggressive and dangerous riding by groups in ERC tops many tines and so have others i know

Sorry I'll qualify that.

Perhaps there are other groups of numpties as well and ERC cop the blame

Apologies

My posts last night probably come over as more aggressive and unpleasant than intended. I blame the whisky

Sorry

Lightman ERC are notorious for bad behaviours. Their reputation is shit. If you are a part of them you should address it

There's a long running and quite well known event called the Dunwich Dynamo - an overnight ride from East London up to the Suffolk coast, about 200km. It's quite "underground", there's no actual organiser, no entry fee, no insurance, it just sort of happens on the weekend closest to the full moon in July. Feed stations have sprung up along the route, often just enterprising locals putting a BBQ on through the night but the fire station opened up once and did an amazing trade, they raised thousands of pounds for the firemans' charity from selling burgers. Pubs stay open late, the cafe on the beach opens especially early. It's all quite organic and you get a very varied field - recumbents, tall bikes, leisure cyclists, club riders, fixies, even kids or folk on MTBs. There's a FB page for it but not a lot else.

Anyway, one of the larger London clubs got themselves a reputation for treating it like a race - they'd set off at 10pm or so and absolutely smash it, full on chaingang the whole way. Setting off so late (most people are on the way by about 8pm) meant that they were going through crowds of other riders inc people who'd never ever ridden that sort of distance and were on hybrids, and who were rather unused to a large group coming past at close quarters.

The FB page would light up like Christmas about this one club every single year. To be honest, it was a bit of a mix - many riders were just unused to seeing anything like that so to them, it looked dangerous, reckless, stupid etc but to the club, it was simply normal riding, just a bit faster cos there was no vehicle traffic. I never had any issues with them but then I know what a chaingang is and how to ride in one.Every year there'd be some poor club rep thrown into the FB group to "address the concerns" but the club really didn't know what to address - for them it was simply normal riding and they couldn't really understand what (if anything) they were doing wrong.

I think I may have come across groups from the same London club when I did Ride London a few years back. As you say, they were clearly well used to riding as a fast group. However, they were taking no account of the general level of incompetence of the average sportive rider, so were passing far closer than I would have led a group when passing much slower/less experienced riders. We've had a number of "discussions" among ride leaders in my club about approaches to passing our own slower groups when our paths cross on rides!

for them it was simply normal riding and they couldn’t really understand what (if anything) they were doing wrong.

I think this is the issue. For club riders who slipstream being within inches of other bikes is normal and acceptable. For those of us that are solo pootlers its very unpleasant and feels dangerous to be passed closely

For club riders who slipstream being within inches of other bikes is normal and acceptable. For those of us that are solo pootlers its very unpleasant and feels dangerous to be passed closely

Agreed. And also they have accepted the risk involved as being OK for the benefit they gain.

You haven't. You're not getting any benefit so you shouldn't be exposed to that risk.

@crazy-legs

Anyway, one of the larger London clubs got themselves a reputation

WHich one? Not the one that shares part of it's name with the event in question is it?

I was descending with my son age 11 in Mallorca recently and some German bloke started whistling at me to get out of his way, really odd behaviour he got most upset when I continued shepherding my son round the switchbacks.

I may give this offensive group ride a crack again tomorrow!
Hay fever is bad so will be staying in Z2, which means all the smash-wait-coast folk will be looking on in pity as I winch up the hills in 31-32 🤣
Better check the route.

This is the sort of thing that puts me off riding in a biggish group. Sounds like a chore.

But if this is what you enjoy doing then maybe be firm in agreeing what you all want at the start. Just like others have said above.

Shame I won't see you, currently pissed on a train back from London, can't see a ride happening early tomorrow! They are heading to Leckford I think

Agreed. And also they have accepted the risk involved as being OK for the benefit they gain.

You haven’t. You’re not getting any benefit so you shouldn’t be exposed to that risk.

Believe it or not, but having another rider behind you reduces your aero drag, you go quicker for less effort. Not much, but it's a benefit.