You show up for a ride that was set up by a mountain bike club in your area. You have heard that they put on some pretty good rides. They offer beginner, intermediate and advanced level rides. You are a pretty good technical rider, but you lack the stamina to run with the "Big Dogs" in the advanced level ride. You decide to go with the intermediate ride.

You start to assemble your gear when you hear someone mention that the ride today will be about 25 miles in length. This catches your attention, and you walk over to ask for more details about what you can expect from the advance level ride. You stop in mid-stride when the fellow tells you that he is talking about the intermediate level ride. You contemplate this, wondering if you have the endurance to hang in there for a ride that has plans of covering 25 miles or more.

You overheard another person mention that he is considering the beginners' ride. He must be a new rider, you figure; but you assume that by the bike and gear that he has, he's probably been at this for a while. "What's going on here?" You walk over and listen as he describes the last ride with this organization.

He proceeds to tell anyone who wants to listen the he participated in the intermediate ride last month, and most of the trail wasn't that hard; but the leader of the trip was an advanced rider who never tired.

"Well, he must have assumed that all of us were in just as good as shape as him. He kept going, taking only short breaks to let the back catch up with the group, and then he would take off again. I fell so far behind that I finally bailed out and went riding on my own, figuring that I was holding everyone else up. It was the hardest group ride I have ever been on, and it was suppose to be the intermediates."

Now you begin to wonder if maybe this group ride thing isn't such a good idea after all. Maybe you aren't really an upper level intermediate rider. After all, who ever told you that you were. You start to wonder if maybe you should have just gone for a ride by yourself. Suddenly, you're not looking forward to the day as much as you were when you woke up this morning. In fact, you're really not up to this anymore.

If this hasn't happened to you, chances are it will, or perhaps you already know someone to whom this has happened. Why do so many people have such different ideas of what a beginner or advanced ride should be? I think that it is because guidelines for each type of ride do not exist. No one wants to organize a lame group ride, so if they aren't sure, they lean more toward the long side. Hopefully, this article will help you as you plan your next club ride. You will find that not everyone thinks the same way when it comes to how far a ride should be; hence, one person's intermediate ride may be another person's ride from hell.

Our club has learned these lessons already. Setting up club rides actually takes a little bit of thought. But after getting some input from the members, we have discovered what the majority of those who come to the rides are looking for when they arrive. If you have a large club, don't hesitate to ask for some input on what you should do to make your rides better. Our ride organizers found that we were completely off-base on what we thought the majority of our members really wanted, compared to what they said they wanted.

Distance: This if the first component that will scare more riders off more quickly that any other thing when your club is organizing a ride. Usually, if you're taking the time to organize a club ride, you have been riding for a while. Chances are, you are an advanced level rider, someone who wants to share the thrills of riding with other friends, maybe you just want to meet some new riders. Just remember, what you consider to be a nice afternoon ride, may sound like the Bataan Death March to a new intermediate rider. Remember, the majority of bikers out there do not get out and ride every day or even every other day. Most bikers fall into the weekend-warrior class of rider. They hook up with their buddies on the weekend and ride about 7 - 13 miles depending on the terrain. They are happy with this mileage. In fact, if you have ever mentioned to your buddies who don't ride, how far you went on you last afternoon jaunt, they'd probably act as if you just came back from an epic adventure. Unless you are an avid rider, 15 miles sounds like a killer ride. So what are some good distances for your next ride? Nothing is written in stone, but here are some guidelines that just might help you set up your next ride.

The beginners' ride. Right off the bat, remember that you are setting up a beginners' ride. The riders who are showing up may have never ridden off road before, and their idea of an afternoon ride may only have consisted of cruising around the block or riding the local rails-to-trails. They are there to see what all this talk about off-road riding is about. It is up to you to provide a ride that will interest them and bring them back wanting more, without scaring them away. Don't try to impress them with how well you can handle some tough trail or lead them off on a mini epic adventure. Your job is to introduce these new riders to the thrill of off-road riding. Try to find an area that allows a lot of dirt road riding and a couple short excursions onto some single track, just to give them a taste. Think back to when you were first starting to ride. Remember how scary that first patch of single track through the wood was? Yes, it was exciting, but trying to negotiate all of those obstacles was rather intimidating. You want the beginners to have a good time and come back to ride another day. Save the rougher trails for when they are ready. You can always offer an extension on some more trails once the group gets back to the starting point if anyone feels they are ready to try a little more riding. Explain that you know some easy trails on some single track. If anyone is interested, you could go check it out. This way, you can offer a slightly harder ride for those who want more ride time and experience in the woods.

You should also do your part to ease these newcomers into the sport. I went to a club ride once that stated that the beginners' ride was doing 15 - 18 miles. First, almost none of the intermediate riders from our club showed up. I understood why. If the beginners' ride was going to be 15 - 18 miles long, what kind of mileage would the intermediate group be doing? They ended up changing the name of the beginner ride to the "casual ride" when most of the intermediates who did show up decided to move down to a mileage where they felt a little more comfortable. Remember you are setting up a group ride for a variety of people. Try to set up a ride that will appeal to many different riders. Start it off easy, you can always make it a little tougher if everyone in the group can handle it.

When the casual ride got underway, it was on what I would have called some of the sweetest single track trails in this area. However, we lost three of the real beginners as soon as we passed the first bail-out point. The trail intimidated them since they had never really ridden anything like this before, and they just quit. The ride leader did try to convince them that they could easily do some more of the trail ahead; and by most of our standards, they were some really nice cruising trails. The beginners were told that the rest of the ride was on this same kind of narrow trails they had just finished. Nice easy stuff, but no to these beginners. Single track was a very scary ordeal. Don't make the beginners who show up for your club ride spend all of their time on single track. Just enough to give them a taste of it. Ease them into it slowly.

How do you decide which trails to use for your beginners ride? After you have picked the trail you plan to use, ask yourself if you would take your mother for a ride on the trails you are considering. If your mother would enjoy the ride, most beginners will.

Something else you can do on this ride is to pass on a riding tip, although keep it simple. An example might be, "Remember not to stare at those rocks. Your wheel will go where you look." This kind of advice gives the novice rider something to concentrate on besides how scary the trail looks to him. Take lots of breaks, and make the breaks long enough that the last person to show up at the rest point is well rested. One easy way to decide when to leave is to let the last rider who shoes up make the call as to when to take off again. In addition, make sure everyone has enough water to get them through the trip. Most of the beginners don't realize the importance of water on the ride. And don't forget the power bars or snacks to eat part way through the ride.

A quick recap:

• A good distance for beginners should be from 5 - 7 miles. You can always add more ride time if the group wants to keep going.
• Make sure there are lots of bailout points. This way if someone decided that this really isn't any fun or they just can't take any more, they will have a way out.
• The beginners' ride should offer a lot of fire road riding and some trail riding mixed in to give them a nice taste of the world of single track. They will be moving up to the intermediate ride soon enough. Let them decide when they are ready. Don't decide for them.

The Intermediate ride can be 12 - 17 miles. The intermediates will be the largest group who will show up for your organized ride. Once again you should set up the ride so there are plenty of bail out points. You may have someone who just decided to move up from the beginners' group. You can keep the ride going as long as there is someone in the group who wants to keep going; but if someone has had enough, they should be able to find the starting point if they want to head back. If you provide lots of different locations for everyone to turn back once they have had enough, you may find that some riders will push themselves a little further knowing they have another bail out point just ahead. This will give them reason to brag about the good time they had and how far they made it.

Also stress the point that this is not a "race pace" ride. Pace is the one thing that really divides the intermediate and advanced level rides. Set a pace that everyone in the group will enjoy; don't make anyone push him or herself so hard that they aren't having fun. Most intermediate riders have the skills to ride tougher trails; they just lack that all day ride stamina, or that ability to keep what we call the "race pace" that the advanced riders usually do. Intermediate riders are usually amazed at how fast and far advanced riders can go. Advanced riders just don't seem to get tired. Like that little bunny on TV, they keep going and going, forgetting that they should take a break.

We have found that most intermediate riders would have no problem riding 15 - 20 miles of rough single track. They just don't know that they can do this long of a ride. As long as the leader allows them to catch their breath and take some nice breaks, they will be willing to push themselves. However, tell an intermediate rider that he is expected to bike 20 miles to the finish, and he probably will back out, unsure of his abilities. Make sure that the leader of the intermediate group understands that the pace and rest periods are a very important part of the ride.

How long you rest is a close second to the pace. The breaks that the group takes shouldn't even start until the last person in line joins the first riders. Sit around and talk about what you just rode, or maybe what is coming up. Are the trails getting harder up ahead? Some riders may decide that they are too tired to continue on a rough trail, but will stick around for some easy stuff. Always take a break any time you come to a bail out point. Describe what the trail ahead has in store for everyone. This is their chance to head back if they don't think they can make it. Remember that not everyone wants to ride 15 - 20 miles every time they hit the great outdoors.

Advanced Rides. This is the easy one to set up. If you are going to go on the advanced ride, remember that just about anything goes. Most advanced riders will tell you they are going to cover a minimum amount of mileage, but they will leave the totals up for the group to decide as they ride along. Don't expect to take a whole lot of breaks. They just go and go, riding at what we call a "race pace." If you have any doubt that you're ready for the advanced ride, you're probably not.

Here are some other things to consider while you are planning your group ride: There really is more to it than just getting a bunch of riders together for the day. If you want to sponsor a good group ride, take a lot of different things into consideration. Remember, not all riders who show up are going to be of the same level. It is easier to try to get an advanced rider to slow down all day, than to try to get an intermediate rider to speed up all day.

On all of the rides, remind everyone that you will be taking a nice long break to munch down an energy bar. But encourage everyone to nibble as they ride to replace any carbohydrates that may need to be replaced. We usually try and plan our break at just about the halfway point. We sit around and talk about the first half of the trail that we have ridden, and what lies ahead of us on the rest of the trail. This is when the group leader needs to decide if this group needs to slow the pace down or speed it up. You should have a pretty good idea how everyone on the ride is doing. Get with the "sweep" and find out if anyone is constantly falling behind.

Urge everyone to bring an extra bottle of water. There may not be a place to refill water bottles on the trail. Most people have no idea how much water they are going to drink on a good ride. Tell them that it is better to have too much water than to run out. Most intermediate riders know what to expect. You need to address those who may have just moved up to the intermediate level and really aren't sure what to expect. Make sure everyone is hydrated. Stress the point that water is critical to the body.

As I mentioned earlier, the ride leader has a very important job. He sets the pace for everyone else and leads the way on trails that most riders may never have experienced. His job is important, but there is another job that is harder and probably the most important member on this ride. This person is the "sweeper" or last guy in line.

The sweeper's job is to bring up the rear, making sure no one falls behind. At no time should the sweep pass anyone on the ride. If a person flats, he hangs out with them until they are up and running. If someone just bonks, he sticks around and passes the time with them until they are ready to go, and never leaves them behind. The sweep should also have all the tools needed to fix anything that could go wrong. One valuable item you can use are the small walkie talkies that are out there now. This allows the sweep to stay in contact with the group leader to inform him of any major malfunctions that may occur.

One of the biggest problems we have encountered on a lot of our group rides is coming to a "Y" in the trail. The group has spread out along the trail, maybe as you climbed up a hill and have lost sight of the rider in front of you, when suddenly you come to a intersection in the trail. Now you have no way of knowing which way you should go. We have tried to emphasis to all on the ride that they are responsible for the rider behind them. They should wait for them at the turn, taking off after they see the next rider approaching. But sooner or later someone forgets to stop, or they are having so much fun they just don't want to stop to wait for the rider behind them.

Another method I have seen is to have the group leader hang at the turn, until he sees the sweep coming up the trail. Alternatively, the leader can ask a different rider to hang out at each intersection of the trail (this is my favorite). He should keep waiting until the sweep reaches him. It is his job to make sure everyone makes the turn. Unless the area you're riding is littered with trails, everyone on the ride should never have to do this more than once.

I am sure there are other things that we could do to improve group rides. But I hope that maybe it will make some of you think the next time you plan a group ride. You have a responsibility to all those who show up to provide them a ride they will enjoy. This responsibility goes for everyone who shows up. So, call a buddy and get started planning your next club ride. Give some of these ideas a try. I'm sure you will find that your club rides will get more riders showing up as word gets out that you make an effort to see that everyone has fun.