Riding Alone or With A Group?

When I bought my 2005 Roadglide it was "gently used."  It was originally sold to someone in October of 2004.  They immediately spent a lot of money adding extra chrome, new pipes, seat, etc., like everyone else does....and then they evidently decided that they didn't much like to ride.  When I got it in April, 2005, it had 401 miles on the odometer.  Three days after I bought it I brought it back in for its 1000 mile maintenance.  Two weeks later, I was back for my oil change at 3000 miles.  I really like to ride.

That is where you have to start when thinking about riding alone or with a group.  How has God shaped you?  Are you a leader or a follower?  Do you like challenge and adventure or do you just like camaraderie and being part of a group identity?  Or maybe you like a little of both and like to mix things up a bit.

I find riding by myself to be a very different experience than riding with a group.  Riding by myself always feels safer.  I have the whole lane to myself.  I watch the traffic around me without worrying about other bikes.  Are they keeping up?  Are they falling behind?  Are they riding the way they are supposed to ride?  I go where I want to go, stop when I want to stop.  I feel free.

But riding alone also costs you the fun of a shared experience.  Read anyone's ride stories and you'll see that they are always talk about road conditions, weather, and food.  Stops along the way are always better with friends.

The only way that I know how to achieve both the safety and simplicity of riding alone and the fun of riding with a group is to follow strict rules for group riding.  This is what I think about when I say that I like to ride with people who know what they are doing.  If anyone takes a motorcycle safety course, they will come away having learned the basics of group riding.

In any group, someone functions as the leader or ride captain.  They set the pace and guide the group.  They make the decisions about the route, when to change lanes, when to get gas, where to stop.  The last rider, or sweep, protects the group from following traffic.  They pay close attention to the captain and they make lane changes smooth.  The captain leads with signal lights and hand signals that are passed back through the group.

I think the following keys are the most important:

1 - A long distance motorcycle trip is not a democracy.  We'll stop as a group and leave as a group when the ride captain says so.  We all get our say but the leader is responsible for making sure that everyone is OK, that no one runs out of gas, that speed is safe and that we all get there in one piece.

2 - Keep up with the group, don't lag behind.  It is your responsibility to keep up, not every else's to slow down for you.  We'll ride a safe, comfortable speed to match the capability of the least experienced rider and we need everyone to pay attention.

3 - We'll ride in staggered formation.  The ride captain stays to the left, everyone else staggers behind.  This gives you a full lane if you need to swerve to miss an obstacle.  NEVER pull so far forward that your front tire reaches past the rear tire of the rider in front of you.  At stop signs, let the bike in front of you come to a complete stop before you ride up alongside.  Allow the bike in front of you to completely clear you before you start again.  We never ride side by side.

4 - Watch for hand signals and blinkers to slow down, to turn, to go single file, and to be aware of a road hazard.  If you need gas or a bathroom break, pass the group to the left until you come alongside the ride captain to let him/her know what you need.

5 – If you don’t like rules 1-4, you are free at any time to go on your own ride.  Bring a credit card.  Before we leave we agree on what happens if someone breaks down.  Either we all stick together until help arrives or once we know that you have help coming and that you'll be OK, the rest of the group will ride on.

Riding in a group on a long ride tends to get a bit more complicated.  Several bikes means that you can only ride as far as the bike with the most limited range.  Every fuel stop takes longer.  Everyone has different ideas about where to stop along the way and how long to stay there.  Getting motel rooms gets more complicated.  Inevitably there are going to be differences of opinion, relationship drama, bickering, etc. At such times you learn to appreciate the time when you are simply riding down the road and seeing the sights.  You work through your differences and you come home to deeper friendships forged around shared experiences.  It's all good.

If you're just out for a few days to have fun, riding with a group is the way to go.  But if you really want to go somewhere, you have a challenging destination in mind, you have to be really careful to match riders, bikes, temperaments, and capacities.  Which often means riding alone or with just one or two riding partners.

Your personal temperament matters.  Are you naturally a leader or a follower?  Personally, I prefer to lead.  It seems to be how God wired me.  I also appreciate following when I have a leader that I respect who knows what he/she is doing.  Following means I don't have any decisions to make.  I'm free to just enjoy the ride and the challenge of riding well in the group.  Knowing what it takes to lead actually makes me a better follower.  But I always prefer to lead.  I like planning rides and I like knowing that I'm looking out for the good of the whole group.  My friend Jay always rides in the back.  (It isn't so much that he is a follower...more that he is a very experienced rider and it takes a long time before he will trust the other riders in front of him.)  To each his own.

I say, figure out who you are, what you prefer, and enjoy the ride.