1) Nu-Fred blows by me in bike lane; 2) Nu-Fred comes into corner too hot; 3) Nu-Fred crashes self in crosswalk. Must be Bike Month.

Tis the season for watching out for more riders now that winter has taken a break.

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Permalink Reply by Robert Beck on May 16, 2011 at 10:55pm

All those Nu-Fred's riding their bicycle with no brakes!!!

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Permalink Reply by Far'arned Retrogrumpalunkus #63 on May 17, 2011 at 8:05am

So you saw him coming, knew there wasn't enough room to cross with your stroller and didn't want to wait for there to be room so you just pushed your stroller into his path/trajectory and just expected him to stop for you and be happy about it?

Sarah Urbansky said:

The LFP is just a madhouse in the summer. I'm a year round biker and always (perhaps naively) try to give bikers the benefit of the doubt, but the other day I got cursed out by a biker for not jumping out of his way fast enough while crossing the path WITH A BABY STROLLER!! This is after he saw me make a start at it, with plenty of time to stop his bike. I just think bikers should expect to go slow and make stops while riding the path, particularly through the loop area. If I want to go for a good ride, I either head south or avoid the LFP entirely. It seems like it should be common sense that the path was not built exclusively for bikers, as it is only 4 feet wide over by Navy Pier. GrrR!

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Permalink Reply by Doug Haynes on May 18, 2011 at 8:24am

Yeah, I don't get this; why did you 'pull out' in front of him in a manner that required him to stop? Would you have pushed your stroller into an intersection on a road and expected the motorists to stop?

James Baum said:

So you saw him coming, knew there wasn't enough room to cross with your stroller and didn't want to wait for there to be room so you just pushed your stroller into his path/trajectory and just expected him to stop for you and be happy about it?

Sarah Urbansky said:

The LFP is just a madhouse in the summer. I'm a year round biker and always (perhaps naively) try to give bikers the benefit of the doubt, but the other day I got cursed out by a biker for not jumping out of his way fast enough while crossing the path WITH A BABY STROLLER!! This is after he saw me make a start at it, with plenty of time to stop his bike. I just think bikers should expect to go slow and make stops while riding the path, particularly through the loop area. If I want to go for a good ride, I either head south or avoid the LFP entirely. It seems like it should be common sense that the path was not built exclusively for bikers, as it is only 4 feet wide over by Navy Pier. GrrR!

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Permalink Reply by Far'arned Retrogrumpalunkus #63 on May 18, 2011 at 9:00am

At least in an intersection there is a crosswalk and the peds have a reasonable assumption that they have the right of way by law (if not the laws of physics.)

Crossing a busy path at an area where it is not a marked crossing and just expecting people to STOP or slam on the brakes so you an cross at your convenience (rather than that of the other path users who are INconvenienced by such rude behavior) is something entirely different.

A more adroit comparison would be pushing the stroller out into traffic in the middle of the block and expecting bikes and cars to stop for them. People/peds do this ALL the time in the bike lane. Like us bikes have super-duper brakes and all the time/energy in the world to get back up to speed. This type of rude behavior towards bikes makes commuting that much longer and more difficult as far as how hard we must work to get where we are going that it serves to discourage people from bike commuting.

I admit that the LFP is a multi-use path and makes a poor route for commuting because of this. Too many peds with strollers and people walking dogs cluelessly or just wandering about on the path without a care for who's way they get in. I strongly support an initiative to make a "bike highway" that is apart from the multi-use path on the lakefront in some, if not all, areas along the lakeshore.

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Permalink Reply by Dr. Doom on May 18, 2011 at 9:24am

Having pushed a stroller myself, I would bet a significant sum that Sarah waited until the way was clear for a block or so in either direction, crossed, and was startled to find that the great Fausto Coppi of Chicago couldn't be bothered to slow down his epic 18 mph pace.

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Permalink Reply by Mike Zumwalt on May 18, 2011 at 10:47am

They used to be weekend warriors I thought. A guy who drives from the suburbs to ride his bike wears a neon yellow suit with a number or sponsor on the back and rides at full capacity the length of the bike trail screaming "ON YOUR LEFT,YOUR LEFT,LEFT!!! then slamming on the brakes and getting extremely angry because someone else is on the path.

The people who buy into messenger culture are just posers.
Jennifer said:

I thought a Nu-Fred was a person who buys into bike messenger culture the way a regular Fred buys into bike racing culture. But money can't buy skill or experience, only parts and accessories.

S said:

A Fred is a term used by road cyclists for those cyclists that have more money than brains or fitness. Basically think of the guys you see on the LFP on 7k bikes and decked out in the full kit of some pro team or ralpha or something similar. Usually it's someone that just started cycling seriously as well. A Nu-Fred is a recently minted Fred.

Fred Noinaj said:
Okay, first off, what is a "Nu-Fred"?

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Permalink Reply by in it to win it 8.0 mi on May 25, 2011 at 8:16am

I'm coining a new term for the lycra speedy groups on the LFP.

Lakefront Lance...

Mike Zumwalt said:

They used to be weekend warriors I thought. A guy who drives from the suburbs to ride his bike wears a neon yellow suit with a number or sponsor on the back and rides at full capacity the length of the bike trail screaming "ON YOUR LEFT,YOUR LEFT,LEFT!!! then slamming on the brakes and getting extremely angry because someone else is on the path.

The people who buy into messenger culture are just posers.
Jennifer said:

I thought a Nu-Fred was a person who buys into bike messenger culture the way a regular Fred buys into bike racing culture. But money can't buy skill or experience, only parts and accessories.

S said:
A Fred is a term used by road cyclists for those cyclists that have more money than brains or fitness. Basically think of the guys you see on the LFP on 7k bikes and decked out in the full kit of some pro team or ralpha or something similar. Usually it's someone that just started cycling seriously as well. A Nu-Fred is a recently minted Fred.

Fred Noinaj said:
Okay, first off, what is a "Nu-Fred"?

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Permalink Reply by Finch on May 25, 2011 at 9:46am

I have always called them Lancies.

in it to win it said:

I'm coining a new term for the lycra speedy groups on the LFP.

Lakefront Lance...

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Permalink Reply by S on May 25, 2011 at 11:07am

I've used the term pathletes since the majority of them don't actually compete in any cycling competitions despite the fact that they may have every single pro team kit out there and team edition bikes that don't make sense for anyone except for racers.

Finch said:

I have always called them Lancies.

in it to win it said:

I'm coining a new term for the lycra speedy groups on the LFP.

Lakefront Lance...

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Permalink Reply by Far'arned Retrogrumpalunkus #63 on May 25, 2011 at 11:21am

Anything worth doing at all is prone to those doing it in excess. And those that do it tend to clump into groups with their own social structure and dress code. It's the same with bicycles as it is with other activities like motorcycling. People get more into the fashion of the thing than actually doing the thing itself.

I know of a couple that went to a motorcycle ride sponsored by the Honda Riders Club of America and were not allowed to ride with the group because their riding suits and helmets were not matching and didn't fit in with the image they were trying to present on the road! I'm sure that this same thing goes on for Harley riders if they were to show up at one of their silly toy runs without enough tattoos or ripped-sleeve T-shirts.

I guess Nu-Fred social gatherings are the same. If you show up for a training ride with a race team jersey from last-years season and the wrong sponsor logos you might get kicked out of the group and would have to bomb down LFP alone.

S said:

I've used the term pathletes since the majority of them don't actually compete in any cycling competitions despite the fact that they may have every single pro team kit out there and team edition bikes that don't make sense for anyone except for racers.

Finch said:

I have always called them Lancies.

in it to win it said:

I'm coining a new term for the lycra speedy groups on the LFP.

Lakefront Lance...