Must commuters race each other?

[skwerl]

Human nature. We are taught...from a very young age.

Isn't that an oxymoron?

 

[colinr]

I overtake every cyclist I encounter on my commute, I'm yet to find anyone going fast enough to be worth drafting. There are no challengers round these parts

 

[4F]

Why does this happen? What is the point, really?

Commuter racing The point is that there is no point however a scalp is a scalp and I really am old enough to know better but just cannot resist.

 

[beanzontoast]

Commuter racing The point is that there is no point however a scalp is a scalp and I really am old enough to know better but just cannot resist.

Yes, but if someone was serious about it, surely they'd be riding a bike that wasn't making mis-aligned noises like it was made of badly-tightened Meccano and in danger of falling to bits any moment? The one that passed me today didn't sound like a hardened racer's machine!

 

[hackbike 666]

If someone was serious they would not be riding a tank like I ride but a bike that consists of the least amount of weight,while kitted out like a Tour De Force rider.

 

[beanzontoast]

If someone was serious they would not be riding a tank like I ride but a bike that consists of the least amount of weight,while kitted out like a Tour De Force rider.

Maybe the guy that did it to me this morning was only a trainee commuter racer?

 

[Twiggy]

What Tynan said, mostly.

It does annoy me slightly when people try to draft me, and on such occasions I'll generally try to drop them, unless they're people I know.

So someone who's waiting for a safe moment to overtake you has to deal with you speeding up because you "don't know them"

Sounds kinda childish to me, well, that and the whole racing thing.

 

[Jake]

don't you get the red mist though? If your happily pottering along becuase your feeling ill, or your thinking about something else instead of paying attention, then someoen tries to over take, don't you wake up and go HELL NO! then put your foot down and leave them behind wishing they had never even thought about overtaking? (happeend last night with some sooped up brompton painted like a tiger). Also red mist comes over then there is a nice bike, well any bike, infront of you and you have to catch it up and take it! Also get red mist when waiting at traffic lights and prats either go right through (mountain bikes and fixies), or they pull and wait just ahead of you on their rusty bike they owned since the age of 10. Thus making you have to overtake on the pull away. hmmmm I do get a lot of red mist.

 

[Jake]

So someone who's waiting for a safe moment to overtake you has to deal with you speeding up because you "don't know them"

Sounds kinda childish to me, well, that and the whole racing thing.

oh come on, its all a bit of harmless fun to help you on your journey, a bit of competition. IF youve got a road bike, you want to "ride" it sometimes, otherwise whats the point of owning one.

 

[redjedi]

I don't see that many cyclists on my commute, but when I do it gives me something to aim for. Cycling is my twice daily workout, so I like to work up a sweat.

I very rarely get scalped, when I do it's usually very fit cyclist, often one of the London Dynamos.

I did once have a MTBer try to re-scalp me as I had easily cruised past him. He tried as hard as he could to catch up, I even kept slowing down for him

 

[beanzontoast]

Thinking about it some more, I don't think you can reliably tell by the bike whether someone is going to decide to race you or not. Maybe people on nice road bikes are a bit more likely to - or maybe, in my case, they wouldn't see me on my tourer as a challenge whereas someone on a mtb might? I dunno. Wouldn't be able to draft a roadie if I wanted to anyway!

 

[4F]

Yes, but if someone was serious about it, surely they'd be riding a bike that wasn't making mis-aligned noises like it was made of badly-tightened Meccano and in danger of falling to bits any moment? The one that passed me today didn't sound like a hardened racer's machine!

Maybe his good bike was off the road. One guy I see most days rides a bike with a chain which I am sure has not seen oil in the past ten years and with a cotter pin so knackered one pedal nearly catches up with the other one. It really is amazing how these bikes keep going year after year without any form of maintenance.

 

[swee'pea99]

I overtake every cyclist I encounter on my commute, I'm yet to find anyone going fast enough to be worth drafting. There are no challengers round these parts

Hmmm, Norwich eh? Who's that standup who does the 'anyone in from Norfolk this evening? Hey - gimme six!'

 

[hackbike 666]

Actually I don't really find it childish if people want to race me,I just know im all washed up and can just about keep up with an old granny on her shopping bike.(You know what I mean)

 

[Jake]

lucky jedi, a lot of the roads around here are so FUBAR'd your waiting fro a crunch from your rim, a pop from your tire or crack from your forks each time. Other half of the jounry is great, and yes it sgreat to work up a sweat and put your all into the ride, if your wanting to keep fit. which i guess, thats why a lot of people do it.

london dynamo? ha, i overtook one of them on the triathlon, ok she was about 13yrs old but hey lol. I better watch out, going to get scalped by a gang of them on way home tonight

ps, off this topic, but been wathcing le Tour constantly at work, (france2), and dam, a lot of them still come off when hitting road markings, thought they would try and avoid them when poss, especialy when wet. Would love to do a FLAT stage next year lol