Ignorant cyclists

Cycle-touring, Expeditions, Adventures, Major cycle routes NOT LeJoG (see other special board)
frank
Posts: 86
Joined: 8 Jan 2007, 12:43pm

Ignorant cyclists

Post by frank »

I have rode me bike since i could walk . I have travelled all over europe in the last 40 years. I was riding round the yorkshire moors the other sunday on my usual 70 mile weekly ride. I must have met at least 100 cyclists . I acknowleged everyone of them with a good morning or a nod of the head . I got a response off around 20% of them. The older cyclists (to which group i belong ) all acknowleged me. The younger generation are either to ignorant or (i wish) to involved in there training .I spend a lot of time in france where you are invited (ordered to join the group).What chance have we got as a nation if we are to proud to acknowlegge our fellow cyclists.
Lets lend each other our slipstream ,lets help each other by the side of the road, lets make sure the best go forward. Lets make sure we support the best cyclists and make them our hero.s.

TO START WITH CAN WE SAY HELLO TO EACH OTHER
bikepacker
Posts: 2273
Joined: 5 Jan 2007, 7:08pm
Location: Worcestershire
Contact:

Post by bikepacker »

Hello Frank

Sorry I couldn't resist that. I echo your sentiments entirely. Lets acknowledge and help each other whenever we can.
There is your way. There is my way. But there is no "the way".
reohn2

Post by reohn2 »

Frank
It isn't just cyclists,if you're out for a walk in the country I find an increasing number of people do tend to ignore others and it tends to be the younger generation,perhaps its because they were told not to speak to strangers when they were young :? or mabye they're just ignorant.
I find it quite bizzare that people don't recognise other human beings,it kind of brings home what kind of society we've become,quite sad I think.
Tommo
Posts: 111
Joined: 27 Feb 2007, 12:01pm

Post by Tommo »

Damn those youngsters!

I spent 5 weeks travelling around the country acknowledging everyone on a bike and well over half of them responded. On returning home I cycled 20 miles through Oxfordshire in the evening and had given up saying hello by the end as nobody appeared to see me at all. This is more likely to be apparent on summer evenings of course where the summer cyclists come out, dusting off their bikes and wobbling up the road at 5mph to make the most of the weather. Outside of the great British summer it tends to be the hardcore cyclists on the road who tend to play the game, in the summertime there are hundreds of people on the road who suddenly realise they are fatter than they should be and are spending too much time trying to keep the bike upright to acknowledge other cyclists.
grw
Posts: 195
Joined: 20 Jan 2007, 2:30pm
Location: Melbourne

Post by grw »

Wait a sec - I'll just pop down pit and get me rose tinted glasses on.
Joking aside, I used to notice that when I was mainly mountain biking as a teenager, it was the 'roadies' who would never acknowledge a wave or nod of the head. Age seemed irrelevant. Now, I'm mainly stuck to the roads, I have to say that it seems fairly evenly split between those who acknowledge you and those who don't. Perhaps it's because I do a lot of cycling in London, and there seem to be a lot more cyclists about recently, whether lapping Richmond Park or commuting to work. If you wave at every other cyclist, you'll constantly have no hands on your bars. Even when I go home to Lancashire, there's as many who will be so focussed on what they're doing and where they're going to be too busy to say hello as there are people who'll give you a wave. On a ride recently round the Trough of Bowland I passed a group of 3 (significantly older than me- by about 40years) who seemed distinctly put out that I'd passed them and ignored me completely - the next pair that I passed, a younger couple out for a jaunt on a couple of bog standard Halford hybrids seemed genuinely pleased to see me and had a chat as I passed.
I'm of the opinion that if someone doesn't feel the need to share some camaraderie, then its their loss rather than yours. Just a thought - didn't think it's age related.
G
montmorency
Posts: 271
Joined: 31 May 2007, 11:00pm
Location: Oxfordshire

Post by montmorency »

Well, with walking, for example, it's when you're out in the relatively lonely unpopulated places that you'll be inclined to speak, and reply.

The more crowded it is, the less relevant it seems to be.


Perhaps it's the same on the roads.

Sometimes I will have to ignore passing cyclists, because there are cars whizzing in between us.


On a slightly different subject, I have occasionally been mildly taken to task by friends or work colleagues who passed me in a car, either overtaking me or going in the opposite direction, and I failed to recognise them or acknowledge them.

Well, there are all sorts of reasons why you might fail to recognise them, or not want to take your hands off the bars at that particular fraction of a second when it might be relevant....you can all think of the various reasons (in my case, for example, I almost never know what cars my colleagues, and very often my friends, drive) why, but it's very hard to explain convincingly to a non-cycling driver. They just think you are being an ignorant git. I don't think I am one, and this hurts! :-)



Regards,
M.
User avatar
Mick F
Spambuster
Posts: 56359
Joined: 7 Jan 2007, 11:24am
Location: Tamar Valley, Cornwall

Post by Mick F »

Me, cycling along.
I see Frank coming towards me.
"Hello Frank!", I shout.
"Hello Mick!", shouts Frank in return.

GREAT.

I always nod and wave or say 'Hi' to other cyclists. Whether or not I get a reply doesn't really matter I suppose, but it's nice when I do. At least I've made the effort, and perhaps my effort will rub off.



R2, any news on the grandchild front?
Mick F. Cornwall
AlbionLass

Post by AlbionLass »

Mick F wrote:I always nod and wave or say 'Hi' to other cyclists. Whether or not I get a reply doesn't really matter I suppose, but it's nice when I do. At least I've made the effort, and perhaps my effort will rub off.

This is also my attitude to the whole thing.
manybikes
Posts: 302
Joined: 9 Apr 2007, 10:21am

Post by manybikes »

Behaviour breeds behaviour. The more we call out in a friendly way the more we can positively influence others to respond positively. This applies also to horse riders and pedestrians, some of whom appear genuinely frightened of us on approach.
To all those who call out - thanks.
User avatar
Si
Moderator
Posts: 15191
Joined: 5 Jan 2007, 7:37pm

Post by Si »

It's nice to recieve a cheery "hello" in reply to your greeting. But to brand someone "ignorant" just because they choose not to respond to you is a little OTT IMHO. If someone doesn't respond to me then it's no loss to me and I just continue happily with my ride and forget about it.

Let's face it, when the majority of the population leave their cars behind and turn to the bike instead, saying hello will be a thing of the past 'cos there will just be too many people for you to say it to everyone :wink:
rower40
Posts: 385
Joined: 12 Jan 2007, 5:44pm
Location: Somewhere on the NCN

Post by rower40 »

Hello Everybody!

It was raining so hard this evening that my trip to the tip, towing my trailer wi' bits in, was very wet-making. I attempted to give a wan smile to any other cyclists I met on the path, but they must have thought

thoughts in other cyclist's head wrote:NUTTER. What's he grinning stupidly at? And why's he got all that junk in a trailer? I better ignore him before he starts a conversation.


Though I did get a response when I said "hello" to someone I knew coming the other way. When she got over the shock of seeing me on a conventional bike. Perhaps she'll remember that she said she'd be giving me a call sometime...
"Little Green Men Are Everywhere... ...But Mostly On Traffic Lights."
jean
Posts: 49
Joined: 10 Jan 2007, 8:00pm
Location: Belgium

Post by jean »

I live in Belgium and in my country we do nod when we meet other cyclists. I have just done a little trip in France of about 760 km and people there nod as well, but last Sunday I went in Holland for a Sunday ride. People there do not nod and I can understand them because there are so many people riding their bikes that you would end up nodding all the time. You meet another cyclist every 20 seconds or so.....
User avatar
DaveP
Posts: 3333
Joined: 9 Mar 2007, 4:20pm
Location: W Mids

Post by DaveP »

I dont think its ignorance, I think that as a society we're increasingly ill at ease with strangers. When it comes to exchanging greetings there are two awful possibilities :lol: You could get drawn into a really tedious conversation with an Olympic class bore, or you could say something really really stupid and embarass yourself. And, of course, there's the possibility that the other party might be trying to recapture the feelings of splendid isolation that earlier generations knew...

I cant always free a hand, and sometimes I'm gasping too hard to speak, but If at all possible I try to make eye contact and smile :D Its just that sometimes its concealed bywhat I believe is termed a rictus!
ransos
Posts: 247
Joined: 28 Jan 2007, 12:29pm

Post by ransos »

I also think it's location dependent - where I grew up in Lancashire does seem more friendly - even walkers would say hi when I was out on my MTB. In Bristol it's very different - mtbers, roadies & walkers all tend to ignore each other. Maybe it's a city thing.
montmorency
Posts: 271
Joined: 31 May 2007, 11:00pm
Location: Oxfordshire

Post by montmorency »

DaveP wrote:I cant always free a hand, and sometimes I'm gasping too hard to speak, but If at all possible I try to make eye contact and smile :D Its just that sometimes its concealed bywhat I believe is termed a rictus!



Is that a posh latin name for a saddle-sore....?
Post Reply