Maelochs

I was going to say all that, but i am tired of scrapping with "Mr. War Zone." Glad someone else called him out.

JoeyBike

It's not resentment. It's politeness.

How would you like it if you went for a nice 50 mile bike ride in the country, breeze blowing, birds chirping, the wherrrrrrr of your chain going round and round lulling you into a great mood and EVERY CAR passing you tapped their horn to warn you of their passing? Would you be grateful? After the 100th car passed you, how about then? Or would you wonder what the Hell was wrong with them? Wouldn't it be safer for you to be alerted of the approach of every car or truck so you don't do something stupid as they are passing you, or would all of those horn taps be unnecessary condescending blasts from other people assuming you are a moron.

When I am out on the local MUPs, I really don't even want to hear MY OWN voice much less a clanging bell. If pedestrians do not want to be startled, they should pay attention same as I do. If those same pedestrians are wearing ear buds, as nine out of ten of them do, then they are CLEARLY communicating to the world that they don't give a darn about auditory warnings either. I do not believe any pedestrians want to hear from me, with ONE notable exception.

Now you know my philosophy. I have no desire to babysit the entire adult human population. Kids and pets are a different critter altogether.

livedarklions

Even for you, this is over the top. Hilarious! You have a marvelous gift for self-parody.

The reason I wouldn't want cars to honk is because their horns are friggin loud, not because any sound is somehow insulting. It's actually physically painful to have something blasted at me at close range. The fact of the matter is that since I have never found a mirror set up I'm entirely happy with, I do count somewhat on the fact that motorized vehicles make fairly significant noise. My bike, however, does not.
And guess what, if I don't call the pass, paths are narrow enough so that my silent presence immediately to their side is more startling than if I say something.

Where I ride, only a minority of people are wearing ear buds, and those people tend to stick to the far right side of the path. I have had far more issues with ear-budded cyclists who seem to think they're entitled to switch lanes willy-nilly without looking or signalling.

Tell you what, when I do pass you, I'll just make a vroom-vroom noise instead of using words so you won't feel condescended to.

We all know your philosophy because you keep repeating yourself over countless threads. It's just such a silly one that it invites ridicule.

JoeyBike

A "polite" horn tap, from a reasonable distance, is not loud or painful.

Now imagine in a busy city grid where every car driver taps the horn to "politely" warn EVERY cyclists in the city of a pass. Do you know how much noise there would be?

In my community, they don't want to hear me and I don't want to hear me. I have had 2 complaints in 50 years. I stick with my story.

livedarklions

What the hell does the cumulative effect of multiple horn taps on all the roads in a city have to do with a few "passing on your lefts" on a bike path? Total analogy logic failure. Do you know how many more roads there are than bike paths? How many times as many cars as there are bikes? Besides, American cars tend to have very loud horns, taps are short, not quiet.

I've had zero complaints in 50 years, but frankly that isn't a very good metric. You're probably well past them before they can register the complaint. I've heard and read lots of people complaining about people passing them too closely on their bikes, I have never heard or read anyone complaining about a polite call pass. I'm sure if I dig hard enough on the interwebs, I'll find some crank doing it, but there would be literally thousands of times more complaints about pretty much anything else bicyclists do.

I'm totally not buying this "New Orleans is different" business . Rude is rude.

For someone who doesn't want to hear himself, you sure post a lot. I think you might have better luck selling this "grizzled road warrior" bit in a forum that wasn't full of people who bike as much as you do, because here you just keep coming off as someone who says extreme things that just don't comport with reality.

Maelochs

I personally dislike car-horn passing-warnings because car horns are supposed to be used to signal hazards. I can hear a car coming a long way off ... I understand the driver forgets how load cars are ... but when I hear a horn, I start looking around for the hazard. I cannot tell immediately if a driver is upset with me, is upset with another driver, is warning another driver of road debris or not to pull out of a side street, or what. There is not protocol for honking before passing .... and while I understand that most who do it think they are being polite, they need to know that they aren't.

On the other hand, there is a protocol that cyclists on MUPs warn pedestrians before overtaking. And it provide Mutual safety. I usually pass slowly, and while I have startled quite a few earbud zombies, I have never once heard a complaint---most usually an apology. I have Never had a bad reaction. Again, it is the actor who defines the scene in many cases. An irritated person is often an irritant. A person with a persecution complex is more likely to persecute others.

It is sad that some people cannot simply ride a bike. I have ridden in about two-thirds of the continental U.S. and found it to be simple everywhere.

Some people just don't realize that they define their own realities.

JoeyBike

Some of us can "simply ride a bike" same as me. It is not a complex activity by itself. My 5 tours across the USA were solo. I do not like reacting to, compromising with, or appeasing other people. I simply ride my bike. What the rest of the world does is not interesting to me. You want to walk on an MUP, you should realize that you are walking on a ROADWAY, since bicycles are vehicles by law, and walk FACING TRAFFIC so you are not surprised by passing cyclists. Cyclists, like motorists on 2-lane highways, should wait until it is safe to pass other cyclists, then pass without a brass band accompanying them. How did the rest of the world's mental deficiencies on MUPs become my problem? THEY are daydreaming, THEY get startled, it's THEIR problem.

In a perfect world where everything make sense might look like ^^this. I don't live in that perfect world. Pedestrians can safely share public spaces with me if they act right. If they act right there is no need to call out whatsoever. I feel no need to babysit full grown people on MUPs whatsoever. As I told the knucklehead who tracked me down for not calling out: "Pay attention to your surroundings and we have no problems." Otherwise, the problem belongs to them.

Tell me why I should care that those Zombies get startled? Especially the rude ones who show zero consideration for all other trail users then get angry when they pay for it?

livedarklions

Do you think this gets more convincing because you've posted pretty much the same exact silly point about 500 times?

Most of the MUPs I ride on have actually posted this as a rule.

BTW, you've posted two completely different and incompatible arguments against announcing a pass-- one was it's impolite to interrupt people's reverie, and the other is that it's wrong for people to become "zombies" so you owe them no duty to warn them of your presence.

We get it-- you like to be rude and you don't care about other people. Mazel tov.
BTW, I am definitely of the opinion that someone who doesn't warn people with strollers or small kids is operating as a sociopath.

JoeyBike

I manage to zone-out AND hold my line. Before I change my line, I LOOK behind me. Oh what a peaceful and serene world this would be if everyone did this one simple thing. There would be no need for calling out. And apparently I am not easily startled if someone passes me unannounced, which is about 9 of 10 of them in my area. In fact, calling out might be more startling for me.

Your opinion. If yelling at people continually during a bike ride is considered NOT rude, then I guess I see how you arrived at that conclusion. I do not care about other people, that part is spot-on. Does not mean I want to be rude to anyone.

Thankfully, the MUP i frequent is 30 miles through the woods. Very, very rare to see a child and no pets allowed. HEAVEN!

I most certainly would call out if there were loose toddlers or dogs on 30-foot leashes, and that won't be pretty if I am forced to discipline other trail users.