Last Tuesday I decided to do a group ride I used to lead. The riders that would show up were usually pretty strong but a little undisciplined. This week the group leader suggested that the leading rider should move toward the middle of the lane to form a bit of an echelon because of the light crosswind.
No problem , I thought. Moving over 3 feet or so will help the draft but not be too dangerous on the lightly traveled 2 lane road. When my friend(the leader) got to the front he moved FAR LEFT and hugged the center line. The 8 of so other riders road basicly straight behind him since the wind was so light. One rider and I road off to the right a bit.
This continued for a couple of miles as I checked for traffic frequently. Eventually I got dropped on a big hill and took the established shortcut home.
Back at the shop my friend and I talked about it for a couple minutes. He seemed to think it was safe because the traffic is light on these roads and that we could just move out of the way when a car came along. I know from years of experiece that car encounters are likely to create a wide variety of problems. No need to antaganize motorist with sloppy, road hogging riding.
Anyway, he seemed a bit mad that I brought it up but I felt something needed to be said. He will get over it.
No problem , I thought. Moving over 3 feet or so will help the draft but not be too dangerous on the lightly traveled 2 lane road. When my friend(the leader) got to the front he moved FAR LEFT and hugged the center line. The 8 of so other riders road basicly straight behind him since the wind was so light. One rider and I road off to the right a bit.
This continued for a couple of miles as I checked for traffic frequently. Eventually I got dropped on a big hill and took the established shortcut home.
Back at the shop my friend and I talked about it for a couple minutes. He seemed to think it was safe because the traffic is light on these roads and that we could just move out of the way when a car came along. I know from years of experiece that car encounters are likely to create a wide variety of problems. No need to antaganize motorist with sloppy, road hogging riding.
Anyway, he seemed a bit mad that I brought it up but I felt something needed to be said. He will get over it.