Cyclists on the road

[Nictrix]

I wonder if anybody knows the answer to this.

In short, are cyclists allowed to practise in large groups on the road for road races?

Long version, most nights when I am going home from work there are dozens of cyclists going up and down a certain section of the road.
This road is a 50mph zone and the cyclists are sometimes 3 abreast going up and down the road, in and out of an industrial estate, and back up the other side of the road. Stopping wherever they like, not using hand signals when turning or going round the roundabouts.
Travelling on this section of the road is becoming awkward sometimes with no room to pass the cyclists as there are cyclists on the other side of the road coming towards you as well.
I didnt think racing was allowed on the road unless officially organised and this just doesnt seem right. Should the police be notified before someone gets injured? Im sure if it was motorbikes or cars the cops would be all over it.

[wonkydonkey]

Some clubs run time trials on the open road. This requires the participants to ride a set route against the clock, with the riders leaving the "start line" individually at timed intervals (usually 10 seconds). The results generally aren't posted in ascending order, thereby meaning that no race has taken part. In reality, although it might sound like a competition, it isn't really any different to lots of cyclists going out for a ride in their own.

What you have described sounds a bit like a club ride along a popular route. As a keen cyclist myself, nothing makes me cringe more than cyclists behaving selfishly. Yes, we are ALLOWED to ride side by side, and often it can help motorists because it halves the length of their overtake. Often, however, cyclists will ride two abreast "because they can" rather than because it suits the road and traffic conditions. Riding 3+ abreast is just ridiculous, and as for a lack of signals...that's just asking for trouble whatever mode of conveyance you happen to be on/in.

[Nictrix]

Thanks for that, it kinda answers the question and sounds like it is on the border of being legal.
It is obviously organised as there are far too many for them just to be in the same area by accident or coincidence.
Its definately not just a ride out as some have the full aero helmets and stuff, to me it really looks like practicing for a race.
The main issue isnt the fact there is a large group which may be a club on the road, its the fact that they seem to be going round a short circuit with them spread out at times covering a large percentage of the road. You have just overtaken a few when you meet more, then there are others going in the opposite direction which limits when its actually safe to pass them.
Maybe I will just have to give them less room when passing in the future.

What actually brought this in to my mind tonight was watching a video of a horse rider travelling down a road where cyclists were passing the horse quite closely on the outside. The horse seemed to be getting a bit nervous when suddenly one of the cyclists buzzes the horse on the inside, apparently hitting the riders foot and stirrups with the handlebars, and was followed shortly after by another cyclist doing the same thing.
Some of these guys seem to think the rules of the road dont apply to them.

[Anmarube]

Wouldn't like to be the third one out in the middle of the road.
Beats me why some cyclist get brave against a car/lorry/bus. Why would you with the amount of idiots in motorised vehicles. Madness.
I've followed cars when they get held up behind a couple of bikes 2 or 3 abreast then pass close enough to make them wobble. Crazy.
I'm not a cyclist but jeez don't use the car as a weapon/bully. A little patience and we can all get on our way.

[Anmarube]

Sorry going off on one. Too many Cobras I think .....

[Nictrix]

Didnt really mean I would pass closer, maybe just faster

[Anmarube]

Didnt really mean I would pass closer, maybe just faster

I was writing my post as you were writing yours and didn't see that sentence.

[SpiketheBike]

As a keen cyclist I also get annoyed at the lack of consideration many bike riders give to road conditions. It is okay to ride 2 abreast, ROAD CONDITIONS ALLOWING. Most reasonable groups of cyclists will have ways of warning each other when traffic is approaching, from either direction, and single out accordingly. We have to obey the rules of the road life everyone else. Quite frankly, cyclists who don't ride defensively need their brains sorting. As for horses, the best way is to approach on the offside, and call out 'behind' before overtaking, so the horse rider can control their horse safely. Me, I don't want to argue with a car or a horse, as I will lose every time.

[buzyg]

Where there is other traffic cyclist should be in single file. I stopped ridding my bike a few years back. It's just not safe on the roads around here, on a push bike, these days?

[wonkydonkey]

Maybe I will just have to give them less room when passing in the future.

I wouldn't recommend this. The minimum legal distance a car needs to leave a bicycle as it overtakes is 1.5 metres, with good reason:

1. Road bike are extremely sensitive to road imperfections. We spend our whole time weaving around bumps and holes. Any pit deeper than 5 mm and we will be steering around it, so we often change our course by 6" or so without any real warning, so as not to get punctures/a shock through the frame.

2. Gusts of wind can easily blow us a foot or two sideways with no warning.

3. The aerodynamic effects of a vehicle passing close by will suck a cyclist in towards that vehicle. The closer the pass, the greater the effect.

Combine these three events and before you know it, something pretty bad can happen. More and more drivers are being prosecuted for this since it was brought in as a law relatively recently. Personally, I don't have a problem with a car passing me only a metre or so away, but only with about a maximum of a 5 mph speed differential and if road conditions allow. SO many drivers overtake on blind bends or crests where their only evasive action would be to wipe me out if a car came the other way. It's unreal.

I would say horses are an even bigger nightmare on our roads than the mix between cars and cyclists. I feel bad for the horses who get ridden along main roads, 60 mph with blind bends, no lights on the horse...terrifying combination for all involved, every time!

[wonkydonkey]

Where there is other traffic cyclist should be in single file.

Where a road is straight enough and wide enough for a car to overtake two cyclists abreast, leaving the required 1.5 metre gap between the car and the outermost bike, I will often choose to ride two abreast. If there are ten bikes out for a ride and a 100 metre straight appears, as the car driver I would far rather have to cover five bike lengths than ten. However, as soon as the roads get a bit narrower, riding two abreast can effectively make it impossible for a car to overtake safely and with the legal 1.5 m. Throw any corners into the mix and riding two abreast can quickly bring all road users in the local area down to 15-20 mph. It's so easy to see why most people hate cyclists!

[MefiEcosse]

I'm regulary seeing groups of cyclists 3 or 4 abreast causing huge lines of traffic behind them!
I get the impression some take great delight in getting other road users agitated!
A couple of years ago I was unfortunate to travel through a town at the same time as a massive cycling event and before I knew it I had cyclists passing me on both sides of the car! At the point where I needed to turn left I had to sit for 5 minutes with my indicator on as hundreds of them whizzed up the inside of the car!
Personally I think group cycling should be banned on the roads without some sort of permit!

[wonkydonkey]

Personally I think group cycling should be banned on the roads without some sort of permit!

If we're going to start talking about permits, I'd go another step and say that anyone cycling on the road should at least have to have some basic training, much like the CBT system for motorbikes. A lack of education is often behind poor road use (e.g. the dire standard of motorway driving in this country) so you could be onto something there. Trouble is, these regulations all need policing, so in reality I don't imagine we'll get there. A little courtesy goes a long way - especially if lycra is your only crash protection!

[Nictrix]

I don't want this to be a rant against cyclists or other road users, although cyclists and horses annoy the hell out of everybody at times I do believe that whether or not it is safe for them to be there they are all entitled to be there.
Bringing in permits or insurance to be on the road would be a disaster, just think about all the kids that cycle around their homes that wouldn't be allowed to do it.
This was more about cyclists using sections of road to practice for a race, not just going one way down a road but both ways making passing difficult.
I didn't know that there was an actual distance to leave while passing and now that I know this a can actually pass closer as I have been giving them a cars width. What is funny though is that you are supposed to leave 1.5m when passing but when cyclists are passing you they are practically scraping the side of your car.

[Dav the wheel nut]

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