Policies for Starting Rides in Adverse Conditions

[Bob CrookParticipant]

I think it would be desirable to establish a policy for how to handle bad weather on our scheduled rides. Right now, if the weather is iffy, there is no clear rule as to if the ride leader should show up or not.

I’ll throw out a possible rule and would appreciate any discussion to improve it.

For regular scheduled or standing rides, the ride is ON if the weather is clear or just very lightly raining with no standing water on the road. Heavy rain or standing water is grounds for cancelling the ride. No ride should be started during present or imminent dangerous conditions such as thunderstorms.

For cold weather rides I suggest that the ride listing include the leader’s minimum tolerable temperature since there is a wide variation in individual’s willingness to ride in the cold.

Any agreed policies should be prominently shown somewhere on the calendar.

For the ERV100, things are different. This ride HAS to go on the scheduled day. It must be made clear that there will be no rain date. (I notice that some rides make this clear on their web sites and brochures and we should do this too!)

Therefore the ride will start even when it’s raining. We could postpone the start in the case of very heavy rain or dangerous storms. We should decide on a no-later-than start time because we don’t want late starting riders to be coming in after dark. (This is already set at 9:00 for any weather because we need to move the first two food stops in time to service their second locations.)

If dangerous conditions exist, we should not conduct a formal start and make it clear that anyone who starts under these conditions is on their own and will not be supported in any way.

The suggested policies for regular rides are mostly a matter of courtesy and convenience so that ride leaders and riders can know if the ride is a go. The policies for the ERV100 are very important since they involve rider safety, possible insurance implications, and possibly our club reputation. I would greatly appreciate any of your thoughts on this matter ASAP.

Bob

[SteveSParticipant]

Good topic Bob!
My opinion is, If I’m the ride leader, I’m there when the ride is supposed to begin. Period.

If nobody shows up, no harm in my being there just in case.
If one person, or 20 people show up, Great, let’s go.
It is quite dissapointing to show up at a scheduled ride, and nobody else be there, including the ride leader. That has happenned to me several times in the last couple of years.
I have noticed some of the ride leaders this year have included email and cell numbers. We have lots of ways to communicate now, including this forum, that could help avoid confusion about weather related ride decisions.

[DaveCoxParticipant]

I agree with Steve on this one — I think the ride leader has to show up no matter what. I think it is important to keep in mind that many non-members could be using the calendar on this excellent website to plan a weekend ride. They might even be thinking of joining the club and want to try riding with the group. Even if we communicate amongst ourselves just fine, it is likely that someone out there who isn’t part of our network is planning to ride on any given Saturday.

Speaking from my own experience as a non-member who showed up for years for Saturday rides when I could find the time — it is very discouraging to show up and find no one at the parking lot ready to ride! It happened to me more than once.

[Admin (Tim)Keymaster]

I like Steve and Dave’s suggestion, i.e. the ride leader shows up no matter what. They speak from past experience/disappointments. This club is on the rise and we want to continue with the progress we’ve made.

Another/second thought is that the ride leader secure a replacement should their schedule change and they find they can’t lead the ride.

The upshot is someone representing themselves as the ride leader is present at all scheduled rides.

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