How to run a good Edinburgh Gravel group ride
Coordinating an Edinburgh Gravel group ride is rewarding and fun. It’s easier than you might think and people will love you for it.
Anyone can volunteer to coordinate a ride. You can stick your name down for a Thursday night ride, or volunteer to run another ride at any time.
There's no conditions. You can decide how far/fast/technical/etc., although you’ll find the group tends towards intermediate rides upwards. If you're going for an adventure you don’t have to take personal responsibility for anyone — everyone rides at their own risk.
Some practical things
- Once you've got a date locked in, add it to the rides spreadsheet in the group
- Decide how many people you want on the ride, and set the spreadsheet to that many spaces.
- Once you've got a route locked in, fill out useful information about it: distance, technical difficulty, and route notes that might be helpful, etc.
- Ask one of the admins to announce it for you in the Announcements group, or just promote it yourself
- If there's enough people on the wait list to run another group, ask if anyone else wants to organise another party following behind
Here’s a few other things to think about to help it go smoothly.
Plan a good route
Route planning deserves a whole separate topic. We have a whole bank of routes to pick from on the rides spreadsheet and on Komoot if you’re looking for inspiration. Here’s a few things people forget:
Pay attention to the route out of town
All the busy roads and shortcuts that you plough through when you’re on your own suddenly become a liability when there’s 15 people following you. Especially if you’re blindly following wherever Komoot or Strava has routed you. It’s easy to make it up as you go when you’re out in the hills, but it’s much harder when you’re navigating out of a city, with a group that’s just getting settled.
Spend a few moments checking whether the route out of town is going to work smoothly and adjust it as needed.
Work out where to bail out
Things go wrong, people get punctures, or it just takes a bit longer than you expected. Work out where’s a good place to bail out and cut things short if you need to, so you’re not trying to replan under pressure.
Be clear what the ride will be like
Improving diversity and inclusion in gravel riding also deserves a whole separate topic, but one of the easiest things you can do to increase participation is be super clear what someone can expect from a ride.
Less confident people simply won’t turn up if they can’t tell what a ride will be like, even if it would be perfect for them.
It’s not about dumbing it down, it’s about opening it up, so people can make informed decisions. Don’t assume people can tell what the terrain or elevation is like from looking at the route, so make it super explicit on the spreadsheet. If you want to go fast, say so, and if you want to potter along slowly, say so.
We indicate technical difficulty with the three chilli system:
🌶️ = Gentle gravel, no technical or difficult terrain. Think Dalmeny Estate, etc.
🌶️🌶️ = Some spicy bits, such as singletrack, rocky terrain, unexpected steps, etc. Think of some of the paths on the approach to the Pentlands.
🌶️🌶️🌶️ = Some very spicy bits, such as very technical descents or difficult terrain. Think of Dreghorn Drop or Maiden’s Cleugh in the Pentlands.
When you’re on the ride, stick to your plan. It’s easy for a small group of fast, excitable riders to turn a chilled Sunday morning bimble into a full gas race. If you’ve been clear about what to expect from the start then it’s easier to calm it down, if you want to.
Introduce yourself and the ride at the beginning
If you’re riding with new folks, introduce yourself at the beginning, and repeat all the important details about the ride.
It also helps new riders to know at least one name and gives them someone they can turn to if they’ve got a problem on route.
Try and keep everyone together
We usually try to keep everyone together. On larger rides consider getting someone you trust to play sweeper, sitting at the back of the group making sure no-one falls off the back and passing any messages forward if needed.
People who get a puncture/mechanical will always tell you they’re fine and to push on without them. They’re wrong, never believe them. It is very easy for someone to end up on their own in the cold and dark with a broken bike, and that is a dangerous place to be.
Consider holding the whole group, or making sure a few people hang back with the rider so they’ve still got a group when they’re moving again.