Thursday Evening Ride

The Thursday evening ride takes place on the Thursday evenings without any time trial events. Check out the Events page to see when the Thursday evening rides are taking place and what time to turn up.

The group meets at the Royal Oak Pub car park, Green St Green, BR6 6BJ (see map).

The pace is sociable, with both Group 1 and Group 2 riders taking part. The ride aims to improve every riders' group riding skills by riding in a dual pace line. This is where there are two lines of riders next to each other, with the two riders at the front sitting there for a couple of minutes before peeling off and letting other riders have a turn.

The idea is not to race or drop other riders, but to cycle as a group at a consistent pace for roughly one hour.

Check out the tips below for more information about group riding skills:

There is no more effective way to become a motivated cyclist than finding a good regular group ride.

Accelerate slowly and with an eye to keeping the group together. Attacks, jumps, short-hard pulls and other race-like riding may be fine for certain smaller rides but have no place in a group oriented ride. Novice riders sometimes think this kind of aggressive riding is better training than a good rotating paceline, but this is a mistake.
A consistent pace is key. Try establishing a pedaling rhythm before reaching the front, and maintain it until just after pulling off. If you're feeling especially strong accelerate and/or take a longer pull but if you do increase the pace do it gradually. Don't forget to pedal harder on descents to make up for the extra aerodynamic resistance.
Go hard on the hills (and elsewhere) but don't forget to regroup.
Wheelsitters are always welcome, but please stay at the back. There's nothing more disruptive than someone who rotates to the front only to slow down on hitting the wind. If you're feeling extended, tired, or otherwise not inclined to pull through there's no problem with sitting at the back, just let the riders who are rotating know when they've reached the back of the rotating section.
Don't open gaps! If you find yourself behind a gap close it slowly. A skilled group will remain in a tight paceline through 95% of an average ride including stops, corners, short climbs, descents, and traffic by closing the inevitable gaps before they become problems.
The frontmost riders should point out unusual hazards of course, and steer the group gradually around glass, potholes, slower riders and such but don't ever assume that you can leave it up to the other riders to watch the road ahead.
The lead riders are most responsible for the group's behavior and must take this into account at stop signs and lights. Don't accelerate through a yellow light unless you know the back of the group can make it too. If the group does get split ride slow until the rear group has caught back on. If you're at the back please don't run the intersection just to maintain contact unless it is clear that traffic is waiting for the entire group to pass.
Don't accommodate elitist attitudes. Perhaps the best thing about good group rides, aside from training, is socializing. Team affiliation, racing experience, type of bicycle, etc. are all matters of individual preference and should be left as such. As long as the rider is safe and able to keep up they should be welcome.
Experienced riders should point out mistakes. This must be done diplomatically of course but it is important to make people aware of unsafe riding, hard braking, cutting blind corners, unnecessarily obstructing traffic, etc.
It's also helpful to meet at a popular, central location. Cafes, plazas, and bike shops are all good places to wait and talk before the ride starts.