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To the guy who shouted at me

by Raleigh
Mon, Jun 18, 2012 20:14
42

I HATE YOU!

SO, a little context.

I was doing laps of Hillingdon before racing tomorrow, and there is this one guy dressed up in Greenedge style kit, with a Ridley bike.

Earphones in, to drown out the noise his Mavic Cosmic Carbones were making, he comes storming past me in a blur of sweat and legs, only to slow down a bit further on.

So, I pounced on the oppurtunity for some motor pacing style training, as he was quite content to let me sit on his wheel at 40kph for about three or four laps.

Then, coming onto the final straight, he veers right like an angry lorry driver, admittedly not very abruptly, but inches from my front wheel and with a tailwind, it was a bit much for me, so I swerved to the left and start to pull away from him.

He sprints up to me and dramatically pulls out his earplugs and starts shouting:

"OI, YOU DON'T SIT ON SOMEONES WHEEL-"

At which point I thought I was going to get a bollocking for not doing any turns on the front, BUT NO!

"AND THEN COME ROUND THEIR SIDE, IT PUTS ME OFF!"

(note: ME)

I apolagised, not knowing quite what I'd done wrong. I Was a fair distance away from his right when I started to pull away, just a standard overtaking, similar to the one he had performed on me a while back.

I was pretty much lost for words, I thought I was going to get a smacking, and got ready to scarper, so I just said "sorry," and let him away.

...

I considered this for a while, and I'd never heard of this rule before, it didn't put either of us in any more danger than his veering tactics, there was nobody behind us, and he didn't see, to mind me being on his wheel for so long, in fact, I think he rather enjoyed displaying his
macho, towing a Youth rider around like a derny.

As I didn't feel to have breached any rules, if there are any rules which you can apply to this situation, I wanted to make him feel bad too, he had right put me off for a while, and I went all shaky. Soooo, naughtily, while he was sweating up the small incline, I pedalled past him with no hands drinking my bottle.

And here ends the story.

Please could you tell me what I did wrong?

Thanks.

If you're new please join in and if you have questions pop them below and the forum regulars will answer as best we can.

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42 comments

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Super Domestique | 11 years ago
0 likes

So many reasons why I ride alone!

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ragtag replied to Super Domestique | 11 years ago
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Agree.. more and more now if I'm coming up to a rider I make sure I can go right past with the usual courtesy greeting. Otherwise I'll just hand back way off their wheel. A few times I've ridden up to someone then it's not been safe to overtake and they give you a mouthful. Also a reason why I tend to go out in the week and not the weekend.

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andrew streit1 replied to Super Domestique | 11 years ago
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+1. That's what real cyclists do. Oh I just cycled past you on my 10kg hack of an entry level bike. Oh wait, you have a 3 grand bike and usually go club training on the weekends? That's why I just passed you!! You can't draft a 15-20mph head wind pal 1

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Darthshearer | 11 years ago
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The bloke sounds a right plonker.

I am with you though, it leaves a sour taste in the mouth, until you go out again and soon forget about it 1

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Simon E replied to Darthshearer | 11 years ago
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Darthshearer wrote:

The bloke sounds a right plonker.

I am with you though, it leaves a sour taste in the mouth, until you go out again and soon forget about it 1

+1 to all of that.

There are complete wankers in all walks of life. Shake your head, roll your eyes, do your best not to end up being one and you'll be fine.

1

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bigmel | 11 years ago
0 likes

No rules broken.
If you were expected to take a tug then he should have flicked you.

Always remember, etiquette is there for EVERYONE's safety.
If the other rider thought you were doing something wrong, it is HIS responsibility to have a polite chat with you.

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11speedaddict | 11 years ago
0 likes

14 About 6 weeks ago i was training for the Fred Whitton so was doing long (100 mile + rides) on my own when i found myself on a 4 mile drag of a hill in North Wales (the sunspot).
About half a mile into the climb a rider goes past (says hiya) in the big ring powering up the climb.
Normally, as is the cyclist way , is to chase but I knew i still had a few miles to go ( at least another 50)i told myself let him go -look down at my front hub - and he seemed strong - take my time.
Anyhow, as the next 1.5 miles passed the rider who passed me was about 70 metres ahead but not getting any further ahead .
Anyhow, I eventually caught up with him , sat on his wheel for less than 1 minute and was about to come round hime to chat (usual stuff where is he going / been etc) when he looks round sees me behind and..... pulls to one side and goes ballistic.
Told me to F -off, effin wheelsucker, basically foaming at the mouth. I asked him what was with the bad attitude. He just kept swearing at me.
I presume he thought i had sat on his wheel all the way up the climb - even if i had there was no benefit due to the speed and steepness. But i had only just caught him.
I looked down at his gears and he was in the big ring overgeared (he had tri bars fitted and he called me a wheelsucker) all this points to a tri athlete. Of which i run with many and they have this thing that road cyclists arent that fit / fast they just draft / wheelsuck.
At this point we are next to each other with a mile to go to the top and he still telling me to f- off so.....i stuck into the 53 and left him for dead.
But like the original poster , it left me with a nasty feeling.
I aint new to this bike lark - been riding seriously for 20 odd years and i have never had anything like this happen.
But i have seen the guy nearer to my local cafe (Eureka)so I imagine Mr Kuota / US postal I will meet you @ the cafe one day and i will be having words or fight -Dickhead

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notfastenough | 11 years ago
0 likes

When I was about 15, I was pedalling along on my Raleigh Banana (anyone remember those?!), all 28lb of it, in my cheap kit (shorts weren't paddded, my arse must have been indestructible!) on a summer evening, on my regular 40-mile route which I tended to complete at an average of about 15mph. I could hear this hum behind me, and after a bit this guy (maybe in his 30's or something) comes past on a low-profile bike, Zipp 3-spoke on the front, disc on the back, tri-bars, teardrop helmet, you name it. Greg Lemond had turned the tour ITT upside down in the last couple of years with all this stuff, so it was not a cheap setup.

About 1 mph faster than me. Like a slow-motion alien.

Then he gets in front, finds himself out of gas, and just sits there in front of me. After about a mile, he shouts something, then as we pass some marshals, they say something about drafting, and he shouts "this kid won't get off my wheel!"

I, erm, have rather a temper when I get going. I've grown up now, so haven't lost it in ages, but back then I didn't have the maturity. I may have, rather robustly, offered to assist him in wearing his 3 grand bike. The funny bit was in watching him wrestle with the decision; ignore the kid and complete the TT ASAP, or dismount to batter the kid and forget the performance?!

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Raleigh | 11 years ago
0 likes

But even if I was annoying him he could have just said something like;

Hey there, do you think you could let me work on my own, I'm a pretty experienced 2nd cat, and I need to work on sone areas of my training whereby nobody is allowed to be within a 2 metre radius of me at anytime, I read about it on BikeRadar, Cheers.

and I would have gone;

Sure, it's great that you're so nice, you could even give me a few tips on my cycling, and maybe be my role model!

Alas, he's just put me off people like him for a long time.

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SideBurn | 11 years ago
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Sounds like excess testosterone; particularly to a junior rider. Maybe you annoyed him by 'sitting on' and not doing a turn. But as has been said 'sitting on' someone is a compliment (as well as annoying). Do not let it put you off!

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russyparkin | 11 years ago
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sounds a bit extreme.

although wheel huggers can be infuriating. i had a bloke drafting me for so long the other day i decided to pull over in a layby faining stopping to have a drink and he momentarilly pulled in as well before realising he might have pissed me off slightly.

still i suppose there is a compliment in there somewhere.

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robert.brady | 11 years ago
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No idea what you did wrong. Maybe your actions didn't fit in with the Mark Cavendish fantasy he was playing out in his head.

If you *did* do anything wrong it was apologising: Cocks like him need taking down a peg, not pandering to.

Ultimately, all he was doing was riding a bike; same as you. Some people take it too seriously.

Rob

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