{"id":4381,"date":"2015-05-08T10:00:11","date_gmt":"2015-05-08T17:00:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/?p=4381"},"modified":"2018-11-11T22:01:15","modified_gmt":"2018-11-12T06:01:15","slug":"six-tips-for-cycling-in-a-group","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/cycle\/six-tips-for-cycling-in-a-group","title":{"rendered":"Six Tips for Cycling in a Group"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Group riding can be great for your motivation and can help improve your fitness. And of course, it\u2019s also tons of fun.<\/p>\n<p>That said, make sure you know basic group riding skills before you hit the road. Here are a few tips to get you started.<\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-article_body wp-image-4382\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/05\/Blog-Bike-in-a-Pack-1.jpg?resize=600%2C400\" alt=\"Bike in a Pack\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/p>\n<h4>1. Find the Right Cycling Group<\/h4>\n<p>To find group rides in your area, contact your local REI store or another bike shop. Before you join a group ride, make sure you know what to expect. Some groups adhere to a \u201cno-drop\u201d policy, which means that no rider is left behind. Other group rides are more or less races where riders who can\u2019t keep up get left in the dust.<\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-article_body wp-image-4383\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/05\/Blog-Bike-in-a-Pack-Header.jpg?resize=600%2C384\" alt=\"Bike in a Pack\" width=\"600\" height=\"384\" \/><\/p>\n<h4>2. Hold Your Line<\/h4>\n<p>Make sure you are able to hold a line. This means you should be able to continuously ride parallel to the edge of the road.<\/p>\n<h4>3. Be Predictable<\/h4>\n<p>Remember that people will be riding close to you. Don\u2019t overreact to hazards. Pedal smoothly and keep your cadence high so you can adjust your speed in small increments. Avoid sudden changes in speed. Change gears often to keep your pace steady.<\/p>\n<h4>4. Point out Hazards<\/h4>\n<p>When riding in the front, you should alert the group to upcoming hazards such as potholes, rocks, etc. Communication is important. Don\u2019t use headphones when riding with a group.<\/p>\n<h4>5. Anticipate Problems<\/h4>\n<p>Pay attention to the terrain and wind conditions. Be ready for hills and changes in direction. Don\u2019t fixate on the wheel in front of you. Learn to look around or through those riding ahead of you.<\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-article_body wp-image-4384\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/05\/Blog-Bike-in-a-Pack-2.jpg?resize=600%2C400\" alt=\"Bike in a Pack\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/p>\n<h4>6. Share the Lead<\/h4>\n<p>Taking the lead allows others to draft behind you. When you\u2019re ready to leave the front, be sure to let the rider behind you know you\u2019re moving back. Check over your shoulder for cars, gradually peel off the line and drift to the back of the group.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Group riding can be great for your motivation and can help improve your fitness. And of course, it\u2019s also tons of fun. That said, make sure you know basic group riding skills before you hit the road. Here are a few tips to get you started. 1. Find the Right Cycling Group To find group [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":4386,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[25,318,320,66],"internal-tag":[1675],"class_list":["post-4381","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cycle","tag-cycle","tag-rei-staff","tag-social","tag-tips","internal-tag-pre-redirect-cycle"],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/rei.com\/blog\/cycle\/six-tips-for-cycling-in-a-group","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Six Tips for Cycling in a Group","url":"http:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/cycle\/six-tips-for-cycling-in-a-group","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/cycle\/six-tips-for-cycling-in-a-group"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/05\/Blog-Bike-in-a-Pack-3-1500x1000.jpg?resize=150%2C150","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/05\/Blog-Bike-in-a-Pack-3-1500x1000.jpg?fit=1500%2C1000"},"articleSection":"Cycle","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Angela Crampton"}],"creator":["Angela Crampton"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Uncommon Path \u2013 An REI Co-op Publication","logo":""},"keywords":["cycle","rei staff","social","tips"],"dateCreated":"2015-05-08T17:00:11Z","datePublished":"2015-05-08T17:00:11Z","dateModified":"2018-11-12T06:01:15Z"},"rendered":"<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"wp-parsely-metadata\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@type\":\"NewsArticle\",\"headline\":\"Six Tips for Cycling in a Group\",\"url\":\"http:\\\/\\\/www.rei.com\\\/blog\\\/cycle\\\/six-tips-for-cycling-in-a-group\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/www.rei.com\\\/blog\\\/cycle\\\/six-tips-for-cycling-in-a-group\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rei.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/4\\\/2015\\\/05\\\/Blog-Bike-in-a-Pack-3-1500x1000.jpg?resize=150%2C150\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rei.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/4\\\/2015\\\/05\\\/Blog-Bike-in-a-Pack-3-1500x1000.jpg?fit=1500%2C1000\"},\"articleSection\":\"Cycle\",\"author\":[{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"name\":\"Angela Crampton\"}],\"creator\":[\"Angela Crampton\"],\"publisher\":{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"name\":\"Uncommon Path \\u2013 An REI Co-op Publication\",\"logo\":\"\"},\"keywords\":[\"cycle\",\"rei staff\",\"social\",\"tips\"],\"dateCreated\":\"2015-05-08T17:00:11Z\",\"datePublished\":\"2015-05-08T17:00:11Z\",\"dateModified\":\"2018-11-12T06:01:15Z\"}<\/script>","tracker_url":"https:\/\/cdn.parsely.com\/keys\/rei.com\/p.js"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/05\/Blog-Bike-in-a-Pack-3-1500x1000.jpg?fit=1500%2C1000","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4381","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4381"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4381\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":151798,"href":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4381\/revisions\/151798"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4386"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4381"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4381"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4381"},{"taxonomy":"internal-tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/internal-tag?post=4381"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}