Skip to main content
Masthead9.png

H u m b o l d t   B i c y c l i s t s

HomeRide Levels & Pace Rating

RIDE LEVELS & PACE RATING

Humboldt Bicyclists Club offers rides of various distance, pace, and terrain.  We have members of different ages, strengths, experience, fitness levels, and pace preferences so we try to provide rides to accommodate all levels.  This page will help you figure out which rides are right for you.  For each ride on the calendar, we list at least three descriptors: the distance, pace, and hilliness.

DISTANCE
The distance of the ride is listed in miles.
PACE
Humboldt Bicyclists Club divides our rides into four pace categories: Slow, Leisurely, Moderate, and Brisk.  Sometimes speeds are imposed by the road function or surface.  For example, neighborhood roads with many intersections or driveways, bike paths shared with pedestrians, and roads with rough surfaces or hairpin descents require slower speeds. 

  Speed on 5 mile
long, Flat Segment
Average Speed on a
Rolling Route
Average Speed on a
Very Hilly Route
 Slow  5 - 9 mph
  4 - 8 mph
      N/A
 Leisurely  9 - 13 mph
  8 - 12 mph
  6 - 8 mph
 Moderate  13 - 17 mph
  12 - 15 mph
  8 - 10 mph
 Brisk  >17 mph
  >15 mph
  >10 mph

SLOW rides may be suitable for very young riders and elderly or disabled people on three or four wheels.  (Even Kinetic Sculptures might participate!)  The group will generally stay together at the pace of the slowest rider. The ride leader, or someone else in the group, will be in charge of navigation and be able to help you change a flat tire.

LEISURELY rides are for experienced young riders and reasonably fit adults out for a scenic experience.  (Speedier riders may call these folks the "poppy watchers.")  The ride will regroup frequently.  The ride leader, or someone else in the group, will be able to help you change a flat tire.

MODERATE rides are for experienced riders seeking a fitness workout.  Some riders will probably be taking turns "drafting" each other to go faster.  There will be regroups at major summits and as communicated by the ride leader.  Participants should know the route, have a navigation system, or ride together with a friend who has a navigation system or knows the route.  Riders are expected to be able to change a flat tire and repair minor mechanical problems themselves. The intention is for everyone to ride together but these are not “no drop” rides; riders well below the listed pace will wind up riding on their own.

BRISK rides are for experienced riders who want to push their limits - within the bounds of reasonable safety, especially descending hills.  Drafting is a popular technique here.  There will be rare regroups as communicated by the leader at the start.  Riders are expected to know the route or have a navigation system, be able to change a tire, and repair minor mechanical problems themselves.  A Brisk paced ride is not a race, but slower riders will likely be dropped.

Leaderless Rides
Some Humboldt Bicyclists rides are Leaderless.  On a leaderless ride, everyone starts at the same time and location, and rides at their own speed.  The pace will be listed as “all paces.” Usually, people ride with one or two buddies.  There is no support for navigation or flat tires; riders should be self-sufficient. If the ride title does not say leaderless, then the ride will have a leader.
HILLINESS
The hilliness, or amount of climbing, is a big contributor to the difficulty of any ride.  We determine the hilliness rating by dividing the total feet of elevation gain by the total miles of the ride, based on Ride with GPS.  We use the following terms to describe the hilliness of our rides according to the calculated feet of elevation gain per mile.
Relatively Flat
 <25 feet/mile
 Rolling  25 - 50 feet/mile
 Hilly  50 - 75 feet/mile
 Very Hilly
  >75 feet/mile

An example of a Relatively Flat ride is around the Arcata Bottoms.  A Very Hilly ride would be the loop through Freshwater and Kneeland.

Difficult Climbs
The hilliness classification does not explicitly include the steepness of the individual climbs in a ride.  If there is a really steep segment or big climb, it will be listed as a “difficult climb,” with the length and average grade of the climb detailed in the ride description.  This information will be taken from Ride with GPS.
NOMENCLATURE
The group rides on the calendar will follow this nomenclature:
Distance/Pace/Hilliness/Leader.  If the title does not say leaderless, then the ride will have a leader.

Examples are as follows:
    7 miles/slow/flat, means a 7 mile ride at a slow pace with minimal climbing.
    21/leisurely/rolling means a 21 mile ride at a leisurely pace with rolling hills.
    32 miles/all paces/very hilly/leaderless/5 miles at 5% means a 32 mile ride, at any pace, which is very hilly and leaderless.
JOIN US!
Whatever your ride pace or desired length, we'd like to help you find people to ride with.  We hope to see you out on the road!