Who's still riding? (Fall & Winter 2024 Edition)

[HwyDemon69]

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Anyone riding in the west end of gta this weekend? I m a new rider and would love learn how to ride with a group or at least get some good advice on how to ride.

Hit the hwy today for first time in my life , felt good kept up with traffic and had zero issues with lane changes.

Let me know . I ll be riding as much as I can until I can’t anymore lol

 

[Priller]

Rode to work today, was plenty warm by around 10, and the ride back at 7ish was easy, too. Weekend is looking fine for taking it easy on some Niagara backroads. Fall colours have been pretty muted this year, but will stop at Queenston Heights to say hi to General Brock anyway...

 

[Baggsy]

Some of the trees are very red now in my neighborhood. Apparently, it wasn't cold enough, for long enough.
I did a trip last weekend, and should pull the dashcam recordings before we go out again on Sunday.

 

[Malks]

I also rode to work yesterday. Took the scenic route again because, why not! A little chilly at first and there was still frost on the ground in shaded areas until about 11am.

 

[Priller]

I also rode to work yesterday. Took the scenic route again because, why not! A little chilly at first and there was still frost on the ground in shaded areas until about 11am.

View attachment 70488

Heck of a detour, but looks well worth it...

 

[Wingboy]

Forks today maybe.

 

[Wind Shear]

Anyone riding in the west end of gta this weekend? I m a new rider and would love learn how to ride with a group or at least get some good advice on how to ride.

Hit the hwy today for first time in my life , felt good kept up with traffic and had zero issues with lane changes.

Let me know . I ll be riding as much as I can until I can’t anymore lol

I’m in Milton and going out this afternoon.
IM me if you’re free.
But otherwise as you’re a brand new rider it would be good to just get some seat time before contending with group rides.

 

[PrivatePilot]

But otherwise as you’re a brand new rider it would be good to just get some seat time before contending with group rides.

I 100000% support this.

Group riding is great. The social stuff when stopped is great too. But there’s a lot of of very real possible pitfalls including other riders who are just plain dangerous to be riding around, the “gotta keep up” or “I’m holding up the pack I need to go faster” syndromes that can quickly put an inexperienced rider way beyond their skills sets, and other possible issues as well.

I’d suggest spending as much time solo as you can while you’re building on your foundations.

 

[PrivatePilot]

If you *are* really desperately wanting to dip your toes into group riding this year, I’d suggest doing it with maybe 2 people tops at this stage, both of whom understand you’re a new rider and are there to mentor you.

Just jumping into a big public group ride with all sorts of strangers can go bad quick. I avoid them like the plague honestly - my wife and I did one about 3-4 years back for a charity that was near and close to our heart around that time and sure enough about 10 minutes in there are crazy people doing crazy things, one girl was standing on her seat waving her arms in the air like she was flying, another was spending more time drumming on his fuel tank then actually riding with his hands on the bars in full control, and there was a few who were clearly out of their league for the speed we were travelling at. In the end, all it takes is for one of those people to suddenly go down and 10 or 20 bikes can all follow domino style situation.

Don’t give me wrong, I do a lot of group riding, but with friends that I trust.

Once you’ve got your foundations built and your skills honed a little, then look into something like one of the many riding clubs out there, the CMC for one example.

 

[HwyDemon69]

If you *are* really desperately wanting to dip your toes into group riding this year, I’d suggest doing it with maybe 2 people tops at this stage, both of whom understand you’re a new rider and are there to mentor you.

Just jumping into a big public group ride with all sorts of strangers can go bad quick. I avoid them like the plague honestly - my wife and I did one about 3-4 years back for a charity that was near and close to our heart around that time and sure enough about 10 minutes in there are crazy people doing crazy things, one girl was standing on her seat waving her arms in the air like she was flying, another was spending more time drumming on his fuel tank then actually riding with his hands on the bars in full control, and there was a few who were clearly out of their league for the speed we were travelling at. In the end, all it takes is for one of those people to suddenly go down and 10 or 20 bikes can all follow domino style situation.

Don’t give me wrong, I do a lot of group riding, but with friends that I trust.

Once you’ve got your foundations built and your skills honed a little, then look into something like one of the many riding clubs out there, the CMC for one example.

I’m not ready for those “Biker Boyz” style group rides lol. Yet.

I will start with a few (if and when available) and work on my confidence and experience first.

Thanks for the advice. This is what I need.

 

[Evoex]

Ride by yourself as much as possible, you need to focus on developing your own skills.

Go to meetups, socialize, etc. But choose who you ride with carefully, many people do not have your interests at heart.

 

[mimico_polak]

I’m not ready for those “Biker Boyz” style group rides lol. Yet.

I will start with a few (if and when available) and work on my confidence and experience first.

Thanks for the advice. This is what I need.

I recommend riding solo for a while before jumping into groups.

Group riding is great. Until it isn’t.

Finding a good group is hard and the pressure (perceived or not) happens very quickly.

I did it my first season and then didn’t do a group ride for 6-8 years later as they scared me so much.

Even now there’s only a small group I’ll happily ride with.

 

[Mad Mike]

Anyone riding in the west end of gta this weekend? I m a new rider and would love learn how to ride with a group or at least get some good advice on how to ride.

Hit the hwy today for first time in my life , felt good kept up with traffic and had zero issues with lane changes.

Let me know . I ll be riding as much as I can until I can’t anymore lol

There are lots of group rides originating in the GTA, it can be tricky to find groups and rides that are friendly to novices.

I wouldn't be scared about joining a group ride -- but keep your eyes wide open and understand the risks and how to manage them.

In a group, or when riding with a buddy, you manage your relationship between risk and skill, .groups and riding buddies won't normally do that for you. I've seen countless developing riders get caught up in the speed of a group, overreach their skills, and crash. Just because a ride is "open to everyone", don't assume that's a good ride for you, many of these rides start tame, but when riders warm up and hit twisty uncongested roads things can get wild.

Don't expect instructional help -- you might get lucky and get good advice or feedback from a capable rider -- you're just as likely to get poor advice and feedback. Ditto on learning by observing -- the chances of learning bad habits are about the same as learning good ones.

If you're on a group ride and it gets too fast or too technical, no shame in dropping out and heading home at your pace.

I always suggest new riders read and watch the videos in 'A Twist of the Wrist' by Keith Cole. I think the book is $20 bucks, it used to include a CD with videos, probably on YouTube now. You can practice as you make your way through the book.

 

[Evoex]

There are lots of group rides originating in the GTA, it can be tricky to find groups and rides that are friendly to novices.

I wouldn't be scared about joining a group ride -- but keep your eyes wide open and understand the risks and how to manage them.

In a group, or when riding with a buddy, you manage your relationship between risk and skill, .groups and riding buddies won't normally do that for you. I've seen countless developing riders get caught up in the speed of a group, overreach their skills, and crash. Just because a ride is "open to everyone", don't assume that's a good ride for you, many of these rides start tame, but when riders warm up and hit twisty uncongested roads things can get wild.

Don't expect instructional help -- you might get lucky and get good advice or feedback from a capable rider -- you're just as likely to get poor advice and feedback. Ditto on learning by observing -- the chances of learning bad habits are about the same as learning good ones.

If you're on a group ride and it gets too fast or too technical, no shame in dropping out and heading home at your pace.

I always suggest new riders read and watch the videos in 'A Twist of the Wrist' by Keith Cole. I think the book is $20 bucks, it used to include a CD with videos, probably on YouTube now. You can practice as you make your way through the book.

 

[PrivatePilot]

I did it my first season and then didn’t do a group ride for 6-8 years later as they scared me so much.

It was an eye-opener for my wife who was maybe only in her second or third season riding at that point. She quickly understood why I avoid public rides and has expressed absolutely zero desire to participate in any since.

The worst part is that a large percentage of the the yahoos and hooligans are generally inexperienced riders themselves, members of the thousand kilometres per season club. So their statistical chance of causing a crash that takes out another innocent rider (who is probably minding their own business and just trying to enjoy themselves) is unfortunately high. I’m surprised it doesn’t happen more often honestly, but these sorts tend to not cover a lot of miles so I guess statistically that works both ways.

 

[mimico_polak]

If you're on a group ride and it gets too fast or too technical, no shame in dropping out and heading home at your pace.

I agree with everything you said, but in regards to this line...just make sure you tell someone on the ride that you're dropping out.

Last thing you need is someone noticing, and then a whole group turning around looking for an injured rider that simply didn't like the ride and turned around and left to go on their own.

 

[mimico_polak]

It was an eye-opener for my wife who was maybe only in her second or third season riding at that point. She quickly understood why I avoid public rides and has expressed absolutely zero desire to participate in any since.

The worst part is that a large percentage of the the yahoos and hooligans are generally inexperienced riders themselves, members of the thousand kilometres per season club. So their statistical chance of causing a crash that takes out another innocent rider (who is probably minding their own business and just trying to enjoy themselves) is unfortunately high. I’m surprised it doesn’t happen more often honestly, but these sorts tend to not cover a lot of miles so I guess statistically that works both ways.

Yup, this was my experience on the first 1-2 group rides.

One of my largest pet peeves is guys pulling up beside me during a group ride. No need for that. It's my buffer zone for emergency swerving.

For me on a group ride, I like to take the sweep position to simply follow along at my own pace. I'm not slowing anyone down, and I'm happy being a sweep.

 

[HwyDemon69]

Yup, this was my experience on the first 1-2 group rides.

One of my largest pet peeves is guys pulling up beside me during a group ride. No need for that. It's my buffer zone for emergency swerving.

For me on a group ride, I like to take the sweep position to simply follow along at my own pace. I'm not slowing anyone down, and I'm happy being a sweep.

That’s what I did today. Had a fantastic eye opening , jaw dropping and adrenaline pumping ride with Phil today. And at the end he told me he went slow for me lol I got a lot to learn.

Thanks for being patient today. I got lots of riding alone to do and I need new tires.

 

[kurtrules]

Short after-work ride to the city of waterfalls

For those interested in the route: Alton Village Public School to Alton Village Public School

 

[PacoT]

I went for a ride today to Algonquin to check out the fall colors, which doubled as a scouting mission to see if it’s worth bringing my wife along tomorrow. Unfortunately, the colours were quite muted.

That said, it was still a lovely ride. I left home around 8 AM, and it was chilly—my feet were cold for half the journey! On the bright side, I'm more than happy with the heated gloves. At one point, they got so warm that it became uncomfortable!
It was nice to see tons of bikes out on the road, making for a lively atmosphere.

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