Biker riding rules of the road - how to ride in a pack Since bikers by nature are a society of ‘nonconformists’ there are very few things that are absolutes among clubs or social groups but most ‘three piece patch wearing’ clubs are pretty close in the way they organize themselves. Citizen social groups many times have no protocol to follow which frustrates hardcore road warriors. Unfortunately, not everybody understands certain procedures necessary to keep everybody as safe as possible so here are a few examples of the way different riders approach this issue. Some groups just say “Let’s go to whatcha-may-call-it.” Everyone else says “Sure, let’s go” as they are swinging their leg over the saddle and kicking up their kickstands. Whoever gets cranked up first starts peeling out and is now leading the pack. I’ve seen the time when this person happens to be the least experienced rider of the pack and he’s just dubbed himself ‘Road Captain’. Usually in a situation like this, everyone is strung out leaving huge gaps between the bikes which allows automobiles to navigate in between them. Then several bikes go through an intersection on the yellow light and everyone else has to wait through the red light. I’ve even seen the times when the ‘self proclaimed Road Captain doesn’t really know the way to the destination and has to pull over on the side of the road to wait for the rest of the pack. When you choreograph a ride in this manner, it becomes dangerous when stragglers attempt to catch up, sometimes speeding through that light that just turned red. Experienced riders, and groups who are used to riding with one another, after a while will learn the riding styles of each other and learn to ‘fall in’ next to the same person each time. They become like dance partners, anticipating each other’s moves. They start learning to watch the bikes at the front of the pack for moves that look like they’re swerving to miss a pot-hole or something lying in the road. They watch for hand signals to pre-warn the pack of an upcoming turn or anything unusual or hazardous in the road. They become like a school of fish or a flowing river, all moving together in one concerted effort. When you have a well schooled club, the Road Captain is a position voted on by the members or appointed by the leaders. The Road Captain is responsible for gathering information on destinations in advance and many times will ride the route ahead of time to check for road conditions, road construction and the best alternative routes to compensate for any changes to the normal routes When citizens see a pack of bikes that are all wearing the same colors, they perceive the bike leading the pack as probably being the President or highest ranking officer, however, on the road, the Road Captain IS the highest ranking officer and will lead the pack by riding out in front of everyone. In some cases the President rides beside the Road Captain. When it’s time to go, the Road Captain becomes god. He has all power, calls all the shots and he’s now responsible for the safety of the entire pack. I’ve found that many clubs end up with Road Captains that have military experience and is already emotionally prepared to ‘take charge of everyone’s safety.’ I won’t cover all his responsibilities in this article, but his job entails a whole lot more than just leading the pack of riders to a destination. Seasoned, well organized clubs use something like the formation shown in this chart when riding. They always know their place in the pack and everyone does their job, understanding they can’t think of themselves only, they have to think of the collective pack as a single unit. For everyone’s safety, they can’t think of this as ‘doing my own thing riding time’. However, once everyone is experienced with riding in formation, they become energized and empowered belonging to a precision unit. They begin to draw a feeling of pride from every vibrating molecule in the air – it is indeed a ‘high, rush or yeehaw’ – whatever label you want to give it.
Posted on: Thu, 23 Jan 2014 06:00:58 +0000
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