That weird passing-the same-person-twice thing

jonny_trousers

It's happened to me a couple of times now: you pass a fellow cyclist at speed only to meet them again further on down the road. The first time it was a young lady pootling along towards the Old Vic theatre (rather cute, but anyway...). I like to push myself and so I was a bit surprised to overtake her again about five minutes later on Kennington Road. At first I was pleased that there was a shorter route than my normal one out there, but having studied my Google Maps, I cannot find anything at all and came to the conclusion that it can't have been her both times.

The second time happened today, on the way in, only with a gentleman wearing hi-viz with very creaky cranks. I passed him on Kennington Road going north and then again on the run up to Blackfriars Bridge. He too was travelling much slower than me. I'm starting to think there may be a glitch in the Matrix.

And while I am on the subject of weirdness... Do any of you cycle up College Road past Sydenham Hill Station? I swear there is a strange gravitational anomaly between the toll booth and the station heading South towards Crystal Palace. Whenever I take that route home I feel like I am cycling through treacle for that stretch, but as soon as I pass the station, where the hill steepens, I can fly up it no problem. Definitely a case for Mulder and Scully.

Zachariah

Get one of those head-cam jobbies and record it for us.

Splottboy

Glitch in the Matrix?

Jay dubbleU

Time loop. Toll booth is obviously the Tardis in disguise 8)

majormantra

Usually only happens to me when someone else is RLJing and I'm stopping for lights. I've passed the same person at least 4 times doing that on occasion.

Splottboy

Worm hole...Quantum Entanglement...String Theory problem???

All the above.

dUNC

Jonny_Trousers wrote:

And while I am on the subject of weirdness... Do any of you cycle up College Road past Sydenham Hill Station? I swear there is a strange gravitational anomaly between the toll booth and the station heading South towards Crystal Palace. Whenever I take that route home I feel like I am cycling through treacle for that stretch, but as soon as I pass the station, where the hill steepens, I can fly up it no problem. Definitely a case for Mulder and Scully.

LOL, I totally understand what you're saying there, I remember that well - so weird! It's funny when you get stretches like that where you just can't get going, but other bits where it's effortless even though it's going uphill. Very strange and probably some weird combination of road conditions and an optical illusion!

verloren

I was once passed twice by the same Lamborghini. I figure our relative speeds were so slow that he'd probably gone round the world and was on his second lap.

pastryboy

This happened to me the other day - overtook two blokes then a few minutes later they were both in front of me.

I can't for the life of me figure out how - managed to get lost a few times trying to find a shorter route and can't work out what it could be from google maps.

If anyone knows it I was near the Limehouse end of Regents Canal where I overtook them. A few minutes later on the Thames path (before you get to the stairs up to westferry roundabout) there they were. Must have had a quicker route than me by a good minute or so as I flew past them and didn't slow down much.

Clever Pun

I don't know where I'm going but I'm going there fast

yeah it's happened to me a couple of times as well

thistle_

It happened to me in MTB race earlier in the year - I overtook some team mates (2 of them keeping each other company) three times and they finished not disrespectfully behind me :?

We never figured that one out.

dondare

MajorMantra wrote:

Usually only happens to me when someone else is RLJing and I'm stopping for lights. I've passed the same person at least 4 times doing that on occasion.

Zactly what I'd've said.

prj45

Jonny_Trousers wrote:

And while I am on the subject of weirdness... Do any of you cycle up College Road past Sydenham Hill Station? I swear there is a strange gravitational anomaly between the toll booth and the station heading South towards Crystal Palace. Whenever I take that route home I feel like I am cycling through treacle for that stretch, but as soon as I pass the station, where the hill steepens, I can fly up it no problem. Definitely a case for Mulder and Scully.

There's one like that for me. I go up hills like a man comes down a greasy pole, but there's a very gradual incline sort of near home that kills me every time. And it's not because I'm near home because there's a steeper hill a bit later on I can maintain 20mph up.

marki3boy

I got passed twice by the same guy, he was on a hybrid, I was on my FS MTB (I have MTB trails along my commute).
I dished out some two wheeled justice when I saw him next day on my hybrid.

WesternWay

I passed a Blue Lycra man on a Super Galaxy twice this morning, but I took the long way through Islington.

I also got taken twice last night by a guy, I think he had gone up Highgate Hill for sh!t and giggles while I went up Archway Road.

nich

The same happens to me. In fact I think it's happened twice this week with the same person. A little girl pootling along so I go pass. I don't have any real issues with the lights holding me up, yet there they are again a few miles up the road in front of me.

I could follow them, but that sounds a bit wrong :oops:

SamWise1972

There's a place on the Isle Of Wight where an optical illusion means you appear to be going uphill, but can coast. Awesome.

MonkeyMonster

happened this morning to me but it was because they shimmied into hyde park and along while I was on the road still. Nice lass on a triestana? wearing matching kit too.

el_presidente

MonkeyMonster wrote:

happened this morning to me but it was because they shimmied into hyde park and along while I was on the road still. Nice lass on a triestana? wearing matching kit too.

Wilier? Certainly not, we'd only just met!

cee

SamWise1972 wrote:

There's a place on the Isle Of Wight where an optical illusion means you appear to be going uphill, but can coast. Awesome.

There's a few of those...I have been to this one...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_Brae

fossyant

Happens quite a bit with me near our local town centre - many folk take the 'cycling' route through the centre - it's short, but slow and a pain, so I go round...low and behold, they are usually out in front of me again.

No_Ta_Doctor

Happened to me while pootling along with my daughter the other day. We passed an old man on a shopper who was in the running for worlds slowest cyclist. He was smoking a fag, and I swear I'm not sure how his bike stayed upright, I walk faster than that. We were dawdling along, but took a very direct route. Then at a T-Junction we were turning at we waited at the lights as he cycled across. There is no shorter route.

I'm going with body-snatcher/evil twin/invading alien doppelgangers theory.

UndercoverElephant

I'm going with the, "Looks like they're not trying until they go down a side-street and put the hammer down", theory.

It's great fun doing that.