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How does everyone feel about riding outside

3K views 25 replies 13 participants last post by  Germanrazor 
#1 ·
Sorry been a long time. So here is my question With some back ground

I lead a local Tuesday night ride have for quite a while now and some of the regular people who ride with me want to start it back up. It like 7-8 riders. I’m not 100% on the idea yet but am thinking it over. So what is the group’s opinion on group riding?
How much distance and time should we keep between riders. I’ve already thought
questionnaire like what we have to fill out at work.

Also most of these people are not working or working from home. Only two of us have any public contact and I’m one
 
#2 · (Edited)
I for one wouldn't ride in a group right now. I've ridden with a friend a couple of times ad TRY to stay the proper distance but it's hard.
 
#5 ·
I for one wouldn't ride on a group right now. I've ridden with a friend a couple of times ad TRY to the proper distance but it's hard.
I agree. The oft quoted 6 feet of distancing is for stationary or walking people. I believe for cyclists, one has to be careful of being in a slipstream of the rider in front. As such, caution would dictate something like 30 feet(?) of separation.

Since 12 or 15 riders can not ride side by side, it's best not to ride in groups. I'd keep it to just 2 riders, although I've been riding solo.

Stay safe everyone and
Best regards
 
#3 ·
I think groups are out as I see recommended distances between 30-65 feet based on speed and spray pattern projections. I think solo is safe, but I read that the virus is being transported on air pollution particulate matter and is traveling far and wide. Not sure if that's a means of transmission. Science just doesn't know enough. My wife is immuno compromised, so I'm not taking any chances. I'm riding on the trainer exclusively for the time being.
 
#4 ·
I've been riding regularly throughout this entire ordeal; either solo or with no more than one friend. At this point in time, I would not consider a group ride of any type, although I saw one this morning, after they opened up one of the area's more favorite riding park. I know there are those that are itching to get back to group rides, but I don't think this is the time; even though many places are starting to reopen and relax some of the social distance rules.
 
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#6 ·
I definitely ride outside. Personally I would skip group riding as it will if nothing else create one more reason for a motorist to dislike cyclist. MTB wise group riding will upset hikers. I socially distance, well even before COVID I think I was pretty good at doing so. Anyways riding outside in my mind would be less dangerous than going to the market which I do, so therefore I ride.

In the end no groups for me because they asked us not to gather in groups. The way exposure works is simple anyone I come in contact with has now come in contact with everyone else I have and me with everyone they have. I do not like the idea of riding even with one other person, unless I have been forced to have contact with that person anyways.
 
#9 ·
Yeah, same o same o lone ranger social distancing rides that I have been doing 95% of the time even before this mess is still the case. No mask but at the speed I ride and not needing any pavement and looking for reasons/places to "utilize" the terrain for personal enjoyment, keeps me far away from any other patrons of the areas I ride in daily. No group rides or following anyone else will happen. I do miss singletrack rides with my friends but they are scattered and those rides not very frequent anyway, hardly as frequent as I would like tho. Wilderness solo rides are a double edge thing of sorts.
 
#10 ·
I no longer ride as far from home and try to be more conservative in in terms of safety. I wear a face covering and strive to stay distant from others. I try to shape routes that keep me away from the busiest parts of the MUP network, especially on weekends.

I have ridden with my brother a couple of times, but only after planning and discussion. His bikes live in my bike shed, but now when he comes over, he never enters the house. I let him into the back yard through the gate and open the bike shed for him.

He gets his bike out without touching any of mine and I re-close the shed. We keep our faces covered and stay 6' apart while we ride. At the end, we reverse the procedure to put everything away. He never touches anything that I touch and vice versa.

It's a cumbersome process and seems silly at times, but it's still good to hit the trails together(ish) and feel we're doing so responsibly. It's not very scalable, though. I might ride with a 3rd person, but that's about the limit.
 
#11 ·
I no longer ride as far from home and try to be more conservative in in terms of safety. I wear a face covering and strive to stay distant from others. I try to shape routes that keep me away from the busiest parts of the MUP network, especially on weekends.

I have ridden with my brother a couple of times, but only after planning and discussion. His bikes live in my bike shed, but now when he comes over, he never enters the house. I let him into the back yard through the gate and open the bike shed for him.

He gets his bike out without touching any of mine and I re-close the shed. We keep our faces covered and stay 6' apart while we ride. At the end, we reverse the procedure to put everything away. He never touches anything that I touch and vice versa.

It's a cumbersome process and seems silly at times, but it's still good to hit the trails together(ish) and feel we're doing so responsibly. It's not very scalable, though. I might ride with a 3rd person, but that's about the limit.
I think we've had 5 cases in our county. Not aware of any in our city. Your little dance with your brother sounds like newlywed virgins worried about STDs.
 
#12 ·
^^ The Denver Metro area i close to 20k confirmed cases, and will crest 1k deaths shortly. Also has a much higher population density than UT. I have read enough about infectious disease in the bad old days before vaccines to take the current threat seriously.

Physically, I'm not worried about getting sick. It's more the high rate of spread and fact that I care about a lot of people who fall into high risk categories. It's important to me to do what I can to protect them and those like them. If that strikes you as funny, laugh all you like.
 
#13 ·
^^ The Denver Metro area i close to 20k confirmed cases, and will crest 1k deaths shortly. Also has a much higher population density than UT. I have read enough about infectious disease in the bad old days before vaccines to take the current threat seriously.

Physically, I'm not worried about getting sick. It's more the high rate of spread and fact that I care about a lot of people who fall into high risk categories. It's important to me to do what I can to protect them and those like them. If that strikes you as funny, laugh all you like.
I wasn't poking fun. You yourself said it seems silly. I'm all for being cautious, I'm just less concerned about people I know who are actually using common sense. At the beginning of this, my wife was wiping down our house with Clorox wipes. I have no idea why. Neither her nor my daughter work. I go to work every day, to my office on the 2nd floor of our new home.
 
#17 · (Edited)
I’m not riding groups. Not while the high risk is still there.

Well, my bike went into the shop just before the stay at home order and mandatory closure of nonessential businesses. It’s still sitting there and it drives me crazy.
I want to ride badly, but those rides will be strictly solo.
I’m considered high risk, so I won’t chance a group ride. On the other hand, even if I wasn’t at risk, I wouldn’t chance a group ride right now......all in a place line....inches off the wheel in front.....a few short feet from the heavily breathing, snorting, sneezing, coughing riders in front of you. Nope!! Not for this guy.

A cyclist friend from 100 miles south of me offered to bring a crew north with a spare bike. A wonderful offer under circumstances of a few months back, but not a gift a I can accept in the new world.

For all of you, please be careful out there. It is possible to contract the virus and have zero.....goose egg symptoms. Thus feeling perfectly fine, you could unknowingly infect countless others.

Ride solo and catch up on some much needed introspection.

Stay safe and healthy my friends.
 
#21 ·
A long, long time ago, when I was working at Coca-Cola, I did quite a bit of my work from home. It was nice because I didn't have to fight the morning and evening interstate traffic to get to/from the office. On the other hand, being at the office, I had getting off of work and going home to look forward to. Working from home, at the end of the day, I had no place to go. :rolleyes:
 
#22 ·
I had getting off of work and going home to look forward to. Working from home, at the end of the day, I had no place to go. :rolleyes:
From what I've seen from family members that are working from home, the days also tend to be much longer work days. To easy to sit down in front of the computer or make "one" last call.
 
#26 ·
Tuning in late but my belief is you can live in fear or you can live. Now let me caveat this with the fact there are those in the population that are “at risk”. But I highly doubt it is cyclist who routinely pedal miles per week.

Regardless of what people are trained to think by the government, this virus is essentially no worse than the flu which is as deadly to some as this virus.

The bottom line, if you feel sick, stay at home and not potentially infect others. Same concept we have been using many many decades with the flu and colds!
 
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