Great, great story! Thank you.

I guess I just don't see the problem here. You clearly have the skills/strength to blow away these idiots that annoy you so much. Why not just do it?

Heck, it'll even give your HR a boost in a positive manner. Beats keeping pace and just getting more and more ticked off.

Why would someone draft at only 21MPH? I'snt that kind of weak?

There are cyclists with varying degrees of ability, you know. They're out there.

Shoot. I was not aware of a speed requirement for drafting. I really must inform the rest of my club.

If I had someone riding my tail close enough to matter, I think they'd suddenly find that I can be very erratic in my speed.
It's not that I'd care that they're there; anyone trying to draft me must be really slow. The problem is, I've never been involved with drafting, and it'd be dangerous for someone to be that close to me.

I think anyone who tries to draft someone that they do not know is being dangerous. There's no way they could tell what that person would do.

Depending on the headwind it might not be a bad idea to draft at 5.

On every century or metric, or other, ride that I've done (where drafting is allowed), I've joined pacelines made up of unknown riders. Not only do they always let me in, they, in fact, invite it, waving me in or saying something. Among the club riders, I'll allow them to do their rotations, while sitting in the back, and ask if/when they'd like me to take a turn up front. Among less skilled riders, I assume that we'll all be taking turns at the front. I make an assessment as to their skill/fitness to determine if I'll fit in. Contrary to all the crying here, everyone is gracious, helpful, and we have that much more fun for it. I'm not that uncomfortable zipping along in the mid 20's, with mere inches separting riders and wheels, for miles-among riders I've only just met. That, to me, seems much riskier than the occassional commuter who approaches and may or may not "sit" on my wheel on my 9 mile commute.

Ride 'em off your wheel or quit whining. Plain and simple.

At that point, the aerodynamic drag might be of less concern to me than the fact I'm riding my bike in a hurricane.

Or as Ron White says, "It's not *that* the wind is blowing. It's *what* the wind is blowing."

Okay, so drafting is okay when the person you're drafting is okay with it. But that's not what we're talking about here.

Or are you saying that those who would rather people not draft them are being unreasonable?

I think that many are hyper-sensitive to cyclists they {assume} to be drafting, they then do something stupid as retalliation, risking an accident that might not have otherwise occurred. If you're unable to ride them off your wheel then, what's the harm, really? Once I've ridden over that section of pavement or, used that air, I don't what the next guy does with it. Remember, it's the guy in the back that's at much greater risk of crashing when wheels rub anyway. So, if he's too close and inexperienced, the problem may just take care of itself. Just ride and stop worrying about what everyone else is doing.

Because the guy in back has a greater risk of crashing, the guy in front may feel a responsibility to keep that from happening, i.e., not make any sudden moves, etc. (Depending on how close the person drafting is anyway.) I don't know... I still think it's impolite to impose that on someone without asking first, even if it's not the hugest deal in the world.

Weird thread.

My experience is that whenever I pass someone who thinks they have any kind of get up and go skills, they ALWAYS hang on my wheel until I drop them. No exceptions.

I can usually spot these guys as I approach them because they tend to step on it as I get closer. Once I pass them, they swing in behind me and give it the old college try, most fall off rather quickly. The few that hang in there are really not an issue; there are so few.

I guess my question still stands: Why not just drop these guys? What is the problem?

What if you just don't feel like it?

Or what if you're already going at at good clip, and you don't want to kill yourself for that extra 2 mph or so when the guy behind you (since he's drafting, obviously) can make up that difference much easier than you can?

Or what if the guy behind you is just stronger than you, but is sucking wheel anyway? Or you're really tired from a long ride?

Myriad reasons.

Then move aside and coast for a moment.

Due to these issues, I sort of evaluate the situation as I approach a slower rider -- because, I too do not really want some guy on my Sass. Typically, I judge my strength during the approach. If I am feeling weak, or if I can tell the guy is a strong rider who is just dogging it, I'll hang back a little and build up a second wind, even take a drink or two. I never pass a rider unless I am ready to go all out. I try not to pass a rider unless I am reasonably sure I can shake him.

I guess that is my etiquette. If I am going to pass you, I plan to smoke you.

I think it rude to pass a rider and then just hang there with my big butt waving in front of his face. I hate it when people do that to me. They either get re-passed and dropped, or I fall back and just let them go.

That is pretty much my rational. I ride as hard as I can reasonably sustain on my 30 mile ride home. That I can bump things up a few miles per hour, does not mean I want to waste the energy. I like to keep a steady 20-21 mph pace on the 15 miles of bike trail so that when I hit my 15 miles of downtown traffic, I have the legs under me to sprint from stops to keep up with 25-30 mph traffic and not get squeezed out.

I do draft with fellow centry rider and obviously on club rides, but on a century or club rides, you are all on the same ride, ridng the same distance, and knowingly working together.

Also, just because me in the front may have less of a chance of crashing if wheels touch, I have ZERO wish to make anyone else crash regardless of how rude I think they are.

You missed the part where it states I live and commute in NYC, LOL. (It's in bold bright red letters directly under my posts and also under my name to the left.) New York City coined the phrase "dangerously overcrowed".

+1 As long as they aren't riding dangerously close to you or trying to follow you home and ****/rob/murder you then just drop them, let them ride by you or deal.

Cyclists/bikers should be nice to each other.

Yuhbbit the OP is from Sacramento...?

It's really not that hard to understand.

People like keeping physical space between themselves and others for a variety of reasons. It's not hypersensitive and it's not asocial. It is normal. Now in certain situations people understand that maintaining that distance isn't always possible and isn't always desirable. People ACCUSTOMED to drafting and being drafted are willing to give up that personal space. People who aren't may not be and this thread and several past threads demonstrates that pretty well.

Do you want somebody walking inches behind you? You're done with the air right? My guess is that it would bother you. If you slow down and they bump into it's annoying whether you're actually hurt or not.

I'm not advocating that anyone retaliate. Riding somebody off your wheel is one solution if you've got the gas to do it, but IMHO, the drafter shouldn't have put you in that position in the first place.

Perhaps the problem is that they can't. I know it really bugs me when grandma is sucking my wheel on her cruiser with the milk crates attached, and I can't drope her. I am wussy, so I come to BF to whine and feel better about my sorry-arsed self.

Don't equate the goofballs on your ride who apparently weave through your "dangerously on crowded MUPs" with me and my ride. On my MUP, on some mornings when I ride the full way in, I only see 10 people (cyclists, runners, walkers, and mom's with strollers).

And if riding a nice-ish bike, kinda fast (but nowhere near race pace), while wearing lycra means I am a Lance Armstrong wannabe, I guess I am guilty.

You miss the point. Some ARE riding dangerously close, though none to my knowledge are actually stalking me. And I *AM* being nice. For the most part I confrom to the normal drafting ettiquite whereby I keep a steady pace, I don't weave, I don't brake suddenly, I take wide paths around road hazzards all in an effort NOT to crash the guy behind me. Just because I am annoyed do not give me the right to deliberately cause them physical harm.

But I guess by some people's clock, I should also not be annoyed and deal....

I drove today, so on my next ride home, I will take people's advice and just chill out. But then again just about any ****ty ride home on my bike beats the drive home in the car.

LOL! I'm not talking about YOU! I'm talking about what I've seen and experienced HERE in NYC. I've seen some REALLY, and I mean REALLY, dangerous stuff going on with those "Lance Armstrong wannabes" (not including just clueless casual riders, bike messengers, etc.) going crazy on overly crowded MUPs here in NYC that put their lives in danger as well as the lives of the other people (mine included) using the MUPs alongside them.