Pet Peeves Among the Pedals

Not about pedestrians, not about motorists, just about our fellow cyclists. We are all so different that stuff is bound to frustrate when we approach riding in such different ways, explain to those we think are less experienced, etc. Ok, tell us your stories, tell us your pet peeves, we're all friends!

I'll start out with a pet peeve of mine... The cyclist that blows past me so close to me I felt the wind of their SWOOOOOSH as they fly past me but they say nothing to warn me. We're in tight quarters in the bike lane. Buy a bell and/or tell me you are there!

p.s. sure, your pet peeve may be the forum post that's been done before but I kinda feel like this tucks into other topics so this time I'm giving the pedal pet peeve front and center.

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by BikeScnhook on June 30, 2017 at 9:21am

...which is exactly why I don't say "on your [place side here]." Because when I first (as a pedestrian) heard someone say that, I had no idea that 1) I was the one being addressed, and 2) what that would have even meant. "What's on my left?? Should I look???"

I turn it into somewhat of a sentence: "Gonna pass you on the left!" (Or, as I said to one poor lady, "Gonna pass you on the, uhhh....uhhh....LEFT!! Yeah! left!" I had a rough day at work and was suffering severe cerebral flatulence. Felt like I needed to go home and watch Sesame Street.) In fact, runners are taught to say "Passing you on the left." (At least so says my wife who joined a running thingy at Fleet Feet last year.)

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Permalink Reply by Irvin Steinert on July 2, 2017 at 7:19am

well said.

I just use a small "single ding" bell and a large amount of patience(and live in the FW suburbs)

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Permalink Reply by Elsbeth Cool on June 30, 2017 at 9:28am

Ok, I'll bite ...

I ride an electric assist cargo bike. I don't own a car, and ride with my kids year round. We do all of our commuting, "carpool", grocery shopping, errands, etc. with our cargo bike. It is fondly referred to as the "bike minivan".

But quite regularly, I have people (ahem, spandex-clad dudes) pull up next to me at a stoplight and inform me I'm "cheating". This often happens when I'm on my way home from Costco, with two kids and a week's worth of groceries piled in the bike. Cheating?! Cheating?!? This coming from dudes who barely have room to carry a granola bar & waterbottle on their bikes.

I like to offer to trade bikes with them, and that they're welcome to turn off the assist and pedal my kids & groceries home, just to show how tough they are ... no one has taken me up on it yet.

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Permalink Reply by Alex on June 30, 2017 at 1:06pm

that thing is awesome and i hope you continue to not take any shit from them!!! you choosing to buy that thing makes you a pioneer of bike-related progress in this city and country!

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Permalink Reply by Yasmeen on June 30, 2017 at 1:12pm

When I see your cargo bike loaded up, I can't help but think HARD CORE. I agree with Alex. I love what you do. What you are doing is pretty great.

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Permalink Reply by Jeremy Bloyd-Peshkin on June 30, 2017 at 2:19pm

I ride a cargo bike without an e-assist. Often times I find myself rather jealous of yours. :)

I also get yelled at by people who assume that all bikes that aren't normal-looking must be e-assisted and therefore shouldn't be in the bike lane. Or that I shouldn't be in the bike lane because [some other reason pertaining to my cargo bike].

Cargo bikes are the best. People suck.

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Permalink Reply by Waymond Smith on June 30, 2017 at 9:59am

I yell and play "chicken" while using one hand to indicate for them to move over.

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Permalink Reply by Shawn Evans on June 30, 2017 at 10:18pm

Pet peeves? So many. Where to start?

All the way from the minor (very minor) such as plastic bags on bike seats. Why? What purpose does it serve?

To much more annoying behaviors, such as why can't people lock up their bike properly? For instance, they installed new wavy bike racks (I think they're called serpentine) on Broadway to replace the old double racks because you can lock more bikes to them. But then people lock their bike sideways, ruining it. WTF! Are they that stupid?! You'd think with all of the Divvy bike stations out there with bikes locked forwards that they might get the idea there are other bike locking positions, but I guess not. The stupidity continues on the Metra trains. Too many can't figure out how to lock bikes there, either. Once I saw a guy sitting on the seat in the bike/handicapped area holding his bike in front of him. How many other people were able to lock up their bike there? Zero. A$$h0le.

When it comes to passing, it's obvious you have to pass at a safe distance and so on. But there are other situations to keep in mind. For instance, I have a mirror. I can see you coming up on me from a few blocks away. There's no need to say 'on your left'. It's a peeve of mine because you're assuming I'm so stupid I couldn't see you coming. And now I have a new pet peeve regarding passing. It happened twice in the past week on the 606. I'm passing some kid, so I'm carefully going around them, then some doofus thinks that's a good time to pass me. So they're on the extreme left, next to the blue strip on the other side. Really, what the hell. You couldn't wait a few seconds while I safely passed the child till you could go around? We each need to get to the right side of the path. Why complicate the situation, the both of us competing for the same space of the path, with bikes coming up from behind, other bikes not too far in the distance coming at us? How stupid can you be? The kid is usually with a family member(s) to their right, so this odd maneuver fills up the path with all the traffic going in the same direction. Senseless.

And a special mention pet peeve to the people in this post who mention the h word and insult anyone who thinks differently. Ordinarily I'd say something like 'check your facts', but no one ever listens. EVER. So don't even bring it up.

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Permalink Reply by Sarah D. on July 1, 2017 at 12:32am

Why do the plastic bags bug you so?

Reasons for plastic bags I've known about: covering an expensive saddle to protect from/look ugly to deter theft, covering a fabric saddle to protect from rain, covering any saddle to protect from rain,
covering a falling-apart but otherwise comfortable saddle so it will last longer.

What's the H word??