CranxOC

OK, I have to confess, I had one of the more embarrassing trail moments of my entire riding life on Monday so I thought I'd let it out and see if any of you would like to share in this catharsis.

I went riding with a couple of buddies on Monday since it was the 4th of July, I had the day off and the weather was awesome. I was feeling pretty good, leading the way through the duration of the ride until we hit the one "real" climb of the day.

This climb is nothing special or even overly difficult for that matter (1/2 mile, semi-steep singletrack that's just rocky and loose enough to make it somewhat challenging) and I typically blast up the thing in the middle ring without a problem.

As I was preparing to start the climb, an approximately 6'2", 50 year old man, weighing about 230-240lbs, wearing (now you really have to take a moment to picture this guy in your mind) a red plaid jersey (yes, plaid and yes, it was actually a jersey – it looked like an old lady’s house dress), blue, lycra shorts, headphones, an older brown Camelback, CHiPs sunglasses and a light colored (I think it was yellow) helmet, riding a Cannondale Jekyll, started up the trail ahead of me.

I figured I’d just catch and blow past this weenie and get on with my climb; something I actually did right at the first bend (I would have done so sooner but the tool had his headphones turned up too loud and couldn’t hear me riding his rear wheel, asking him to move over). Unfortunately for me however, this is not the end of the story.

As we approached a little “S” turn section (about half-way up) I could hear that someone was closing on me so I looked back to find that the same plaid-clad tool was riding up on my tail!

I kicked it into high gear figuring I must have let up on my spin but it was no use; this guy who was probably 20 years my senior, outweighed me by a likely 20lbs and clearly suffering from some sort of dementia that hinders one’s ability to actually see the clothing they’re wearing, not only passed my but dropped my a**!

I’ve been dropped by women on a couple of occasions and have never had a problem with it because, in each one of those cases, it was obvious that they were in much better shape than me. In this case however, I was made to feel like a complete idiot by a guy who looked more like a thrift-store reject than a mountain biker.

I guess it just goes to show; “…never judge a book by its cover.” Yikes!

LowCel 

I have no problem with you getting passed by an old guy. I don't even have a problem with you being passed by a guy that was pretty heavy. Heck, I don't even mind that you were passed by someone with absolutely no sense of style. What I cannot forgive is you letting someone on a Cannondale pass you!

CranxOC

Funny. Maybe he should have painted the bike red plaid to match his granny jersey.

jbonus

You should've mouthed the letters "EPO!" as he passed by.

harov3

See!, I told you to stay in the cave.

mtnbiker66

What I want to know is.........How did that guy get my riding clothes**********?
I work with a guy thats 60 and can out climb 90% of the people I know.His legs look like rock.

serious

I guess you don't know anyone in good shape, huh?

klondike300

We had a guy like that named Crazy Larry. 55 the last time I saw him. Giggled the whole time riding and just got louder the faster downhill he went. Sweat so hard it was like being in a shower but could ride all day long. Make me think there is hope for me in the next 20 years.

mtnbiker66

I ride with a guy who won the 19 to 29 expert short track at sea otter this year and another fella who races on Hincappie's semi pro team so no I don't know any fast guys.Well I start out with them and catch up when they wait on my slow butt.

CranxOC

I don't know what this guy's legs looked like; I was way too distracted by the plaid jersey!

BErad

If you feel that strongly about Cannondales, you should remove this quote: "The most important part of a bike is the motor."

LowCel 

It was actually a joke. Sorry you didn't get it, luckily everyone else did take it that way. Personally I don't give a crap what anyone rides.

If you look closely at the thread you will notice that people are joking around and having fun. You may want consider doing the same.

CranxOC

Someone seems a little insecure about their Cannondale hmmm.

BErad

I apologize. Sometimes it's difficult to tell the difference between cynicism and witticism during these posts. Would it have seemed like a joke to you if I had written "at least you werent passed by someone on an Ellsworth."?

LowCel 

If it would have bothered me I would have never purchased an Ellsworth. There are plenty of people out there that dislike Ellsworth and have no problem letting me or others know it. I would be in a constant state of depression if I let it get to me everytime someone said something negative about Ellsworth.

If you check out my posts you see that I do not put down any brands of bikes. Like everyone else there are brands that I dislike, I just don't have any need to post it. Just because I dislike a brand does not mean that it isn't a perfect bike for someone else. A lot of the time I actually go out of my way to point out the positive characteristics of a bike that I do not like just so I won't seem biased.

BErad

Like I said before...sometimes it's just difficult to determine how cynical someone is being in these posts. I agree with you whole hog about not putting down other brands.

CranxOC

I have honestly never heard of anyone this sensitve about their bike. Have a sense of humor bro; nobody really cares what bike you ride.

BErad

I guess you just don't take pride in anything you own?
My sense of humor is fine, but thanks for the great advice.

CranxOC

Taking pride and being obsessed are two different things entirely. I'm VERY proud of my bike having pieced it together to create something that is uniquely mine but, if someone were to say something disparaging about Specialized, I'm quite sure that I would not take personal offense. I guess some people are just a bit overly sensitive about certain things.