Road biker snobbery - alive and well...

Cheshley

This morning I dusted off my road bike after a few months of off-roading. About 10 minutes into my ride I was slowly catching up with a cyclist in front of me and when I eventually pulled level with him I greeting him with a cheery "mornin".

The cyclist in question glanced down to the side at my bike which has <gasp> FLAT bars, and looked up to find a sweating, unfit and overweight person (me) wearing trackie bottoms, FULL finger gloves, a loose fitting football top over a long sleeved baselayer, a Camelbak and maybe the ultimate faux pas, a helmet which has a PEAK attacked to the front :oops:

Yes ladies and gentlemen, I wear pretty much the same things on the roadie as I do when I'm off-road. I find them comfortable and trust me, nobody wants to see me in lycra.

Meanwhile, back at the point, the chap looks me over, doesn't say a word and just pushed down on his pedals and rides away from me. Imagine his surprise when the aforementioned sweating, unfit and overweight person (yes, it's still me) rides past him some 200 metres further up the road.

When I'm off-road, everyone greets everyone else with a cheery mud splattered smile and often stops to have a chat. Whilst out on my Roadie, more often than not I find that people don't want to know, especially when the person greeting them looks so completely unlike a stereotypical road cyclist, as I do.

I hope that I'm wrong and that the ignorant person I encountered this morning is in the minority but I'm afraid to say that, based on personal experience, road biker snobbery is alive and well, and living in Doncaster

Anonymous

Sorry to hear about the snob you met today. I say hello to everyone.

be my friend.....

dodgy

Cheshley wrote:

wearing trackie bottoms, FULL finger gloves, a loose fitting football top over a long sleeved baselayer

No wonder you were sweating.

Cheshley

dodgy wrote:

Cheshley wrote:

wearing trackie bottoms, FULL finger gloves, a loose fitting football top over a long sleeved baselayer

No wonder you were sweating.

Wasn't very warm here at 7.10am, moments before I encountered this guy I was wishing I had worn my jacket!!!!!

NoNotAgain

Don't worry, Cheshley. It's not a Doncasterish issue.
About a thousand miles south east from Doncaster, a vast majority of road bikers can be seen with their frozen Armstrongish faces, unable to greet when traveling at a relaxed 20mph.
I'd say every country has it's fair share of axxholes.

Chip \'oyler

It's a good job you weren't wearing Rapha - he probably would have laughed at you

dilemna

Apparently Doncaster has achieved the title of the UK's fattest town with the highest percentage of obese people :shock: according to ITV news.

Cheshley

dilemna wrote:

Apparently Doncaster has achieved the title of the UK's fattest town with the highest percentage of obese people :shock: according to ITV news.

yeah, cos THAT was the point I was trying to make.

Even more reason to get out on the bike and show him up again tho eh?

STEFANOS4784

Well i recently learned that my pride and joy is actually 10kg, i love it and i love riding, forget them and pity the fools 8)

STEFANOS4784

STEFANOS4784 wrote:

Well i recently learned that my pride and joy is actually 10kg, i love it and i love riding, forget them and pity the fools 8)

P.s anyone who i meet always says "nice bike", in reality it aint that great..... But i say again, i luuuuuurvvve her

Cheshley

STEFANOS4784 wrote:

Well i recently learned that my pride and joy is actually 10kg, i love it and i love riding, forget them and pity the fools 8)

Website says mine is 9kg, but when I get on it, the weight becomes pretty irrelevant

STEFANOS4784

Fair comment but i'm a skinny bugger at 64 kg so........Actully so nothing, i aint a pro i just enjoy riding 8)

pete600

the ultimate faux pas, a helmet which has a PEAK attacked to the front :oops:

what's the crack about the peak on a helmet ? Mines got one on should i take it immediately.
:oops:

Anonymous

I always try and say hello (it really pees people off when we're doing a Time Trial!) to any cyclist but sometimes if I'm deep in concentration doing an interval or something I may miss a few people...

Some people don't respond but it doesn't phase me.

guilliano

I noticed a fair bit of the stereotypical "roadie unfriendliness" yesterday at Ride to the Horns....... funnily enough it was always the people in replica team kit who were doing the longer of the 2 rides. The ones in "normal" cycling clothes were friendly, as were most of the people doing the 50 miler. Is there something about this replica kit that turns people into posterior orifices?

volvine

i think i may come accross as ignorant as people ride past me and say hello it's just they have gone before i can manage a whimper of a hello back as i'm usually too knackered to talk lol lol lol :oops: :oops: :oops:

Cheshley

STEFANOS4784 wrote:

Fair comment but i'm a skinny bugger at 64 kg so........Actully so nothing, i aint a pro i just enjoy riding 8)

Last time I got on the scales was over 12 months ago and I was 108kg. There is some justification as I'm 6ft 5 but I don't believe that it's all about the numbers, I just want to be able to look in the mirror and be happy with what I see there.

flanners1

Have to say after 20 years MTBing and now 12 months road cycling, road cyclists in general where I live are a bunch or rude ignorant weirdos (yes generalisation but backed up by my own observations). A cheery wave/greeting etc is often blatantly ignored. I am used to it now so I don't get annoyed/bemused anymore I think it is all part of being a roadie down south..........shame :evil:

brownbosh

Why would you go out dressed like that???

fungus_the_muffin_man

brownbosh wrote:

Why would you go out dressed like that???

Apparently riding naked is the next big thing for this year

amaferanga

If you look like a roadie almost all other roadies say hello or nod or wave. If you don't then only some say hello or nod or wave.

Looking like a roadie (apart from the giant seatpack Ilike for long rides :shock: ) I tend to find the ignorant buggers are those that don't look like 'real' cyclists - I usually nod/wave, but more often than not get nothing back.

dulldave

amaferanga wrote:

Looking like a roadie (apart from the giant seatpack Ilike for long rides :shock: ) I tend to find the ignorant buggers are those that don't look like 'real' cyclists - I usually nod/wave, but more often than not get nothing back.

I find this too and it's the same mountainbiking as it is road biking. If you look like someone who's just dragged your bike out the shed for its annual ride, you might find that less people say Hi because they're used to getting the cold shoulder from such people.

However that doesn't excuse someone who's riding alongside you deliberately ignoring you when you say Hi. Some people are just a$$holes. Doesn't matter if they're road riders or not. There are plenty of mtbers who do the same when I'm out mountain biking.

Slow Downcp

I had a similar problem yesterday - walking to the newsagents to buy a paper, I waved and said hello to the pedestrian on the other side of the road. He just blanked me, ignorant git - totally ruined my weekend.

I always try to acknowldge other cyclists, but I don't get hung up on it and think they're snobs or ignorant just because they don't reply. Just get over it and ride.

RickyG

I find that almost everyone without exception acknowledges me when on the other side of the road. However, I don't think anyone likes being overtaken which probably contributed slightly to this guy's behaviour (although he still sounds like a rude git).

bobtbuilder

I have a penchant for replica kit and I say hello to all cyclists, from ladies on their shoppers to kids with their knees around their ears on BMXs.

I might have to draw a line with someone in a peaked cycling helmet!

bompington

Around here cyclists are few and far between (cars too on most of the roads I use!) so I never miss an opportunity to say hello.
"Same direction" encounters are really rare, apart from cruising past a few commuters on the only town (Perth) bit of my commute. I was overtaken by a guy on a mountain bike once, I should hasten to point out that I was warming down at the end of a long training ride. I said Hi as I went past at 40 (it was downhill) a minute later, there are some things a man just has to do.

Dunkeldog

I'm not sure a person not responding to a friendly nod or hello has anything to do with the bike you or they are riding, whether they're wearing replica kit (i'm friendly and i never go anywhere without my Agrituble jersey) or their lid has a peak. Some people are simply pompous or unfriendly full stop. It just so happens that a few of these folks are cyclists too. I say hello to everyone i can - as Napoleon said earlier when your head is down it can be difficult. But it's the person ultimately, not the bike.

markos1963

Dunkeldog wrote:

I'm not sure a person not responding to a friendly nod or hello has anything to do with the bike you or they are riding, whether they're wearing replica kit (i'm friendly and i never go anywhere without my Agrituble jersey) or their lid has a peak. Some people are simply pompous or unfriendly full stop. It just so happens that a few of these folks are cyclists too. I say hello to everyone i can - as Napoleon said earlier when your head is down it can be difficult. But it's the person ultimately, not the bike.

Totally agree, was passed by a bunch of MTB's yesterday and they all blanked me even though I was wearing team kit! Then a few days before I was blanked by a roadie when I was commuting in wearing my peaked helmet. Tossers on bith sides of the coin, but to be honest most people including grans on their shoppers say hello.

antfly

I find the only people who return my greeting when I overtake them are very old men who obviously don`t mind being passed by a younger guy,everyone else bottles me.I hate being passed too but I always return a greeting,even if it`s through gritted teeth.

Easyriding

I had an experience of what I now think was snobbery a couple of weeks ago. I was wearing my not expensive lycra gear and riding my relatively inexpensive road bike when I caught up with some members of a cycling club, all looking smart in their club shirts. They'd stopped so I stopped and passed the time of day with them. They were friendly enough and even gave me a business card and asked me to give them a call.

All lovely so far...

Skip to two days later...

I rode the short distance to work on my hybrid wearing my ordinary clothes so I can just jump on and off and don't have to worry about getting changed. I popped into the local shop and who should be outside but two members of the cycling club in their club shirts. The only place to put my bike was right next to theirs. I thought I'd say a sociable hello but they would'nt even make eye contact. I'd had a bath that day so it couldn't have been that. Am I paranoid? Were they deaf and blind? Were they shy? Was it bike snobbery? I don't know the answer to that but I wonder if I want to join a club that would'nt have me as a member.

Any thoughts or are these just the ramblings of a fool. (Second thoughts, please don't answer!)

dodgy

Easyriding wrote:

I had an experience of what I now think was snobbery a couple of weeks ago. I was wearing my not expensive lycra gear and riding my relatively inexpensive road bike when I caught up with some members of a cycling club, all looking smart in their club shirts. They'd stopped so I stopped and passed the time of day with them. They were friendly enough and even gave me a business card and asked me to give them a call.

All lovely so far...

Skip to two days later...

I rode the short distance to work on my hybrid wearing my ordinary clothes so I can just jump on and off and don't have to worry about getting changed. I popped into the local shop and who should be outside but two members of the cycling club in their club shirts. The only place to put my bike was right next to theirs. I thought I'd say a sociable hello but they would'nt even make eye contact. I'd had a bath that day so it couldn't have been that. Am I paranoid? Were they deaf and blind? Were they shy? Was it bike snobbery? I don't know the answer to that but I wonder if I want to join a club that would'nt have me as a member.

Any thoughts or are these just the ramblings of a fool. (Second thoughts, please don't answer!)

I'd say that they didn't recognise you the second time around. The second time you looked like someone who wasn't 'into' cycling.