Where to find people to ride motorcycles with (and how to do it safely)

Riding alone is great until it isn't. You find a road you love and nobody to share it with, or you've just passed your test and your mates all drive cars. If you're wondering where to find people to ride motorcycles with, you're in good company: it's one of the most common questions new and returning riders ask.

The good news is that riders are some of the easiest people in the world to meet. Park a bike outside a café and someone will come over to talk about it. The hard part is finding the right people: riders who go at your pace, turn up when they say they will, and ride in a way you're comfortable with.

Below are ten places to find riding buddies and motorcycle group rides, what each one is good and bad at, how to choose a group that fits you, and how to stay safe when you ride with people you've only just met.

10 places to find people to ride motorcycles with

1. Group ride apps

The most direct option is an app built for finding riders near you. Instead of hoping someone in a big forum lives nearby, you open a map and see who's riding where and when.

MotoBFF is the app we make for exactly this. Any rider can drop a pin at a meeting point (a petrol station, a car park, the café everyone knows), set the day, the time and the pace, and post the ride. Riders nearby see it on the map and join with one tap, and every ride gets its own group chat for planning the route and the stops. Every ride shows its level (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced or Any level), so you can find a group that rides at your speed. There's also a Riders near you list, one community chat per city, more than 2,400 roads worth riding and a map of biker-friendly cafés and stops. It's free on Android and coming soon to iPhone.

Other apps come at it from different angles. Route and navigation apps like REVER and calimoto are mostly about planning and riding roads, with ways to share them or ride them with friends. Cardo Ride (formerly RISER) mixes routes, ride logging and group "pack" rides. MOTOSPOT shows nearby riders, events and groups. Try a couple and keep the one where people near you are actually active: an app is only as good as the riders on it in your area.

Good for: finding a ride this weekend, near you, at your pace. Watch out for: quiet areas. If nobody near you has posted a ride yet, post one yourself. A short Sunday coffee ride is the easiest yes there is.

2. Local Facebook groups

Search Facebook for your city or region plus "motorcycle", "riders" or "bikers", and for your bike's brand or model plus your country. Most areas have a busy general group, a few brand groups, and often a group just for new riders. People post rides, ask who's free on Saturday, and share road conditions.

Good for: local knowledge and lots of people. Watch out for: big groups where rides get lost in a feed of bikes for sale, and no way of knowing someone's pace before you turn up.

3. Meetup

Meetup has motorcycle riding groups in many cities. They tend to be organised, with a regular schedule, an organiser and an RSVP list, which is reassuring if you're nervous about turning up to your first ride.

Good for: regular, structured rides. Watch out for: coverage. It depends heavily on where you live, and plenty of groups go quiet.

4. Reddit and riding forums

Your city or regional subreddit, the big motorcycle subreddits, and long-running forums for your bike model or style of riding (adventure, touring, sport) are full of people asking the same question you are. A simple post like "New-ish rider in [city], anyone up for a relaxed ride on Sunday?" works more often than you'd think.

Good for: honest advice and finding people with your exact interest. Watch out for: anonymity. You know very little about who you're meeting, so the safety tips below matter more here.

5. Dealerships and service shops

Your dealer and your mechanic know every rider in town. Many dealers run group rides, open days and demo days, and smaller shops often have a notice board with ride invites and club flyers. Ask the staff: "Who rides around here, and where do they meet?"

Good for: meeting riders with the same kind of bike, and introductions to local clubs. Watch out for: brand-only events if you ride something else.

6. Bike nights, biker cafés and meets

Most areas have a regular bike night, a café where riders gather on weekend mornings, or a seasonal meet. Turn up, park, and talk to people. Ask where they ride and whether anyone's heading out. Many of the best riding friendships start with "nice bike" in a car park.

Good for: meeting people face to face before riding together, which is the safest way to start. Watch out for: a meet isn't a ride. You still need to agree on one.

7. Clubs and owners' groups

Motorcycle clubs range from brand owners' groups to touring clubs, adventure clubs and charity groups. Harley-Davidson's H.O.G. chapters, BMW, Ducati and Triumph owners' clubs, and women's riding groups all run regular rides. Most are welcoming to new members; some ask you to ride with them a few times before you join.

Good for: a regular crew, organised trips and well-run group rides. Watch out for: fees, commitments and a culture that may or may not suit you. Go to an open ride before signing up.

8. Rider training, advanced courses and track days

A rider training course, an advanced riding course or a track day puts you in a room with riders who care about riding well, often at a similar level to you. People swap numbers at the end, and you've already seen how they ride.

Good for: finding riders at your skill level and getting better at the same time. Watch out for: nothing really, apart from the cost of the course.

9. Charity rides, rallies and events

Charity rides, toy runs, rallies, motorcycle shows and race weekends gather hundreds of riders in one place. They're friendly by nature, and the ride itself is usually organised and marshalled.

Good for: big, sociable rides with a clear plan. Watch out for: large groups, which are harder work than a ride with four or five people.

10. Your own network

Ask at work, at the gym, among friends of friends, or in your neighbourhood. Put a sticker on your helmet or mention it in conversation. You'll be surprised how many people have a bike in the garage and nobody to ride with.

How to choose a group that rides at your level

Finding people is half the job. Finding people you enjoy riding with is the other half, and it mostly comes down to pace.

• Be honest about your level. If you're still building confidence, say so. A good group would rather know.
• Look for the pace up front. A ride that says "relaxed pace, coffee stop halfway" is a very different day from "spirited, twisties, no stops". On MotoBFF every ride carries a level, and if a ride is above your level the app tells you before you join, then leaves the call to you.
• Start short. A two-hour ride to a café is a far better first ride than a full-day trip into the mountains.
• Ask about the plan. Where's the route, where are the stops, and what happens if someone falls behind? Good groups have an answer.
• Match the kind of riding, not just the speed. Touring, twisties, adventure and gravel, and coffee runs all attract different people. Look for riders who like the same days out as you.
• Smaller is easier. A group of four or five riders who know each other's pace is more fun, and safer, than twenty strangers.

Your first group ride: what to expect

Your first ride with a new group can feel like a job interview. It isn't. Most groups are delighted when someone new turns up. To make it easy:

• Arrive at the meeting point with a full tank and a few minutes to spare.
• Introduce yourself and tell whoever's leading what kind of rider you are.
• Listen to the briefing: the route, the stops, the hand signals the group uses, and what to do if you get separated.
• Ride in a staggered formation on straight roads, and switch to single file on bends, poor surfaces and anywhere the view ahead is short. Less experienced riders are usually placed just behind the leader or in the middle of the group, not at the back.
• Never ride faster than you're comfortable with to keep up. A good group waits, and the leader should ride at the pace of the least experienced rider.
• Afterwards, say thanks, and if you enjoyed it, say you'd like to come again.

Is it safe to ride motorcycles with strangers?

Yes, riding with new people is generally safe if you treat the first meeting the way you would any meet-up with someone you don't know yet, and treat the riding the way any good group does. Most riders you'll meet are friendly people who just want company on a good road. A little care up front lets you enjoy that without worrying.

Before you meet

• Meet in a public place with people around: a petrol station, a café, a busy car park. Never at someone's home, and never give out your home address.
• Tell someone where you're going, who with, and when you'll be back. Share the route if you have it.
• Look the group up. Read the ride description, check the riders' profiles and see what others say about them.
• Check your bike: tyres, chain, brakes, lights and fuel. Bring your licence, insurance and a charged phone.
• Check the weather and the route. If it isn't for you, it's fine to sit this one out.

On the ride

• Ride your own ride. Nobody should ever have to keep up. If the pace is too much, slow down; if the group won't wait, it's the wrong group.
• Keep your distance. At least a two-second gap to the rider directly in front, more in the wet.
• Agree what happens if someone falls behind or breaks down before you set off.
• Never use your phone while riding. Pull over first.
• Never ride after drinking.

When something feels wrong

• It's always fine to say no to a ride, or to leave one. Make an excuse at the next stop and head home.
• Trust your gut over anyone's reputation.
• Report anyone who makes the group unsafe, to the organiser, the group admins or the app.
• If someone is hurt, make the scene safe and call the emergency services (112 in Europe). Don't remove an injured rider's helmet unless they can't breathe. A basic first aid course is one of the best things a rider can do.

There's more in our safety tips and ride etiquette guide. Official group-riding advice, such as the NSW Government's group riding guide, covers formations and briefings in more detail.

How MotoBFF keeps riding with new people safe

Meeting riders you don't know yet is the whole point of MotoBFF, so the app is built around doing it safely:

• Every ride shows its level and pace. If a ride is above your level, MotoBFF tells you before you join, so you know what you're signing up for.
• Hosts can make a ride "Ask to join". Nobody gets on that ride without the host saying yes, and a host can remove a rider from their ride.
• Rider profiles show who you're riding with: their level, their bike, and how many riders said they "would ride again" with them. It's a count, not a star rating, and the community guidelines ask riders to rate each other on how they ride and treat the group, never on looks.
• Ride chats are for the riders on the ride, not for anyone browsing the map.
• Riders near you is off until you turn it on. Other riders see that you're around and roughly how far away, never where you are. You can hide again any time.
• Report and block. Every rider, message, photo, ride, place and road has Report. Reports go to the founder, who reads every one and aims to act within a day, and breaking the rules can get content removed or an account suspended. Blocked riders can't message you and are removed from your friends.
• City chats keep personal details out. Phone numbers, emails and links aren't allowed in city chats, and neither is selling. If a meet-up comes out of a city chat, the community guidelines ask riders to make it a group ride, so everyone sees the meeting point, the time and who's coming.
• Adults only. MotoBFF is for riders 18 and over, and it isn't a dating app: unwanted advances break the rules.
• Your data is yours. You can download it or delete your account at any time. See the privacy policy.

No app can make riding risk-free, and nothing replaces your own judgement on the road. What an app can do is help you find the right people, see what kind of ride you're joining before you go, and act quickly when someone doesn't behave. That's what we've built.

Ready to find your riding crew?

Pick one or two of the options above and try them this week. Post in your local group, turn up to a bike night, or open MotoBFF and see who's riding near you. If there's no ride at your pace, post one: a meeting point, a time and a coffee stop is all it takes. Riding's better with company.