club runs or solo

john74

ive recently been going to a mtb club but i find i enjoy solo rides far more, as the former tends to be testostorone fueled.
i wanted to join a group for the social side of things and maybe make a few friends but a it has really put me off. i like to ride steadily and take very few breaks whereas this was balls out for 5 mins then stop and wait for the slower riders then balls out again.
After inputting data from the ride it turns out to be 2 mph slower on average than my not so fast but steady rides but i was far knackered over a shorter distance.
i wondering is this the norm for clubs and maybe there is other forum members who prefer riding on their own or am i just a miserable git?

mak3m

Nah I'm a miserable git too, when I'm on my bike prefer solo, going for the zen moment in the middle of nowhere.

Off bike I can yammer on for hours

Like most things personal choice

Pork Sword

I've ridden with lots of clubs over the years... due to relocating, clubs disbanding, getting p***ed off with too much testosterone (that's just the Women!) etc. and have found the majority of them to be fine most of the time. Every club usually has its's share of nutters, raceheads, meatheads etc. but I've never let any of that put me off. However, I find riding on my own to be best most of the time as I can vary the terrain, time and pace to suit my own requirements but do attend club runs from time to time to catch up with friends (literally, most of the time).
I enjoy riding a bike first and foremost. That can be on my own or with like-minded people - riding and seeing the great British countryside is all that matters at the end of the day.

Riding on your own does not mean you're miserable, just selfish! 8)

callow82

Never ridden with a mtb club, either ride alone (most of the time) or with one or two friends. But there aren't many people that I enjoy riding with (i.e. similar pace and riding skill/interest to me). I don't enjoy the stop start stuff, or waiting around while someone fixes mechanicals, most of the time I would much rather be out on my own, miserable git I think!

cooldad

Or find some middle ground. We have a loose group that meets via Rides here. All ages, capabilities, fitness levels etc.
Most of our rides are purely social, ride according to the slowest person (normally me) rest and chat a lot and enjoy the day with no pressure and lots of laughing.
Different people turn up each time, new people join, others disappear for a while or for good.
Odd trips to Wales etc.
Sometimes we only have two or three people, sometimes big groups, and occasionally meet up with groups off other fora to explore new places.
No joining or clubs, just fun.

bartimaeus

Sometimes I ride alone and sometimes with friends - but organised through our local website (thanks Scott). The advantage of this 'social network' setup is that anyone new to the area can sign up, find someone to ride with, or simply ask to be shown around.

We always ride at the pace of the slowest rider - so sometimes it's a gentle cruise, and sometimes it's a real challenge (that would be me as the slowest rider), but it's always fun, and there are always new sections of trail to conquer.

Most important, you can push things that bit more knowing that if you lose it you are not stuck on your own in backwoods.

I know there are some groups who arrange rides through BikeRadar - I may venture up to the Surrey Hills and join the "London Calling" guys some day. If you post where you are based you might find some like minded riders.

cooldad

@Bartimaeus the group I mentioned above is London Calling. You are welcome anytime.

butcher of bakersfield

Never done a club ride, but I can't be doing with testosterone. I like a bit of a challenge now and again, but some of my best rides are those on nice sunny days, just meandering along, listening to the birds, appreciating life, nowhere to go, nowhere to be, just going wherever the wind takes you.

Bit off topic maybe...I'm just stoked on mellow rides!

cat_with_no_tail

I'm a billy no mates rider too.

Much rather ride on my own, I find that way I'm not slowing anyone down or being slowed down. I can leave my hose when I want, come back when I want, take the routes I want, at the pace I want, taking breaks when I want.

I have met up with a some of the guys off this forum a few times now though and thoroughly enjoyed it each time. That's a bit different though.

cooldad

I am slow and lazy, so if I ride alone I'll just get to the first hill, think sod it and go home.

Northwind

I like both, not sure I have a favourite really. I tend to think a wee bit more about safety when solo but on the other hand getting out into the hills by yourself is good for the soul.

bike-a-swan

I like both. Especially in one ride. I'll ride out to club rides, which gets me 10-20 miles in on my own early in the morning while it's quiet, have a nice sociable spin, then make my own way home over a distance and at a pace that I feel like. I ride on my own on my commute, so sociable is quite nice, my thursday night rides are more about the social (and cake) than the riding....

The Northern Monkey

I ride on my own and with a group of lads down in Wales... I'm always at the back because Im a slow climber, but I don't mind if they go on ahead.

They generally wait for me to catchup and then set off again, which is fine by me as I hate taking breaks... my knees seize up!

forgotrafe

I'd like to think that our club (www.mbswindon.co.uk) is the opposite of what the OP found.

We're relaxed, don't really care what bike you've got (so long as it's safe), we host plenty of novice rides, low-cost training days etc. We even have our own 5km red trail.

We only started it in Feb last year but over 120 members already so we must be doing something right!

john74

swindon sounds good, im in newbury so 20 mins away. can i join you for a blast sometime?

forgotrafe

You can come join us any time you like - there's stacks of events on the website.

http://www.mbswindon.co.uk/events

We try and have 1 novice ride, 1 away ride and 1 local ride each month, plus we do 2/3 laps of our trail every Friday evening (rain or shine, summer or winter) followed by a visit to the pub. The events diary is usually completed at least a month in advance to give everyone time to plan.

We say to come on a couple of rides as our guest, then if you want to make it more regular it's just £8 a year (which largely goes towards maintaining the trail).
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forgotrafe

Ooops, I forgot the 1 ladies only event each month but given your username you probably don't qualify for that!

john74

no i do have gentleman vegetables.

forgotrafe

And sadly, no perving is allowed

tomstickland

You can appreciate riding alone and in groups.

I've done a fair amount of skiing on my own and it's a lot of fun being able to do whatever you want at whatever pace I feel like, with no waiting around etc.

I'm heavily involved with MBSwindon and we've worked to build a fun social group of like minded people. We spend a fair amount of time in pubs as well as the riding. As Rafe says, we've got something right since we've been growing steadily over the year. Our fastest rider told me that he enjoyed the social rides and didn't mind a bit of waiting around.

We do have some races here and there but it's done in a non-twatty manner.