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Riding by yourself?

8K views 58 replies 28 participants last post by  sooshee 
#1 ·
Just outta curiosity, how many of you girls hit the trails alone? And if you do, how often? I've been riding a lot on my own lately, and one thing I notice is that the time I come upon other women on the trail, they almost always have someone else with them, usually a guy.

For me it's about 50-50. Half the time I'm usually with a friend, and the other half of the time I like to go on solo-adventures. :thumbsup:
 
#2 ·
Usually I rode with my life partner and sometimes we ride with the guys, but to be honest I'd much rather ride alone. When I ride alone I don't have to worry about keeping up or holding someone up. I can also take my time with technical stuff and do it over and over if that's what I want.

Today my partner went road riding so I went out to the trails alone and had a really nice ride.

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#3 ·
I ride alone 1/3 to 1/2 the time but I don't like it. I'm able to ride during the day, during the week, when most people usually aren't available.

Well, when I am more familiar with a place, or the place is well traveled, I don't mind it as much, but I feel much more vulnerable to predators and creepers when I'm by myself. I don't want to end up in a newspaper article, "body found believed to be that of 37 year old woman.." I didn't grow up in nature though, it's kind of a new thing for me.

I try to stay super aware of my surroundings, make sure someone knows what trails I'm riding and when I'll be back, and I rock a bell because I like to increase the likelihood I don't sneak up on the animals or hikers. I should carry pepper spray but I don't.

When I feel more prepared, and familiar, I really do enjoy the sensation of riding alone. But more often it's fun to have a rabbit to chase... :)
 
#10 ·
I ride alone 1/3 to 1/2 the time but I don't like it. I'm able to ride during the day, during the week, when most people usually aren't available.

Well, when I am more familiar with a place, or the place is well traveled, I don't mind it as much, but I feel much more vulnerable to predators and creepers when I'm by myself. I don't want to end up in a newspaper article, "body found believed to be that of 37 year old woman.." I didn't grow up in nature though, it's kind of a new thing for me.

I try to stay super aware of my surroundings, make sure someone knows what trails I'm riding and when I'll be back, and I rock a bell because I like to increase the likelihood I don't sneak up on the animals or hikers. I should carry pepper spray but I don't.

When I feel more prepared, and familiar, I really do enjoy the sensation of riding alone. But more often it's fun to have a rabbit to chase... :)
Kinda sums up me. I love riding alone (mostly ride with husband and son). We all started riding about the same time 2 years ago. Kiddo probably has best innate skills and attacks much harder stuff- esp. involving air (would hope so, he's 13, I'm 52). I am in the middle as far as skills, but have most endurance. Riding together is great, but I push more, go longer alone.

But there's that uneasiness Christieland mentions. Also wonder if its due to not growing up in nature. Heck, outside of Girl Scout camp during elementary school - I have never tent camped. I have no fear on days when trails are well populated. Keep wondering if I should throw some pepper spray in pocket or hanging from camelbak in addition to the bell and whistle, mostly for peace of mind. But I'd probably spray myself in a panic. The ironic thing is I have no problem wandering around the street of Chicago and other big cities in the evening alone (granted more populating, nicer areas)

I know that I want to do more races next year - which means more training, longer rides. And hopefully, more solo outings balanced by the family rides.
 
#4 ·
All the time... in a week I maybe ride once out of six rides with other people. This goes up when the bf is around, but for the past few months he's been away at training for work. I guess I just find it easier to ride by myself, particularly when i'm doing longer rides. I even night ride by myself... not sure that's the best idea, but I do it anyway.
 
#6 ·
I use to ride all the time with my boyfriend, but now our schedules don't always coincide so I ride by myself I would say 95% of the time, both mountain and road. Sometimes I do worry what would happen if I got hurt. I carry my phone, and I have that app on the iPhone that has live GPS tracking so my boyfriend can see where I am, and I always say where I am riding as well in a text message.
 
#11 ·
I didn't mention it, but I always wear my road id when I ride alone. It won't protect me, but gives my emergency contact and medical info if I were hurt. Of course, I also have my cell and let a couple people know where I'm going.

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#12 ·
Sadly, creepers can turn up anywhere, but I think you're at as much risk going to the supermarket as riding. Getting injured on a desolate trail is also a risk, but one I'm willing to take. This was brought home a couple weeks ago on my trail commute; I noticed that the only tracks in the snow on my way home at 6 pm were my own from 8 a.m.! As long as I'm not knocked out I should be able to phone for help - or crawl.:)
 
#13 ·
Getting injured on a desolate trail is also a risk, but one I'm willing to take.
Yup.
Having some weekdays off when most folks work M-F means I ride alone a lot. I like the solitude, and being able to choose the trail, pace, breaks and turns without it having to be negotiated or discussed. I get a lot of good thinking done and turn off the endless chatter of day-to-day life.
I like to ride with others, too. The BF is my best and most reliable riding partner.
Group rides can be a pain in the butt to arrange, and it drives me nuts when people sign on then bail at the last minute. So usually if I ride with company it is one or two people at most and arranged on pretty short notice.
I can ALWAYS count on myself to show up for a ride :)
 
#14 ·
I do most of my riding alone, though I tend to ride the road more. Trails tend to be kinda sparse in this area, but when I lived in a trail-rich environment it seemed more enjoyable with 1 or 2 others. While fear of being taken advantage of is a factor, the disorientation or mechanical issue factor is higher in my mind. Normally I am a resourceful person who can fix many things(and usually other's bikes) but I have had times where it was beyond means and it made me feel better to know I wasn't stranded.
 
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#17 ·
99% of the time, I ride alone. Places I ride include anything from inner city, suburban, and rural roads and trail systems as well as some trails in Arkansas that are miles from civilization. There's some risk involved with the "middle of nowhere" trails, but as far as the "creeper factor" goes, I think that those are the safest.
 
#19 ·
I used to ride alone 95% of the time, but now I have more friends to ride with so it's more like 25% alone, 75% in a pack. I love both.

I live in central Maine- crime is pretty rare around here. I always take my cell phone with me in case of injury, and hubs has a pretty good idea of where I am.
 
#20 ·
Me. The days, not so much because i always seem to have a riding buddy (i'm meeting more people) but as a noob a few years ago, i was going out almost half the time alone. It was the only way i could build skills so that when Sunday group rides came, i wasnt so far "behind". I wouldnt do the night thing alone again, though i have done that in the shallower portions of the woods. It still makes me nervous, rightfully so.

either way, the best way to become a better rider is time in the saddle. if alone-time is all you have, then take advantage!

Edit: i DO always ride with my dog, though i realize if a creeper came up to me, she'd just happily sniff his crotch. She's large, so maybe a deterrent. i know animal attacks are rare, but i still worry about it.
 
#21 ·
I regularly ride in a location where an 17 year old girl was kidnapped, raped and murdered just off the trail. She was a very fit, strong athletic girl. I realize the chances of this happening are pretty slim but ladies follow your instincts. Let someone know where you are, mix up your routine and if somebody gives you the creeps ride like hell and tell somebody.
 
#22 ·
Most of my riding is alone. On the weekends I can sometimes get a ride w/ husby, but other than that:
- I'm slow
- My schedule is weird
- I'm not spending my extremely limited available time waiting for someone to show up
- Aloneatherapy keeps me from setting the planet on fire *protectively hugs my red swingline stapler*
I'd worry a bit more about riding alone in urban areas, but IMO the human a-hole factor goes down exponentially once there's actual effort required to get there, and our local terrain means you have to actually WANT it. Bears just run away and I've handled a cougar tangle-up before. Brainz and tools should cover the rest. Phone is there to take pictures for FB I guess, lol.

Funniest trail encounter came at the end of season 2011... I heard a gun blast somewhere out there within a mile or so and noted it, but that's nothing particularly unusual around here. Then I saw a dude walking down the dirt road I was on with a shotgun and shorts, which seemed a little incongruous. :confused:

Turned out he was a local hero with a 12 gauge doing everyone a favor by taking out the massive yellow jacket nests that had emerged near the trails that fall. :cornut:
 
#25 ·
- Aloneatherapy keeps me from setting the planet on fire *protectively hugs my red swingline stapler*
I'd worry a bit more about riding alone in urban areas, but IMO the human a-hole factor goes down exponentially once there's actual effort required to get there....
Alone therapy...yep. A big reason I love riding alone. You also hit on why I'm comfortable alone on some of my favorite trails (Muir in WI and Brown Cty in In), and uncomfortable on the Milwaukee county MTB trails. The city-ish ones are easily walkable and while you may not be able to tell while riding sit in the middle of a very urban area.

Like others I wear a road ID ( always when trail riding, not just when alone), tell others where I'm going, when, etc. I also feel a bit more comfortable if I'm using a tracking software , ESP one that allows live tracking. NOT so the masses on social media can track me ( DO NOT want that), but so that hubby could in theory see where I am if necessary. I like the mountain bike app from runtastic. Kinda like find my iPhone, but with added benefit of tracking my ride, elevation change, distance, speed, etc. but I'm a data geek at heart anyway.
 
#24 ·
If you're worried about humans, I guess....

If you're worried about dogs, cougars, bears, etc. I would recommend one of those little boating air horns. It probably would have solved that cougar incident post-haste, and works like a champ on dogs chasing... my sister has had to use one quite a bit while jogging and reports 100% success.
 
#28 ·
Mostly Solo

I ride mostly solo due to husband and my work schedules not syncing very well. I grew up in the outdoors and feel that I am fairly confident and prepared for most stuff. The human creepers sometimes get to me. Especially the traihead parking lot thing. I went OTB on a ride a couple of months ago. Chewed my arm up pretty bad but no breaks. Got lectured by my son about riding alone.....sigh. I had my cell phone.:thumbsup:

Things in nature, at least here, that concern me are a rattlesnake hit and being attacked by bees. But I still go...the odds are in my favor.
 
#29 ·
I had a suspicious creeper incident as I rode home at night this week on a desolate section of dirt road. A car came by and slowed right next to me, then pulled ahead some but kept slowing down over and over until I had to slow down to keep from catching up to it. I'd slow even more at a curve hoping they would give up on this weird cat and mouse game, but no, there they were around the corner. This continued for at least a mile. I was getting pretty worried and had the phone out, but finally had to pass to make my turn. It was then I learned it was a woman trying to be "helpful", as she yelled "Did the car lights help you?" as I passed. Apparently she thought I could not find my way home without her help. :rolleyes: :madman:
 
#30 ·
^ Glad that was the case - I can imagine how unsettling it would be! I prefer to ride with others because I enjoy the company and camaraderie. I have learned a lot by following others' leads and their encouragement can sometime be just the ticket when attempting something new.

This year, however, I've also come to embrace some alone time on the trails. I am only comfortable doing so, though, at a local state park where I don't feel so isolated on the trails. That's not to say the trails are heavily trafficked - most days, they aren't - but I just don't feel so isolated or far from potential help when I am there. Like others have posted, I wear a road id, carry a cell phone, and always tell people where I am going and for how long I expect to be gone. And, oddly enough, "company" has come in the form of a camera. I find that when I'm concentrating more on trying to get a cool action shot, I am concerned less about the fact that I am out there alone.
 
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