Riding with London Velo

What you need

You’ll need a well-maintained bike suitable for road riding, and a helmet. Helmets are mandatory for club rides.

We strongly recommend clip-in pedals, but they are not a requirement for club riding.

You should also be equipped to deal with punctures and straightforward mechanicals: please bring a spare tube, multi-tool, and a pump.

Even though there’s usually a cafe stop on most club rides, please bring water and snacks to keep you fuelled. In the summer, suncream is also recommended.

No Drop

All our Sunday Social rides are no-drop. That means: the group will periodically regroup to make sure everyone is together; no-one is going to be left behind. Realistically, that will usually mean at the top of major hills.

And of course: if you have a mechanical, you will not be left to deal with it in Kent alone; group members will assist and make sure you get home safely.

The priority for our club socials is an enjoyable ride for the group that’s riding them on the day.

Pace groups

We break our rides up by pace, and we refer to those groups by letter. We describe ‘average speeds’ for them, but these are purely indicative; the actual final speed will always depend on the group riding on a particular day.

The ‘average speed’ refers to the average you’d see by the end of a ride, eg on Strava - and all our averages are based on the hilly routes we tend to ride in Kent (around 10m climbing per km).

Group D

Group D is our chilled, relaxed group, which runs about once a month in the summer season. D rides are a great introduction to group riding, or ideal if you just want a shorter, relaxed spin on a Sunday.

D rides will always have a designated, experienced Ride Leader, and tend to average around 20km/h.

Group C

Group C tends to be around 21-23km/h depending on the route. C riders usually take 80km routes in the summer season, though there’s often a contingent that will take on the 100km.

Group B

Group B is perhaps our most popular group - a pacey club group, averaging around 24-26km/h on a hilly route. B rides in the summer are usually 100km.

Group A

Group A is fast. We say the pace is 27km/h+ - but it all depends on the riders. A groups are infrequent and self-led - but often something like an A group will emerge naturally if there’s a faster contingent inside B wanting to break ahead.