Great answer.

I think you were not in the wrong until you said the sarcastic remark. Take their wheel as a privilege, not for granted.

It's pretty simple: talk to each other.

Simply ask, "Mind if I work in with you?"

They can accept or decline.

All you have to do is communicate; it's not rocket science.

i love it

This. I couldn't have said it better.

I let people do it, although I don't do it to other people. Personally, I don't mind so much, but it can get awkward. Think about it, some stranger right behind you...

One day a chick was drafting me on the way to campus. She didn't ask me and we were both late to class but she said "thank you for letting me draft you!" before she took her turn. That was pretty cool.

You should have told them only slow people have that problem...

Yes roadies have a thing about people silently drafting off them, not sure why.. if a wheel touches it's the one behind that's usually going down.

Then your an ass that belongs in jail. Tell them to stop, if they don't slow down and let them pass. If you crash them it is assault with a possibility of real hurt.

Usually...I have been taken down by draftees.

so if they draft me I have maybe a 10% chance of crashing because they drafted me.

Guess what, if they don't draft me at all, I have a 0% chance of crashing because of them drafting. I'll take the 0%, thanks.

I had a dumbass hit me from behind because he didn't feel like stopping at an intersection. I didn't go down, but that's not really the point.

++1

Speed up and you wouldn't have that problem in the first place...

Apparently group rides in South Florida are messed up enough to PO the entirre state legislature.

Reportedly, the new Florida staute confining cyclists to Bike lanes is the reeult of Group rides in SO Florida pissing off a State Congressman.

I fail to see how that's relevant.

So only fast people should be able to be unhappy about a wheelsucker? Fine for me, I've always been able to drop them, but that's a bit of an unreasonable position, IMO.

I'm on the other end of the spectrum, I ride so slow that nobody wants to draft me so I don't have to worry about it. :D

You should never draft without getting permission because: Today's ride I get a couple hundred yards ahead of the group so I'm soft pedaling and get behind a guy on a beach cruiser. We're doing 8-10 mph and I creep up on him until I'm a foot or so from his wheel. A young lady is walking by on the sidewalk so he waves and says "Hi, xxx!". She knows him and starts talking to him. She's also smoking hot and I'm looking at her and not paying attention as the guy hits his brakes so he can chat and......I have to do a panic swerve to avoid hitting him and looking like a total fool. Of course, by then my friends saw the whole thing and were laughing their asses off.

Well said. You should write a book about these sorts of roadie encounters. :innocent:

Yes it is. Not all group rides but some are like that.

Well i can go with the flow. If you guys say is rude then next time i'll ask.

That would explain all the mean faces all this time.LOL

I've occasionally had someone I caught and passed decide to draft off of me. Frankly, it's a bit creepy when the person doesn't ask.

If you want to turn the situation into a workout, try to pace them 100 feet back. It might annoy them if you can stay there, but there's no danger to anyone and there's no need to ask permission.

OP, I think you made an impolite mistake. There is a coordinated effort in drafting. You really should ask/be invited to join this teamwork.

Now, suppose you had seen them coming up, and you accelerated, and they sucked your wheel for a while. Then they passed you. In that case you are authorized to draft them, quid pro quo. But if they just came up behind you, and quickly passed you, and you accelerated, and latched onto a wheel, I think you need to ask if they mind.

If they quickly passed you, and you accelerated, but stayed 6, 10, 12 feet behind, which isn't drafting, you getting the urge to ride faster, inspired by others to push harder, but you're not taking advantage of them, and collision risk is really small, I think that's okay.

The thing about drafting is, first off, it requires trust, and secondly you really need to break the wind to contribute something. Like, who wants to be a parasite?

Already though of that. Doubt i could do 21 steady, I'll try thou.

I actually don't mind because there are so many different ways to get rid of an unwanted drafter.

A dude did it to me without asking. it really annoyed me. i had been riding for about a month and a half and was not used to it. Then he makes the dick move and asks me while drafting. "Hey that's a strong wind is that coming from the north or northeast."

This fellow had me laughing out loud . Guess the congressman didnt see the humour in it.

I don't mind people on my wheel, and if they ask I almost always feel it's ok. However, it's important to ASK. Some people (like myself) don't care, but many do. I usually respond "sure, as long as you don't overlap". That's really all I care about.

What's HUGELY impolite IMO is to sit on my wheel for ten miles, then drop me. If someone pulled you for a substantial distance and you're able to return the favor, then please do so.

Maybe you were impolite, but unethical is too much of a word for it. I have no problem with someone drafting me, but I don't feel responsible for them. However, I try to be friendly and point bumps, etc. OTOH, I do draft strangers too, but I ask them before. Only once someone said he'd rather ride alone (but hundreds dropped me :lol:).