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Do you roam the streets for other cyclists to try and race them?

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Road Cycling “It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best, since you have to sweat up the hills and coast down them. Thus you remember them as they actually are, while in a motor car only a high hill impresses you, and you have no such accurate remembrance of country you have driven through as you gain by riding a bicycle.” -- Ernest Hemingway

Do you roam the streets for other cyclists to try and race them?

Old 10-03-07, 03:04 PM
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Do you roam the streets for other cyclists to try and race them?

I get a kick out of dropping other cyclists. If I see a cylist going the opposite way I will turn around and then race towards them. As I get close I back off to save energy and then after I recovery I blow past them. And before they can give chase I will make a turn and drop out of sight.

If I spot a cylists approaching me from the rear I will slow down a little bit and time it so that we both stop at the same red light (intersection). Then I take off like crazy and if my legs give up I do the same thing and make a left or right turn to change course so they don't see me pant and almost die from exhaustion.

Yes, lame but it keeps my rides fun. When I see another cyclist I get excited...when I am by myself I pedal slowly. I'm not here to win teh tour de france just to smoke some riders on occassion
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Old 10-03-07, 03:05 PM
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remember class... don't feed the trolls.
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Old 10-03-07, 03:08 PM
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what is funny is i am honest about this. i really do go and try to race others. i am not saying i a the best, just that this is what i like to do. i mean your gonna get exercise on a bike...might as well have some fun. i don't see what kind of bait i am laying out, this is just an honest admission from a cyclist. some will do the same but won't admit it is lame. here i am saying it is but fun as well. its just good fun....im not hurting anyone.
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Old 10-03-07, 03:11 PM
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Are you really racing, if you are the only one that thinks it's a race.
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Old 10-03-07, 03:16 PM
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You are truly pitiful.
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Old 10-03-07, 03:16 PM
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If I'm approaching someone from behind, I will pick up the pace. I can't control it. Do I go out of my way for a little action? No. I did so a couple of times and then had the sense to ask myself why? Like was mentioned, if I'm the only one racing, is it a race? Or, is it a desire to prove myself better and faster than that unsuspecting fellow cyclist? I race to prove/disprove that I'm fast. A one-person race is just an interval and I can do those whenever I want. I try to avoid humiliating other people for my own benefit. Nobody wins in that case.
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Old 10-03-07, 03:19 PM
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buy a license, pin on a number
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Old 10-03-07, 03:20 PM
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Originally Posted by Bearonabike
You are truly pitiful.
Hey, I admit I am lame. You see...there are people who do this and think they are the next lance and those are the people with problems.

I admit I am just an amateur. I don't have crazy delusions about being a pro cyclist because I have a cf bike and team jersey/bibs. It's just FUN for me.

There HAS to be other people that do this....they just don't want to admit it. I won't admit this to my cycling group but with the veil of anonoymity the internet provides...what the hell.
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Old 10-03-07, 03:20 PM
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I chase cars... sometimes I bark at them while doing so.
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Old 10-03-07, 03:27 PM
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I can't help speeding up to catch people sometimes, but I don't alter course if I get tired. Well I wouldn't, anyway. That's lame-o. So far everyone I've dropped stays dropped, because if I can't pass someone without getting my HR up to 100% I don't. Nothing says puss-y like a guy who blows past someone to show off and then hides.

And anyway, dropping someone is not "racing" someone. Last time I checked, "racing" involves buying a license and getting a number.
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Old 10-03-07, 03:27 PM
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hos13 "Are you really racing, if you are the only one that thinks it's a race. "

That is the thing, is it really a race if you haul up to the person and pass them? Especially if they have no idea about the race, or if they dont care about you, then what does it matter?

Its also funny to think that you could be "racing" a guy who is on the last 10 miles of his century ride, and you are riding on mile 5. Is it still a race?

Here in Colorado especially on the climing routes, this race situation is settled very quickly because the hills expose what kind of rider you really are. Wannabies get dropped pretty fast. I say this because it has happened to me a couple of times with some amazing cyclists here in Colorado.

I was trying to stay ahead of them, and they were just out for a ride.
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Old 10-03-07, 03:27 PM
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MR, is that you?
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Old 10-03-07, 03:28 PM
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Originally Posted by dleesnowgs4
Here in Colorado especially on the climing routes, this race situation is settled very quickly because the hills expose what kind of rider you reall are. Wannabies get dropped pretty fast. I say this because it has happened to me a couple of times with some amazing cyclists here in Colorado.
Same situation here in Santa Cruz. There aren't too many flat sections to speak of
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Old 10-03-07, 03:33 PM
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Originally Posted by dleesnowgs4
Here in Colorado especially on the climing routes, this race situation is settled very quickly because the hills expose what kind of rider you reall are. Wannabies get dropped pretty fast. I say this because it has happened to me a couple of times with some amazing cyclists here in Colorado.
I find this to be true for the most part. Most people on the long climbs are already at their limit and can't lift their pace to cause trouble when you come across them.

However, I've had problems with a few re-passers. I usually don't start riding hard until I'm past the rolling portion at the start of my climb. So when I do catch up to someone, I've put several minutes into them. Yet they become re-energized and try to hang on my wheel or re-pass me. I don't know what they're trying to prove since if they were better climbers I wouldn't have put 10 mins into them after 45 mins of climbing.
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Old 10-03-07, 03:35 PM
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Originally Posted by shimano campy
Hey, I admit I am lame. You see...there are people who do this and think they are the next lance and those are the people with problems.

I admit I am just an amateur. I don't have crazy delusions about being a pro cyclist because I have a cf bike and team jersey/bibs. It's just FUN for me.

There HAS to be other people that do this....they just don't want to admit it. I won't admit this to my cycling group but with the veil of anonoymity the internet provides...what the hell.
Obviously.
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Old 10-03-07, 03:46 PM
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Originally Posted by shimano campy
Hey, I admit I am lame.
and a wimp by taking the next available turn so you wont have to really keep up.
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Old 10-03-07, 03:50 PM
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Originally Posted by blonduathlongrl
and a wimp by taking the next available turn so you wont have to really keep up.
Cut the OP some slack. How do you know that he hasn't advanced from pathetic weakling to lame wimp? Progress is progress.
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Old 10-03-07, 03:51 PM
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Originally Posted by shimano campy
Hey, I admit I am lame. You see...there are people who do this and think they are the next lance and those are the people with problems.

I admit I am just an amateur. I don't have crazy delusions about being a pro cyclist because I have a cf bike and team jersey/bibs. It's just FUN for me.

There HAS to be other people that do this....they just don't want to admit it. I won't admit this to my cycling group but with the veil of anonoymity the internet provides...what the hell.
I despise this behavior so what I will admit to doing is messing with people who exhibit this kind of behavior. Some people apparently have fragile egos in dire need of boosting and because they use deceptive tactics such as sneak attacks to achieve "victory," this behavior is particularly despicable. In this situation, a stunning defeat will completely shatter their already frail egos.

I will sometimes play games with these people when I'm doing intervals. I'll let them get close and they'll dig so deep to close the gap. But then I accelerate and open the gap back up. Then they give up and the gap gets big. Then I'll slow down and let them get closer and closer until they think they have a chance again. But again, I accelerate away. This is repeated several times.

One place where I train has a large prominent hill. If you're heading towards the hill, you can be seen by riders behind you quite a distance. Riders love to hammer up the hill especially if they think they can nip some unsuspecting rider right before the summit. If I'm doing an easy ride, I'm always watching for riders trying to do this. At first they think I'm way too far up the road to be caught but they'll try. As they get closer, they begin to believe they can catch my "slow" ass and put in a heroic effort. Within a few yards of the top, they're only a few bike lengths behind me and giving it their all while I'm riding easy and pretending to be oblivious. Then I go ballistic and rocket up the remaining part of the climb. Sometimes they get pissed and try to chase me down the descent and across the flats but they fail at that too. After that, they don't want to race anymore. In fact, they ignore me if I say hi to them.
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Old 10-03-07, 03:53 PM
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Originally Posted by shimano campy
I get a kick out of dropping other cyclists. If I see a cylist going the opposite way I will turn around and then race towards them. As I get close I back off to save energy and then after I recovery I blow past them. And before they can give chase I will make a turn and drop out of sight.

If I spot a cylists approaching me from the rear I will slow down a little bit and time it so that we both stop at the same red light (intersection). Then I take off like crazy and if my legs give up I do the same thing and make a left or right turn to change course so they don't see me pant and almost die from exhaustion.

Yes, lame but it keeps my rides fun. When I see another cyclist I get excited...when I am by myself I pedal slowly. I'm not here to win teh tour de france just to smoke some riders on occassion
You know I think you were the guy who I passed on my unicycle.
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Old 10-03-07, 03:54 PM
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I hate people that think they have to prove something by racing other cyclists. I don't even hardly do it myself.
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Old 10-03-07, 03:56 PM
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you are obviously not the only one. You're a ****** if you pass someone just to go "hide" and "pant" at the next turn. I've seen riders do this all the time on my daily commute. They would drop me out of nowhere and then I notice they start slowing down from exhaustion. Rather than look at me with conspicuous shame when I catch up, they would hurriedly make a turn into a street that's obviously not a thorough street. I laugh at these guys all the time.
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Old 10-03-07, 04:02 PM
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+1. I will admit that I do this sometimes, esp. during intervals training. I will let them catch up to me until there's a big hill, where I go Jane Ulrich (53-12) and completely lose them.


Originally Posted by Squint
I despise this behavior so what I will admit to doing is messing with people who exhibit this kind of behavior. Some people apparently have fragile egos in dire need of boosting and because they use deceptive tactics such as sneak attacks to achieve "victory," this behavior is particularly despicable. In this situation, a stunning defeat will completely shatter their already frail egos.

I will sometimes play games with these people when I'm doing intervals. I'll let them get close and they'll dig so deep to close the gap. But then I accelerate and open the gap back up. Then they give up and the gap gets big. Then I'll slow down and let them get closer and closer until they think they have a chance again. But again, I accelerate away. This is repeated several times.

One place where I train has a large prominent hill. If you're heading towards the hill, you can be seen by riders behind you quite a distance. Riders love to hammer up the hill especially if they think they can nip some unsuspecting rider right before the summit. If I'm doing an easy ride, I'm always watching for riders trying to do this. At first they think I'm way too far up the road to be caught but they'll try. As they get closer, they begin to believe they can catch my "slow" ass and put in a heroic effort. Within a few yards of the top, they're only a few bike lengths behind me and giving it their all while I'm riding easy and pretending to be oblivious. Then I go ballistic and rocket up the remaining part of the climb. Sometimes they get pissed and try to chase me down the descent and across the flats but they fail at that too. After that, they don't want to race anymore. In fact, they ignore me if I say hi to them.
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Old 10-03-07, 04:02 PM
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I used to hike up a very steep hill into a park near our house in Colorado. On occasion, I would find myself hiking faster uphill than a mountain biker was riding uphill. A great feeling.

The problem is that that hill was right near my house, but there was no parking lot near it. So I was always fresh out of the house, and those bikers had ridden no telling how many miles before they even got to the bottom of the hill. And if they rode out of town, they had climbed a thousand or two thousand feet before they got to the place where I started. So it might be a nice feeling to pass somebody up, but the reality is you may just be passing somebody that could ride circles around you in any sort of even race. This plus the fact that very few people ride as fast as they can ALL the time.

Some people drive that way, too, maybe they think other cars just can't go any faster?
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Old 10-03-07, 04:06 PM
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If I see someone up ahead on a climb, I will try to catch them, just for fun. But the people I can catch are getting fewer and fewer.
.
But I wont "race" them... There's no such thing as a one-man race.
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Old 10-03-07, 04:07 PM
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My father drives very slowly (Usually under the speed limit) in his Lambo. I once asked him why would let rice rockets roar past him. He looked at me and said the same thing.

Originally Posted by StephenH

Some people drive that way, too, maybe they think other cars just can't go any faster?
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