Inquiry into the psyche of some cyclists

sparkwave

What I have said is based on my own observation - it has a basis in reality. If I collect my own data in this last year and analyse it, I would find that there is a higher probability for a person you meet to turn out an "asshole" if he is a cyclist than if he is a jogger, or a surfer, or a hiker, at least here where I live.

oldbobcat

Absolutely. It's for throwing winks at the girls, making nice with the tourists, and using the small chainring.

Eden

I'll agree with everyone else - it is highly unlikely that those guys were pros... and they absolutely shouldn't have swore at you.

But I'll go out on a limb here a bit too - you did something that was not so nice or smart yourself. If the trail was a multiuse trail you as a walker need to be aware of your surroundings and you should not suddenly stop, nor should you block the trail by stopping so many people right in the middle of it. If you need to stop, be considerate of the other users and go off the trail to do it. I think the guys likely had the right to be frustrated at you. It doesn't excuse the swearing, but you may have nearly caused them to crash, or they may have been (and again this does not excuse them swearing at you) taking out some frustrations on you for the times they have almost crashed.

Personally I do not like using muts because the walkers and the joggers (and some of the cyclists too) are so clueless and don't have a thought in the world for the other trail users. Just remember that you are never the only user.

alienator

Well, that only demonstrates your bias. It says nothing about fact or reality. Who knows, maybe in the "collection of data" by other people, you'd make the asshole list.

It seems like you could do with a bit more learning about how to think critically, especially if you're prone to making such bigoted observations.

alienator

You're not going out on a limb. You're absolutely correct. Pedestrians aren't free to do what they want willy nilly. Pedestrians need to observer the "rules of the road," too. Standing in the middle of the MUT with a group of people either demonstrated a supreme arrogance or a supreme ignorance. Heck, it might just go to show that some pedestrians are assholes.

Crankyfeet

Come on alienator... I think we all know that sparkwave is right. I am an asshole myself and it didn't take much research to determine that cycling offered the best activity for me to express my assholeness. Once I had invested in the new bike and the spiffy lycra gear, helmet and cool sunglasses... I now ride down nothing but MUT's doing 25 mph and wolf whistlin' at pretty rollerblade girls... and giving the finger and my best "Get outa the farkin way motherfarkers!!!' to anyone else in my way who doesn't have big boobs.

Then to cap it off, I found this cycling forum, where I could express even more of my assholeness through an anonymous handle and a professional cyclist looking avatar.

This sport is asshole heaven. Sparkwave is just a "nice guy" and not what this sport needs. He really thinks he will love cycling and is just disappointed that every time he tries to get into it... he keeps seeing us assholes... who make him think twice. Stay out of cycling sparkwave. You'll give us a wussy reputation.

sparkwave

If I am cyclist and live in a not-so-bike-friendly city, in a city in which there are no bike paths/lanes, I will become an annoyance to the drivers and the drivers will become annoyance to me. One thing is being annoyed and the other is our reaction or how we cope with it.



One of our personality characteristic that explains our readiness to get angry is how secure we feel about our identity and our position that we hold in society. Since anger is a reaction to being slighted or demeaned, those easily angered are more likely to have grave doubts about who they are. Their egos are shaky. Insecure people – uncertain of their own worth – are more likely than secure people to be provoked by mild provocations and ambiguous situations.



So, based on the above psychological fact, the two cyclists were people of low self-worth – they overacted to our standing in the middle of the road. Did they become a cyclist because they wanted to prove to someone something? Do they want to prove to themselves that they are worthy of something? Are they so introverted and found cycling, a non-social activity at most times, to be more enjoyable? Did they have doubts about themselves before choosing to become a cyclist or did they start having doubts sometime during cycling?



This incident, since I found so embarrassing and contradicted my views about cyclists, makes me start thinking honestly of why I became a cyclist.



Regards,



sparkwave

alienator

It makes me wonder why a cyclist, such as yourself, would do something so stupid as to stand in the middle of a MUT. If their reaction makes you wonder why you became a cyclist, then you should see someone for some counseling because if you base your decsions on what you do based on the appearance given by the actions of others, you have some serious issues.

FWIW, I doubt anyone will miss you.

sparkwave

I do not remeber getting agree at people who share the road. But I am stil looking forward to my Tour de Palm Springs!

Pendejo

That explanation is sound, for a lot of people. However, I think anger is a justified reaction in many cases (for example, toward an individual who acts in a way that indicates that other people, for him, are little more than objects to be used, negotiated, or pushed aside in the quest of his own self-interest). I think a main reason why our society today is so rife with such individuals is because anger has become politically incorrect. So the "good" people avoid trouble instead of confronting it. And what we have today is the result. There should be a lot more anger in the world, and it should be directed at the people who regard themselves as above the practical norms of society.

oldbobcat

Just the same, the mark of a gentleman is to know when not to call people "motherf*ckers" even when one feels justified.

I got my comeuppance in a criterium in Providence, RI. On a backstretch, away from most of the spectators and officials, a drunk was trying to cross the road and looked like he was about to stumble into the middle of the peloton. We all shouted at him, and in the heat of it all I yelled something like, "Look out, f*ckface!" A rider near me warned that he was an ABLA (before USCF) district rep and he could have my license pulled for something like that. I learned to shut up.

I quit riding for about 10 years because of the attitudes of local riders (I live near Boulder). I started up again because I needed a way of getting exercise without getting in my car and driving somewhere. While I enjoy riding again, it does get lonely out there sometimes.

alienator

I didn't say the actions of the idiots in the middle of the MUT merited the response of the cyclists. I didn't say that at all.

It sure sounds as if a lot of riders take a lot of assumptions about other people out on their rides.

Bro Deal

This is an outrageous generalization of other people. How dare you make such an assertion without a ten year, peer reviewed study.

__________________
"You are like the wind and I like the lion. You form the tempest. The sand stings my eyes and the ground is parched. I roar in defiance but you do not hear. But between us there is a difference. I, like the lion, must remain in my place. While you like the wind will never know yours." -- Mulay Hamid El Raisuli, Lord of the Riff, Sultan to the Berbers, Last of the Barbary Pirates

Crankyfeet

What about the poor sods who are "lots of riders" who have been lumped into a generalization based on "sounds as if" evidence?...