Imagine this situation: you are going for a ride with the guys you have never cycle with before. They are not very strong, and your conversational pace is above their threshold.
You have two options here.
You can either say bye bye and spin-off and never look behind. You will not make friends this way, and they will call you a dick ;)
Another option is to stay with them and enjoy.
Not every ride need to be serious; chat, have fun, give them all the encouragement they need. They are probably new to the sport. Remember, some time ago you were a beginner too.
When taking it easy you can still do the drills and work on your cycling form.
Try one leg pedalling. I do this when I cycle with my wife. I try to keep up with her, driving with one leg only.
But make sure you don’t do this in front of the pack and never overtake someone this way. If you don’t understand why this is not very nice, you are far on the spectrum ;)
During those social rides, you can also work on the strength. Simply cycle all the uphills on the biggest gear you can push, with a very low cadence.
Spin, love and cycle. Feel the burn and don’t be a dick ;p
