Georgebowen

Yeah, I live near a nice 55+ community, and the Bike/Walking path I take to get to the other side of town goes behin that community. There is a designated walking lane but the old grey hairs get out in wild packs of 10+ meandering the full width of the path.

When I do raise my voice for them to clear a path, they have trouble locating where the voice is coming from..... Kind of sad.... but hey that I could always take the streets, other than all our roads are 3 lanes each way with no shoulder and 55mph through town.

cofgrn

I think you're right, people are more polite in CA. Here in Chicago, bells net same result as "on your left", etc.: a significant percentage of the time people don't get it, turn around (or swerve around if cycling), and block most/all of path. There are also many insolent people in this neck of the woods, that aren't moving anywhere for anything. Of course this is just part of the deal on a path...

Phantoj

Try to see it from the pedestrian's point of view. You want to take a leisurely stroll around the park with your family and this guy keeps buzzing you every three minutes for over an hour.

kr32

It is a shared path so share the inconviences.
It is a pain though, not sure why people can not just be polite and walk/ride/whatever on one side or the other and not across the entire path.

estabro

20-25 MPH on MUP is not always a good idea.

It is up to YOU to YIELD to pedestrians. Even when they are not paying attention and taking up both lanes.

cshell

urbanknight

Change it to Northern California and I might believe you, but here in Los Angeles County, they are as oblivious as any. I once got stuck behind 2 girls walking and tried shouting "On your left!" and "Excuse me!" but they just didn't hear anything through their mp3 players. I eventually was able to reach forward and tap the girl on the shoulder. It scared the crap out of her and she practically jumped into her friend while I was shouting "PAY ATTENTION!" before riding by.

Like I said, I avoid paths now.

Phantoj

Because if you're walking (or riding or running) with friends, it's much easier to chat when you're side-by-side.

cshell

Phantoj

"Red rover, red rover..."

G-money

There is a greenway I ride through for about a mile on the way to the afternoon rides from my house -- only other choice is a narrow one lane road that is all door zone all the time (plus drivers in my neigborhood suck). This greenway has a specific lane for peds RIGHT NEXT to the lane for bikes, but still families and their kids meander unpredictably in the bike path. My favorite is the mom's who let their kids ride their big wheels unsupervised -- that is a disaster waiting to happen. Of course the pathetic bike cops do nothing . . .

jrobe

Just ride on the road where you belong. This is not rocket science.

urbanknight

Funny, replace just one word (bike path instead of road), and you'd sound like a motorist.

kleinboogie

I agree, find a bigger loop. 5 miles at least. You'll encounter the same people less and they'll probably be more spread out. I like loops because they're non-stop which around here is hard to find. The path I ride is actually a road with cars, bikes, walkers/runners, skaters, etc. It's crazy sometimes but I just ride like they'll clear out, be willing to pass on the left or right and always give them the right of way. Better to be alive with a bike in one piece than right and on a stretcher. GL

Spreggy

fify

Kai Winters

Cyclists...not bicycle riders..should not ride on paths...they are not for us.
Sheesh stay off the paths...

melanotaenia

I just don't say anything; most of the time when I say something they move into my path and I end up crashing into them; when I say "on your left" they move to the left, so I just slow down and pass carefully while leaving enough room so that they don't think I am trying to cut them off or clip them.

surfengine

roads have stoplights and stop signs. i like to bypass that stuff and take the path.
plus, the path I take is hilly and winding. lots of fun and danger.

kleinboogie

+1

anticlimbactic

Get a bell. People know what it is and know how to react.

anticlimbactic

I've found the bell to be, hands down, the best way of letting people know I was behind them. I've had people simply move right without looking back because they know what it means. For a long time I didn't have a bell.

Verbalizing your pass can come across any number of ways, many negative. I had all kinds of unpredictable results with "on your left" "passing" "behind you". The bell has, without a doubt, made things safer.

shouldberiding

I think it's a bit shortsighted to assume that everyone who has a problem with this sort of behavior is riding the MUP like it's a race. When I'm going under 15mph and my 3 or 4 shouts of "on your left!" fall on deaf ears, it's bloody inconsiderate. Not to mention dangerous. It is not too much to ask to have people keep to their lane. The MUP has lines and stop signs just like the street does. I don't understand why people feel the need to walk 4 or 5 abreast or in the lane of opposing traffic. Why not walk in rows two abreast for cripe's sake?

Oh, and dogs? I've had people look back directly at me, make eye contact, and STILL not reel in their dogs. I whacked the hell out of my knee on my handlebar a few weeks ago having to make an emergency stop to avoid a dog. Even an accident at 10mph can have nasty consequences. Could have been much worse just because somebody wasn't paying attention.

I swear, I'm going to mow over somebody's kid one of these days. When you shout out "on your left" to a five year old they don't know what to do, they swerve wildly. I go very, very slowly when around small children, but the ridiculous part is the parent walking twenty yards behind yapping on his or her cellphone not paying attention. I hope for the child's sake that they don't get hit by a car at an intersection because Chatty Cathy isn't paying attention to where her child is or what he's doing.

These aren't things that happen too often, but it only takes one incident to ruin your day and theirs.

AusTai

Another vote for the bell. Works great in my park. A polite ding-ding does wonders, especially since my voice is on the soft side. Yes, some people are surprised and don't know what that sound is but, guess what, now they'll learn for the next cyclist.

genejockey 

I no longer ride on MUPs, partly because there aren't any nearby that go anywhere I care to go, but mostly because of the (admittedly) small percentage of pedestrians (and rollerbladers) who can't or won't respond to a bell or 'On your left'.

My worst experiences:

Old couple walking on MUP, old man on left. He responded to "On your left" by pivoting TO THE LEFT into my path to find my front wheel almost in his crotch.

Young couple who thought it would be a great idea to try out their BRAND NEW rollerblades while walking their dog on a retractoleash. He was all the way across the path in the bushes on the other side, while they were almost completely unable to control their own speed and direction. Fortunately, we were approaching face to face, so they could see just how much I went out of the way not to hit their dog. It wasn't his fault, after all. He was just being a dog.

Rollerblading girl with a walkman (yes, it WAS that long ago) bopping along the MUP, who did an impromptu pirouette right into my path, after it SEEMED LIKE she had responded to my bell.

Idiot runner who kept going smack down the middle of the path as I bore down on him, pinging like mad on the bell. "Say left or right!" he shouted at me. Why in hell would I pass on the RIGHT?? This is America, after all. Who passes on the right?

To be fair, those folks were only a few out of hundreds. Most let me pass without incident, without panic, politely. But those few put me off of MUPS for good.

Tourmalet

You belong here, not on a MUP: