that sucks. sorry to hear that.
I guess people in general have the tendency to look down on others in hopes of making themselves feel better/more superior.
Nothing wrong at all with riding a stock bikes or front brakes. I still ride with my front brakes but its all cool cause I value my head more than my coolness/hardcore factor.
Can't say i've experienced trash talk from other riders, but I do get verbally crapped on pretty much daily by cagers because I live in a suburban place where people only ride sidewalks.
Anyways, hope you don't get too discouraged by this one neg. experience.