Peloton Etiquette

PELOTON ETIQUETTE

Riding in a peloton has rules and responsibilities for each rider.  At the end of the day we are about the safest approach to bunch riding and getting everyone home safe.     The most important peloton etiquette rules are listed here. 

NEVER OVERLAP WHEELS– This means overlapping a front wheel with a back wheel.  The biggest rule of riding as a group.  Should the rider in front need to move left or right it is a sure way of having you and others behind you come down. Depending on your experience you should allow between 2.5 – 1.5m from the rider in front of you. If you are not sure, don’t be scared to ask.

BE VOCAL   One of the main rules to display peloton etiquette.  Whatever is said in front of you, pass it back.  Whatever is said behind you pass it forward.  Never assume someone has heard.  Imagine you are a link in a chain.  Do not break that chain, all calls must be passed to the front person or back to the rear.  And LOUD!  Wind and traffic often means you lose the impact of your voice.  Turn your head back if calling behind and yell!  You make no friends in a peloton with a shy little mouse voice.  The louder the better.

OBSTACLES  Point at and call out obstacles especially if you are at the front! This includes anything that might cause a rider to fall: potholes, loose gravel, road kill (no kidding!), pedestrians, cars even small animals who happen to be crossing the road!     Common calls are “cyclist up”, “Cyclist back”, “walker up”, “hole(point)”. 
 

BE PREDICTABLE  Hold a steady and predictable line to show etiquette in peloton cycling. Concentrate on staying at a steady pace the whole way. If you can imagine someone dropping back and then trying to chase the leaders and then slowing down, its not nice to be behind that person and the ride becomes unpredictable.  If you do happen to drop back, make your increase gradual, when you get around 5m off the back wheel of the front rider start pedalling a little slower.  What we want to avoid is freewheeling as much as possible.  If you do have to slow CALL IT. “Slowing” again in a nice loud voice.

Always be aware of the rear wheel in front of you but look past it! Be careful to not become hypnotised.  

PACE -  Practicing good peloton etiquette also means “You are only as fast as your slowest rider”.  This is why it is called a group ride. Always be mindful of someone getting dropped, this means looking behind you periodically but regularly and listening for signs that there is someone behind you also.  If you see that someone has been dropped, call it “WE LOST ONE” or “CYCLIST DROPPED” so the leader can slow down a little until they re-join the group where it should be called “  I AM ON”  or  “ THEY ARE ON!”  If this happens a few times it is a sure way to know the group is riding to fast and need to slow down.

Should the group be split, the front group can just adjust their pace until the rear group approaches.  The front group should be regularly looking behind as to adjust their speed when they come closer, so the rear group does not have to brake.  As the rear group approaches it should be yelled:” WE ARE ON!” or “THEY ARE ON” and then the ride continues as normal. 

Should you find you’re a in a group that is riding slower than you would like, change your gears into something much harder.  You can still make the ride more challenging whilst riding at a slower pace.  

KEEP IN LINE

Not only should you stay well inside the white line and to the left, but you should also stay directly in a line.  The front rider/s need to see the last rider and be able to see the traffic behind.  If you have a rider sitting out of sync it obscures their vision as well as the riders behind looking forward. Keep in line, keep it tight.  With the 1.5m rules its also up to you as a cyclist to help drivers adhere to this.  This means keeping left well inside the cycling lane.  Not only does it keep you further from harms way it shows good cycling etiquette in allowing cars plenty of room.

HELP YOUR FELLOW SQUAD MEMBERS  Should you have a rider in your group not doing the right thing, ride up alongside them and have a gentle word to them and remind them if they wish to ride as a group they too need to contribute to the safe riding peloton etiquette. Remember that often riding in a group can be quite daunting to  start so be gentle but don't be scared to tell someone how it is.. afterall it about getting home safe and about everyone having a good time still.  Be aware too that same person rides on their own as well, so your gentle word or piece of advice might help them become a better, safer cyclist as well as keeping you and your group safe also.

LEADER  Communicate to the other riders behind you prior to any change of direction. 
Ride safely! You are responsible for others in front of, beside and behind you. A radical move can have consequences for you and others around you. Also keep a even pace.  A good way of doing this is by RPE or rate of percieved effort, often leaders that are at the front rely on their speedo instead of the tension in their legs meaning the slow on downhills and speed up going up hill and into a headwind, then loosing athletes behind them and again creating the surging in a pack we try to avoid. 

LAST RIDER  Normally a more experienced rider to keep an eye on things and to ensure  no one gets dropped.  This rider is responsible also to be aware when cyclists approach from behind and if they do they yell "CYCLIST BACK” and ensure everyone stays left. It is also helpful to yell when the last cyclist has safely ridden through.

SINGLES AND DOUBLES   Where safe to do so the leader can call singles (or one finger pointed up) or doubles” (two fingers)  This means that you can ride 2-abreast.  Even more so the last riders however need to be very aware of what is going on behind them and check behind regularly to be about to give another cyclist safe access to the cycle shoulder.  In this case they would also call “CYCLISTS BACK, SINGLE FILE”

ROUNDABOUTS

The best way to take a roundabout is to take the whole lane, a discussion needs to be had before you depart about how the peloton wishes to approach roundabouts as without a coorindated response from everyone it can be made more dangerous.   Roundabouts in Cairns for instance would be the Trinity Beach roundabout and the Smithfield roundabout.   

The front rider and the rear rider need to be in sync here.  Looking for a break in the traffic that might be big enough for the group and this might mean adjusting your pace. When its clear call “TAKE THE LANE!”  again, relaying any call further down the line in a LOUD voice, always look yourself as well before crossing that line into a lane.  The best way to approach a roundabout is in two wide if you can and as a group so you will take the width of the lane as a car would. Keep it tight as in don’t have the peloton long and split up.  Of course, stop if there is a car turning on the roundabout but if it is safe to go call “CLEAR!”  and roll through as quickly as possible.  Remeber if you are turning right, the cyclists that are on the inside of the lane will need to travel slower than the cyclists on the outside as they have less distance to travel. The aim is to keep the wheels or handlebars in line. As soon as it is safe to pull back into the cycle lane please use an outstretched arm to indicate your intention and resume to single file.

The reason why we do this is because it is the safest way to cross roundabouts.  Even if it means stopping before the bollards to wait for traffic and then take the lane.

On other roundabouts it is up tthe conditions if you cycle other roundabouts in this way, it can depend on the traffic but most other roundabouts can be approached fairly easily still in the cycling lane in single file. Again this should be discussed in your pre ride brief.