Group Riding

Group ride format, communication, skills and etiquette

This guide gives general advice for groups riding together on the road, covering equipment, group format, communication, skills and etiquette. It’s worth having a look at this British Cycling video as well.

Equipment

You should always wear a helmet when riding in a group. A flashing rear light is useful to increase visibility, particularly in dim conditions. Wear suitable clothing for the forecasted conditions and make allowance for it to be colder and/or wetter than forecasted. Take food and drink, ideally enough to be self-sufficient for the expected duration of the ride. Make sure your bike is in good working order and well-maintained, with tyres pumped to a suitable pressure and drivetrain cleaned and lubricated. Carry a tool kit with at least a spare inner tube, pump and basic tools, as well as a phone and some money.

Group size

The optimal group size is roughly 6-10 riders. When a group is too large, it makes it harder to communicate, maintain a steady pace, negotiate road junctions and allow vehicles to pass. Motorists find large groups of cyclists annoying, potentially leading to them overtaking dangerously. If your group is above the recommended size, consider splitting into smaller sub-groups.

Group formation

The standard group formation is to cycle side-by-side in pairs with each rider directly behind the rider in front of them. This makes the group relatively compact for the number of riders, gives most of the riders more protection from the wind, and is much more sociable!

Ride a distance behind the rider in front that you feel comfortable with (ideally within 1-2 wheel lengths). Increase this distance to give yourself some more time on wet roads, when negotiating hazards or when descending. Keep reasonably close to the rider beside you as well (you should be able to reach out and touch them) which helps to keep the group compact, taking up less room on the road and moving more efficiently through the air.

NEVER overlap your front wheel with the back wheel of the rider in front. If they move sideways at the wrong moment your wheels may touch (and you will likely come off worst).

Look up ahead while riding – don’t stare at the wheel in front of you (use a quick glance or your peripheral vision to monitor that distance). Although your main view will be the back of the rider in front of you, you will be able to see the road ahead either side of/over the rider as well.

Don’t use tri-bars/aero-bars when riding in a group (the exception to this being a team time trial!), and keep your hands (or at least one) on the handlebars at all times. Don’t use the ‘sitting on the top tube’ position.

Watch out if the rider in front of you gets out of the saddle – some people push their bike backwards when they do this and may catch your front wheel. When you get out of the saddle yourself, try to do it smoothly.

Ride with your hands on the hoods or drops, covering the brakes so that you can use them to moderate your speed if needed. Aim to use your brakes as little as possible: anticipate and moderate your speed by easing off on the pedals, or sitting up and taking more wind, when you can.

Never ride more than two abreast, as required by the Highway Code (Rule 66 states that cyclists should ride no more than two abreast and should ride in single file on narrow or busy roads). ‘Singling out’ is used when required, including if there are obstructions such as a row of parked cars which make the road too narrow for a paired group to pass. If a group member calls “Single!” or “Single out!”, riders on the inside accelerate to allow riders on the outside to slip in behind them in turn, forming a single line. Return to the double file once you are able to.

Group pace

The pace of a group can either be pre-determined when being organised, adapted on the road to suit the riders there, or a combination of the two. No matter what the pace of the group, there will always be some riders wishing it was faster, and some riders wishing it were slower. The important thing is for everyone in the group to realise this and remember it’s a group/team ride, which means working together rather than trying to show off how fast you are (races are for that!).

In a conventional paired ride, the two riders on the front are responsible for the speed of the group for the time they are there. Assuming the group as a whole is happy with the current pace, the front riders should do more or less work (if they need to/want to) by spending more or less time on the front, rather than speeding up or slowing down. If all the riders in the group respect this, the group will find a pace that everyone is (mostly) happy with.

On uphill sections, the riders on the front need to moderate their effort (especially if they are relatively strong on hills) to avoid splitting the group, as the draft benefit is reduced. Conversely on downhills the front riders need to keep pedalling, otherwise those behind will have to brake as they get increased draft benefit. When riding into a headwind, the front riders will need to work fairly hard and keep their turns short. In a crosswind, and especially a cross/tailwind, care needs to be taken to avoid splitting the group, as the riders behind will get much less protection than usual.

Observation and communication

Be aware of what is going on around you. Most of your attention should be in front, but pay attention also to riders beside you (especially when changing lines), and glance behind you periodically as well (practice doing this if you can’t do it without veering).

When on the front of a group, watch out for hazards coming up ahead so that you can warn the rest of the group in good time. If don’t warn about a pothole until you are riding past it, the rider behind won’t have enough time to react. Steer a smooth course around hazards – if you veer at the last second the rider behind will probably go straight through it.

It is important that information about hazards, dropped riders etc. is passed quickly and clearly to all members of the group. Use these standard calls and matching hand signals:

• “Left/right turn!” accompanied by the left/right turn signal indicates to the rest of the group, and to other road users, that the group is about to turn left/right.

• “Car front!” warns that a vehicle of any type is approaching the front of the group. You only need to warn the group about vehicles approaching on a single track road, or when the group needs to take care for some other reason.

• “Car back!” warns that a vehicle of any type is approaching the rear of the group. You only need to warn the group about vehicles approaching on a single track road, or that are about to come past.

• “On the left!” and/or putting the left arm up behind your back, warns following riders that there is an obstruction, such as a parked car or pedestrians, on the near side of the road.

• “Hole left/right/middle!” and/or pointing to the road on the appropriate side is a warning that there is some hazard in the road on that side. This may be a pothole, drain cover, branch, brick, horse droppings, etc. Don’t just shout “hole” as that doesn’t give enough information to the riders behind. There is no need to ‘warn’ people about every flaw in the tarmac, as it tends to make people nervous. Focus on hazards that really need to be avoided.

• “Easy!” is a request to slow down and be careful, for example if there is a hazard ahead (horses, a loose dog, walkers etc.), the group is approaching a junction, there is a problem in the group such as a mechanical, or if the group is breaking up because the speed is too high.

• “Slowing/Stopping!” and/or the ‘patting your hand downward’ signal indicates that the group is about to slow or stop, because of a junction, puncture etc. The group should avoid sudden braking and should not spread across the road.

Hand signals are highly recommended because calls can be missed, or misheard, when there is traffic and/or wind noise.

Road junctions

Take care at road junctions: calling “Clear!” or “Car left/right!” helps riders behind, but everyone should make their own decision on whether it is safe to cross the junction. Remain in pairs when waiting at a junction and avoid bunching up. There is no point in crossing a junction if there isn’t time for the rest of the group – you will still have to wait for riders that weren’t able to cross. Always obey traffic lights and signs (Highway Code rules 69 and 71).

Other road users

Remember to show consideration for other road users. When approaching a horse and rider, the group should slow down, call out to make sure the rider knows you are there, and pass wide and slow (Highway Code rules 214 and 215). Let pedestrians know that you are there when appropriate, especially when riding on shared use paths when you must give way to them if necessary.

Group etiquette

A group ride is generally a social event and not a race! The pace of the group should be chosen to be comfortable for all the riders in the group. If a rider gets dropped, for example on a hill, the group should wait for them and make sure they are ok before continuing.

Keep your pace the same as the rider next to you, rather than ‘half wheeling’ or constantly pushing ahead.

An important group riding skill is empathy with the riders around you. Who is comfortable with the pace, and who is finding it more difficult? Is the rider who is supposed to be directly behind you struggling to hold your wheel? A group ride is teamwork!

Ride smoothly and predictably when in a group. Avoid sudden turns and braking and warn other people of what you are going to do.

If a rider has a mechanical or other issue, the group should stop and help to fix it. Never leave people behind!

Taking turns at the front

All members of the group should take turns on the front, which helps the group to move along at a faster pace than a lone rider. It also helps all group members to feel involved and have a say in the group pace. There are three ways to change the riders at the front of a group: one for everyday riding and two others that can be used by faster groups.

1. In a normal paired group ride, the rider on the outside at the front lets the rider next to them know they are about to change, then accelerates slightly (just enough to gain one bike length) and moves over in front of the nearside rider (called ‘going through’), before easing back to the group pace. The outside riders then move up to form new pairs, and the last rider on the inside moves to the outside to reform into pairs. If there is an odd number of riders, there will be a single rider at the back who normally stays on the inside. Riders changing lines should look before they move.

The group remains in this formation until the next change, which may be for several minutes (the time is either pre-arranged or is determined by the front outside rider, who can extend their ‘turn’ if they are feeling strong or cut it short otherwise).

In a strong crosswind from the right, it may make sense to reverse the rotation direction so that the riders accelerating are more protected from the wind. In this case the inside rider moves forwards and out to join the front of the outside line.

A struggling rider can remain at the back of the group, in which case they should let the others in the group know. The rider remains at the back on the inside and calls “Your wheel!” to the rider in front of them to indicate they should move to the outside instead of the struggling rider.

2. A group (usually of 6 or more) looking to ride fast, or in a strong wind, may choose to ride ‘through and off’ in a rotating paceline (also sometimes called ‘chaingang’). In this case the rotation is continuous, with the one line of riders (usually the one on the outside) moving slightly faster than the other. The rider at the back of the slower line accelerates as the last rider in the faster line passes, joining the back of the faster line and moving forward with it. When reaching the front of the faster line, the rider moves across smoothly (without accelerating further) to the front of the slower line and then soft pedals or coasts to slow to the pace of the slower line. It takes practice to do this smoothly, with the common mistake being to accelerate when moving across at the front, which breaks the group cohesion. Doing this deliberately to try and make the group go faster is counter-productive – a rotating paceline can only go as fast as the slowest rider – and only serves to annoy the other people in the group.

Rotating paceline is used by a small breakaway or chasing group in a road race – it works because every rider has to contribute to the group pace and it is obvious if anyone is ‘sandbagging’ and doing less work. Conversely, it doesn’t work if the riders are of unequal strength – a weaker rider leaves a gap in front of them, making it even harder for themselves and meaning the group doesn’t rotate effectively.

Usually, the faster line of riders is on the outside (anti-clockwise rotation), but if there is a cross/headwind from the right the rotation can be reversed (clockwise) so that the slower line is the one exposed to the wind. See this British Cycling video for more information.

A struggling rider can also remain at the back of a rotating paceline (this is the only way to do less work in this configuration), in which case because of the fast and continuous movement it is vital that this is communicated to the others in the group using the same method as above.

3. A group (usually between 4-8 but works with as few as 2) looking to ride fast may choose to ride in a single paceline or team timetrial (TTT) formation (confusingly, this is also referred to as ‘chaingang’!). In this case the riders form a single line, with each rider spending typically 30-45 seconds on the front and riding hard. When they have finished their turn on the front, the rider checks over their right shoulder and signals with their left elbow before moving out to the right. They then slow a little to let the rest of the group overtake them. Once near the back of the line they accelerate and rejoin the line. The trick is not to slow down too much or accelerate too late! The new rider on the front will need to increase power once they hit the wind but not ride faster – keep riding at the average pace of the group.

The slowing rider usually moves to the outside of the line, but if there is a strong wind from the left, they can move that way instead, giving the rest of the riders some shelter.

Riders can vary how much work they do in a single paceline by spending more or less time on the front compared with other riders. They can also remain at the back by leaving a gap for the slowing rider to slot into – point to the gap and call “Your wheel!”.

This formation is used in team time trial races (and on the track in the team pursuit) because the team can decide who will spend longer on the front (and hence do more work), both before and during the race. It’s by far the fastest way for a small group of riders of unequal ability to ride (something not understood by many clubs, who try to ride ‘through and off’, almost immediately exposing the weaker riders).