Chaingang explained

The chaingang meet every Saturday morning throughout the year at 09:30 for a fast paced group training ride about 40 miles. All members welcome.

A chaingang is an efficient way to ride by sharing time at the front of the group. As its name suggests, it is a dynamic ‘chain’ of riders made up of a faster (left hand) line and a slower (right hand) line. As each rider moves up through to the front from the faster line, they spend a few minutes at the front before moving across to the "slower" (right hand) line.

Since a chaingang is made up of a faster and a slower line, you will change speed as you move from one to the other – you slow down as you change lines at the front and speed up as you change at the back. With this in mind, some do’s and don'ts about riding in a chaingang:

• Do ease off at the front when you change from the faster to the slower line – take the pressure off the pedals slightly, but don’t brake.
• Do avoid leaving a gap as you move across – a gap forces the rider behind to accelerate to regain your wheel – not appreciated!
• Do let riders nearby know if you are unable to go through and intend to sit at the back of the group to recover.
• Do warn riders if you intend to rejoin the chain after sitting out.
• Do stay alert, not just for the usual safety reasons, but to ensure that gaps don’t occur.
• Don’t switch lines unnecessarily.
• Don’t speed up when you reach the front.
• Don’t ride erratically, keep it steady, remember the only time you should be accelerating is when you change lines at the back.
• Point out hazards on the road such as cars, pot-holes, road-kill, etc.

Individuals take part in any group rides at their own risk. Chippenham & District Wheelers and its club members accept no responsibility for the safety of anyone participating in group rides, and no liability in the event of an accident.