Riding in a group for the first time

Since it's your first time out. Do let them know. Everyone was a beginner at one point and hopefully they'll all remember that and give you some pointers on the ride. Some basics are:

ride as smooth as possible in a straight line- no erratic left to right movements
pedal smoothly as well
be aware of who is around you and behind
look as far ahead as possible-not just the rider in front
watch for hand signals indicating bumps, potholes etc..
Don't be surprised if you get a little hand or a slight push from behind

that's all that comes to mind right now. Yes...you will definitely be able to conserve energy and probably maintain a faster pace and avg speed. Providing you draft efficiently. Ideally...the closer the better....but that may take some time. You'll notice is a lot if you get some wind in front of you. Pending the group's pace...I say don't be surprised at + 2-4kph. I find that being in a group also gives me additional energy. Possibly just me feeding off the riding environment.

Enjoy.

CdnRider said:

Since it's your first time out. Do let them know. Everyone was a beginner at one point and hopefully they'll all remember that and give you some pointers on the ride. Some basics are:

ride as smooth as possible in a straight line- no erratic left to right movements
pedal smoothly as well
be aware of who is around you and behind
look as far ahead as possible-not just the rider in front
watch for hand signals indicating bumps, potholes etc..
Don't be surprised if you get a little hand or a slight push from behind

that's all that comes to mind right now. Yes...you will definitely be able to conserve energy and probably maintain a faster pace and avg speed. Providing you draft efficiently. Ideally...the closer the better....but that may take some time. You'll notice is a lot if you get some wind in front of you. Pending the group's pace...I say don't be surprised at + 2-4kph. I find that being in a group also gives me additional energy. Possibly just me feeding off the riding environment.

Enjoy.

Pretty much everything CDN said. You will benefit a lot from the draft if you draft efficiently. I would say that getting a 40% advantage is probably an overestimation. Maybe one can get that at fast speeds in the middle of a large and very tight race pack. However, in the likely looser formations of your group ride, combined with slower speeds, I would estimate that you'll get anywhere from a 20-30% benefit of the draft.

Sit as close to the wheel in front of you that you feel comfortable, but DO NOT overlap you front wheel with his/her rear wheel. Modulate speed by soft pedaling and/or moving out into the wind a little bit. DO NOT grab breaks in a pack. Lightly feathering the breaks can be ok at times if you absolutely have to.

Everything said above, plus you'll have to search a little for the best position to draft because it's not always directly behind the rider in front - it all depends on where the wind is coming from.

Even when I am directly behind the rider in front I always offset my wheel a little so if there is a sudden slowdown I will go alongside instead of running into his / her back wheel. Don't use your brakes (except for feathering) because if you brake hard the person behind you will hit you and probably go down - as will the people behind him. And don't stop looking in front of you - I was riding with a friend who was new to a group and he turned his head to talk to me and ran into the wheel in front of him and went down.

Be predictable - don't swerve and try to maintain a steady pace. If you aren't predictable the others won't want to be around you because they'll think you are a danger.

You might want to stay near the back until you get the hang of it, but being right at the back takes a lot more work because the group is like an accordion whenever there's a turn, stop, hill, or acceleration. Most groups I've ridden with tend to split when there's a hill and then regroup at the top because everyone climbs at their own speed - but this doesn't always happen. If your groups just hammers up hills and doesn't slow to regroup at the top and you can't hang, your best strategy is to try to be near the front when the hill starts although this will probably take some practice.

I prefer to ride in a group - it's not difficult, you'll have fun and you'll go faster than you would otherwise. Enjoy.

I find that I'm a much stronger rider when riding with a group. It's not that I'm faster, because I'm usually pulling up the rear, but that's because I normally only really push myself hard when I'm riding with them. Otherwise, I'm usually pedaling at a brisk, but leisurely pace. I'm not really pushing myself all that hard. I'm more just out for "the ride."

As someone mentioned, it's probably a matter of feeding off the environment.

Looks like all the DOs are covered here. Here are some DONTs I can offer:

DO NOT:
1) Drink heavily the night before your ride and arrive hungover
2) Arrive late so the group is waiting on you
3) Forget to bring snack, drink, money, cell phone, tube, air, tools & helmet!
4) Play poker until 5:00 AM the night before your ride and arrive unrested
5) Overdo it. The group will probably seem to start slow but likely they will accelerate particularly uphill. Conserve your energy and try to keep in mid to back of the pack. Rejoining the group will be a challenge if you are dropped. Try to keep pace with the pack. Ask if there are different groups for different paces. They probably have an A, B and maybe C group.
6) Forget to do your bike maintenance the day before the ride. Trying to get your chain lubed, brakes adjusted, deraileur adjusted, etc. on the morning of your ride can mean trouble for you and you will risk #2 above.
7) Forget to unclip ahead of a stop. If you are new to cycle shoes and riding, practice unclipping as you coast to a stop. If you stop and have not unclipped, you will fall over or grab someone else and maybe start a domino effect and your picture may end up on the local bike shop web page.
8) Fail to hydrate BEFORE the ride. If the ride is long and hot and you are not accustomed to the distance and exertion, make sure you have had plenty of non-alcoholic fluids leading up to the ride. You may need to pee alot but getting your body hydrated will help you avoid cramping.
9) Miss eating a meal in advance of the ride. A long ride will burn over 2000 cal so make sure you have had plenty to eat and allow time to digest -don't eat a couple McDonald burgers on the way to the ride and leave on a full stomach.
10) Worry. It's a group ride. These guys ride all the time and it is not your last opportunity to ride with a group (although they may not want you again if you cause a wreck!). Just relax and enjoy it. Occasionally pick the bugs from your teeth because you will be smiling from the experience. Riding with a group is way more fun than riding alone. You will ride faster if you stay in the draft. And it may even seem easy at times. It will take a few times to get comfortable riding in close proximity. Just have fun.

-Fatdaddy

All very helpful posts, thanks everyone I'll keep it all in mind.

Now I'm gonna go train a little before work. 🙂

There will be riders engaging in conversation during the ride and some may be more focused on the conversation than the riding.

Enjoy the conversation, but don't get too distracted by it. Be aware of what is going on around you so you don't get trapped in a bad situation...

I just came back!

Best time of my life;
it was a climb of 1300 feet in just like the few last miles, I was about to drop dead and the team van was right behind me (the slowest guy hopped on, he couldn't make it).

My mind kept telling me "get off the bike you're done" and I was like no freaking way. I reached the top.

The return was the single most adrenaline-fueling experience I've ever had. I was going like 50mph or something stupid like that without even pedalling, just coasting all the way through. I did the 18 miles back in like no time at all, it was amazing.

My front dérailleur didn't work so I couldn't pedal in the return, aside from that everything went perfect.

I am not even tired and I did about 44 miles in 3 hours(stops and all).

I was pretty fast on the flats, there were 5 of us 1 semi-pro mtn biker and 3 recreational guys (all on roadies- one of them older, he's the one who hopped on the van).

The semi-pro guy complimented me, said I was pretty good & fast for a beginner and told me to get clipless pedals/shoes ASAP.

Everyone had like 3-5 times more expensive bikes than me with my down tube shifters haha.

Absolutely amazing experience!! I am not even tired, if it had been flat I could have gone double easy.

Excellent. Sounds like you had a great time. I remember feeling the same way on my first real group ride. Hope you learned a few things. So what was the avg speed of the ride? Was it a little higher than you would have gone solo as expected? Lots of energy savings eh? Drafting is a beautiful thing isn't it??

CdnRider said:

Excellent. Sounds like you had a great time. I remember feeling the same way on my first real group ride. Hope you learned a few things. So what was the avg speed of the ride? Was it a little higher than you would have gone solo as expected? Lots of energy savings eh?

The speed was surprisingly slower than I expected, on flats I always kept up the pace and even rode in front.

As soon as the first hill came (I had no idea) the 3 guys destroyed me and the older guy went way behind me. I suffered for a long time and never saw them again until I reached the top.

I don't know if they were just saving their energies or they are just damn good at climbing.

I wouldn't know what speed we were going but I'd say ~25kph on the "flats"(there was always ascension). Coming back it was insane, but since my front dérailleur didn't work I couldn't keep up with them since they were pedaling and I wasn't.