Nearly taken out by Sportive nutcases

[G3CWI]

So there I was cycling along a main road with lots of Sportive riders heading in the other direction. Then I come up to a side road where they are joining the main road. A nob at the front shouts "clear" when I am about 10 metres from the junction (in clear view and cycling fairly fast) and like sheep riders start to follow - straight into my path. Cue very loud annoyed shouting from me as I pass by the shocked Sportivists who engage in emergency unclipping.

The same happened to my mate who was 200m behind me.

There were hundreds and hundreds of them and clearly some had not got much of a clue about how to turn right onto a main road. Very annoying indeed. On our ride back I noticed that they seemed to have marshalls at each junction - but from my experience some were doing a p..ss poor job.

Spleen now vented. Thanks.

 

[screenman]

Pretend races, enough said.

 

[winjim]

Complain to the organiser?
They've done what a lot of motorists do, look out for cars, but not expected a cyclist, so not registered you.

 

[Hacienda71]

Manchester 100 I suspect.

 

[jefmcg]

. A nob at the front shouts "clear"

Note to sportive riders: Don't shout "clear" to other riders. More importantly don't listen to someone you don't know shouting "clear".

When the ride leader on a Sunday morning club ride shouts clear, you can trust him. If your trust turns out to be ill placed, you can sue his sorry arse (he'll have 3rd party insurance). When a random sportive rider shouts "clear" ... well, you may just as well obey the instructions of a driver who flashes his headlights at you. He isn't the one who will be sued if you crash into something.

 

[Hip Priest]

When the ride leader on a Sunday morning club ride shouts clear, you can trust him. If your trust turns out to be ill placed, you can sue his sorry arse (he'll have 3rd party insurance).

Not sure about that.

 

[blazed]

Pretend races, enough said.

I think you need to learn the definition of racing.

 

[400bhp]

Not sure about that.

+1

 

[Hip Priest]

I think you need to learn the definition of racing.

The definition of racing is 'a contest of speed'.

Now tell me that Screenman is wrong...

 

[Cuchilo]

Not sure about that.

I think the point was , when a mate shouts clear he / she means it as they quite like your company on a ride . If a random stranger or your wife shouts clear its probably better to check for yourself .

 

[blazed]

The definition of racing is 'a contest of speed'.

Now tell me that Screenman is wrong...

Racing is competing against others to be the fastest. If there's 1000 people in a sportive and 100 of them are treating it as a race, for them 100 it's as much a race as any other.

For it to be a pretend race would mean those guys are pretending to be competing against each other.

 

[Crandoggler]

You're being a tool. You know damn well what they're trying to say.

 

[ColinJ]

Manchester 100 I suspect.

I used to ride the Manchester 100 every year and saw some really stupid things going on. Half the problems were caused by inexperienced cyclists doing crazy things like suddenly stopping dead to answer their phone in the middle of a group of riders. The other crazies were very fit club riders who should have known better, doing things like sprinting through red lights on the run back to Wythenshawe Park, often through tiny gaps in the cross-traffic. I was convinced that I would see somebody killed on that event one day so I stopped riding it.

 

[screenman]

What is that thing I used to check my engine oil level called.

 

[Cuchilo]

What is that thing I used to check my engine oil level called.

A self-gratification artist ?