Is this the worst forum in the world ?

VTech

I know the internet has changed over the years but seriously, is this the worlds worst forum ?
Not for the fact that its cycling but the people here ?

For a "newby" this really is a terrible place, I thought it was me at first but the same few people are the most sarcastic, rude, unhelpful people imaginable.
I can understand that it can be tedious when people come in and ask the same questions week after week but thats forum life surely ? It doesnt take a lot to be polite and answer or simply ignore :!:
Does it really matter if people want a second bike, or have little understanding of tyres ? these matters are not life threatening, they dont deserve ridicule or abuse yet its rife here.
This was not what the internet was built for a forums were not so harsh as they are now !

You have a wonderful place here, the ability to help is immense, some of you guys are simply ruining it and making this a place to avoid and not want to return.

Mikey23

I agree totally, there have been some intolerant rants here in recent weeks. Must be quite scary to actually ask a newbie question. I sometimes mutter quietly under my breath when the same questions keep coming up over and over again but it is all about beginners and I was one once ...

Buckie2k5

every forum is no diff. most of the people in question wouldnt say boo to a fly in real life.

elderone

I have found on here there is good and bad and just ignore the idiots and the genuine people always offer good advice.Dont worry about it and ask away,I do.

arthur_scrimshaw

VTech wrote:

I know the internet has changed over the years but seriously, is this the worlds worst forum ?
Not for the fact that its cycling but the people here ?

For a "newby" this really is a terrible place, I thought it was me at first but the same few people are the most sarcastic, rude, unhelpful people imaginable.
I can understand that it can be tedious when people come in and ask the same questions week after week but thats forum life surely ? It doesnt take a lot to be polite and answer or simply ignore :!:
Does it really matter if people want a second bike, or have little understanding of tyres ? these matters are not life threatening, they dont deserve ridicule or abuse yet its rife here.
This was not what the internet was built for a forums were not so harsh as they are now !

You have a wonderful place here, the ability to help is immense, some of you guys are simply ruining it and making this a place to avoid and not want to return.

You soon get to know who the unhelpful posters or trolls are, that said you do need to be a bit thick skinned sometimes and realise it's often just a different sense of humour

For those you just don't want to engage with, add them to your kill file (user control panel, friends and foes) I have dumped a couple in here, sarcastic stuff I can deal with but some people are just obvious trolls and not worth giving them attention.

bompington

Got to say I find this one if the mildest-mannered and most civilised forums around. Off course there are exceptions, but, apart from a bit of (usually quite friendly) ribbing, posters only get flamed if they bring it on themselves by being obnoxious. Or because they advocate Macs too fervently, as everyone knows that's just asking for trouble ;-)




(I possibly need to add that the winky is there to indicate that this is a joke, and I am really very strongly against OSism in all its guises, and I wouldn't want anyone to think I was being rude or sarcastic or anything)

Seriously, stick around and enjoy it for what it is - I for one have appreciated your posts - or you are entirely free to leave and go somewhere else. It's a free world, and that means, among other things, that there is no authority, not even the exalted Mods, that can enforce niceness.

philwint

I've only been here a couple of weeks myself, but haven't experienced what you are describing?

MattC59

Nope.

It's generally very civilised. There's a lot of p*ss taking, and if you're a touch sensitive, you'll likely be offended by a lot of the forum. There are one or two common denominators who are bullet magnets for p*ss taking but there's usually good reason for that. A search of the forum will show that even those who do p*ss take are also very helpful.

Of course, if you post rubbish and stand by your rubbish, there's not a forum on the web where you won't get shot down.

Garry H

I think it's quite well-mannered compared to other forums, UK Climbing to give but one example (But climbers in general tend to be a lot more anarchic). I've never experienced what you've described myself, or maybe I just shrugged it off without noticing. I've been using the forum for about five years and really enjoy reading a lot of the debates on here, although I rarely contribute, usually because someone has already expressed my own opinion eloquently enough. Any questions I have are normally answered quickly and to my satisfaction.

Bullet1

Funny you should say so! I nearly posted the same here yesterday.

There seems to be a number of people who never assume positive intent from your post and will deliberately twist it to have a go at you. e.g. I asked a week or so ago about getting a winter bike to which a response or two were 'you're a lazy bastard - just clean your bike!'

There are however a number of people who gave really helped me. Just don't let the pedantic, argumentative tossers put you off.

p1tse

I agree it should be like minded people but some replies are just pointless

I see some just like to joke at times which is part of the banter but some I've noticed are very rude

To be honest a lot of your questions I see are things I think about to, so not completely silly questions in isolation

I can see why some experienced members might get hacked off with similar questions or even newbies coming in with better setup than them (but that's down to jealousy most of the time)

I generally post in beginners or buying advice, for the experienced who want to help thanks, for others those its pointless ruin a thread for sarcastic comments

I know what you mean as to be honest a few of your posts have been targeted with negative response from the same few members

In summary I see you have got a nice road bike and don't want the salt, grease and grime in winter conditions on it and have disposable income/ outgoings to extend the hobby collection. This is where people who aren't open minded jealous and negative. It's no different to those who have nice cars, either classics, modded, performance or just well cared and not wanting to use it as a main car all the time and having a second car, I bet the same people are jealous and envy.

TakeTurns

I understand where you're coming from, I've seen quite a bit of it. However, it's become more acceptable now as its quite prevalent across most forums. We're a diverse bunch here on this forum, with many different views. Discussing and learning from each other is one thing, being hostile, abusive or piling an attack onto someone is just wrong.

The sourheads who don't have the legs often come on here to recoup their egos.

p1tse

P.s I wouldn't say this is the worst forum just a small minority who are closed minded

As I find myself as a newbie enjoying reading all sorts, with great members posting good comments

Raffles

There is a LOT of pi$$ taking and you need a thick skin..................but its what guys do in a place like this and its all in good steam and nobody should let it deter them from asking a question.

sigorman85

Buckie2k5 wrote:

every forum is no diff. most of the people in question wouldnt say boo to a fly in real life.

So true behind the keyboard there a 6ft5 bare knuckle cage fighter
But really there flipping burgers in McDonald and collecting war hammer

chrisaonabike

No, I think it's good here. Sure, there are some muppety posts (obviously none of mine ), and some p1ss-taking, and some 'ffs' when people ask questions they should have thought a bit more about.

But I quite like the kick-about style. People are pretty direct; if you act like a spanner you're told so, which I find refreshing after another forum (nothing to do with cycling) I hung out at until recently. Even the most moronic postings attracted only the most sugary responses, and it had got to the point where if you weren't constantly 'nice' (and especially if you weren't consistently positive about the organisation that ran it), you'd end up running the gauntlet of the mods.

So instead of being direct, people would get arsey in a subtle snide way, which wouldn't contravene the 'rules', so a lot of nastiness that fooled no one would remain.

I got sick of not being able to call a spade a spade, and I much prefer the directness here.

I've asked loads of newbie questions, by the way (and I still have plenty more) - I only found my way into cycling last Oct, and generally I've found people very helpful indeed.

philbar72

this is far from the worst forum, and everyone i've asked questions of has been pretty helpful. there are some sarky idiots, but then thats true of everywhere!

VTech

p1tse wrote:

I agree it should be like minded people but some replies are just pointless

I see some just like to joke at times which is part of the banter but some I've noticed are very rude

To be honest a lot of your questions I see are things I think about to, so not completely silly questions in isolation

I can see why some experienced members might get hacked off with similar questions or even newbies coming in with better setup than them (but that's down to jealousy most of the time)

I generally post in beginners or buying advice, for the experienced who want to help thanks, for others those its pointless ruin a thread for sarcastic comments

I know what you mean as to be honest a few of your posts have been targeted with negative response from the same few members

In summary I see you have got a nice road bike and don't want the salt, grease and grime in winter conditions on it and have disposable income/ outgoings to extend the hobby collection. This is where people who aren't open minded jealous and negative. It's no different to those who have nice cars, either classics, modded, performance or just well cared and not wanting to use it as a main car all the time and having a second car, I bet the same people are jealous and envy.

You can't imagine how close you are with your reply. I used to be on a car forum but people do get jealous and it becomes tedious so I left.

The topic was to get attention, I don't think this is the worst place, in fact I'm really excited about cycling and getting into the sport. There are so many people at work who cycle and I've never bothered so I'm looking forward to it.

p1tse

I've been on a car forum which is at the end of the day a sports hatchback car, to some its their dream and pride and joy. There was one member who only used it in the dry and very had very low mileage on quite an old car. Some might think what's the point, but hey it's someone ideal dream car they want to keep immaculate then why not I say.

I've only got the cash for the one bike and still need to build on essential kit such as pumps etc.

But if I had the cash I can see why it becomes addictive, as I would fancy something even nicer than I have now

But before I part with any cash I always like to do my research be it a £5 inner tube to how ever much on road bike etc

Bozman

I'd imagine that it could be tough for beginners asking for advice because you've got no idea who's giving the advice, have they been cycling for a month or 30 yrs, do they race or struggle to cover 20 miles on a Sunday and the list goes on, add the odd sarcastic post and it may put someone off.

RonB

More than anything else, it is the wide variety of interests - yes even though it is a cycling forum - that you get here...

Buying advice. Better, less biased advice than you'll probably get from many mags these days. Even if what you end up with is "best ever is the one I have" this probably just demonstrates that there isn't all that much between brands and most gear is pretty good these days.

Beginners. Best place to avoid the p*** taking, and the best place to ask the daft questions that many folks would like answers to tbh.

Pro race. Lots of stuff on doping at the moment, but if you want to know more about the investigations and recriminations there is a lot of good debate and references to articles etc. Once the season gets into full swing it is a great place to find out all about the nuances of our sport. There's more to discover out there than just Olympics and TDF.

Routes and rides. Not just a place for advice on local rides and sportives, but opportunities to meet up with other forum folk. The fling "springs" to mind.

Then last but not least the cake stop and BB for answers to life the universe and everything, just a bit of banter, or more usually a bit of both within the same thread.

There are lots of others, and that's just the road section!

Hope you'll stay a while. All the best, Ron.

Jahmoo

Long time member, but only been posting since Christmas.

This is due to starting to take a full interest in cycling, not just getting on it and riding it, but also knowing how it works and how I can fix it. Me making the decisions instead of letting my LBS.

I have questions and sometimes think I could trawl through the threads and posts and will find what i want, but with time being of the esssence, I chose to post and ask. If its not on the first 3 pages that is.

Have to say I have not found too much of what you are talking about, but I expect it will happen soon enough, but as said already, thick skinned and just ignore.

I have used other forums for many years, so you find you cross it now and then.

All good for me so far

lawrences

Workshop is a pretty great section. Always helpful people there.

danlikesbikes

Generally most people do seem quite friendly.

I have seen a few posts in the beginners sections with some daft responses about check the other threads, however you do also in those posts see everyone else trying to help out and give their advice.

Like anything in life most people are OK, some are really good & others well just don't play with them as my mother used to say.

You might get a bit of banter & some of it on the edge in some of the more off topic sections but I have seen a lot worse on other forums.

CiB

Ha. I had a bit of a rant on here a few weeks ago. Do you mean me?

This is one of the nicer places on the internet, and worth dropping into occasionally. I's real world though, and tbh some of the questions that newbies ask aren't daft per se, but daft in the wider context that instead of just getting on a bike and enjoying it, there seems to be a trend for every little bit of cycling needing to be pored over, and advice sought and proffered, even when they tend to be the sort of questions that are easy to think through or resolve themselves. Take clips. There's not a super-breed of cylist born with an inate ability to ride clips. We all learnt. Some made more mistakes than others but we learnt, fairly quickly iirc. Same with riding on the hoods or drops, or learning how to climb a hill, or use the gears, or keep warm, or stay dry. You go out, find out what works for you and enjoy the moment when you discover something else you learnt to do. Instead there's this trend where nothing is too trivial to raise a thread on, and it does nothing except make it look as if nobody has the courage these days to just go out and discover for themselves whatever it is is being asked. And the threads about doing my first 5 miles, or my first 10 miles that went well but should I have stopped for a meal and a stash of gel bars halfway to stop me bonking cos I was completely stuffed at the end of it. It's just a change of use as far as your muscles & lungs are concerned -it'll take a handful of rides to adapt.

After a few of these sort of threads it starts to look as if the point of cycling isn't to get out on your bike and explore your personal limits and find out what works for you and whether you can push ypurself, it begins to look as if too many people are too keen to keep checking that they're fitting in with the rules, with the club. Riding a bike is as easy as... It doesn't require asking what really are very basic questions or checking that you're doing it right. Enjoy the learning curve.

It works both ways anyway. If people who don't know one end of a bike pump from another can come on here and ask which end fits where, other people can sometimes go off on one in response.

displacedaussie

It's a good place except for the trolls. The mock outrage posts are amusing on some level though.

Cleat Eastwood

CiB wrote:

This is one of the nicer places on the internet, and worth dropping into occasionally. I's real world though, and tbh some of the questions that newbies ask aren't daft per se, but daft in the wider context that instead of just getting on a bike and enjoying it, there seems to be a trend for every little bit of cycling needing to be pored over, and advice sought and proffered, even when they tend to be the sort of questions that are easy to think through or resolve themselves. Take clips. There's not a super-breed of cylist born with an inate ability to ride clips. We all learnt. Some made more mistakes than others but we learnt, fairly quickly iirc. Same with riding on the hoods or drops, or learning how to climb a hill, or use the gears, or keep warm, or stay dry. You go out, find out what works for you and enjoy the moment when you discover something else you learnt to do. Instead there's this trend where nothing is too trivial to raise a thread on, and it does nothing except make it look as if nobody has the courage these days to just go out and discover for themselves whatever it is is being asked. And the threads about doing my first 5 miles, or my first 10 miles that went well but should I have stopped for a meal and a stash of gel bars halfway to stop me bonking cos I was completely stuffed at the end of it. It's just a change of use as far as your muscles & lungs are concerned -it'll take a handful of rides to adapt.

After a few of these sort of threads it starts to look as if the point of cycling isn't to get out on your bike and explore your personal limits and find out what works for you and whether you can push ypurself, it begins to look as if too many people are too keen to keep checking that they're fitting in with the rules, with the club. Riding a bike is as easy as... It doesn't require asking what really are very basic questions or checking that you're doing it right. Enjoy the learning curve.

It works both ways anyway. If people who don't know one end of a bike pump from another can come on here and ask which end fits where, other people can sometimes go off on one in response.

Thats probably what its about - people starting off expecting to be worldy wise and worried about making a fool of themselves in front of others - thats possibly what the 'jokey' responses are about- a non serious way of saying 'chill out we've all had to start somewhere'

The forums pretty good at self moderation though - it is rare to see wildly unhelpful comments in beginners/general - and if you do take offense - feck 'em; give offense back - whther you're a noob or a forum relic - its your forum too.

Y'all come back now y'hear

pride4ever

Cool story brah, could have done with more goats. Lol no seriously in the grand scheme of things this is one of the better forums on the internet actually. Most people are helpful if somewhat a tad sarcastic.

Froomes Edgar

Nah, its full of people who swallow bullsh!t whole then regurgitate it, ripe for mockery. I love it.

SPOC

I personally think the forum is great for advice, but I can see where the OP is coming from. There are around half a dozen posters I can think of who usually all want to be the first one to say something sarcastic to a question that most people would generally know the answer to.

On top of that around half a dozen I've noticed again who have an opinion on every single cycling subject and then when someone suggests they might be talking some shite they get angry and start spouting off with long words.

That's the internetz folks!

MrSweary

This is the internet. This forum is probably in the top 1% of the friendliest on the web.

Of course there are arseholes, know-it-alls, snobs, bullies, victims, trolls and all manner of mild and serious personality disorders on display. The are also helpful, nice, supportive, witty and downright marvellous people (me).

Toughen up snowflake.