The HRCC welcomes all cyclists, especially new and guest riders. Although not a "casual" club, we've prepared the following details to provide a sense of the level or intensity and duration of our club rides. Currently, there is one group that has both a "ride leader" and a "ride sweep" although riders are expected to ride at the published pace. If you're not sure whether a particular ride is right for you, we suggest erring on the safe side and picking one of our "flat" rides if it's you're first time with the club.

During the "low" season (October through February) rides will largely be designed for maintaining or developing "base-level" fitness. This will be a lot of conversational to slightly harder riding with short intervals to maintain strength.

By early March (weather-permitting) the club will begin more intense climbing rides in and around Douglas, Jefferson, and Boulder counties. During this time, you can expect both intensity and duration to increase.

As early April approaches, the club will split into two separate groups that will have differences in pace, but route and ride times will be the same. More is outlined on our "Elite" and "Legacy" ride groups further down the page.

Helmets are mandatory…No exceptions!

Aerobars are NOT allowed on HRCC group rides!

Abide by ALL traffic signs and rules during group rides and while wearing the HRCC cycling kit!

Ride Plans and Zones (This is important)

The HRCC promotes structured ride plans with each route to encourage the principles of structured training and group riding. If the listed rides do not include aspects of your preferred ride for the scheduled day, please consider an alternate option.

Fixed Gear Bikes are allowed BUT: only ride the fixed gear bike where it is safe (i.e. up front or out back), but never in the pack. Now with that said we would much rather have you show up on a regular road machine and save the fixed gear for a nice solo ride.

Highlight Road Obstructions

Keep an eye out for the other riders, traffic, snakes, sticks and other objects that could cause issues.

Ride 2X2, where safe

As much as possible ride 2 X 2 and please stop for mechanical problems. WE (generally) LEAVE NO ONE BEHIND ON OUR RIDES!

Ride to suit the conditions

Be mindful that what is considered safe and acceptable when riding solo might not be safe or acceptable when riding in a group. Also please be mindful of the riding conditions (weather, traffic, and other cyclists) so as to keep the group safe. Example: If rolling through heavy auto traffic it’s probably best to not sprint for traffic light.

Ride in a predictable fashion

Close riding demands that everyone be on the same wavelength. NO QUICK CHANGES OF DIRECTION, KEEP TO YOUR LINE. Maintain a consistent direction of motion and avoid weaving. We are on a group ride not a race, so be mindful and choose your ride opportunities with care for both yourself and the group.

Ride a Straight Line

Keep your actual focus 20 or 30 feet in front of the bike. Remember, the bike will go where your eyes go. Keep your head up. Don’t become fixated on the rider in front of you. Regularly glance 3 to 5 riders ahead. Look back carefully.

Signal to others

Signal to others. Provide hand signals and/or yell to signal gravel, debris, other riders, cars, pedestrians, turns, and pace line rotations. Warn others of your intentions. If you need to stop or pull over indicate or shout your intentions and do it slowly. Move to the left or right and yell “slowing” or “stopping” before you brake.

Passing

Always pass on the left. Don’t pass on the right unless you know there is room and the rider in front absolutely knows you are coming.

Be Wary on Climbs (especially at the foot of a climb)

A major cause of group crashes is riders who stand abruptly. They slow for a second, causing the rider behind to hit their rear wheel and spill. To avoid this danger, let the gap open a bit on hills or ride a foot to either side.

Consideration

Be considerate of the riders behind you. If you must spit or blow your nose move out of the pace line enough so no one is directly behind you.

Feedback

Be open and respectful to feedback from other group members. Be a good HRCC member and take the advice. The advice comes from a good place… we want you and everyone else to be safe.

Often, the HRCC will ride in pace lines. For the most part and where legal (enough room), we'll ride in a 2x2 formation. This is often difficult for new riders to grasp and is something that we practice regularly. However, here are some guidelines for pace lines in general.

Pace Line (PART I)

In a pace line or riding 2x2, don’t accelerate when it’s your turn at the front. Note your mph and maintain the group’s speed when the lead rider pulls off. After your own bout against the wind, pull off to the side agreed upon and stay close to the others as you soft pedal and slide back to the rear of the paceline. It keeps everyone as far out of the traffic flow as possible, making paceline riding possible even on busier roads.

Pace Line (part II)

As the current leader pulls off, his or her speed must remain the same before slowing to ensure the new leader an opportunity to safely take the lead of the pack. Once the retiring leader is safely over (typically to the left), he or she slows to efficiently return to the back of the pace line. As the retiring leader nears the back of the pace line, it is very useful for the end rider of the pace line to tell the retiring leader that they are approaching the end of the line. Once the retiring leader gets near the end of the pace line, it is useful to get out of the saddle and bring the speed back up to the pace line speed. This out of the saddle approach serves two purposes. First, it helps the retiring leader speed up and, second, it provides an opportunity to stretch their leg muscles.

Pace Line (part III)

Pulling through–The new leader must maintain the same speed without sprinting, speeding up or slowing down during the first few seconds of the transition. If the new leader wants to increase the speed, then the best results are achieved with a slow increase in order to keep the pace line smooth and efficient.

Pace Line (part IV)

Want more info? Here is a really good pace line discussion which is posted at San Diego Bicycle Club's web site: Paceline Skills I and Paceline Skills II. This is a great presentation of Paceline Skills so we figured linking to it benefits everyone.

Some Final Thoughts on Pacelines

Protect your front wheel

If your rear wheel is struck a fall is unlikely because it has nothing to do with steering the bike. However, if your front wheel is contacted it will often be twisted off line faster than you can react. You’ll almost certainly go down. Help prevent this by never overlapping someone’s rear wheel.

Use the brakes sparingly

Feather the levers lightly instead of clutching at them. Easy on your brakes. Most crashes are caused by someone braking sharply and the rider behind touching wheels with them. If you are getting too close to the rider immediately in front of you, try soft pedaling instead of braking to adjust the gap. If you need to brake, do it gently and gently tap on the rear brake.

If you get gapped

Try to maintain steady speed. No surging. Don’t open gaps. Don’t make things worse by accelerating too hard, overrunning the wheel in front, then grabbing the brakes. Instead, ease back up to the rider in front. If you don’t become proficient at following a wheel, you can waste more energy than you save by constant yo-yoing.

Legacy and Elite Ride Pace – What’s the difference?

Since 2014, the HRCC had embraced a two-pace system to both invite more folks to try our rides as well as provide for greater peer challenges on our scheduled rides. All routes are the same, with the same start and end points and times. The difference is in pacing. All quoted paces are “averages” and are not indicative of a constant speed.

These groups will be in effect from April 1 through September 30 for each calendar year.

Elite Pace

Our “Elite” group will carry the pace at 15-20 mph+ over the course of the route. At times, they may decide to add additional “loops” or distance based on local knowledge of the route. Elite riders are expected to both focus on group riding as well as maintain all rules of the road and applicable laws while riding at a faster pace.

Legacy Pace

Our “Legacy” group will ride at pace between 12-18 mph. This has traditionally been the pace at which the club has focused its’ efforts. For many of our members, this pace provides for both adequate training intensity for annual events as well as the basic camaraderie and “club feel” that these members are looking for.

This group may also serve as a “fallback” should the rigors of training prove to be too much for our “Elite” riders.