Arrogant unfriendly London cyclists

Chinley Churner

I lived and rode in London for eight years but was fortunate 4 years ago to move up to the Peak District. Back down in London though I needed to get a few hours in so decided to spin out to Richmond Park and ride a few laps.

The ride was pleasant enough, sunny morning if a bit on the flat side but I couldn't get over how up themselves the other riders out were.

First guy on the Embankment wearing a London Pheonix jersey, I pull up behind him at him lights say "morning, lovely day" and he just sneers at me. It's not as if he was on a hard effort, we were stopped at lights. Would it really have killed him to acknowledge me.

This theme then continued throughout the ride. A big group of London Dynamos spinning back from the park in the opposite direction to me. Not a single acknowledgement of my waves or head nods... in fact the resolute ignoring of me was blatantly obvious.

In the park it was exactly the same. At home, when you overtake someone, you and they will normally exchange a few words but not a peep. One guy sat on my wheel for an age, took a massive tow, not a word when I swung over to let him pass as I needed a pee.

What's up with you guys?

I regularly come across the BC guys out riding at home and other top cyclists such as Rob Hayles and Nick Craig. They always have the decency to return a greeting a say a few words. Stop taking yourself so bloody seriously and being such arrogant tossers.

Anonymous

Sorry.

Ben6899

I find it funny that cyclists doing laps of Richmond Park have an air of superiority.

It's Richmond Park, lads, FFS. Give us a wave!

Stewie Griffin

Here we go again Never ridden in RP & ride on my own. I don't look to say hello to folk but will always respond if they do. We don't talk to each other, its just the way it is. I have a mate from Cumbria who says "how do" to people on the tube, you stand there cringing & pretending to not be with this frigging lunatic as everyone just shuffles around to turn their backs to you.

Chinley Churner

Stewie Griffin wrote:

Here we go again Never ridden in RP & ride on my own. I don't look to say hello to folk but will always respond if they do. We don't talk to each other, its just the way it is. I have a mate from Cumbria who says "how do" to people on the tube, you stand there cringing & pretending to not be with this frigging lunatic as everyone just shuffles around to turn their backs to you.

I sort of get it on the tube when people are stressed and going about their working day although, when I lived in London, I'd enjoy saying hello to people just to see how uncomfortable it made them. But if you're cycling and another cyclist acknowledges you, FFS, there's no excuse not to lift a hand off your bars or give them a nod. You're supposed to be doing something you enjoy after all.

guinea

I wave and nod to every cyclist when out of London. In London I can't be bothered.

You simply can't go around RP and keep nodding and waving. There's hundreds of the blighters there.

Out in the country when you see a couple of cyclists an hour its fine to wave, but in RP you pass cyclists every few seconds it's simply not practical.

That said, if someone waves to me, I'll always try to respond. Blanking people just make you an asshat.

Chinley Churner

guinea wrote:

I wave and nod to every cyclist when out of London. In London I can't be bothered.

You simply can't go around RP and keep nodding and waving. There's hundreds of the blighters there.

Out in the country when you see a couple of cyclists an hour its fine to wave, but in RP you pass cyclists every few seconds it's simply not practical.

That said, if someone waves to me, I'll always try to respond. Blanking people just make you an asshat.

I get that, it was more the cyclists on the way to and from the park especially the London Phoenix guy at the lights, arrogant arse-hole, no excuses.

mattshrops

They live in laaandan so they're bitter and twisted

Herbsman

It's nice to be sociable with other cyclists but you have to accept that not everyone gives a toss that you have chosen to do the same type of physical activity as them. Riding a bike doesn't make you part of some sort of unified club.

Chinley Churner

Herbsman wrote:

It's nice to be sociable with other cyclists but you have to accept that not everyone gives a toss that you have chosen to do the same type of physical activity as them. Riding a bike doesn't make you part of some sort of unified club.

Well, it should and anyway it's called normal human to human interaction.

Anonymous

When I was 17 I had a mega pimp beetle and all my fellow beetle owners used to wave at each other.
It seems I'm the only one doing it these days out of my fellow ford s-max owners. In fact I get some strange looks

Anonymous

Unfortunately it seems a lot of people who live in London see being polite or friendly as a sign of weakness or something.

I've lived here nearly 10 years and it still pisses me off sometimes.

frenchfighter

Most people are friendly. A few exceptions (like in most senarios) stand out and wrongly colour your view.

Maybe the London vs out of London difference is because there are so many people in London you tune out a little. Likely the same the World over - big towns vs smaller ones.

Id love the ride behind some of the Dynamo riders (they just conform to their reputation of being losers) and let them have a go at me. Dont think they could handle what Id come back with

Herbsman

Chinley Churner wrote:

Herbsman wrote:

It's nice to be sociable with other cyclists but you have to accept that not everyone gives a toss that you have chosen to do the same type of physical activity as them. Riding a bike doesn't make you part of some sort of unified club.

Well, it should and anyway it's called normal human to human interaction.

Should it? Who says? And who defines what 'normal' behaviour is?

nakita222

Most(i said most, not all) London Dynamo riders are pricks.

SmellTheGlove

OP it's a shame you feel that way. I have a theory which might be taken the wrong way but bear with me, it's not a dig at you, but you did ask "what's up with you guys?". When people move to London many probably think they have to respond to the whole overhyped "fast pace of life" "everyone's on the make" "why is London so unfriendly" shit that we hear and read endlessly trotted out all the time about our glorious capital (sorry, it's my home, I'm possibly biased!). In fact in London there are 24 hours in every day the same as anywhere else, and people do not retire at the age of 23 due to some amazing life-accelerator situated on the banks of the Thames.
My point is, there will always be those who maybe feel intimidated by the place and might think that a cyclist pulling up next to them means a horror story is about to unfold; these people are likely to be transients, they don't even represent 1 per cent of Londoners. No doubt even fewer of them ride a bike. We are in truth a welcoming lot, tribal mostly where footie is concerned but nothing unusual there. As far as I'm concerned, everyone's welcome but I agree that the area within the M25 seems to attract a lot of (probably highly insecure) to$$ers. Pity them.
And please come back, because it's a great place to live and for the time it took you to ride those miles you made it even better.

brin

It used to annoy me when other cyclists never responded to a wave or nod of the head acknowledgement, but sometimes when i find myself really concentrating on a hard ride a cyclist has passed me in the opposite direction before i saw him/her and i haven't noticed if any acknowledgement was made on their behalf, so now if i get no response back i just get on with my ride.

ddraver

Does just sound like London to me (I'm sure there are exceptions STG). I used to say excuse me, please and thankyou on the Tube and people would look at me like I was an alien.

At the end of the day you have to remember that the type of person who does nt respond is probably not worth knowing in the end and also that you have to keep to what you think is righ. So damn well smile and wave at everyone, I for one will wave back (heart rate permitting)

squired

The sad thing is that it does seem to depend on what you are wearing. If on my road bike I'm unlikely to get any nods back from people on mtbs. If I'm on my mtb the roadies will ignore me. Of course there is then the matter of what you are wearing.... The fact is that most people are just unfriendly/rude in London.

deptfordmarmoset

I went on a ''no particular destination'' ride with my next door neighbour earlier this year and we did a circuit of Richmond Park. Having crossed a fair swathe of South London to get there, two things stuck in my mind; first, I'd never seen so many expensive shiny bikes in one place; second, we completed the circuit without one single cyclist giving as much as a single nod of acknowledgement to us. I'm not intending to return there as I found it completely alienating.

We had much more fun with those moments of passing banter and improvised friendly chat - things which I associate strongly with cycling and tend to seek out - as we followed the Thames back east.

marksteven

i rode to the hospital for a checkup on tue, went in lycra nods & waves fom proper cyclist, cycled home in the civi shorts & t got blanked by nearly all shear arrogance

Le Commentateur

I went on a ''no particular destination'' ride with my next door neighbour earlier this year and we did a circuit of Richmond Park. Having crossed a fair swathe of South London to get there, two things stuck in my mind; first, I'd never seen so many expensive shiny bikes in one place; second, we completed the circuit without one single cyclist giving as much as a single nod of acknowledgement to us. I'm not intending to return there as I found it completely alienating.

Assuming the post isn't a p!ss-take... surely if there are so many cyclists in Richmond Park doing laps on their shiny bikes one would be saying "hello" every 5 or 10 seconds. It'd get a bit tedious after a short while.

fastandfurry

Chinley Churner wrote:

I lived and rode in London for eight years but was fortunate 4 years ago to move up to the Peak District. Back down in London though I needed to get a few hours in so decided to spin out to Richmond Park and ride a few laps.

The ride was pleasant enough, sunny morning if a bit on the flat side but I couldn't get over how up themselves the other riders out were.

First guy on the Embankment wearing a London Pheonix jersey, I pull up behind him at him lights say "morning, lovely day" and he just sneers at me. It's not as if he was on a hard effort, we were stopped at lights. Would it really have killed him to acknowledge me.

This theme then continued throughout the ride. A big group of London Dynamos spinning back from the park in the opposite direction to me. Not a single acknowledgement of my waves or head nods... in fact the resolute ignoring of me was blatantly obvious.

In the park it was exactly the same. At home, when you overtake someone, you and they will normally exchange a few words but not a peep. One guy sat on my wheel for an age, took a massive tow, not a word when I swung over to let him pass as I needed a pee.

What's up with you guys?

I regularly come across the BC guys out riding at home and other top cyclists such as Rob Hayles and Nick Craig. They always have the decency to return a greeting a say a few words. Stop taking yourself so bloody seriously and being such arrogant tossers.

Being an ex country boy I understand your point of view...I used to acknowledge every cyclist- but I don't wave at every cyclist in London any more- life is too short and you need to be concentrating on what the weaving cars and suicidal ped's are doing. I will normally try and be friendly, but surviving and keeping myself sane by not repeatedly saying 'morning' and nodding like a churchill dog come first.

There's just too many people in London to be friendly to all of them...

jellybellywmb

Do you ride for social interaction or to enjoy your ride??
Get over it people are not pricks or arroagant because they do not acknowledge you.

I for one ride to be on my own, in my own little world becasue i spend all of my working time with people when riding its my escape. I do on occasions when out in Rural Leicestershire say hi or raise a hand but not because i feel i have to and if I have got a shitty on I dont

Thats life deal with it, join a social club if it bother syo that much.

deptfordmarmoset

Le Commentateur wrote:

I went on a ''no particular destination'' ride with my next door neighbour earlier this year and we did a circuit of Richmond Park. Having crossed a fair swathe of South London to get there, two things stuck in my mind; first, I'd never seen so many expensive shiny bikes in one place; second, we completed the circuit without one single cyclist giving as much as a single nod of acknowledgement to us. I'm not intending to return there as I found it completely alienating.

Assuming the post isn't a p!ss-take... surely if there are so many cyclists in Richmond Park doing laps on their shiny bikes one would be saying "hello" every 5 or 10 seconds. It'd get a bit tedious after a short while.

No, I was being straight. It was an unfriendly experience for both of us. We had far more contact with cyclists, drivers and pedestrians on the way there and back. Of course, there is a point when you can't acknowledge everybody but we'd arrived at a place where we weren't acknowledged by anybody.

Part of my strategy for living in London is to not treat it like an enormous impersonal place - sure, I can't talk to everybody in the Saturday market, but it's a very rare market day that I don't share a few hellos and stop to have a chat with passing people I vaguely know. This was not possible in RP so I'd be surprised if I ever turn up there again. Well, apart from the Olympic road race event if I can't get further out of town.

Chip \'oyler

I wouldn't worry. It's getting the same in Yorkshire.

I've now stopped acknowledging other cyclists because quite frankly I'm sick of them just gawping back and not saying anything.

Frank the tank

It's about time all us "northern monkey's" were allowed to drift away in our own down-trodden unemployed benefit scrounging sociable ways; and leave all those wealthy southern ignorant (cut your own mothers throat to get on) types to their own devices, let alone give 'em a friendly wave.

Come back to the peak district my friend.

GiantMike

Chinley Churner wrote:

Would it really have killed him to acknowledge me.

Would it really have killed you to have used a question mark?

All* Londoners are ignorant arrogant tw@ts, busily sniping at each other and being too 'cool' to be 'nice'.

* I've been drinking and my judgement may have been affected.

Anonymous

I don't care about this. wave, don't wave, blah blah blah.

I'm Scottish and grumpy and do not live in london.

rick_chasey

Bizarre thread.

You must know why you don't get a response. If I waved to every rider I came across my arms would get a better workout than my legs.

I find it amusing that you think it's to do with arrogance, rather than practicality. Chip on shoulder much?

Do you know/recognise any of the riders who you wave to as people you've spoken to?
London has a lot of people in it, so saying hello to every stranger you meet won't work. It's too impractical. If you live here you'll soon meet enough people in every day life that eventually you'll be saying hello to as many people as you would be elsewhere.

Join a club. I'm sure the club members will say hello.

For what it's worth in London was the first time I got post-puncture assistance from a random roadie. (he's on the forum )

Me thinks though you just have some chip on your shoulder about what you think London is and what it represents.

MountainMonster

It has nothing to do with knowing the people personally. Here in Austria, if your out cycling, doesn't matter if your 15 or 80, people notice you and make even the slightest effort to be curteous. I ride alot out in the country side, which on even the slowest day I see on average 100 cyclists in an hour or so, and every single one gives a wave, a nod or makes an attempt to wave, no matter how fast or technical they are riding.

This has alot of to do with the attitude of people in Britain. The whole, I worry about me too much attitude. Should really change.