wonderboy

am i the only one annoyed by this? yesterday within a few meters of a long climb (for me at least, I have no idea where he had been riding from) I caught some other guy on a road bike and passed him. upon being passed, he decides to quickly catch up to me and next thing I know I've got a stranger a foot off my rear wheel.

I guess he was try to save face, or show he was tough, or something, but going as fast as I could reasonably go on the flat after the climb, I could not shake him. he drafted off me for 5 minutes or so, never saying a word and doing his best to not let me know he was there. then he just vanished, either turning off to end his ride or taking a different route.

this seems to happen often enough to me (not that i routinely pass people - I'm no speed demon) and it's usually 35+ year old dudes. why do people do this? am I the only one pissed off by this kind of thing? what's wrong with being passed?

PCS2

that was me.......I only did it because you muttered "******" as you passed me........don't ever let me hear you say that again or else.........









ok, no really, it wasn't me. Maybe they're doing it because they are exhausted and need some help to get home. But I agree, it would be nice if they annouced their presence, or asked if they could hang on for awhile. However I wouldn't say I get annoyed by it, it just reminds me to go hard.


*edit * I had no idea ****** was a banned word......oops (cranker with a W)

InVisib0L

I did that to someone that passed me today. I was more like 2-3 feet away. But, hehe.

stea1thviper

whenever i come up on people and im going at a speed they realize they clearly can't keep up with, they immediately turn onto a different road before they can get passed. I use to think it was just cause this was their route, but a few days ago i was coming up on this one guy and he saw me coming up on him fast so he turned right at the next intersection before i caught him. it clearly wasn't his original plan though because he turned onto a road so filled with gravel it was like ice and he almost fell off. people who ride out that far into the country tend to know which roads are bike safe and which aren't. or at least you check before making the turn. i think just not wanting to get passed is an ego thing. i find it rather amusing.

kleng

I was wondering why people draft you when you past them, did'nt we all take up cycling to get some form of exercise and doesn't drafting defeat this purpose !!!. Whenever I get passed, I say hi and continue at my own pace, there's no benefit to me to draft the other rider. If people want to satisfy their competitive ego, they should go and join a club and race.

sfrider 

I had something similar happen the other day. Some 20-something kiddie stops next to me at a light, glances at my Bianchi and decides I'm a poseur. Then more or less elbows ahead of me -- fine, I'll let him go, no big deal. Except he was going 17-18 where I usually roll along at 22-23. He's in the drops, glancing back at me, and I'm barely pedaling and mostly rolling, just waiting for a good safe spot to pass (we were in a bicycle lane). I'm trying not to make him feel embarrassed or challenged, clearly he has an ego problem. When it's safe to do so I simply go past him and continue on my merry way. I have no idea what his problem was, and I didn't see him again.

UmneyDurak

I'm just happy that they like looking at my ass so much they ride behind me. Although I'm somewhat wierded out, when it's a dude.

Polonswim

I do that once in a while. But only if the person is going the exact pace that I want to go and then I don't ride a foot off of their wheel. More like 3-5 feet. After a minute or two, I move up and ask if they want me to take a pull.

I figure that they caught me, therefore they are probably in better condition. But I don't know how long they have been working to catch me or if they are just cruising. I always try to help for a short while at least. If I cant' I just slowly fade off the back.

Dodge Rider

I would just pass them again and trade off back and forth, like a team ride, minus a few people. That is, if the guy would be cool about it and not turn my last 15 miles into a dead sprint so that we are both sour and fall off our bikes....

With this equipment, I doubt I will be doing any passing, unless I get arnold legs and a higher gear.

roadfix

I do that all the time by habit.....but not to annoy anyone....

spearce

i do that because i like to catch people while i ride...i like to set goals for myselft to keep the ride interesting...if someone passes me i try my best to stay at their faster pace so that i will get a better ride in...i'm not trying to annoy anyone...but now i'm really going to be aware of it...

oneradtec

That was Floyd Landis. He hasn't had any testosterone since the Tour. also, there have been mobs outside house, so he has not been able to train properly.

waterrockets 

+1

I'm usually the catcher, and I love it when I pass someone and they fight to get on my wheel. I don't care if they say anything or not, it's easy to tell they are there, and I look anyway. It keeps me focused and increases my effort a bit. If they hang on for a couple minutes, or start taking pulls, I'll usually share a few brief words ("nice pull," "sure is windy today," "are you alright back there?," etc.).

You can get a LOT better workout fighting to stay on a faster rider's wheel than slogging along comfortably on your own. It depends what your workout plan is for the day though. If you're doing intervals, you need to swallow your ego and let they guy go (you might catch him on your next interval anyway).

If you don't like people drafting off you, you should probably stick to mountain biking. Or eat lots of beans.

Mariner Fan

Now that would be annoying. I usually try to chase riders down that are ahead of me simply as a challenge. I do not draft off them though unless we strike up a conversation and agree to do it.

jonathanrules

i dont mind when that happens to me. if you really want to get away from them you can.

Bob Ross

Wait, so "W-A-N-K-E-R" is a forbidden word, but you can blatantly describe your sexual preferences and not get censored? This forum is weird...

rule

Truly.

Rich_W

Chasing down a rider in front of them is rabbit hunting... most roadies do it. Its the incentive. I do a lot of flat riding down on LBI at the Jersey Shore, and there are tons of roadies down there. And no, I do not like to get passed. Bring your A game if you want to play.

Whats even more entertaining... if I see a worthy rider trying to chase, I sometimes like to play possum. Let the guy blow past me hard, and then I give chase. I like to sit about 20-30 feet behind him, and make him keep his hard pace until he explodes. If you grab the wheel, that gives the rider the excuse that since they're pulling, they can give the elbow a flick, and expect you to pull through. Sitting back a few bike lengths give the impression that you can't get on.

If you're going to pass, you better make sure you can drop them.

jitteringjr

My personal feel is it's alright and perfectly normal to want to pass the person in front of you or to not let the person who just passed you get away from you, but you should give them space like you were in a time trial. Uninvited drafting is rude.

Hambone

I'm not frequently a passer or a catcher (we are still talking cycling, right?) But I too enjoy the challenge of the whole thing. I'm not, by nature a competitive person. But I do find that the other person and their higher/similar pace will help motivate me to up the energy level sometimes. Some of the best rides I've had have been with a rider who was better than me and just out riding but pushing me to ride harder.

That said, I don't draft other riders b/c I'm looking for a workout, not a race... but I will stay right behind and to the left of someone. I can't imagine that it pisses anyone off. I realy can't imagine why it would.

Rich_W

agreed

Hambone

two things:
If you caught and passed him, why would you expect him to announce he was back there? I would assume you knew that I was behind you if you had just passed me.

as if he "was wearing Harry Potter's Cloak of Invisibility"?

Hambone

What I think a lot of riders here fail to realise is that a lot of riders don't know that. If I didn't frequent BF, I'd never have known. And, from my experience, there are a lot of riders in NYC who are the same.

Maybe you guys should wave the person up and just tell them, or drop back next to them and explain.

Ramjm_2000

+2. I have always found a quick but hard squeze of the brakes takes care of the parasites....

SDRider

I wasn't looking at your ass, I was just catching a tow. Thanks!