roadrider_va

I was having a great commute this morning, but I had a run-in with an a-hole jogger on the Mt. Vernon bike trail in Alexandria, VA. The guy (about 65 years old) was running toward me, saw me coming, turned around and ran side by side with another woman to BLOCK THE TRAIL.... I said "passing on the left" about 3 times and he just ignored me. So finally the woman moved off the trail and as i slowly went by, he said "IF YOU WANT TO USE THE TRAIL, GET OFF YOUR BIKE AND JOG"... so i stopped, and said "excuse me? I said on your left" and he went into a rant about people being deaf and not being able to hear when people say passing. I said "listen guy, i KNOW you're not deaf and you purposely blocked my passage just to be a jerk"... then he started MOVING TOWARD ME with these 2 dumbells he had in his hands. I'm not kidding. I was shaking mad for the next 30 minutes of the ride (fortunately I'm laid back so the frustration dissolved relatively quickly). I just can't believe it! Anybody have similar experiences or better yet, anybody ever run into this guy on the Mt. Vernon Bike Trail?

The funny thing is, that this guy obviously has a vendetta against bikers, but little does he know that I'm A RUNNER AS WELL! This is all just so ridiculous. Crazy people, I swear.

Chad's Colnago

There is a state park I enjoy riding at and one time this friend and I were going through the usual route when we saw a group of kids walking down the road, away from us. One of them looked over their shoulder and they all instanlty spread out to cover the whole road. I hit the brakes so hard my rear wheel locked up. We gave them proper warning when approaching and everything, it was like they were going to close line us or something. Stupid kids. Unfortunately I tend to be a hot head and shouted all kinds of words they probably hadn't heard yet.

slvoid

Times like that, I'll load up a couple of blanks. After the first "on your left", when they notice you and don't move, fire off a shot, they'll move... Ok, I'm just ranting too.

DC_Emily

So the one morning I'm on my way into work and I'm passing the Pentagon. I get to an area separated from the road by jersey barriers, and slow down cause there's this jogger (who looks like he's either ready to keel over or is having a really bad day) coming towards me. As we pass, he gets in my face (mind you, I slowed down) and yells "SLOW DOWN!!" I see this guy probably once a week. Every once in a while, I'll ride as slow as possible and smile and wave just to tick him off.

BigBrooklynLou

Everyone's an a**hole till they get runned over by a 200 lb man on a 20 lb bike going at 17+ mph. Physics hurts.

Riding on the Shore Road belt. Theres a joggers lane and a bike lane. A group of older joggers with their Walkman decide to 'jog' on the bike lane. Every few seconds, as bikers pass by, they yell at them to get off the lane. They are oblivious. As I approach, whistle in mouth, I blow like crazy at them, close enough to them so that they can hear the squeel and whistling even above their music. I explain that if a jogger bumps into them, they go ouch. If I bump into them, they're going to the hospital. Pick. They start giving me lip about they can jog where they want to. "Whatever. You want to play with traffic old man, its your funeral not mine."

I hate to say this roadrider, but some people learn through rational discourse, other learn by getting smacked in the head by life a few times. Its that whole "Fire Burns" thing. Some just get it, some need a lighter and some quiet time to figure it out. One of these days the old man is not going to hear the quiet whizzing of a well tuned road bike and the guy on the drop bars may be so into his thing that he doesnt see the old man either. Then, well, Physics does its thing.

baj32161

I agree. Some people only learn the hard way, and those that do...good for 'em...the f****rs!!

LordOpie

So deaf people don't have to be responsible for their actions?

celticfrost

Unfortunately, I have to agree --- some people just can't take the extra tenth of a nanosecond to act w/ common sense or decency unless they're smacked.

Case in point (and I wouldn't recommend doing this), but...

Where I work the halls are a bit narrow -- maybe wide enough for people to walk 2 abreast one way, while still allowing enough space for one other person to walk in the other direction w/ out any problems. Anyway, on random occasions, I would always pass these 3 guys walking down the hallway from the other direction, all of them walking shoulder to shoulder. I would literally have to turn my body 180 degrees and lean towards the wall to create the smallest profile possible so I could squeeze past these knuckleheads w/ out causing contact. The funny thing was that I had about 4 inches and 30 pounds on any one of them, so if there was contact, they'd be the ones (in all probability) getting the worst of it, so I never wanted to look like some goon by just hammering into these wimps. So for about a week(?) or so, I gave them the benefit of the doubt that they may have been in their own little world, I would always try to make eye contact and always say "excuse me" loud enough for them to hear, but to no avail. Finally one day, I just said screw it and (while still walking way over on the right) I didn't bend and contort my body to avoid these guys. Sure enough, direct contact is made and this guy is spun 180 degrees -- notebook and pen flying out of his hand! And I hear him mumble some slight garbage like, "hey, watch it, what the F**K", etc. I just kept walking.

Since then, every time I pass these guys, one of them will get behind the other 2 and we all go on our way --- not a bad word or expression is exchanged.

I'm not sure if making physical contact was worth it, because I did feel like a jerk (at least a little bit ), but it does seem to prove the point that BigBrooklynLou makes.

sunninho

just wondering, if you hit a jogger on a trail and they get injured or, worse, feign injury, regardless of whether you're obeying all rules, would you still be at fault? and, has anyone been sued for running over a jogger/pedestrian, especially in cases like the ones above, where it's clear to you the other person instigated the incident?

Moochers_Dad

Always carry some Halt! dog/pepper spray. If he cannot hear you, then maybe a little shot of something he could smell might help.

One of those stadium air horns might help also. He would hear it and it might help some bowel blockage problems if it's close enough.

clfjmpr44

The whole multi-use trail thing rears its ugly head again (check the forum and you'll find dozens of threads on this topic). As runners and cyclists, my wife and I have seen both sides. We've cycled past the runners that have zoned out and are running centerline and we have been the runners when road bikes zip past and have not given enough berth in their passing. Both experiences are similarly aggravating. Like many things in life, it comes down to an us versus them type thing...the only problem is some of us are them.

BigBrooklynLou

clfjmpr44, I really don't think its an 'us vs them' issue. Guys like the old man on the trail are the outliers. Sure disagreements / confusion happen on multi-use trails. Thats life. But when someone goes out looking for trouble, or is so devoid of even the smallest bit of common sense, that trouble finds him, we're not talking about a healthy debate, but the possibilty that people can get hurt.

All that keeps going through my mind is the quote from Cool Hand Luke ...

lotek 

I lived in the area, and know that for commuters there are points
along the Mt Vernon trail that there is no alternative (unless you
ride the GW parkway).
Remember this is Alexandria, jest south of DC and Yuppie Central,
and he is some pissant little gov't employee with a BIG chip on
his shoulder (roughly like 75% of the population up there, I know
I was one).
I agree with Lou (where in Brooklyn ya from? I was born in Sheepshead bay area?)
In diving we say (well I do) that Poisidon will sort them out, getting nailed
at 15+mph will do the same thing.

Marty

clfjmpr44

That's funny Lou, I know that quote verbatim, but I would of cited Axle Rose.. Ignorance is bliss I guess in my case...

slvoid

Lou, wait till you bike the shore path during the summer with the fishermen, that'll suck when you bike by, they pull back on their line, and you get snagged with a hook on a kevlar string.

powers2b

Get a bum bike and a pen knife, wear a mask, ride right into him and while he is down cut his Achilles tendon...he'll never jog again...he'll have to give up exercise entirely.
(Apologies to Carl, Assistant Greenskeeper 'Caddyshack')

Enjoy

Monument Man

Yeah while I certainly respect the joggers on my MUP I take home from work, in this case the old man OBVIOUSLY was not respectful of the biker. He was in the wrong 100%. And to think that he was agressively coming after you, well I would definitely not lose any sleep when this guy gets run down.

In my case, I ride along a very busy riverway in the city. There's tons of joggers out running and most have headphones blaring. They can not hear me at all. I scream "on your left" and yesterday this girl (literally 1 second before I passed her) JUMPED to the left in front of me and nearly got herself badly smacked down. Now in my case I tend to ride very defensively and really slow down on this type of path. Because I know joggers typically can't hear me.

But obviously I would never try to block a jogger or claim that they had no rights to be using the MUP.

jitteringjr

You just happen to live in A-hole central. I swear the DC area has the highest concentration of A-holes in the country. I suggest moving, but not here because too many of these A-holes have spilled over to Richmond.

CommuterRun

This sounds like the part where the OC can comes off the bars and gets raised, with the order to stop. He keeps coming, he made the descision he wants to get sprayed. Maybe he was tired of running, because he's not going to be doing any more of that, on that day.

A shot to the face would be self-defense. An additional shot to the crotch of the sweaty, thin, nylon running shorts could, maybe, be assault. But I guarantee he wouldn't be doing anymore running for a while.

BigBrooklynLou

I stopped biking the whole loop (pier to Ceasars Bay) for that reason. I do 69th st Pier to just before the VZ bridge (cant go near the bridge in the summer due to all the BBQing families letting their kids run around the bike path). Alot of people keep suggesting I do the Prospect Park loop, but Shore Road is right outside my house.

alanbikehouston

It simply does not work to have bikes sharing a trail with joggers, walkers, baby strollers, and roller skaters. Bikes need a "bikes only" trail. Every city would claim that "bikes only" trails cost way too much money. Yet, the actual construction cost for a ten foot wide bike trail "per mile" is about 1 % of the cost of building a mile of two lane road.

Amazing how politicians never bring up the cost when they are paving another highway, but cost is a "fatal" factor when considering a "bikes only" trail.

ultra-g

If this guy was really coming at you... well, if it was me... I would have clocked him big time just use your palm right into his nose as hard as you could (but you might have killed him).

A freakin' 65 year old guy??? He would deserve it for acting like he was still young.

I hate those people... I saw an old man like that in Central Park, except he was on a bike and was yelling at a cab... so I didn't think anything of it except that the cabbie could have just clocked his elderly ass and ruined his day or life.

A rollerblader made fun of me once on the Westside Greenway as I passed him... I slowed down and just rode next to him... I didn't say anything... I just intimidated him and he just fell down because instead of looking where he was going, he was looking at me!! After that I rode ahead about 100 yards, got off my bike and when he past me again I just smiled and said: "Remember me?" He was seriously spooked because I was acting like a looney!!

roadrider_va

Ha! Totally. I do live smack dab in the middle of a land where people will create a scene in Starbucks because their Latte was made with 2% instead of skim.

I wish I could have captured this all on film. I just keep replaying it in my head, and it's so obsurd... he was running toward me and WENT OUT OF HIS WAY AND CHANGED HIS COURSE OF DIRECTION just to cause a scene and block me! Perhaps I wronged him in a past life, or then again, maybe he just forgot to take his Lithium this AM.

ultra-g

Maybe he was a Supreme Court Justice!

CAAD5AL

Around here if you MTB you get an interesting (ahem) mix of bikers, hikers, dog-walkers and horses . . . a lot of the busier trails have gone to an alternating-days system to avoid conflicts, which has helped immensely,