Road Cycling - am i the only one

i went for a quick 40 miles today on a multi-use trail and in those few miles i encountered two large groups taking up the whole trail {on uphills both times**, three couples walking on the wrong side of the trail, a lady trying to teach her kid to ride in the middle of the trail she on one side bike in the middle and young son on the other, a dope who stoped in a tight corner and left his bike in the trail, three kids all over the trail.. no parent anywhere and the oldest looked 8-10, and a MOTOR scooter. am i the only one who gets P.O.ed at this. i could understand if the rules of the trail were not posted every other foot. thanx for listening to my rant.

Enjoy the ride! You have a lot of nice bike trails in northern Virginia and it's legal to ride on the roads if you prefer. It's never going to be perfect, but you have it pretty good. I'm not condoning reckless disregard for safety, ignorance of posted rules or inconsiderate behavior, but I think you will be happier if you look at the glass as being (at least) 1/2 full.

well yes im happy its just that these people act like they are the only ones there and the heck with anyone else. this was an especially bad day and i wanted to vent thats all.

Thats what you get for riding a multi-use trail! You do have a choice though, little kids and dogs on 30ft+ leashes or riding with 2000lb+ death machines.

I find cars are more predictable than users of bike paths. I'll stick to the roads. I feel safer there.

avoid trails on weekends

I understand and agree. Forum*rider is correct also, but that's kind of a negative (though amusing) way to put it. I think we're all on the same page.

You're not the only one. I hate trails unless nobody is on them. To me the trail is just a faster way to get to a country road.

absolutely, there are many ignorant path users out there. People who meet friends and they talk, while standing still in the line and make all others get around them. People who let their dogs run free in the park; pre-teens who walk together talking about who kissed who in the most recent public school gossip. The list goes on - the best one has to be the toddler pushing his/her stroller with parents behind engrossed in a discussion of new positions...
Many of them have resulted in me landing on my side...
Just come up to them and yell out "Left!", as long as you are being safe, there is a certain degree of intimidation involved when a cyclist pass you...
This may put me in a bad light...

I agree with SteveE - Swim with the cars, they're more predictable. Besides, you get a better draft from the cars than you do from joggers on the trail. ;)
Tom

Weekdays, the WO&D is deserted-- I can go for up to 15 minutes without seeing another soul, and when I do, it's another dedicated cyclist or runner who understands trail etiquette.

Weekends, it's just as you described-- joggers running 3 abreast (why, oh WHY? is there always another cyclist coming in the opposite direction at a closing speed that will make all three groups collide at the same moment??), chillens with helmets tilted at a rakish angle over one eye barreling right towards me in my lane, walkers with headsets on using the dividing line as their guide, the ever-popular walking-against-traffic couples, dogs off the leash, etc etc.

Dave

Road 50 miles on the W&OD yesterday and say 5 riders the whole time. :). I have ridden it other times and have encountered the same crowd. Need to slow down when passing and then crank it back up. I prefer slowing down for folks as opposed to dealing with cars and trucks.

On weekends just get out when the sun rises. Just need to worry about the crazy squirrels right now.

I carry a Fox40 whistle, and a blast can be heard by peds and erratic bicyclists from sufficient distance away that they have time to get out of the way without being alarmed.

i went for a quick 40 miles today on a multi-use trail and in those few miles i encountered two large groups taking up the whole trail {on uphills both times**, three couples walking on the wrong side of the trail, a lady trying to teach her kid to ride in the middle of the trail she on one side bike in the middle and young son on the other, a dope who stoped in a tight corner and left his bike in the trail, three kids all over the trail.. no parent anywhere and the oldest looked 8-10, and a MOTOR scooter. am i the only one who gets P.O.ed at this. i could understand if the rules of the trail were not posted every other foot. thanx for listening to my rant.

I feel for you. It was a nice calm day on the B&A trail only other roadies, rain, and wind no knuckle heads.

Sounds like Hilton Head Island Pathways. I have this uncontrollable tendency to knock over bikes sitting in the pathways.