Shoaling...can someone explain the sociology?

I've been "shoaled" and I just don't understand it. I've never done it myself. Is there anyone in our midst that is a shoaler or shoaler reformed?

I believe the definition is: passing the faster rider (that just past you) at the light while he/she is politely set back from the intersection and waiting for the light only to be passed by the faster rider once more after the light changes. (please correct me if I'm wrong)

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Permalink Reply by Gage B. on October 20, 2016 at 8:08am

The real reason I shoal groups of cyclists is that often I encounter less experienced cyclists in these groups. i.e. cyclists not riding in a straight line, not looking over their shoulders when deciding to move left. For me it's about safety, I'm not in their way, and they aren't in mine. I could wait and pass them, but what if that cyclist also decides to pass someone at the same time, crashes into me, which then both of us could get hit by a car.

This isn't about superiority or intending to be condescending. It's about being efficient about both speed and safety. 

Permalink Reply by David P. on October 20, 2016 at 10:11am

Irvin, I like this word and your definition!

Permalink Reply by ChicagoCyclist on October 28, 2016 at 11:24am

Ha! That's good!  Yeah, bicyclists can communicate to each other (by voice, by gesture) much more / more easily / more effectively than drivers can in their isolating, sensory-limiting metal boxes.  Also, bicyclists, being closer to being an actual "person" when cycling (than a driver in a car) are more diverse / complex in the 'signals' or 'signs' that they send out to each other (again, more than those invisible drivers behind their tinted glass windows). Finally, cyclists, who are engaged in a physical activity, vary in their abilities and skills more than drivers do (who do, however, vary more in their stupidity/intelligence in such matters as texting/emailing while driving, speeding, forgetting to signal a turn, buzzing close by cyclists, etc.)  Roads were, until recently, designed for cars alone.  Lanes channelize cars for a reason.  Ha, maybe we need to flip the car-bike equation and build roads that have four bike lanes in each direction and then shove the cars over into one narrow lane on the right!  Preferably on the other side of barrier so they couldn't shoal to get up in front of us cyclists (and each other)!

Permalink Reply by ChicagoCyclist on October 28, 2016 at 12:39pm

Ha! That's hilarious!  Yeah, bicyclists can communicate to each other (by voice, by gesture) much more / more easily / more effectively than drivers can in their isolating, sensory-limiting metal boxes.  Also, bicyclists, being closer to being an actual "person" when cycling (than a driver in a car) are more diverse / complex in the 'signals' or 'signs' that they send out to each other (again, more than those invisible drivers behind their tinted glass windows). Finally, cyclists, who are engaged in a physical activity, vary in their abilities and skills more than drivers do (who do, however, vary more in their stupidity/intelligence in such matters as texting/emailing while driving, speeding, forgetting to signal a turn, buzzing close by cyclists, etc.)  Roads were, until recently, designed for cars alone.  Lanes channelize cars for a reason.  Ha, maybe we need to flip the car-bike equation and build roads that have four bike lanes in each direction and then shove the cars over into one narrow lane on the right!  Preferably on the other side of barrier so they couldn't shoal to get up in front of us cyclists (and each other)!

Permalink Reply by ChicagoCyclist on October 28, 2016 at 12:42pm

Ha! That's hilarious!  Yeah, bicyclists can communicate to each other (by voice, by gesture) much more / more easily / more effectively than drivers can in their isolating, sensory-limiting metal boxes.  Also, bicyclists, being closer to being an actual "person" when cycling (than a driver in a car) are more diverse / complex in the 'signals' or 'signs' that they send out to each other (again, more than those invisible drivers behind their tinted glass windows). Finally, cyclists, who are engaged in a physical activity, vary in their abilities and skills more than drivers do (who do, however, vary more in their stupidity/intelligence in such matters as texting/emailing while driving, speeding, forgetting to signal a turn, buzzing close by cyclists, etc.)  Roads were, until recently, designed for cars alone.  Lanes channelize cars for a reason.  Ha, maybe we need to flip the car-bike equation and build roads that have four bike lanes in each direction and then shove the cars over into one narrow lane on the right!  Preferably on the other side of barrier so they couldn't shoal to get up in front of us cyclists (and each other)!

Permalink Reply by Sarah D. on October 29, 2016 at 5:56am

Thank you!

(I keep shaking my head, thinking no wonder drivers are so frustrated with the unpredictability of cyclist behavior and our "not following the rules of the road" - cyclists are, on this thread, justifying it!)

Permalink Reply by Irvin Steinert on October 20, 2016 at 7:29am

I suppose there is some satisfaction when one is driving and gets passed by an aggressive driver and one minute later you pull up behind them at the light (kind of a ha-ha moment.  It is certainly different to squeeze in front of them aggressively, only to go slowly thereafter, would probably induce road rage. Could shoaling (real shoaling, not simply passing an obviously slower rider at the light) be something similar like anger or jealousy at a faster rider?

Permalink Reply by Rich Scott on October 20, 2016 at 10:44am

Most importantly, don't shoal a faster vehicle, especially passing them on the right. This is where many cyclists get into the right hook situation. If a car has passed me and I catch them at the light I stay in line behind them. I never have understood the whole "bike box" idea. It seems completely stupid to put a bunch of slow traffic in front of faster traffic. 

Permalink Reply by ChicagoCyclist on October 20, 2016 at 1:11pm

Bicyclists are generally significantly faster than cars "off the line" -- i.e. at a traffic signal (especially if they are up in front where they can see the yellow, see the cars stopping, and get going).  It is also safer to be more visible and to be able to see better at an intersection -- and to "clear" the intersection area as quickly and safely as possible.  In an urban area like Chicago, many cyclists are not only faster "off the line" that automobiles, they are faster along an entire route.  That is why bike boxes work and why studies indicate that they reduce crashes (including, it may be, "right hooks"). Bike boxes may or may not reduce right hooks, but they certainly do not increase them. Right hooks are due mostly to -- or a combination of -- careless drivers, who don't look in their rear view mirrors often enough and/or to cyclists who are riding in an over aggressive or 'spaced out' mode.  Slowing traffic -- especially the speed of turning vehicles -- in urban areas can help reduce right hooks.

Permalink Reply by ChicagoCyclist on October 20, 2016 at 1:01pm

'Shoaling,' as I understand, has to do with the fact that (since the number of utilitarian cyclists seems of late -- last 5 or so years -- to have significantly increased throughout much of Chicago -- at least along certain routes), these ever-more-numerous cyclists tend to and are facing the consequences of gathering/bunching up, (mostly) at signalized intersections.  The term 'shoal' comes from the world of fish (as in a "shoal of fish").  The 'problem' stems from the fact that there is no dedicated space for these cyclists. The physical design of the roadways, the intersections, and the rules of the road that govern their use, predate the phenomenon of this many cyclists.  There simply is not sufficient, comfortable, convenient "room" or "space" for these cyclists, nor is there an 'accepted' way or manner for these cyclists to queue, behave, arrange themselves at such locations.  The problem to be overcome is one of safety.  "Bad" behavior in these locations (intersections) and situations (lots of cyclists and cars) is very dangerous for everyone there (well, for all the cyclists and pedestrians anyway).  As someone else said below, it is essentially a matter of "a lack of awareness of others and/or just plain ignorance."

What is, in this situation (lots of cyclists / street intersections) bad (i.e. dangerous) behavior? Well, here is the classic example: a rather slow moving cyclist is passed in one block by a faster cyclist. At the next signalized intersection, the faster cyclist arrives first and is waiting (maybe even using a "track stand") at a red light. The slower cyclist tootles up and goes up in front of the person who just passed them at a clip back down the block.  The slower cyclist is, thereby, making it dangerous for everyone by introducing (needlessly and clue-lessly) more "conflict zones" or opportunities for conflicts that could result in a crash between cyclists, cyclists and cars, cars, cyclists and pedestrians or cars and pedestrians.  Intersections are very dangerous places for everyone but especially for pedestrians and cyclists. The slower cyclist should stop and wait behind the faster cyclist, knowing that the faster cyclist will go on ahead at a faster pace. Very often the equipment, attitude, carriage, and/or riding style of a cyclist will indicate if they are (likely to be) a faster or a slower cyclist. When it is unknown or uncertain or unguessable, only one intersection or length of block should be needed to indicate and clarify the "order" (i.e. relative speediness) of the cyclists.  This of course gets complicated when lots of cyclists are out there and approaching or waiting at a red light. And the complications are multiplied by the fact that some cyclists rightly feel/know that it is safer to be up in front of the (stopped) cars, where you can more fully see and be seen.  Up there in front, you can see what's going on at the intersection, what the traffic control devices are, what the geometry is, where the peds are, etc. and you can BE SEEN much better by all the cars idling at/near or moving through the intersection.  Other cyclists stop where there is a pole to grab or a convenient foot rest. However, these are usually signs (often to be read with other 'indicators') of more experienced, faster cyclists.

So, the basic protocol or 'good' behavior (i.e. not 'shaoling' in a way that is dangerous) should be this: slower cyclists should stay behind faster cyclists, so that when the light turns green, the basic order (or most of that order) will stay the same and fewer passings/conflict points/maneuvers/surprises will take place.  Sometimes, a block of riding and a traffic signal -- or maybe even two -- will be required to "establish" the correct order.  Newly arrived cyclists along a route will need to be "assessed" by their look, equipment, and riding style and/or tested by a block or two / intersection or two of riding to adjust and establish the correct "order."  When in doubt about a cyclist's relative speed, err on the side of caution -- stay behind until you have had a chance to assess/compare your speed and theirs, and you know, "Ok, I'm faster." Then, you should pass safely in a safe location and manner (away from the intersection). Hopefully, the cyclist you just passed will realize that you are faster, and that at the next intersection, he or she should stay behind you (unless, say, you stop WAY back from the intersection or are there, talking on your phone).  The basic idea is to behave in a manner that reduces conflict points and actions that could result in a crash.

Bike boxes -- http://nacto.org/publication/urban-bikeway-design-guide/intersectio... -- may help alleviate 'shoaling', or rather bad behavior when lots of cyclists are gathered at an intersection, but they cannot "solve" it. "Solving" it depends upon cyclist education, alertness, defensive riding habits, care and respect, awareness of what's going on around them, and of what actions or maneuvers might increase the risk of a crash.

Permalink Reply by Paul Lazzaro on October 20, 2016 at 2:29pm

In Amsterdam - which in my experience is pretty civilized for cyclists - bicycle riders go pretty slowly together.  It's not dog-eat-dog as in the US.  What's the hurry?   Can't we all enjoy the ride and be courteous to each other?

Permalink Reply by Jeremy Bloyd-Peshkin on October 21, 2016 at 3:02am

I don't know that it's so much dog-eat-dog, but just that people enjoy moving at different speeds. Some people might like to just relax and ride into work as a relaxing start to the day. I like to ride hard and fast because I'm going to be sitting indoors all day and I hate that. Some people are taking a relaxing ride into work and they're just really fast and fly by everyone else. Don't get me wrong, some competition does develop on occasion. To bring BikeSnob back into things, it would be called Cat6 racing. Here's an entertaining read on the matter.

But yeah, some people just like to ride at different speeds. It's not a big deal as long as we're all courteous about it.

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