Tips for Group Riding

I rode with three other guys yesterday to Surf City, NC. It was about 300 miles round trip. I led the group to a Harley-Davidson dealership on Market Street in Wilmington. After that, two of the other riders took turns leading. When we got back, one of the other riders began indulging in the post ride ritual of bitching about how the other guys were riding. I joked with his wife that when you lead a ride, at least one person in the group will be unhappy with something you are doing at any given moment. If you rotate the leadership role, more people get to enjoy the abuse. The key is be safe. If everyone arrives back home uninjured, then as a ride leader you can claim some success, the bitching notwithstanding. :-) My experience yesterday reminded me that group rides are far more enjoyable when everyone follows the basic guidelines for group rides.

The Motorcycle Safety Foundation offers a convenient guide for group riding, MSF Group Riding Quick Tips. In addition to the information they provide in this handy little document, I have a few more tidbits for you.

Ideal Group Size

 I've lead a group of 15 and can tell you it's too large by twice. If you don't have a lot of support in leading and managing the ride, break up into units of 5-7 bikes and assign each a leader. Make sure each leader then designates who will ride at the end of that sub-group. There are many benefits from breaking into units of 5-7. Here are three:

(1) The ride leader attempts to look in his or her rear view mirror every few minutes and account for all of the bikes in the group. It's very difficult to see beyond seven motorcycles. Keeping to no more than seven in the group facilitates this ongoing census. By the way, this is one reason why riding in staggered formation is so important: so the ride leader can see who is in the group. Yesterday, I often had difficulty seeing the last bike in the group because the rider frequently rode directly behind the bike in front of him, a large full-dresser. It was like a full eclipse of a Harley.

(2) If you encounter stop lights or stop signs, it is easier to keep a smaller group intact. Even if you split the smaller group temporarily, it is far easier to reassemble a group of five bikes than it is for 15.

(3) Large groups prevent other vehicles from merging into the lane. For large groups, you typically end up having cages (four wheeled vehicles) merging into your group, splitting it. Using smaller groups minimizes this. 

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