Group Riding Etiquette 101:
“Group Riding for Dummies”
Tips for being a considerate group rider

As we all know, group rides are fun and a good way to spend some time with your friends, HOWEVER. . . when you start getting your groups together to take that relaxing day ride, it can sometimes turn out to be more like herding chickens unless you are all on the same page with the same purpose in mind, to maximize your riding day by turning minutes into miles. I'm sure some of you know what I mean already. As with any group activity you do, everyone needs to work together as a team to make it flow smoothly.
 
Let me set up a scenario. Imagine you are on a football team, the 15 minute halftime has ended and your team has the ball to start the second half. The team takes the field and is ready for the play, but all of a sudden 2 or 3 of your teammates decide they need to go to the bathroom, take a smoke break or get something to drink, all when the play was about to begin. This would most likely cause the team to not be efficient in playing the game and slow the progress down the field. After a move like that,  you would probably not be very excited about having them on the team and might not invite them to play the next game. 

The same analogy works for riding in groups with other motorcycles. All riders in the group, whether riding the bike or a passenger need to be on the same page to make the day trip desirable for all. I realize that there are many different riding styles, but that will work itself out. What I am referring to are some basic considerations that will make the whole outing flow much better. Here are a few examples of how you can help out the team.
 
Group Leader: Every group of more than 3-4 bikes should have an understanding who is going to be leading the group when planning a ride. This person is not the designated "ride nazi" but is merely responsible for keeping the group moving and on schedule, particularly if you are on a longer ride and are trying to reach a destination by a certain time. He is also responsible for letting everyone else in the group know the route that you are taking so that if someone needs to drop off for some reason, they will know where you are going and how to get there.
 
Punctuality: This is a big one with group riding and is a basic courtesy no matter what activity you are involved with. I've been in a group where the start time was 8:00am and the last straggler shows up at 8:50am. If you are one of those people that "move kind of slow in the morning" then DON'T PLAN A MORNING ACTIVITY THAT WILL REQUIRE YOU TO COMMIT TO AN EARLIER TIME THAN YOU ARE CAPABLE OF MEETING! Hangovers, Partying Late, Not Enough Sleep, or general Lack of Energy are not good excuses. If the ride is important to you, then plan your prior evening to make it desirable to get out of bed, meet your obligations and take a ride that will make you forget about everything else.
 
Having the rest of the group wait well past the start time will not endear you to the group, is not respectful of their time and is not a good way to start a ride. If you encounter an unavoidable delay, make sure that you call someone in the group to let them know that you will not be on time and when you could be expected to arrive. At this point the group has the option to wait a reasonable amount of time or you can catch up with them at the first stop. Otherwise, just make it a point to show up on time.
 
Be Ready To Go: When you show up at the agreed upon start location at the agreed upon time, be ready to go. HAVE A FULL TANK OF GAS, A FULL STOMACH AND AN EMPTY BLADDER. I have been in several groups where it is the start time, we are all saddled up and ready to go and someone announces that they are on reserve and will need to stop at a gas station to fill up. Not cool or fair to the rest of the group that filled up on the way TO the start location. One of your responsibilities of being "on time" includes being ready to ride with at least enough gas to make it to the first stop. 
 
Food: If you suffer from low blood sugar from not eating every hour, then take some crackers or something with you to tide you over to the scheduled lunch stop. Don't stand around talking and then when it is time to take off, announce that "you have to put some food in your stomach" before you go. Take care of these things as transparent as possible without slowing up the whole group.
 
Bathroom Stops: This is a big one in group riding. If you have 10 people in your group, you are going to have 10 different needs for bathroom breaks. This will usually send the group over the edge faster than anything when you have taken a rest stop for 45 minutes, and then everyone is on their bikes and ready to leave and someone says, "OH, I HAVE TO TAKE A POTTY BREAK". That is the last thing the rest of the group wants to wait for. If you have an active bladder, "pee planning" falls on your shoulders, the group leader cannot do this for you. If you know that you have to go every hour, make that a priority as soon as you stop and then again BEFORE departure time. The group leader will let you know plenty of time in advance of when you are leaving. Don't hold up the rest of the group while they wait for you to relieve yourself.
 
Gearing Up: When the ride leader announces that you will be rolling in 10 minutes, this is your cue to take care of all of your personal needs of bathroom, food, drink and putting on your riding gear. Especially if there is a lot of layering going on and the need to put on and take of clothing at stops. So you need to be cognizant of how long it takes you to put on your jacket, helmet, gloves, glasses, ear plugs, MP3 player, sunscreen and unwrap your lollipop or gum for the ride. It seems like in every group I've ever been in, when everyone else is on their bikes, with motors running, ready to roll, there is always one last person zipping up a jacket or putting on gloves, and we are setting there staring at them. Don't ALWAYS be the one everyone is waiting for. Spread it around.

Visiting with others in your group at stops. This is why we take these group rides, to enjoy the company of our friends while we all enjoy our passion of riding. But where the problems come in is that we tend to talk about the last 100 miles before we take care of what need to do at the stop. A good suggestion is to get your gas, drinks, bathroom breaks out of the way, then visit with your buddies. After the conversation is over, you are all ready to roll. 

Riding Style: This is a problem in some groups. Usually when you ride with a group you are pretty similar in riding styles, that's why you ride together. But occasionally there will be a new person that will join the group that just "doesn't feel comfortable enough to keep up the pace". That is fine, we would never ask anyone to compromise the way that they ride just to keep up with the group. That is not safe or fair. But, it is also not fair to slow down a group that likes to ride the speed limits and take away their style. What do you do? If you don't feel comfortable at certain speeds, make sure you find out from your ride leader the directions to the next stop, take your time and ride at your own pace, they will understand. But don't expect the rest of the group to adapt to your style. The fun part of riding is enjoying the pace at which you like to ride.
 
Conclusion: I know a lot of you reading this right now are shaking your head in agreement saying, "we've got one or two of those in our group". We all do. But there are some people that don't realize they are doing these things, and then there are some that don't care. The ones that "don't care", don't get a call the next time a ride comes along. The ones that "don't realize", you can forward this letter to them.
 
I don't want this to sound like going on group rides with friends is supposed to be equivalent to a military maneuver. It is not by any means, and if it was, I wouldn't do it. It is supposed to be fun, relaxing and a way to see the country in the best way possible, from the seat of a motorcycle and share it with friends. We have all been guilty of one of more of these nuances along the way. I know I have. The bottom line is, that we all need to consider if we are a consistent violator of any of these points above, find a way to improve on them and to respect the time of our friends.

Time is something that is hard to come by these days and we want to use it wisely. Going on these types of day rides are usually the only window of riding some of us have for the entire week or possibly the month, and making this time the most enjoyable possible should be very important to all of us. So if we could put the "It's all about ME" aside for the group and show up on time, full of gas, food, water and low on excess bodily fluids at every stop, the group riding world would be a better place. Pass this around to your riding buddies.

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