The Dilemmas of being a Ride Leader 19/02/2025

I had departed from home, going past a bollard on an alleyway that had recently been decorated for Valentines Day. The artist usually puts a marker pen on a bungee cord for local residents/schoolchildren to enhance the artwork.

It was yet another mild, damp day when the Easy Riders assembled in Weavers Park. About a dozen riders departed on the long ride, 15 assembled for the medium and 3 for the short. I split the group into 7 riders with me and 8 riders with my stoical and steadfast support rider, Jim. We rode out via Mill Park Drive and Goldingham Drive, for a gentle uphill (rather than having 15 riders toiling up Notley Road), then rode via Bulford Mill and Silver End to Coggeshall. It was a stiff headwind, especially across the prairie.

I’ve been ruminating about the dilemmas of being a ride leader, partly because over the last couple of weeks, Easy Riders have had more than our fair share of punctures. Last week, as we departed Black Notley, I had a phone call from riders at the rear of our group, stating they had stopped due to a puncture. This week on our way to Bakelicious, I had a similar call that a rider had had a flat and they were delayed until it was fixed. My dilemma is whether to go back; wait where I get the call so they can catch up; or ride forward to café break/home destination. In both cases, I decided to take the rest of the group forward. Both times, the rider with the mechanical had a competent group of fellow riders to assist with the repair. Additionally, I don’t have the skills to assist with mechanicals; I don’t want the rest of the group getting cold or causing congestion on the road, and also, when there are 15 riders, I aim to stagger our arrival, so we don’t overwhelm the café.

We were glad to see Julie at the café, who as a non-riding member, often comes out to see us. She splits her visits between joining either the short group or medium, depending on the café location.

On the way back, I split the group again (different people so we could have different conversations) and set off a little ahead of Jim’s group, expecting us to join up again as we crossed the prairie. Except, the tailwind meant we absolutely flew along, so we did not re-join. I’d warned the group that we would return via Ashes Road/Long Green, where there was a new roundabout with a short cycle route that I planned to use. The cycle route is only about 50m long, and puts riders on the footpath, presumably to separate them from the traffic, and allow cars that may be queueing to pass. I led the group off the road, and fiddled round to the other side of the roundabout. It enabled a couple of cars to pass us safely, but riders need to have their wits about them to mount the pavement without falling off. I’m not convinced that the narrow and awkward cycle path is any safer than taking full road space and riding like a responsible rider. If you’ve used it, I’d like to hear your comments.

From Millennium Way, we dispersed via our usual routes home.

24 miles, 9.4mph average

Cathy MacTaggart