On a trail, kids always have the right of way. The choice is: Do you give it to them or do they take it?

I agree: on weekends I run into aggressive riders FAR more often than on weekdays...

I see them flying through narrow passages and trying to squeeze down the middle between walkers going in opposite directions on either side of the trail. They do not slow down for children. It is like they are still at work trying to go as fast as they can and slowing down and waiting is simply not in their game plan. Almost like they think they are driving their car down the 4 lane highway: they can go as fast as they can without concern for other people or other drivers....

True I sometimes see that aggression on weekdays but it is 10 times more prevalent on weekends.

The weekend warriers seem to follow a different set of rules...

I was on a MUP yesterday. It climbs an escarpment about 100m and takes 8km to do it. It's tree-lined on both sides, and I can see smoke in the trees up ahead; sometimes kids have bush parties in the woods, I think. Then I see the source: a couple of mini-motorbikes (the ones that are illegal everywhere except your own property) laying down a veritable carpet of exhaust smoke between the trees as they go up. I accelerate with the intention to pass, and as I go by I get a look at the drivers. "Dad" is 30-something, mullet, and no helmet. "Son" is about 9, also no helmet. That last few metres before I passed were nearly unbearable with the amount of smoke coming out of those things.

Walkers, cyclists, runners, kids on hikes .... I doubt any of us appreciated the smoke. Not that this guy noticed, or even cared. I used to get angry at that kind of selfishness, but no more - I pretty much expect it nowadays, on and off the MUP.

Okay, that was... kind of depressing... :) It's too true to even be funny, so you just have to cry.

I think what some folks might have missed is we were approaching the groups head on. We were going up hill and they were coming down hill.

With that in mind they could clearly see us coming but were oblivious to the need to make room/share the trail. It boggles my mind that folks can be so oblivious....

Anyhoo I'm over it now. I love some of the posts here! I laughed! Mini bikes? Seriously?! Mullets must rot the brain in some way eh?

The worst case I've ever encountered was 2 boys and 1 girl riding toward us on the Katy trail. Neither boy could back off because that would have ment yielding the girl to the other. Eventually I had to ride off the side of the trail and stop.

What do you think would have happened if I had just held my line and let the boy collide with 400+ lbs of tandem and rider traveling 15 MPH?

It's a MUP, where the tradition of making up your own rules (or ignoring the ones you don't like) gets taken to an art form. If the other users bother you enough, you'll find another venue. If not, you'll figure a way to endure them.

When I was walking a lot I noticed that the joggers were often the worst. They were zoned out in their own little world and did not seem to care or even know that they were on the wrong side.

As a few have pointed out, we don't know what was in their minds (if anything!) But, quite often I have been in the same situation and I know that they saw me coming but still refused to move over: simple pure, selfishness and aggression. When that happens I stick to the middle of my "lane" (which doesn't allow enought room for them the hog the middle of the path and part of my side) and I don't move over until the last minute.

Occassionally I have said something if they get too close or too obnoxious. It's not the obnoxious part I worry about -- it is the danger of being run off the path or having no room to maneuver and getting into an accident because somebody didn't want to put their conversaton on 'pause'.

Basically it seems to be a case of them saying saying: "My conversation is more important than your safety".

Politely announce your presence like they do in NYC – “Hey I’m Riding Hear – A****ole!”

Another option - stop your bike, let them saunter by, and continue your ride. You might even say "Hello!" This also provides you with a bit of interval training. I wouldn't attempt to play "chicken" with them. Any accidents or injuries are your fault, period.

Life is too short.

I remember, growing up, a guy kept doing that on our road. One of the neighbors fixed the problem by throwing a garden rake under the guy's car as he sped past -- and then yelled at him for running over his rake! the guy was less than happy but, with the neighoborhood filled with 20 & 30 year old guys recently returned from WWII there wasn't a lot he could do.

Much more civilized than those obnoxious Air-Zounds!

I was on a trail outside Brevard, NC last week, heading slowly towards town from the campsite, when a young woman on a cruiser bike blew around a curve, headphones firmly crammed into each ear, and oblivious to pretty much everything else on the planet. Her left handgrip caught the top of my left hand on my handlebars, bringing us both to a complete stop in the distance between my index finger and wrist. My hand was completely numb, swelling rapidly, bleeding profusely from the blood thinners I'd taken about 45 minutes prior. She took out the earphones and asked if I was ok,to which i replied No! She kept asking if she could pour some water on it. Gee, thanks a lot! I asked her to get far away from me and watch where she was going. No cussing, no disembowelment. I was kinda proud of myself!
Lots of swelling and bleeding, but I made it to a drug store and washed and patched it up. The bruising under the skin is down to a sickly green now and I can bend my finger ok without pain.
Beautiful ride though. That part of the country is loaded with trails and a wonderful vacation spot. Gotta take the bad with it sometimes.

That's a good point. As much as we complain about overzealous law enforcement, look at how many complaints get posted about the lack of rule enforcement on MUPs.

How's the air quality where you live? Do you think that the auto companies, power plants and industrial pollution sources would have reduced emissions minus any government requirements?

Too many Starbucks.

The worst I ever came across was a young guy who decided that a particularly heavily-used section of trail was the proper place to teach himself to rollerblade...backward.

Another time I came across a guy coming towards me on a mountain bike, riding no-hands, while he strummed a full-size dreadnaught guitar. Potentially dangerous, sure, but a real effective demonstration of the doppler effect.

I want to do a new bike personal time trial on a 44 mile round trip MUP I'm fond of, and I'm planning on doing it wicked early in the morning. I hope I have lite traffic now that the summer is over. I plan to be as courteous as I expect in return.

Start your ride at 03:00 like I did for my morning ride. Doubt you'll meet anyone on the route. I do mine on roads which are, for the most part, well lit. I have a headlight, MagicShine 808e, and a tailight, Radbot 1000--I wouldn't dare ride in the dark without good lights. Heck, I use them in the day too.

The MUP you are referring to is turning into a dangerous circus on the weekends. The Park Rangers have commented on the present crowd using the trail. A few weeks ago there were three EMT requests on one Sunday alone. Today was one of the worst days we have seen for those who take chances and care nothing about the trail rules or the safety of other trail users. During the week, no problems. Weekends are another thing entirely.

Sorry to hear that. A nice trail is a community assett and benefits everybody. I hate to hear that a few idiots are making it dangerous.

I have one like that where i live. All the trails are limestone except for a single 3 - 4 mile stretch that is paved. Even though it is filled with kids, strollers, dogs, inline skaters and bicycles, there are a few who try threading the needle at 25mph. Last week somebody saw me loading my dropbar road bike onto my car and he yelled at me for riding it on the trail. He figured anybody with a road bike was one of the idiots.

Dog walkers are the worst IMO. I've seen walkers have a loose leash and THEY walk on one side and the dog walks all the way on the other. IF and WHEN they move I pucker up wondering if the dog will jump out at me (or something else, a bird?) when I pass and clothes line me.

I am constantly surprised at how many walkers / runners insist on walking on the left, despite signs stating keep to the right and a painted line down the middle of the trail. One time this summer this women who've I've passed many times still insisted on walking on the left, a LARGE (maybe 12) group of walkers came up past her and she stood FURTHER to the left in the grass looking aghast and pouting at everyone who was "obviously walking on the wrong side" - I passed the whole group on our left as no one was even there. I can't imagine how she thinks SHE is in the "right" (left) and EVERYONE else is wrong. Amazing.

My wife and I have seen the same thing with people walking against the traffic flow on the SRT. So one day I asked a woman why she walked on that side of the trail. She responded that she had been "bumped" one day by a biker flying don the trail. He passed her without warning her and was too close to her. So now she wants to see what is coming at her and if she needs to step off the paved portion of the trail to avoid being hit. A few years ago we saw an elderly woman in Fairmont Park who had been hit by a speeding bike rider. Broke her arm. Never stopped. We had previously seen this elderly woman every day on the trail. Always a pleasant smile and a hello. After she was hit we never saw her again on the trail.

I spent 37 years in dangerous chemical plants. Extensive twice a year safety training classes. The utter disregard for trail safety by some people amaze me. They have no idea how much injury can be caused by a stupid act on the MUP's. Or roads for that matter.

I've suspected that's the reason on the rare occasions I've seen it on my routes. Normally it's not crowded and it makes no difference to me - I go around them the same as if they were facing the other way and at I figure least they see me. If it was crowded and the other side blocked I'm not sure how that will work; I guess they'll step off the path or everyone stop but I've personally never had that happen. Except with a larger group taking up the whole path of course.

The woman walking on the "wrong" side of the MUP is using the road rules. On the road, walkers, joggers, and runners are supposed to go against vehicular traffic, not with traffic. Obviously motor vehicles will not be on the MUP and the MUP has different rules. Like Whiteknight, I can see some of her thinking, not agree with, but she may not want a bike, be leisure or faster, coming up from behind her where she can not see the cyclist approaching. Cyclists have a responsibility to share the path just as everyone else.

I ride a MUP almost daily. The good thing about this MUP is that the main loop is a one-way path and there is plenty of room on it to pass safely on the left. During the week, it's pretty empty and there is seldom any problems with other users. On the weekends, it's extremely crowded and it becomes a different story. The service roads leading to the main loop are two-way traffic and for the most part everyone respects that and stays on their side of the road. Except for the park rangers and certain service vehicles, there are no vehicles allowed on the service roads once you leave the parking area. On the weekends, it's not until the group rides get on the main loop that most of the problems start. Many of the groups don't announce themselves when passing you and don't slow down for anything or anybody. They have, and will, push people over and into one another just to maintain their pace. They have been reported on many times but other than talking to them, there isn't much the rangers can do. I have just learned to recognize who they are and what they drive and if I see several of them or their vehicles together in the parking lot, I know to stay to the right and double check when overtaking another person or rider. It's part of "Life on a MUP."

Riders alone or maybe just two generally are civil. It is when you get a whole group your get the group mentality. And yes this is especially true of younger riders. They have had very little disipline in their lives.

Yeah, I suspect people are using the "road rules" of walking against traffic, but to constantly get moved over by OTHER WALKERS let alone bikes should tell people to stay to the right.

I've gotten criticized for ringing by incredibell at people, even shouted down "Yeah, yeah I hear you, you got plenty of room", my intentions are not to get them to move over but to let them know I am passing, seems that people just zone out and don't hear a voice but the bell gets their attention. I don't know how many times I've passed people without using it - they may be on the very right edge of the trail, me to the very left edge going around with several feet of room and I frighten them, one dude actually jumped right into me. I often use it if I suspect someone approaching me doesn't see me, I've had people - riders even - who I'd swear were looking right at me either startle and weave towards me or just mindlessly pull in front of me. I swear some people just have a death wish. Regardless it's dangerous out there, MUPS or not so be careful.

I ride on the road and I find it unbelievable how many walkers/joggers I encounter walking with traffic and I'm approaching from behind. I usually say loud enough, "good morning" or "good afternoon" to let them know that I'm approaching...I even say "On your left or passing on your left" every once in a while.

Maybe she's from England.