[Closed] Bike commuters ... a dangerous breed

its quite funny alot of the time

they will jump red lights and do anything to get infront or possibly strava'ing

i take delight in riding safely and putting the idiots back in their boxes by catching them very quickly - letting them catch my wheel briefly before dropping them - only to repeat at the next set of lights.

i find the truly fast people are the ones obaying the law - we generally end up working together to get home quicker.

I become a bit of a nutter when I commute.... playing with traffic has it thrills.

idiots drive cars
idiots ride bikes
idiots exist, your mode of transport does not alter that fact 🙂

my choice of bike has been a singlespeed fat bike ..

Only problem I've had was an elderly woman nearly taking me out by a) not signalling and b) not looking before turning right. And then telling me that I was going to fast when I complained. Luckily I'd just collected the bombers after a service so the discussion didn't last long.

The worst riding I see is generally people on BSOs.

@mikewsmith +1

Never have a problem with this on my commute ,the regulars * all get dropped and stay dropped. 😉 😆

* [i]An old bloke on a Brompton and a woman towing a bike trailer[/i]

idiots drive cars
idiots ride bikes
idiots exist, your mode of transport does not alter that fact

Though when I drive to work I never come across drivers weaving in and out of traffic, using the hard shoulder to overtake and jumping red lights 🙂

Paul78, I guarantee you would if cars didn't have numberplates and there weren't cameras etc. everywhere.

even that doesn't stop 'em...

(not for the first time) a taxi drove down the cycle lane on 'my' side of the road to get around a speed-bump on 'his' side of the road.

yes, he was driving down the cycle lane towards me - but it's ok, he was going fast enough* to get out of my way...

(*40ish, in a 20 zone)

Yup - there seems to be a lot of pseudo pros over here in Perth who treat it all like a crit. It's very noticeable that the real pros (team GB) when you see them don't treat it like a race...

It's the draughting that gets me - a total stranger glued to your back wheel like a leech.
It's been funny over the last couple of weeks - I've been going slow on the mtb trying to shake a cold off and people are willing to slow down a helluva lot just so they can get a tow off you at 25km/h, I think the threshold is about 15km/h before they realise you're taking the micky and then they scoot past.

"It's the draughting that gets me - a total stranger glued to your back wheel like a leech."

I dont mind that too much - usually its club mates. What grinds my gears is folks that A. do it without taking a turn on the front and B. Dont even say hello.

Is this the normal behaviour people observe on their ride to work every day ?

A recent trip to New York had me standing open mouthed at the total imbeciles who ride bikes out there.
No helmets which is not a problem as they obviously have nothing worth protecting.
Very,very scary.

I don't find to to be too bad here, however I do find that car/van/bus/motorised vehicle drivers like to sit in the bike lanes, particularly approaching junctions where one lanes splits into two. They're essentially using it to try and force their way up the 'line'. Pisses me off as the main bit they do it on, the bike lan switches to the right-hand side of the lane on a three lane road. One lane peels off and the bike lane goes straight ahead. They swerve into my lane forcing my into the really rather heavy (especially at rush hour) traffic.

I don't have an issue with cyclists jumping light here. They go past the stop line, but not into the traffic, just up to the end of the curb. Still should be staying in the bike boxes that are put in though.

Oh, and will some please tell bus drivers that a red box with a picture of a bike at a junction doesn't mean bikes [i]and[/i] busses.

I read on a thread on here yesterday that the ASL infringement penalty is a £60 fine and three points. How does anyone actually know what the punishment is, as surely in the entire history of humanity nobody has ever actually got as much as a stern look for ignoring one? 😕

I'm a frequent cycle commuter in that there Laahndaan and I've seen idocy on all sides. I daresay I've been guilty of it on occasion too.

My biggest bugbear is slow cyclists who overtake me at red lights and fail to stop, forcing me to overtake them two hundred yards up the road once the lights have changed again. I've had cyclists try and force their way up my inside when I'm negotiating a roundabout and then veer out in front of me and I've had an incident whereby I was stuck in a queue a hundred yards away from an accident involving a poor chap who'd been hit by a bus and the Police were in attendance. The impatient cyclist behind me kept demanding that I get out of his way and let him through - despite the fact that I had nowhere to go - right up until a passing policeman read him the riot act and told him to be quiet.

Number of people killed in road accidents in 2012: 1901
Number of people killed by cyclists in 2012: 2*

*higher than the average yearly total

Number of people killed in road accidents in 2012: 1901
Number of people killed by cyclists in 2012: 2*

*higher than the average yearly total

I'm more worried about these guys killing themselves than other people .. get to work 20 seconds later and don't win the imaginary race or get flattened by a car you didn't see as you tried to get across a road junction quicker ? You would think it would a no brainer.

We all accept the idiocy imparted on us by cars, buses and taxis but by other cyclists is an eye opener.

I commute every day, every season. Sometimes I fall into a bit of an internal reverie and don't realise how much I've slowed. It can be a bit of a surprise when a 'fast lad' comes by me and wakes me up. I'm not going to claim there is no element of competetiveness, but I do enjoy the motivation factor - spices up the daily grind. Some days I'll draft, others I won't. If I don't draft, then we're on a level playing field, see. If I do, then I'll take a turn out front if I can (usually uphill), but most of the time it's fair weather cyclists in team replica kit who have no idea how to pace themselves up a hill and soon drop off no matter how much I slow for them.

If they're genuinely fast, and I draft for a bit without being able to return the favour then I figure that's fair enough. I'm on my way to/from work. They are out for the training/exercise, so me drafting has hardly impeded that - in fact I've given them a better workout.

OP - bet you don't see the bad behaviour in winter. I think you'll find it's not so much 'commuters' that are the problem as 'fair weather fools', commuter or no.

I hate random commuters draughting on my ride to work. Weirdos. Bugger off.
I used to get people racing me all the time. Usually on some squeaky BSO I'd catch and pass them then suddenly they'd come past me like they were on the last lap of the champs élysées then sit up. So I'd keep my same pace and go back past them. At which point they'd get their head down and pass me again. Repeat until either one of us reached our destination. Always made me laugh as they were blowing out their arse and I'd cheerily ride past. Never did understand it.

I used to sometimes use other riders to pace myself until I got a farming GPS now I use that. It's loads easier.

i dont like strangers drafting me - and many folk i know dont . simple fact is , they are not insured (as least i know my club mates are when its us commuting together) random stranger probably isnt .... so i stop for the red light he keeps going rides into me and smashes up my mech and my face and i get what for it ?

[s]Though [/s]when I [s]drive[/s][cycle] to work I [s]never[/s][daily] come across drivers weaving in and out of traffic [to get a couple of cars ahead at the lights], using the [s]hard shoulder[/s][left turn lane] to overtake [s]and[/s] jumping red lights [, often as many as 3 cars going past on red , and speeding]

Though when I drive[cycle] to work I never[daily] come across drivers weaving in and out of traffic [to get a couple of cars ahead at the lights], using the hard shoulder[left turn lane] to overtake and jumping red lights [, often as many as 3 cars going past on red , and speeding]

I definitely don't want to live there 🙂

trail_rat - Member
so i stop for the red light he keeps going rides into me and smashes up my mech and my face and i get what for it ?

Probably abuse for stopping.

I do the commute on a clunky hack bike, wearing trousers clips and a high vis vest. This is like a red rag to bull for the wannabe pro-SportDirect wearing-rusty chained-cycle2work-Specialized allez-riding brigade.

Though when I drive to work I never come across drivers weaving in and out of traffic, using the hard shoulder to overtake and jumping red lights

We all accept the idiocy imparted on us by cars, buses and taxis

but by other cyclists is an eye opener.

Number of people killed in road accidents in 2012: 1901
Number of people killed by cyclists in 2012: 2*

Used to occasionally draft, sometimes with another regular, taking turns up front, the rest of the time if I overtook someone at my normal pace and they put a bit of effort in to get in front again - well that person is ripe for some drafting 🙂

I wonder what happens when you do a people killed per mile travelled calculation.

Or you could do it per hour travelled: It's stats innit?

tomd - Member

I do the commute on a clunky hack bike, wearing trousers clips and a high vis vest. This is like a red rag to bull for the wannabe pro-SportDirect wearing-rusty chained-cycle2work-Specialized allez-riding brigade.

I find a big difference in the number of people seeming to want a little race on the odd days when I go on the fancy road bike, rather than the mudguarded/racked/child seat mounted pompetamine. 🙂

Fine by me, a little sport on the way to/from work is a lot more interesting than the tube!

Or you could do it per hour travelled: It's stats innit?

They're great, I love the one about cycling being much more dangerous than walking per mile travelled. Yet it being broadly the same when comparing time spent travelling!

Andrew Gilligan in the standard today -

[url= http://www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle/london-life/andrew-gilligan-why-london-needs-more-women-cyclists--and-fewer-testosteronefuelled-men-8651828.html ]Why London needs more women cyclists … and fewer testosterone-fuelled men[/url]

Though when I drive to work I never come across drivers weaving in and out of traffic, using the hard shoulder to overtake and jumping red lights

you should try riding into the centre of manchester from the south then.
all of those are regular daily occurances.

Though when I drive to work I never come across drivers weaving in and out of traffic, using the hard shoulder to overtake and jumping red lights
you should try riding into the centre of manchester from the south then.
all of those are regular daily occurances.

I lived in Didsbury for a little under a year and I made sure if I was on a bike I was heading out of the city not in to it.

i ride in daily from chorlton.
whalley range, hulme and deansgate are all full of delights every day...

(plenty of RLJers on bikes too, mind)

Re: Drafting - I don't really mind if someone wants to grab a tow from me, it costs me nothing and so long as they don't plough into me they can do what they like. I rarely draft though as I don't really see the point. One of the reasons I ride to work is for exercise and drafting means less work required so I might as well drive.

of all the posts so far this one confuses me the most....

I don't usually ride to work .. much prefer to come home fresh and go riding but in the last week the sun has been out and I wasn't having to train for any big event so thought I would potter in to work the 6 miles or so

6 miles.... really?

so say you did have a big event coming up (wedding, concert, house move?) do you think that an added 12 miles would ruin your training?

hang your head in shame, you imposter....

I'm on my way to/from work. They are out for the training/exercise

So if they're quicker they're not merely commuting? Interesting logic there!

I don't mind drafters, but prefer them to say hello or something, and preferably do a turn. I generally know who most of them are anyway, commute often enough and you learn the usual faces.

IME most people who want to race, and insist on sprinting off from every set of lights, are usually riding all of 5 miles.

People who say they never see cars jumping reds are simply not looking. On busy fast roads it happens pretty much every time a light turns red. How many times have you driven through just as a light goes yellow, and looked in your mirror to see at least one or two cars coming through behind you?

njee - yes, I am generalising but I reckon I can spot someone who is interested in getting training/exercise by their cadence and/or lack of luggage; irrespective of whether this coincides with them commuting.

As you say "commute often enough and you learn the usual faces". And I go the same route 5 days a week.

So there! 😛

I have to say riding my fixie is the perfect cure for the competitive commuter instinct, I have 14 miles to cover each way, my bike has 1 gear and I need function when I get to work, therefore of course the more serious "Contenders" can shoot on past on their composite ego waggons...

My real respect is reserved for one fella who has about the same distance to commute as me I think, but he does it on a steel tourer with double panniers fitted, at a pretty respectable pace. He let me draft him once for about 10 miles and I managed to keep up but he was far fitter than me, and I think my stint on the front was a bit too slow for his liking, he finally dropped me a couple of miles from home.

Is this the normal behaviour people observe on their ride to work every day ?

No.

Though in my experience, motorists jumping red lights on pedestrian crossings are a daily occurrence. My 85 year old neighbour was waiting to cross last Friday, as a 4x4 shot straight through the red. It was just me waiting as the transit went through red this morning.

What'd be really great is if a site full of cyclists decided it was a good idea to build disparaging and negative stereotypes of other cyclists. We struggle to find enough motorists to do it, so let's make sure we help them to make our lives a misery.

I'm on my way to/from work. They are out for the training/exercise
So if they're quicker they're not merely commuting? Interesting logic there!

I don't mind drafters, but prefer them to say hello or something, and preferably do a turn. I generally know who most of them are anyway, commute often enough and you learn the usual faces.

IME most people who want to race, and insist on sprinting off from every set of lights, are usually riding all of 5 miles.

Njee makes a good point...

I'd still consider commuting a component in a training / excercise regime. You're out riding a bike, you might not be going at race pace but you are still clocking up some miles and using your legs rather than say on your arse in a car, I'd rather clock up a ride to and from work plus an evening ride than just an evening spin...

More miles = more smiles, plus cycling 6 miles Vs Drivinf 6 miles, how much time do you really save?

I'd still consider commuting a component in a training / exercise regime

I commute on a decent road bike (the only other option would be a rigid steel MTB) and carry no luggage so I might not look like a commuter but I wouldn't be riding into a headwind in the pouring rain otherwise!

of all the posts so far this one confuses me the most....

I don't usually ride to work .. much prefer to come home fresh and go riding but in the last week the sun has been out and I wasn't having to train for any big event so thought I would potter in to work the 6 miles or so
6 miles.... really?

so say you did have a big event coming up (wedding, concert, house move?) do you think that an added 12 miles would ruin your training?

hang your head in shame, you imposter....

Ha .. I suppose I could count the extra 12 miles as training but I would rather use the energy on something more structured when I got home ... by big event I mean a cycling event .. usually quite long too.

I never started the thread to prompt debate on motorist and cyclist interaction I just wanted to see if people encountered commuters taking unnecessary risk trying to beat you in an imaginary race in their heads.

cycling 6 miles Vs driving 6 miles

OP - I think the answer depends on your definition of commuter. Those who do it week in, week out - good weather and bad - will generally be quite level-headed. When the sun comes out you get those who know how to behave themselves and those who don't both joining in. Some people get carried away; probably those who don't get out often enough!

OP - I think the answer depends on your definition of commuter. Those who do it week in, week out - good weather and bad - will generally be quite level-headed. When the sun comes out you get those who know how to behave themselves and those who don't both joining in. Some people get carried away; probably those who don't get out often enough!

Agreed ... I think I am getting probably a skewed cross section of commuters due to good weather increasing number of people digging the bikes out the shed.

IME most people who... insist on sprinting off from every set of lights, are usually riding all of 5 miles.

It's [u]6[/u] miles [i]actually[/i], njee!

I don't insist on racing, but if I'm starting in front of cars, I'd rather stomp and get out of the way, rather than dither around trying to work out whether someone's quicker than me, but slow off the line because they're SS, not clipped in, didn't change gear before the lights, or just slower. I'll stomp, get round and in, if you want to overtake down the road, go for it.

i ride in daily from chorlton.
whalley range, hulme and deansgate are all full of delights every day...

(plenty of RLJers on bikes too, mind)

We probably ride a very similar route then... given your comment above I'll assume you're one of the few that actually stop at the lights, in which case I salute you, we are a rare breed round here....

but I reckon I can spot someone who is interested in getting training/exercise by their cadence

That's even more interesting...? Is there a linear corellation between cadence and commuting:training ratio?! 😉

I ride without a bag, because I hate riding with luggage, still commuting!

I don't insist on racing, but if I'm starting in front of cars, I'd rather stomp and get out of the way, rather than dither around trying to work out whether someone's quicker than me, but slow off the line because they're SS, not clipped in, didn't change gear before the lights, or just slower. I'll stomp, get round and in, if you want to overtake down the road, go for it.

Makes sense, but you get people (in London at least) who are out of the saddle screaming away from every set of lights like their life depends on it. They stand at the lights panting and pouring sweat, looking at you out of the corner of their eye to see if you're 'taking the bait' as it were. Doesn't annoy me, I save racing for when I've got a number board on, it's just amusing.

What does annoy me is people who wobble to the far right hand side of a queue of riders at lights (which can often be 20+ bikes in London), then set off really slowly, and wobble back over to the kerb. If you can't get away at a decent pace stay to the left FFS!

you get people (in London at least) who are out of the saddle screaming away from every set of lights [b]like their life depends on it[/b]

just an idea, I'm sure there are wannabe racers too, thing is you do enough commuting and you normally get a feel for light timing so try to conserve momentum not stop/start.

njee - missed the point. You may well be a commuter without luggage - I never said you couldn't be; you may well ride fast on your commute - and why not?; but if you are pedalling 80+ rpm then you are taking the exercise aspect of your journey quite seriously, and not simply getting from A to B.

And....yes. If you are going quicker than I am capable of keeping up with (and hence I am unable to share 'front' duties) then you are taking your riding quite seriously!

I ride in from Chorlton too but never see anything. Usually complete carnage behind me though so someone must be causing problems... 😉

"but if you are pedalling 80+ rpm then you are taking the exercise aspect of your journey quite seriously, and not simply getting from A to B."

didnt realise cadence indicated how seriously your taking your riding.

i must be MR serious .... i rarely do below 90RPM on any bike anywhere unless im riding my unicycle

[i]i rarely do below 90RPM on any bike anywhere[/i]

How do you know this?

didnt realise cadence indicated how seriously your taking your riding.

That was my point, I was only joking though mickolas, don't worry!

maybe they think it does...how many times on here and elsewhere do people talk of worrying about holding up cars and possibly facing punishment passes?

just an idea, I'm sure there are wannabe racers too, thing is you do enough commuting and you normally get a feel for light timing so try to conserve momentum not stop/start.

That's not what I'm talking about, I mean people who are sprinting from light to light, taking risks, desperate to get going as quickly as possible. If you ride up CS7 there are enough starts that they make themselves quite apparent!

How do you know this?

I'll generally spin at about 90rpm unless I'm out with the family, and on my commute it's more like 95. It's not a racy, want to get fit/go fast thing it's just the cadence I'm accustomed to riding at. It's also better (IMO) for longer rides as it means my legs tire less.

IME most people who... insist on sprinting off from every set of lights, are usually riding all of 5 miles.

6 miles here as well! Not far enough to really count, so I have to put in some effort at the lights to get the heart rate up.

I'm on a hub geared bike with 3 gears, so I tend to have a pretty fixed comfortable speed. If you're going faster than that, you'll overtake me, and if you're going slower then I'll overtake you, simple as. Every so often I come across someone who travels at exactly the same speed as me, at which point some drafting (by either party) may take place.

I wouldn't give it up for the world, so much better than taking the tube. And I ride every day, all year round, regardless of weather 🙂

I only really race people up the long hills, or on longer stretches.
I don't draft anyone as it's pointless (I generally regard commuting as training) but don't mind too much if people sit on my wheel, unless they do it up a hill and then sprint over the crest as if they've won. if they do that I'll either ask them to pass me, speed up if I'm feeling good or slow down and then just ride level with them.
I've learned not to take commuting too seriously, or care what anyone else does as long as it doesn't endanger me.

Would love to see some serious study on the psychology of sharing the road(or not).

I used to react on commutes, don't now probably partly due to age(after a while theres no surprises) , partly due to more road riding at a proper pace when not commuting.

DezB - cadence meter and garmin.

Though in my experience, motorists jumping red lights on pedestrian crossings are a daily occurrence.

Both at the start and end of the sequence. It now seems to be standard practice to treat flashing amber as green, even if there are still people crossing. I regularly see motorists rev their engines and start moving to stop people crossing the second part of a crossing with a central island.

We probably ride a very similar route then... given your comment above I'll assume you're one of the few that actually stop at the lights, in which case I salute you, we are a rare breed round here....

oh yes, every single one. i've given up saying anything to those that do jump them though- half of the time, i catch up to them easily once the light changes without really trying (i'm not capable of it- fat bloke on a singlespeed roadrat!) but a couple of weeks ago i pointed out (politely) to a woman on a pashley that the pedestrian light changing to green at the whalley pub crossroads means we still can't set off, and got "**** off and mind your own business you fat ****" in return...

they are not insured

do you wave your home insurance certificate at riders you draft ?

effectively i see the club top as someone saying A.fair chance i can ride a bike and B im insured.

Im happy enough with my method - is it someone from the club - nope .... stick on a bit more speed till they are far enough away that they cant damage me or bike.

Not that I do it much anyway, but I wouldn't consider drafting someone I didn't know. If you're properly drafting, ie inches off the back wheel, and you don't know how the guy in front rides you must be bonkers.

"trail_rat - Member

DezB - cadence meter and garmin"

thank you. I think this makes my point nicely. 😉

i run with a garmin too .... hardly makes me serious.... i still run slow 😉 im just a stat geek 😀

😀

I have to say riding my fixie is the perfect cure for the competitive commuter instinct, I have 14 miles to cover each way, my bike has 1 gear and I need function when I get to work, therefore of course the more serious "Contenders" can shoot on past on their composite ego waggons...
My real respect is reserved for one fella who has about the same distance to commute as me I think, but he does it on a steel tourer with double panniers fitted, at a pretty respectable pace. He let me draft him once for about 10 miles and I managed to keep up but he was far fitter than me, and I think my stint on the front was a bit too slow for his liking, he finally dropped me a couple of miles from home.

I sometimes commute on my ego wagon but mainly I've been using an old heavy ladies hybrid.