Odds and Sods
As this is the last post in the series, I thought I would do some tidying up.
Consideration: I’ve mentioned thinking about (and for) other group riders, but I didn’t touch on drivers. Be considerate of them, too. Keep “tight to the right” and don’t sprawl across the lane, or into the oncoming lane. Pick the narrowest formation, split into smaller groups if necessary. Wave them by if it’s safe for them to pass. Generally, don’t be selfish, be nice.
Communication: A pet peeve…how come I am on rides where everyone calls out holes, stops and turns, but then someone sprints away on a Strava section without telling anyone else? How hard is to say “I’m going for this Strava in a hundred meters or so” so the rest of us can react accordingly? Predictability doesn’t stop just because you feel like a sprint.
Also: What do our calls mean? When we shout, “car back!” or “passing!” what are we expecting to happen? I believe both of those mean, “a car is about to pass, or passing, so this is a bad time to move to the left into its path”. I don’t think it means, “a car is about to pass, so cut to the right and squeeze your friend onto the shoulder”. (See last week’s post about rear radar.) If there are too many cars passing to feel safe riding two abreast, then the call to make is “single out”. My point being, we need consensus, which might mean a discussion, which is all good.
Fear: Is OK. If you don’t feel comfortable trying something or riding in a certain position in the group, it’s OK. My hope has been to encourage everyone to be better, to learn at a clinic or in a parking lot, to continually make the effort to improve so we can all be safer. That doesn’t mean you need to do something that you are uncomfortable with on a ride. It is good to know what you don’t know, and to be aware of your limitations. If you want, you can call it “being cautious”. Discretion is the better part of valour and all that.
That said, don’t manage fear by doing something dumb. On one of the scariest Amici rides I had, the group started down Taylor hill and was going about 55 kph. Out of concern about their own skills or those of other group members, not to mention sewer grates at the gutter, some riders moved out near the centre line to be away from those riding closer to the curb. Did the cars coming from behind wait patiently to pass? Of course not. The cars passed us in the oncoming lane. Now I was watching an incipient multiple-fatality accident in real time. (Spoiler: nobody died.) For heaven's sake, if you are uncomfortable with the riders around you, stay at the back, or stop at the right-hand side of the road, but don’t get yourself or anyone else hit by a car.
Formations: I didn’t go into different formations like how to ride a pace line, how to do “rotating twos”, how long to stay on the front and so on. Some things are much better communicated in person with a walk-through, or on bikes, or even as a video. There’s a rhythm of speeding and slowing that you need to practice to “get it”. Would you like to learn how to do these skills better? Just ask!
Fun: People are different, I know. Some like me are “challenge based” and we like to see if we can go farther, or faster, a.k.a. “Type 2 fun”. Some are social, they like to catch up, chat, have long coffee stops and romantic walks on the beach. Nothing wrong with either, except they are a bit incompatible on a group ride. It bugs me when I’m encouraging a well-organized safe group with no gaps and two guys are messing it up by sitting in the middle talking about the Jays game. It likely bugs them when I’m always telling people to close gaps and ride on the correct side for the wind. Maybe we can be more considerate of each other?
Fundamentals: I have mentioned this one, repeatedly. We can all be better bike riders. We can all learn new skills and sharpen old rusty ones. If we are all better, then everyone is safer. Yet we all make mistakes, especially me. If we all work to improve everyone may be safer, but if we approach rides and each other with humility, self-awareness and open minds, the rides will also be nicer. Which, I suppose, is what Amici is all about.
See you on the road!
Paul
