Originally Posted by
DrIsotope
So y'all are alright with denigrating people just because they ride loops, or cover the same routes multiple times? How very elitist of you both.
Just think of how boring racing must be, where people cover the exact same ground dozens of times in one day.
We have an area locally called the Sunset Loop, some guys will lap it 20 times a week, and they're faster than all of us combined.
I've ridden the same 50km route at least once a week for all of 2020. I have a 3.5 mile lap around the neighborhood that I've covered over 350 times since I started cycling.
There are only 6 segments in that 3.5 mile lap, and I only have 3 of the KOMs (plus two 2nds and a disappointing 13/2,449.) Just covering that same loop slowly.
I was poking fun at myself, nobody else.
The "local legends" thing just reminded me of how seldom I explore on my bike anymore.
I'm actually fortunate to live near some good training loops that are relatively free of vehicle traffic. Some folks, including the former local pro team (I think they've recently disbanded), would drive or ride miles to train on the same loops that I just consider "my neighborhood."
After being hit by a car a couple of years ago I avoided some routes that required tricky navigation with cars. One of my favorite routes includes three or more loops, but connecting the loops requires navigating some tricky merges between the lightly traveled access roads and highway off ramps. If my legs and lungs feel fresh and I need a challenge I'll ride the longer route and treat those interchanges as sprint zones. But when I just want to relax or do intervals I tend to avoid any routes with traffic. Which means lots of loops.
I'd prefer it if Strava made that whole local legends thing opt-in, without tying it to whether we set our activities to public, friends only, or private.