On the day of the ride:

1. Arrive early to coordinate pre-ride activities.
2. Leave yourself time to formulate your pre-ride discussion.
3. Be available to answer questions about the ride, mileage,lunch stops, food etc.
4. Bring a current NYCC sign-in sheet.
5. Ride leaders should be familiar with the ride leader guidelines and be able to cover these points in a 2min pre-ride talk.

While participants sign in, take the opportunity to assess their bikes and their suitability for that particular ride.

• If they have not participated in a club ride before,you might casually ask them questions regarding their current riding status:i.e., how far they’ve ridden, what pace etc,and determine if they might have a problem keeping up with the group.
• Although it might seem unfair to turn back a rider at the start or at some point before you get too far along on the ride, it would be more of a burden to hold the group up every few miles waiting for that person to catch up.
• If they are physically unprepared, lack adequate water, snacks, spare tube, pump, railroad pass or their bike is poorly maintained, it would be equally unfair to leave them stranded, even with a cue sheet.

Pre-Ride talk/discussion

After everyone has signed in,introduce yourself,welcoming everyone on behalf of the NYCC.

• If you weren't able to talk to all of the new riders previously, ask for a show of hands of those who have not participated in a club ride before and talk to them about their status before you take off.
• If you don't carry a cell phone, you might want to ask the group who has one.

The following group riding skills should be made clear to all riders:

• Impress upon the group that cycling with a group, as opposed to cycling alone, requires
  special cycling skills.
  
• Safety has to be one of the major concerns of group riding. There is a certain cycling
  etiquette, or rules of the road, which need to be followed.

Describe your ride as advertised in the bulletin, including distance and pace (cruising speed).

• Members must rely on the pace (cruising speed) and ride description as advertised, therefore, the leader is expected to adhere to his/her description accordingly. To deviate from this at the start would certainly be unfair to any participants who planned on doing the advertised ride. Monitor your speed often during the ride, as it is easy to be pressured by riders "pushing the pace." Make allowances for hills. Keep the speed up hills proportionate to the pace.

Announce your drop policy.

• If you do not intend to drop riders, ask all riders to look out for each other.
  
• Also, announce where you intend to wait for lagging riders.
  
• Regardless of the level of ride that is planned, it is important to inform participants what to expect in terms of a drop policy.

Emphasize predictable, single or double line riding attentive to local traffic laws and common sense. Do not bunch up at lights or while riding—maintain the line.

• Failure to do so may anger motorists and other cyclists who may want to pass us and could
  contribute to an accident. Don't allow cyclists to "move up" at a stop. They may do so while
  riding alerting other riders by saying "passing on your left." (Never on the right).

Notify the group that you'll be indicating your intentions by using hand and voice signals, such as stopping, slowing left turn etc., and calling out conditions such as holes, glass, doors etc., and expect them to do the same.

• By not doing so, they might deprive a rider behind them from reacting to a dangerous obstacle and might cause injury or damage to their bicycle. On the other hand, make riders aware of their need to focus on their own in situations such as going through intersections or turns by not always following the group blindly. Discourage riders from "pace busting." They break the ride tempo and compromise group safety.
• If they go to the front, other riders may follow and the ride leader will no longer maintain control of the ride.
• If riders insist on going past the leader, other than where indicated, (such as hills), they should be asked to leave the ride.

The importance of a pre-ride discussion cannot be overemphasized. It lets riders know what you expect from them and what they can expect from you. Try to keep it brief, covering the topics above and anything else that will ensure a safe and pleasant ride.

After the Ride

Congratulations and thank you for leading your ride!  If any noteworthy incidents occur on your ride - especially anything that has resulted in a call to 911 - please fill out this form promptly after the ride and contact the NYCC VP of Rides whose contact information is available on the NYCC Contacts page for futher instructions on submitting the form.

Thank you.

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