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Sunday Ride Protocols |
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Ride notes: This is an informal ride, and as always, remember that this is a social ride; your safety and the safety of your fellow riders is paramount. As a reminder here are some basic group ride protocols which you may also find useful for your own rides. Safe speed: The safe speed for road conditions will differ from rider to rider. You are responsible to pick a pace that is comfortable and within your ability. There will be plenty of opportunities to regroup. Never ride beyond your limits in an attempt to keep up with another rider! Safe distance: Do not follow closely; leave a safe distance between you and the next rider. It is especially important to avoid following closely on secondary roads where you can't see around the next corner and circumstances can change without warning. Passing: If you must ride faster than the rider in front of you, put your blinker on and pass. If you see a rider behind you preparing to pass, move over. There is little point to passing when riding in a group, however. We all get there about the same time... Lane discipline: Never cross the double yellow line! Always stay in your lane, and pick your line accordingly. Passing: If you are prepared to ride faster than the rider in front, put your blinker on and pass. If you see a rider behind you preparing to pass, move over and give plenty of room. Don't speed up! Stopping: If the group stops, pull off the road completely. When the group starts, be sure to look over your shoulder for approaching traffic before you pull out after the person in front of you. Don't assume it is clear just because they pulled out... Breakdowns: The sweeps and riding friends may stop and provide assistance. It is not safe for then entire group to stop for one rider unless there is plenty of room to pull off the road. Taking off early: It is fine to head home early, but it is appreciated if you let the others in the group or the sweeps know so we don't wait around or go looking for you. |
Welcome to the March California BMW Triumph Shop Ride! We will be riding out on Sunday, March 1st, leaving the CALIFORNIA BMW TRIUMPH shop parking lot at 9:00 am. Please be gassed up and ready to go at that time. We'll have a short safety meeting before the ride, and a sign-up sheet for contact information if needed. As always, we'll have coffee and doughnuts by 8:30 or so. Please arrive a little early and give yourself a chance to relax and socialize before the ride.
This ride is a rather short one, on some very tight and narrow roads. This ride is specifically to practice on the type of roads that one might find in the smaller passes of the North Italian Dolomites, or the little Swiss and Austrian passes. This is in response to several requests for a slow, technical ride, and you can be sure this will be very technical. We'll have a short discussion of proper riding style for roads like this, and all the rest will be practice. The ride is not very long, and we should be back at the shop by noon or a little before. I would say this ride is not for beginners. Experienced intermediate riders and above will find it challenging but fun.
We'll leave the shop and go out Charleston/Arastradero Road to Portola Valley and Woodside, and up Kings Mountain Road to Skyline, then down Tunitas Creek to Lobitos Creek and out to Highway 1. We'll take that to Old Stage Road, which is just before San Gregorio, then take Old Stage to Pescadero. Then we'll take the Pescadero/Las Honda Road to Alpine Road, which climbs up to Skyline. We'll take Skyline north to Old La Honda Road and descend to Portola Valley, and retrace our steps back to the shop. These roads are TIGHT and we'll be going very slowly and cautiously, for the most part. I'd say this ride is too challenging for a pure beginner, but it should be OK for anyone with a moderate level of experience. There are bail-out points all over the place if it proves to be too tight for you. This will be a rain-or-shine ride, but if weather is really, really bad we will take a radically shortened route up to Alice's and drink coffee until it is time to go home.
Please, be sure to stay within the safe limits of your riding ability. This is a social ride, not a race, so always ride within your comfort zone and work on being the smoothest rider on the ride, not the fastest. True riding skill is built on the practice of smoothness, control and a sense of the right line, not on trying to go fast. So as always, this is a leisurely ride, but it is technically challenging so please, no racing! I hope you can join us. Have fun and be safe! E-mail me or call me at 650.966.1183, ext. 3, if you have any questions or concerns.
Ride safely, ride well,
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