I did something similar yesterday, actually. I only realised afterwards that I might have come across as being a jerk.

I was battling a fierce headwind when I suddenly realised I was catching up to another roadie (no commuter). Due to the road conditions at the time (narrowed road crossing the extended centreline of the runway at our local airport) I had to stay behind for a minute until traffic cleared to allow me to pass.

Since I was going significantly faster, I sped up and passed the other cyclist, and I felt it would be nice to say something and not just pass. So I said "Terrible headwind, eh?", because that's what I felt at the time. As soon as I said it, though, I realised it probably sounded like I was putting her down for being slow. She wasn't slow - on the same bike setup, I would've been slower. She looked at me with a strange expression on her face and said nothing. I quickly turned my head to front and kept going, feeling stupid!