The Straggleurs are an informal (very informal, in fact) group of cyclists who do the majority of their riding in and around York, with occasional trips further afield. Contrary to popular belief, York isn’t exactly flat and you don’t have to go far to find significant quantities of ‘up’
Rides generally take place on Saturdays, as there are invariably people who are unable to participate in the ‘traditional’ Sunday rides because of work and/or family pressures (the York Rouleurs do offer Sunday rides, of course, and other cycling clubs are available). Mainly though, we’re just a bunch of people who want to get a few miles in with like-minded people because riding on your own can suck sometimes.
Most of our rides are on-road, although there are occasional(!) off-piste adventures and where possible alternate routes are provided for those who don’t like getting muddy.
We’re not a fast bunch - if you want to ride 60 miles at the pace of a scalded cat then there are other groups for that; ride pace is ‘as fast as it needs to be’ - 20-22kph is average, depending on things like weather, road conditions and the like.
More importantly, NOBODY IS LEFT BEHIND.
Really, we mean it - if we’re going too fast then shout out and we’ll wind the pace in a bit. If we’re going too slow then you’re probably on the wrong ride.
There are rides of varying length, ranging from 25-30 miles in the backside of winter with the aim of peaking at around 75-80 miles around midsummer (there’s also the 400km ‘Straggle To The Smoke’ under development …)
WE ARE NOT A CLUB - there are no fees or formal organisation, so these are not club rides; if you come on one of our rides then you are doing so at your own risk. Please be aware of this and aim to be as self-sufficient as possible.
Most of the folks who come along are members of York Rouleurs but membership of the club is not a prerequisite.