Buddy system

The "Buddy" system is an easy to remember idea for stopping riders from getting lost when a large group of riders go out together. It goes something like this:

There will be a leader. He knows the route and will lead the way ALL THE TIME.

There will be a rider who stays at the back ALL THE TIME. Make sure you find out who that is before the ride starts. They will be known as the "Back Marker".

At each corner or roundabout, the leader will point to the bend in the road. It is then the responsibility of the SECOND rider to stop there and point the way for all the other riders. He (or she) stays there until the back marker has passed. Only then will the rider move off and (eventually) overtake the back marker.

	Note1: If you move off before you have seen the back marker, everyone who has not appeared will get lost. Think about it. Think how popular you will be !!!
	Note 2: When you stop at the corner, make sure you can be seen by the following riders who appear. So, stop just before (on a left hand corner or roundabout exit) or just after (on a right hand corner) the bend. But make sure you can be seen.
	Note 3: If you (as third rider) see that the second one has not stopped, then you should do so.

The rider who was third is now second and will stop at the next corner which the leader points to.

And so it goes on. Everyone (except the first and last riders) gets a turn at stopping and we all get to where we are going.

There is a variation on this where each person keeps an eye on the person behind. If they cannot see them, they slow down until they can. We do not use this as we find the "pure" Buddy System works well.