Sky Ride

[mick1836]

Took part in my first local Sky Ride http://www.goskyride.com/ guided event last Sunday, 16 miles steady ride together with about 20 other cyclists from Stafford town centre to Shugbrough via river and canal tow paths

Any other forum members used Sky Ride?

 

[toeknee]

Yes I have just started them myself, I've done a 20. +. 25 mile ride with them up to now, really friendly, and a nice pace, I have also just received my free British cycling buff for going on the 2 rides.. Would recommend to anyone wanting to try cycling with others.

 

[raleighnut]

The large Skyrides are good too, well Leicester is.

 

[Globalti]

We've done a few and we found the behaviour of some other riders so terrifying that we stopped.

 

[mr_cellophane]

There are a few Ride Leaders on here.
Glob - What was so terrifying ?

 

[mick1836]

We've done a few and we found the behaviour of some other riders so terrifying that we stopped.

Yes Globalti, please tell what some of the 'others' did that was so terrifying?

 

[mr_cellophane]

I did one through the country lanes of Essex. A tipper lorry came round a bend in the road towards us with just a cycle's width either side. The rider behind me was either too close, not paying attention, not covering his brakes or his brakes weren't up to the job. He couldn't slow down enough, not that we were going fast and squeeze between the verge and me, pushing me further towards to lorry. Only time on a bike I have been fearful for my life.

 

[lesley_x]

I like the local guided routes. They've introduced me to routes and places I would never have discovered otherwise. They can be frustrating as because I'm doing the 'steady' rides a lot of folk who don't really know how to cycle in traffic or are completely oblivious to others are on them.

Other than having to hang back and watch the other riders, they're quite good.

 

[mr_cellophane]

I like the local guided routes. They've introduced me to routes and places I would never have discovered otherwise. They can be frustrating as because I'm doing the 'steady' rides a lot of folk who don't really know how to cycle in traffic or are completely oblivious to others are on them.

You should try a challenging ride then. They have the same folk who don't know how to ride in traffic doing distances they can't manage..

 

[Rykard]

I may introduce the oh to these guided rides, was thinking of going on them myself but she might like it too

 

[Globalti]

Yes Globalti, please tell what some of the 'others' did that was so terrifying?

Swerving all over the road without checking behind, racing through gaps, jumping on and off pavements, just general lack of discipline. We enjoyed the rides as a family event because you get carried along with the enthusiasm but at the time our son was aged about ten or twelve and some of the racers were fully grown young men whose body weight would do a lot of damage in a collision. A lot of the dangerous riders were generally not wearing Sky tabards and seemed to be just local lads messing around on their mountain bikes or BSOs and showing off, not riders intending to complete the whole event.

 

[SquareDaff]

I'm a RL on the Sky Rides: just for your info, they're piloting rides of 50 or so miles in about 8 locations this year from around the back of August/Sept and Oct. I would hope that people with little or no recent cycling experience would avoid these sort of distances as common sense should say they're going to be hard going. Might be worth keeping an eye out for these as they appear.

 

[mr_cellophane]

Swerving all over the road without checking behind, racing through gaps, jumping on and off pavements, just general lack of discipline. We enjoyed the rides as a family event because you get carried along with the enthusiasm but at the time our son was aged about ten or twelve and some of the racers were fully grown young men whose body weight would do a lot of damage in a collision. A lot of the dangerous riders were generally not wearing Sky tabards and seemed to be just local lads messing around on their mountain bikes or BSOs and showing off, not riders intending to complete the whole event.

As a Leader, if someone started that on one of my rides I would stop and ask them to leave. Unfortunately, these rides are all held on public roads and in the end there isn't a lot you can do to stop people tagging along and misbehaving.

 

[Globalti]

Agreed these were the shorter city rides, not longer more committed events.

 

[numbnuts]

I tried a Sky Ride once, but I couldn't get it off the ground