Our Ride Rules

We offer rides which are as inclusive as possible for road cyclists. That sometimes means we have some powerful cyclists mixing it up with cyclists who are just getting into the sport. What makes Brussels Unchained special is that we're the group that brings all these cyclists together. We also have a zero-tolerance policy for any behaviour that breaks our safe space.

So to make sure everyone has fun, we'd like to highlight our golden rules:

  • Come prepared

  • Arrive on time

  • Stick to the announced pace

  • Listen to your Ride Captain

  • Everyone welcome and have fun!

Come prepared:

We are an inclusive group, but we're sporty too! So that means coming with the right equipment.

If you've never ridden a road bike before, it may be a little too early to join our main group rides. We do have a dedicated WhatsApp group for newcomers that can help you get underway.

Have the right bike and in good working order:

We're not judgmental (in fact we love to see lots of different sorts of bikes from steel racers to the latest carbon bike!) but you will struggle to keep up with us if you're not on a race or gravel bike, so make sure you come with one of those!

Wear the right clothing:

We also encourage you to wear appropriate clothing for road cycling which means wearing lycra or performance clothing for cycling and a helmet.

Bring enough food:

Don't forget your water bidon, and your snacks!

Think about your lights:

We encourage you to have your rear lights always on even during daylight, and to also bring a front light when our after-work rides start getting dark!

...And your spares:

Flat tires happen to all of us. So always have a spare inner tube and the right equipment to pump it up in your back pocket or saddle bag.

Have the route:

For nearly all our rides, we provide in advance the .gpx file containing the route. In case we get disconnected, we'll all feel better knowing everyone has the route with them. So make sure you have a device that can show you where you're going and how to get home.

Arrive on time:

Show up on time, we wait around 5 minutes after the set-off time. If we're feeling generous, and we receive a WhatsApp message in time, we might extend it but please respect others and their time by being yourself on time!

Also, if you're not joining us in the end, please do inform us on WhatsApp so we know not to wait for you.

Picture taken at the starting location of the ride

Stick to the announced pace:

We pre-announce target pace speeds for our rides to help you judge whether the pace is something you can maintain. We ask all riders to observe the announced pace and to comply with any instructions to slow down should you be among the stronger riders. We aim to set off together and come back together and #leave-no-one-behind.

Know your fitness:

We invite and encourage everyone to participate, but we ask also that you join a ride that you can realistically achieve the announced pace.

When riding in a peloton you can often go faster than you would on your own, so that's something to think about when judging whether to join an announced ride or not,

Ride Captains are tasked with assisting those struggling to keep to pace, but you shouldn't be joining a 28km/h pace ride if you're struggling to average 23km/h on your solo ride.

Pause at the summit:

If you see a climb, feel free to hit it as hard as you would like but if you're in the front pack at the top, we ask you to pause at the summit to allow all of us to regroup together.

Equally, if you're struggling, please shout and don't suffer in silence so we can adjust the pace rather than drop you!

Don't go too far ahead of the Ride Captain:

Whilst we appreciate you may have good legs today, please help the Ride Captain by not pushing too far ahead as this breaks the announced pace and can demotivate cyclists not as strong as you.

Listen to your Ride Captain:

The host of the ride is the Ride Captain. Our Ride Captains work to keep the group together, and to get you across intersections safely and home in one piece.

Slow or stop when the Captain tells you to.

We ask you to help that individual by following all instructions to slow down or stop if necessary.

Cross quickly when the Ride Captain gives the all-clear

Our Ride Captains wear a cool arm-patch that gives them the authority (for our groups of 15+ riders) to hold traffic to allow you to cross quicker.

Trust them to get you across so if they are blocking the road intersections, please cross as quickly as you can when they give you the go-sign and don't leave them hanging in the middle of a busy road!

Special rules apply when in groups of 15+

When a ride starts with more than 15+ riders, the Ride Captain will inform the group that we have to apply different traffic rules. At that point, the Ride Captain can stop traffic, but also the group must ride in close formation and ride on the road and not the bike lanes.

Have fun!

Most important of all, we hope that you have fun on the rides, enjoy hearing lots of different languages and make new friends. Brussels Unchained rides are all about that, riding together and enjoying each other's company! So clip in, shift up.

Are you in?