Group Riding Protocol

Often our TriDoD BB rides can draw 10-15 bikes (sometimes more…sometimes less). With that size of a group, some minimal protocol is necessary for safety. Please observe the following:

• MSF-style staggered formation when riding close, such as in town; shift to two-abreast at stop lights, etc.. Spread out if you want in the countryside.
• Lead, follow, or getTF out of the way… keep in order unless the rider in front of you waves you by.
• You are responsible for the (one) rider *BEHIND* you – at each intersection/turn in the route, signal and *MAKE SURE* the rider behind you makes the correct turn. Be prepared to *wait* in case they are held up behind you.
• If you're dropping out of the group, make sure the rider in front and behind you know you're splitting off.
• Be careful at intersections, none of us run red lights (the guy in front of you will wait for you at the next turn).
• If you don't have 80 miles of fuel left in your tank at a fuelstop, FILL IT UP NOW!
• Ride within your *own* limits.
• Be considerate: if you ride a Laverda Montjuic, ride at the back or bring earplugs for the folks behind you…

• YOU WILL NOT HOLD US UP!!! Get that out of your mind right away… we do not resent novice riders and will always wait for you.
• Be prepared to accept constructive criticism and comments.

By Martyn Wheeler

This is where the group stays together in formation, travelling at the pace of the slowest rider. Sort of like a HOG ride but with no pressure to “keep up.” I'll lead one like this at BB's now and then when requested, or if we have a lot of new riders.

In the “Highlands” paradigm, under which most BB groups operate, the opposite is true. Riders should end up in order of their speed – on that day, not in order of speed capability – with the fastest at the front and the slowest at the rear.

Beware of the bungie effect. If the front rider maintains a constant 55 mph, there will be some point at which the last rider would have to exceed 100mph to “catch up.” Paradoxically, if that last rider also maintained a constant 55mph, there would be no need to “catch up.”

The bungie effect simply means that as riders maintain a constant *time* difference, the *distance* difference fluctuates according to speed. This is a *major* factor in perception of how “close” a group is riding.

Add to that effects of stop signs, traffic lights, and traffic, and the time difference fluctuates too.

All that means that no-one can in practice “catch up”, and that there is no point in doing so. If you get left behind, be assured that at the next turn you will catch up with the rider in front of you. Also, group leaders will (should) halt every now and then to gather the group back together.

Group dynamics of the Highlands style means that riders tend to clump in sub-groups depending on speed. If you're a new rider or just want to ride *with* someone, announce it and there will be someone to ride with you.

“Ride your own ride” means never having to catch up. It also means no-one will be resented for “slowing the group down”.

GET THIS THROUGH YOUR THICK HEADS!!!
RIDE AT YOUR *OWN* PACE…
DO *NOT* ATTEMPT TO CATCH UP…
DO *NOT* BE EMBARRASSED AT YOUR SPEED.
(lowers voice again)

The next few paragraphs have nothing to do with arrogance or macho posturing, although they will certainly sound that way. Those who know me will realize that. They are merely fact:

Speed on BB is not a macho contest. It means *nothing*. I can lap VIR faster on my Guzzi California cruiser than some riders on a CBR929RR, VFR, or similar sportbike. If I choose to do so, I can leave most BB groups way behind at the first sequence of corners, no matter what bike I'm riding. Same goes for a number of other guys. And if you notice, those folks are the same ones who *don't* usually go hurtling around the countryside, especially on BB rides. In fact, if I'm leading you'll see me usually slow down on the straights to let the group gather back together some.

None of the fast guys have ever ridden faster than “moderate” on a BB ride. (OK, I did do one or two “moderate to quick” rides a year or few ago, but nothing even remotely approaching “fast”.) Most BB riders have no concept of what “fast” means. Here's a clue: it has nothing to do with straight line speed, or who you can “keep up with.”

Here's a big secret about the TriDoD…why it sometimes seems to be so little understood is beyond me: You cannot gain respect or TriDoD clique status by going fast on BB rides. You do so by riding within your own limits, respecting other riders, being a polite group rider, helping less experienced riders along (a vital TriDoD tradition), and most of all by displaying a genuine and mature enthusiasm about riding, no matter how, where, what or even *if* you currently ride.

By Dustin Kassman, MSF Instructor

1. Arrive at a group ride ready to ride. This means with a full tank of gas, appropriate clothing for the weather, well-rested and fed, and a bike in safe operating condition. Riding is no fun if you are too hot or too cold, and your friends would rather ride than wrench on your bike or get gas for you.
2. Make sure everyone is aware of the proposed route and extended stops (such as lunch, fuel, and sightseeing stops). It is always a good idea to prepare a map of the route with these stops indicated.
3. The ride is self-paced, ride at a speed you feel comfortable with. No one should feel pressure to keep up with anyone else. In particular, no one will object to you riding as slowly as you wish. It is natural for people to feel they need to keep up with the rider ahead, however, riding outside their limits is the main reason riders get hurt! It is not the point of this ride to have someone get hurt.
4. Ride in a staggered formation, with a minimum of two seconds between you and the rider directly in front of you. This allows you to use the entire lane to ride in and gives you an extra margin of safety.
5. Ride your ride, not the rider's in front of you. Make sure you keep looking down the road and through the corners, not at the bike ahead of you. Set your own pace and choose your own lines through the corners.
6. A group of motorcycles is not considered a “single vehicle!”. Be courteous and allow cars to enter/exit a highway or change lanes. Make sure you let the riders behind you know what is going on (this also applies to other hazards, as well).
7. At least one of the riders ahead of you (if any) will wait at every point where you might make a wrong turn.
8. Similarly, you are expected to wait at intersections and other decision points until the person behind you (if any) shows up.
9. Plan brief stops throughout the ride to let everyone regroup, make sure everyone is present, check gas supplies, and to allow for rests.
10. If you decide to split off from the ride, make a reasonable attempt to alert the entire group to your departure; if regrouping does not happen soon enough for you, you must let at least one other person know you are leaving.