The Whats and Whys of Where We Ride
We ride tracks, but have you ever wondered about them? For what reason was it selected for a Club Ride Out? A number of factors influence the decision, including the "ride time" from beginning to conclusion, the track's overall complexity and difficulty, quality (i.e., build, maintenance, latency (lag), etc.), and availability.
When scouting a track for a possible Club ride out, ideally, it will have a ride time of approximately 30-35 minutes at a moderately fast speed. For riders in lower gears, that may translate to 40-45 minutes; for faster riders, 25 minutes. The overall height isn't a factor depending on the density and ride time. Based on the tracks that are available and which at least come close to the ideal aim, there is always a variance. When scouting, it is done with that objective in mind.
One important consideration is track complexity, which must be considered with respect to our membership. We have a wide spectrum of riding abilities, therefore the track shouldn't be "too hard" for the relative beginner or "too boring" for the more experienced riders in order for everyone to enjoy. While some people prefer a relaxing, easy ride, others prefer one that tests their abilities more. Some want a wide, smooth track with few turns while others prefer a more scenic environment. Depending on who attends a particular ride-out on any given day, finding a balance is a real challenge! Fortunately, our calendar of scheduled ride outs offers a wide variety of tracks, so there's something for everyone.
The track's quality predicts that it rides smooth, with regular maintenance, restarts and minimal lag. It's difficult to measure when scouting alone, because of the nature of SL. Who knows what the last restart did to the track? And when (or if) it was prior to the club ride-out. Scouting alone can only gauge sim lag at any given point. How it reacts when there are 10-15 riders at the same time can only be known when it happens. In that case, the track is then moved to a potential return to give it a "second chance", as there can be multiple causes for it, not necessarily the track or sim.
Not every track—or even every section of a track—will be ideal for every individual. I make every effort to schedule rides that I believe most people will enjoy. We frequently emphasize that the quality of time spent as a club in camaraderie, doing what we all love—riding—is more important than the track.
Given this, if there is a track that you just don't like, it might be more enjoyable to ride Royal or join the ride-out on Discord. Asking for an open royal seat to continue is always a fantastic alternative if a track ever gets more challenging than pleasurable for any reason! When you gripe and kvetch about the things you don't like about a track, it negatively impacts everyone on the ride-out with you. So keep your attention on having fun with the MC, it could be the favorite of another person. Be upbeat; we ride more than 60 tracks every month, so there will undoubtedly be some that you like better than others and we'll get to those too.
By Raevyn Hawks
