with apologies to Lars and Co...
riding into work, spot a guy i see quite regularly on my commute. He's on a slicked up mtb and perpetually seems to be wearin the same kit (or maybe that's my stereotype gland overheating
)
Anyway's he a fairly strongish rider and he/me often tail each other on the way in-out. I cant say we ride together cos he's obviously not used or experienced with riding WITH anyone else, as he perpetually half-wheels, does fliers at the lights and basically treats it like some dodgem derby race!
This morning we were comin in together and everytime he tired I'd go to the front. He would take it as some challenge to his peckerdom and zipp past again and wonde rwhy he kept tiring, no doubt
Obviously still in race mode as we get ito the CBD, he starts running red lights, footpathing and brushing way-too-close to other riders.
Oh well, let him go, me thinks.
However ironically enuff me stopping at red lights and riding more realisitcally i keep rolling up next to him. No doubt he was getting wound up by his own inability to win this mythical 'race' he was running in his head. hehe. Kind like watching drivers fly off at lights only to stand stationery longer at the next ones. sheeeesh.
Cross flinders St and he jumps on my wheel. big open road so im windin up and i can see his shadow halfwheelin me again, as Im a block from the gym i shower at i ease up, he flies past and does that nuff-nuff drver move/assyumption where the brain tells them that if they cant see you out of their peripheral vision they must be WELL past you and so he swerves from the left-half of the rightlane across me and in front of the parked bus we passed! I hit the brakes and shorten the lives of my previously square-topped tyre a tad more!!!
Calm, dutchie, he didnt mean it!
Pull up next to him and say "Do you realise you almost killed me back there?"
"I was well past you" he assumes
"No, i had to brake so you didnt knock me off!"
OK, i can see the perspective but the following is gold!...
"Oh yeah, well we were 'duelling' all the way in!"
OK, i knew he was in race mode and having some fun, but:
How about an apology?
How about coming to the realisation that you werent 'well in front'?
and just to add his seal of quality to the scenario, the lights turn green, i weel up onto the footpath to head into gym and he rides off and yells out,
"Loser!".
Im stunned. shortly followed by anger, and the fog is descendin.
It takes all the 'the little white guy' on my shoulder to not chase him down and kick him into Thursday, but somewhere thru the fog is a voice tellin me I'll regret that big time and only makes me as bad, if not worse than him!
Im no doubt going to come across this guy again, so my question to y'all is what (if anything) do i say do?
Im thinkin of introducing myself and pointing out i enjoyed our rides together adnthat he's obviously a good rider, just not with other people perhaps due to lack of bunch experience.
suggestions welcome
riding into work, spot a guy i see quite regularly on my commute. He's on a slicked up mtb and perpetually seems to be wearin the same kit (or maybe that's my stereotype gland overheating
)Anyway's he a fairly strongish rider and he/me often tail each other on the way in-out. I cant say we ride together cos he's obviously not used or experienced with riding WITH anyone else, as he perpetually half-wheels, does fliers at the lights and basically treats it like some dodgem derby race!
This morning we were comin in together and everytime he tired I'd go to the front. He would take it as some challenge to his peckerdom and zipp past again and wonde rwhy he kept tiring, no doubt
Obviously still in race mode as we get ito the CBD, he starts running red lights, footpathing and brushing way-too-close to other riders.
Oh well, let him go, me thinks.
However ironically enuff me stopping at red lights and riding more realisitcally i keep rolling up next to him. No doubt he was getting wound up by his own inability to win this mythical 'race' he was running in his head. hehe. Kind like watching drivers fly off at lights only to stand stationery longer at the next ones. sheeeesh.
Cross flinders St and he jumps on my wheel. big open road so im windin up and i can see his shadow halfwheelin me again, as Im a block from the gym i shower at i ease up, he flies past and does that nuff-nuff drver move/assyumption where the brain tells them that if they cant see you out of their peripheral vision they must be WELL past you and so he swerves from the left-half of the rightlane across me and in front of the parked bus we passed! I hit the brakes and shorten the lives of my previously square-topped tyre a tad more!!!
Calm, dutchie, he didnt mean it!
Pull up next to him and say "Do you realise you almost killed me back there?"
"I was well past you" he assumes
"No, i had to brake so you didnt knock me off!"
OK, i can see the perspective but the following is gold!...
"Oh yeah, well we were 'duelling' all the way in!"
OK, i knew he was in race mode and having some fun, but:
How about an apology?
How about coming to the realisation that you werent 'well in front'?
and just to add his seal of quality to the scenario, the lights turn green, i weel up onto the footpath to head into gym and he rides off and yells out,
"Loser!".
Im stunned. shortly followed by anger, and the fog is descendin.
It takes all the 'the little white guy' on my shoulder to not chase him down and kick him into Thursday, but somewhere thru the fog is a voice tellin me I'll regret that big time and only makes me as bad, if not worse than him!
Im no doubt going to come across this guy again, so my question to y'all is what (if anything) do i say do?
Im thinkin of introducing myself and pointing out i enjoyed our rides together adnthat he's obviously a good rider, just not with other people perhaps due to lack of bunch experience.
suggestions welcome
