Angio Graham

I often ride on the bike path in Redondo, Hermosa and Manhattan Beach. Its mostly cruisers but many time serious cyclists ride it. On more than a few occasions riders have gotten on my wheel and hitched an easy ride. I dont mind this at all.

Recently because I have been in shape I will grab onto a riders wheel if they pass me and I try to keep up. Sometimes me and the other rider will have a good back and forth pull effort for many miles. However, on two occassions a rider has turned around and yelled at me and asked "what the f do you think your doing, get off my wheel"

rebel1916

Those people are called tools. Most of them are present on BF, and should be along any minute now.

Angio Graham

uh oh....are they going to be mean to me ? lol

mtbikerinpa

As long as the speeds are similar I would call them allies if they don't get all bothered by someone using thier leftover air...

Keith99

How close to his wheel? Makes a huge difference if it is a half inch or a half bike length.

If the latter he is a jerk, if the former then the jerk is you.\

Either way back off, it is not worth following the wheel of a jerk. Catch the next wheel and set up a good pair and then blow past him.

rebel1916

Many of our more self righteous brethren, are under the misapprehension, that someone on their wheel poses a serious risk to them.

BlazingPedals

Proper etiquette is to always ask before you draft someone. It's not a question of being a jerk or not, it's a question of safety. When drafting, the person in front has responsibilities to those behind; and sometimes they won't want to take them on; especially for strangers with unknown riding skills.

ahsposo 

Correct. It's the doofus that has to chase you down, pass you and then immediately die, as you get their wheel with no warning, that's the turd in the punchbowl.

I like a riding partner. If you are strong enough to keep up or swap lead, I'm cool with that. I don't like ninjas though. If you catch me because you turned at an intersection into my lane of travel and don't announce you're behind me when you catch my wheel, I think that's rude.

ahsposo 

Yeah, this is what I'm trying to say.

spinnaker

Yeah it is a danger to me. If I have to stop them in is up my a$$. And very likely on a bike path when you have Sunday riders and walkers on the path, There is no good reason to be on someone's wheel that you don't know. Especially on a bike path.

steve0257

Ask. I'm not used to riding in groups and get uncomfortable when somebody starts getting close behind me. I know they are the one that will get hurt if something goes wrong, but I'm still uncomfortable with people trying to draft me.

Angio Graham

Okay that makes sense. So are you supposed to ask then because no one has ever aked me. I always figured if I didnt want someone on my wheel I could just slow down or move over or something. If they still stayed on my wheel then that would be a different story.

009jim

I don't like someone on my tail because I perceive that if I brake for something and they don;t see it they will be right beside me and probably what I had to brake for will require me to swerve and then I cannot swerve because the other rider is beside me. So I end up going bush while the other rider takes my space.

Jed19

Yep, this is the correct answer.

Flying Merkel

Not an unlikely scenario. I hate be followed by strangers. I had two older riders on road bikes right on the tail of my mountain bike while riding on the river trail. Annoying, but when I made a hard turn onto a side road they almost T-boned me. It would have bad for all of us. No, it wasn't a lock the brakes and slide sideways type o' move, it was done at a normal pace.

himespau 

I had a stealth drafter once on an MUP back when I used to try riding fast there. Came up on someone going slowly in front of me, slowed a bit, called out, "On your left" and checked back to start making my move to the left and suddenly this dude I'd passed 4-5 miles back was right beside me passing me and there was nowhere for me to go. Sure, I should have checked back sooner, and I was able to brake and not have an accident, but apparently I'd been dragging this dude since passing him without realizing it and then he'd decided to slingshot around me when I slowed down. Annoying to not know someone's riding your ass.

rebel1916

Anytime you pass someone, assume they are on your tail until you do a headcheck that shows otherwise. Now someone catching up and sitting back there silently would be weird and dangerous, but I don't think that's the common problem.

Leebo

I use my mirror for idiots. The bike path is not for racing or drafting. Where I ride, the Minuteman bike path( Boston) it is too crowded and busy during commute times to go that fast. I don't want someone that close to me, ever. You need to ask to draft. What happens when I have to brake quickly for some dog, kid or I-Pod zombie?

Ray R

On the track it is considered rude to jump on someone else's wheel or paceline unannounced. For example, when I'm motorpacing a rider on the track, that rider does not want to discover another rider on his wheel without notice. The same goes for road riding. It's courteous to announce one's presence and ask if it's all right to draft a wheel, whether an individual rider or a paceline.

CB HI

OP can catch my wheel anytime without asking, as long as he is willing to do his share of pulling.

The guy behind is the one that almost always crashes if thing do not work out, so no big deal really if someone drafts you.

yosarian9

My uncle carries one of these to deal with "tailgaters".

In the past he would "brake check" people.

himespau 

What's that?

rebel1916

Change for tolls. Tailgating a motorcycle is a much bigger dbag move than drafting a MUPpet.

yosarian9

It is a coin holder that attaches to handlebars.
Normally used on motorcycles but also used on bicycles by certain people.

And im nowhere near tough...

himespau 

Where are the Snowdens of yesteryear?