What do you do?

muzmoz

I don't pass many other cycle commuters on my route, but when I do, I have noticed that..

1)If I wave (or at least just raise my hand a bit) then I get blanked
2)If I don't wave (or at least raise my hand a bit, because I've just been blanked) then the other rider waves and gives me a big grin!

I have also experiemented with nodding, smiling, giving a thumb up and saying 'morning or evening' if I pass or I'm passed going the same direction, with varying degrees of success

I guess this doesn't count so much in London and the burbs / cities, because there are probably hundreds of you and too much excessive acknowledgement would probably cause accidents,

But, what do you do? What do you find polite / acceptable?

Sprool

everyone round my way (west yorks) says hi and gives a quick hand wave. Often I'm too out of breath to say much back.

richard_farrant

Never tended to acknowledge other commuters, to busy keeping an eye on the traffic! Would normally offer some kind of greeting when out on a normal ride though

Ec0

I usually just give people a nod, if I'm not on the aero bars I might wave but the nod is kinda second nature since I also ride a motorbike.

nutter_bed

A nod of the head if going in the other direction or a morning / afternoon if I am passing or being passed.
A lot of people don't reply, which is up to them but for some reason, I don't feel right blanking people.

However, when walking, I rarely acknowledge people but it just feels right (for me) to do it when cycling.

Mikey23

A smile which I'm sure is mistaken for a grimace. A nod, a hello sometimes depending on the situation

andy46

I always give a nod, and if they're close enough to hear me I'll say "morning/evening" it costs nothing and if I get no response it doesn't matter to me.

Sometimes I get the young kids on their BMX's shout "nice bike!" (usually when I'm on my MTB) and I even acknowledge them by saying thanks and smiling. There's no need to be ignorant to kids, hopefully they'll take up cycling when they're older instead of just hanging around street corners or playing games consoles. That's all the older kids, or teenagers seem to do round here.

fudbeer

A nod is good but it must be so subtle you can only just notice it just incase you don't get a reply.

Teece

What I do is post the same question over and over again.

muzmoz

Teece wrote:

What I do is post the same question over and over again.

thanks for that :roll:

secretsam

Nod, wave, say "hi", depends. Often jump out of my skin when some so-and-so creeps up behind me and overtakes, giving me a cheery "hello" as (s)he passes . Did this once to a young lady on a sportive and she nearly fell off her bike

gaddster

London and surrounding area have the most unfriendly and snobbish cyclists it would seem. I always wave or nod, perhaps 1 out of 5 will even acknowledge you? Quite sad really.

grechzoo

i comute from reading to bracknell for work, every cyclist i have passed so far has been really friendly...before flying by me and making me feel totally unfit

AdrianStuart

I stop and make love to any fellow commuter

Drumlin

When passing close enough to make eye contact, eg on the canal towpath or a cycle path, I'll nod an acknowledgement and sometimes say Hi. And if I'm overtaking someone (it happens occasionally !) I'll wave and sometimes say Hi. But if I'm passing someone riding towards me on the other side of the road I tend not to, unless it looks like they're about to ! However at other times of day, ie not commuting, and probably more in quiet country lanes, I say hello to just about everyone. A tricky thing, etiquette.

Headhuunter

I usually nod or give some other acknowledgement when I'm out on club rides or a solo ride in the country. I never acknowledge in London, there are just far too many people and I'm usually busy watching the traffic, also the roads are clogged with cars, lorries, vans, peds crossing, noise etc, trying to acknowledge another cyclist on the other side of a busy London road would mean pretty much stopping and waving to them with both hands like someone on a desert island trying to attract a passing ship....

simon_masterson

Anybody that looks to me like a 'Cyclist' as opposed to a 'person who happens to be riding a bike; probably for convenience' I will wave at and/or greet.

I generally assume that the cyclists that refuse to do so are self-absorbed wannabe idiots who are too busy living out their Cavendish fantasies to care about the inferior cycling fraternity.

Rulebritania

I always wave (lift a hand) and nod to MTB, road cyclists, kids if they say hi and in the villages local people. I even acknowledge courteous drivers who've waited to overtake or allow me through first.

I'm from "up North" originally so it come naturally to say hello. But I've found in Basingstoke area very few do so.
(One bloke in particular 50+ med build usually wears a red jersey just looks at me like I have two heads! If your on here fella lighten you don't own the roads and I am allowed to cycle on them...)

mattshrops

Wave and say mornin'. If they ignore me i follow them home and take their pets hostage. B@st@rds.

napoleond

I tend to use the search function instead.

bails87

Simon Masterson wrote:

Anybody that looks to me like a 'Cyclist' as opposed to a 'person who happens to be riding a bike; probably for convenience' I will wave at and/or greet.

I generally assume that the cyclists that refuse to do so are self-absorbed wannabe idiots who are too busy living out their Cavendish fantasies to care about the inferior cycling fraternity.

Hmmm, with that wink at the end I can't tell if you're joking or not. The hypocrisy is so obvious that you must be joking, right?

muzmoz

NapoleonD wrote:

I tend to use the search function instead.

I'm never sure how to take these jolly, welcome to the forum, type posts. It does make you wonder at the necessity to post something, even if you've heard it before, just to tell the world, you've heard it before. Perhaps I'll take my enthusiasm and opinions elsewhere, or better yet use the forums to mine information and not bother trying to connect with the community. Thanks to everyone who took the post in the spirit it was intended.

Peddle Up!

Have I logged in to Dave?

houndlegs

muzmoz wrote:

NapoleonD wrote:

I tend to use the search function instead.

I'm never sure how to take these jolly, welcome to the forum, type posts. It does make you wonder at the necessity to post something, even if you've heard it before, just to tell the world, you've heard it before. Perhaps I'll take my enthusiasm and opinions elsewhere, or better yet use the forums to mine information and not bother trying to connect with the community. Thanks to everyone who took the post in the spirit it was intended.

Ignore them, that's the best.
I give a wave,and thats wether or not they're a cyclist or someone riding a bike for convenience :roll:
And for what it's worth, I wave or say hello to walkers,runners, or anyone else I see.

ThatBikeGuy

I usually find nodding enough in most cases or if they raise their hand first then i'll return the gesture.

karlth

Most people acknowledge back; seems they're less likely to if they're on hybrid/MTB, very unlikely if on BSO. I don't nod to folks on pavements where they shouldn't be, but if they were to nod to me I'd acknowledge them back. They never do. Folk complain that roadies can be snobby (and by hell they can, as occasional anecdotes on here recall) but there's a certain amount of reverse from the other camp. Bloody stupid if you ask me; most of us choose our bikes according to what we want out of them, not because we want to join an exclusive tribe.

simon_masterson

bails87 wrote:

Simon Masterson wrote:

Anybody that looks to me like a 'Cyclist' as opposed to a 'person who happens to be riding a bike; probably for convenience' I will wave at and/or greet.

I generally assume that the cyclists that refuse to do so are self-absorbed wannabe idiots who are too busy living out their Cavendish fantasies to care about the inferior cycling fraternity.

Hmmm, with that wink at the end I can't tell if you're joking or not. The hypocrisy is so obvious that you must be joking, right?

I am, of course, being light-hearted.

But there are some cyclists that do give me the distinct impression that they think that they are better than everyone else, don't have time for other cyclists, or don't want to be a part of the cycling 'community'. Like stopping to assist another, I think it can say quite a lot about a cyclist if they greet another or choose not to; cycling is a very sociable activity and has been for decades.

mustgettaller

I commute 17 miles in on a stupidly roundabout route to work (it's onlye 2.5 miles direct!) to get some miles and hills in.

I try to wave, say 'hi', or something to other cyclists when on the country section - and usually get an acknowledgement. When I reach the town, it's less easy as traffic-avoidance takes priority. However, chatting to other cyclists breaks the ice at the lights, I find. As others have said, some are snobbish, others friendly.

If I see someone with a puncture or stopped, I always say 'hi' or 'you all right?'. Usually the answer is 'yeah, fine thanks'. But at least once there's been the response 'actually no, I've got a puncture and not repair kit'. Happy to help! Now we could be judgemental about going out without a repair kit but that's another story.

Some people find cyclists on swish looking bikes with 'all the kit' intimidating - I'm always keen to counter that perception! Even if is is saying 'hi' as I overtake them.