The Club Ride guidelines are as follows. They can also be downloaded here.

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SVCC Club Ride Guidelines

Official / Informal Rides

Club rides may be classed as “official” or “informal”.

Official rides adhere to the following:

• Ride expectation should be set at the start
  • Distance
  • Average speed
• Ride type must be defined (drop/non-drop)
• Coffee stop or not
• There must be a designated ride leader
• Ride Leader must be a responsible adult
• Ride leader must be a SVCC member
• Ride leader should ideally be first aid trained
• If a recurring ride (so if people turn up there is someone there to lead the ride)
  • Same time every week
  • Designated Ride Leader for every ride.
  • Ride leader should know the route (and probably have a sense of direction!)

Informal rides are not guaranteed and are less structured. Please check on social media in advance.

Best Practice

All the rides organised by the Club shall be under the control of a Ride Leader.

Rides may be altered before or whilst ongoing at the discretion of the Ride Leader.

Club Rides are for members only but will accommodate cyclists considering joining or who are in the process of joining and visiting members of other cycling clubs.

All Club members attending the events organised by the Club must behave in all ways as instructed by the Ride Leader and, when on the road, must conform to the advice given in the Highway Code.

Each participant of a club ride is not only responsible for their own safety and well-being but also implicitly responsible for the safety of other members in the group. This includes riders both in front and behind of you.

Riders’ responsibility includes, but is not limited to:

• Riding smoothly: no erratic braking or swerving.
• Shouting out or pointing out potholes, obstacles, debris or other road furniture.
• Shouting out when slowing or stopping.
• Giving clear signals when turning or altering course.
• Not riding too close or directly behind someone’s wheel.

On Club Rides, helmets are encouraged. On rides each rider must keep a safe distance behind the rider in front. How riders choose to ride in a group will be dictated by many factors, safety being the primary. However, experience, skills, road communication, group riding objectives, weather, topology and condition of the road section will all contribute to what is safe and efficient distance. 

Bicycles must be roadworthy and fitted with full mudguards when the climatic and road conditions dictate.

Riders should have adequate and working front and rear lights fitted on their bikes for winter riding and rear lights minimum for summer riding.

Each rider should also ensure they have a spare inner tube, pump, and a basic tool set to enable them to deal with basic mechanical issues such as a puncture. In addition, they should carry with them their membership card with next of kin emergency contact details.

The pace of the Club Ride shall be the pace of the slowest rider present. No riders will be dropped unless it is a specific ride where all riders understand it’s a “drop” ride and this has been advertised clearly as such in advance.

In the event of a rider falling behind, the Ride Leader will stay with them, unless someone else volunteers, or the rider states unequivocally that they wish to ride home alone.

In the event of a rider being dropped over consecutive rides, it will be expected that the rider will turn out with the slower speed group until such time as they are ready to progress.

If a rider needs to stop for any reason, the Ride Leader should be advised.

If a rider has a puncture or any other problem, someone or the whole group should stay with them.

All riders are responsible for having their own insurance in place covering personal injury and third-party cover.

If, in the opinion of the Ride Leader, a Club member misbehaves, they may be reported to the Club Committee, who shall ask the Club member to attend the next Committee Meeting where the matter will be discussed.

Accident Protocols (British Cycling Advice)

In the case of an accident, firstly consider your own safety, the safety of other members of your group, the ongoing safety of the casualty and the safety of other road users as you don’t want to make the situation worse. Use other members of the group to ensure that other road users are aware of the accident scene. This will ensure no further accidents occur. Make sure that all injured parties are safe from further harm.  If you suspect any injury to the spine, try your utmost not to move them.

Find out if anyone in your group or at the scene has any first aid qualifications and follow their instructions or, if you hold a qualification, follow the procedures you learned.

If you have any doubts about whether a rider has been injured, especially if the head has had an impact, go to the nearest Accident and Emergency or Minor Injuries department to get them checked out. If you suspect the rider may have suffered a head injury, call an ambulance straight away.

To contact the emergency services, dial 999 or 112. Even if your network hasn’t got coverage, you still may be able to make a 999 call. Be prepared to give them details of your location, what happened and any information you’re able to provide on the casualty. If you are concerned about the condition of the casualty and no one has any first aid knowledge, the emergency telephone operator will be able to talk you through what to do. Make the casualty as comfortable as possible until the emergency services arrive and ensure they are kept warm.

If there is a vehicle involved, and the driver has stopped or there were any witnesses, exchange details, including registration numbers, in the same way as if you had been involved in any traffic accident.

Use the camera on your phone to gather any information or evidence from the accident scene. If you were using a video camera, make sure you’ve stopped it so that the recording of the incident doesn’t get accidentally overwritten.

Report the accident to the police as quickly as possible. Any delay is likely to lessen your case if a claim of prosecution is to be made. On a Club-organised ride the accident will need to be reported by the Ride Leader, to the Club Committee and British Cycling.