As a driver, I have occasionally been caught behind large groups of cyclists and sometimes even had to slow down temporarily. I have certainly heard other drivers complaining about such. As a cyclist I had never actually been for a ride as part of such a group, up until yesterday. I am not sure whether other people consider nine riders a large group but if it was big enough for the Fellowship of the Ring, that is enough for me. I found. It a very enjoyable experience. Apart from feeling a lot safer having others around it was also nice to have a sense of support and camaraderie, particularly in the harder sections.
It is also worth noting that wherever possible we tried to be courteous of traffic, leaving enough room for vehicles to overtake so that there would have only been a handful of times where we would have slowed traffic and only for a short period. It was good to see that this could be done, even with a larger group. It was also nice to see that the traffic that passed us was equally respectful. With Hobart's traffic congestion becoming an increasing issue, cycling is one alternative that takes pressure off our traffic patterns, but it is important that both motorists and cyclists give each other the appropriate respect. There are too man avoidable deaths on our road as it is.
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