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Does make me wonder, based on the way the world seems to be going, if this is just an intolerance of those who are different, in the case of cyclists, both on and off road we dress differently from non cyclists and therefore must be of dubious character!
Probably happens to a degree where user groups overlap..
cyclists / walkists
canoeists / fishists
Farage-Gove-Hunt / Human beings
Its always "them" not "us"
My tip is to cheerfully say hello, afternoon, morning to everyone I see on trails before they even get chance to say a word. If its a nice dog i'll give it a pat and say how nice it is. This automatically makes them think you're a great guy and not a negative word about riding on footpaths is said.
Careful, some of the little handbag dogs and small terriers are really yappy 'orrible little things. Proper sized dogs and above are usually good as gold
😕
Last dog walker (runner) i saw when out on the MTB hurled himself and his dog into the bushes at the side of the trail so i could have a clean run at the rock steps he was picking his way up.
I didn't make it, so he gave me a hand up and his dog licked me.
Terribly nice chap.
Actually used to see him around a fair bit, never actually crossed paths before then.
just an intolerance of those who are different
Seeing it from both sides as I do my intial reaction when encountering a bike is one of surprise.
Now you may think you're not going that fast and that your clicky hub is enough warning for anyone but bikes go a lot faster than people on foot and people (and animals) respond in different ways when they're surprised.
Which is why some of you have confrontations
Some of them are just looking for a scrap no matter how polite you are. Life.
My tip is to cheerfully say hello, afternoon, morning to everyone I see on trails before they even get chance to say a word. If its a nice dog i'll give it a pat and say how nice it is. This automatically makes them think you're a great guy and not a negative word about riding on footpaths is said.
I do this, very rarely had a confrontation with a walker and most of my local loop is cheeky footpathing
Seeing it from both sides as I do my intial reaction when encountering a bike is one of surprise.
Now you may think you're not going that fast and that your clicky hub is enough warning for anyone but bikes go a lot faster than people on foot and people (and animals) respond in different ways when they're surprised.Which is why some of you have confrontations
Indeed, that's why I'm always prepared to stop if necessary, close passes by bikes as a ped are similar to close passes by cars when your on a bike, you may not get hit, but you feel anger for the lack of consideration.
But you can't win them all, some people are just dozy and sometimes there's confrontation, you just have to be as courteous as you can, and brush off the odd bit of outrage if you've honestly done all you can.
My recently purchased bike came with a bell and I decided to leave it on, never having really used one on a bike before.
First ride out (on a shared use path BTW) the first dog walker had earphones in so didn't hear my pinging, I had to literally shout for him to hear me. Then a few minutes later I pinged as I came up behind an elderly couple, and the woman shot in the air in fright and had a go at me for startling her.
You can't ******* win!
[quote=mattyfez ]Indeed, that's why I'm always prepared to stop if necessary, close passes by bikes as a ped are similar to close passes by cars when your on a bike, you may not get hit, but you feel anger for the lack of consideration.
Which is why I always slow down far more than I need to when meeting walkers - those who ride close past at speed "because I'm in control" are dicks IMHO. It doesn't really do me much harm to slow down when meeting people and I'm sure they appreciate it.
In the US they sometimes carry mace for when encountering dogs! Personally I think "hello" is more polite.
I speed up when I see grumpy walkers. The faster you're going, the harder it is for them to say anything to you.
I live in the south east of England, which is home to lovely scenery but is often quite busy with walkers of all types.
I always give a cheery "Hello! Just passing on your left/right", I make time to give friendly dogs some attention and I usually pick on the grumpiest looking rambler I can find and reward them with a huge smile and a "Hello! Fantastic day isn't it? Have a good afternoon!" as I breeze past.
Sometimes it's just possible to take control and influence the prevailing attitude in your favour.
Which is why I always slow down far more than I need to when meeting walkers - those who ride close past at speed "because I'm in control" are dicks IMHO. It doesn't really do me much harm to slow down when meeting people and I'm sure they appreciate it.
My tip is to cheerfully say hello, afternoon, morning to everyone I see on trails before they even get chance to say a word. If its a nice dog i'll give it a pat and say how nice it is. This automatically makes them think you're a great guy and not a negative word about riding on footpaths is said.
100% the above. Never had a problem with a dog/walker even riding at least once a week in an area that isn't known for being pro-mtb. Just be polite, say hello, don't ride like a dick and 99% of people will be cool.
The critical question is did she ruin your strava time? If so, destroy her next time you cross paths.
Seeing it from both sides as I do my intial reaction when encountering a bike is one of surprise.
Now you may think you're not going that fast and that your clicky hub is enough warning for anyone but bikes go a lot faster than people on foot
quite frequently walk our dog on shared paths and outside of main commuting times often won't encounter any cyclists at all - dog is well trained and will sit and wait for bikes to pass but the relative speed and rarity can mean not much time to give a command
- mrs antigee did have* one of those extending leads
*the "dog" lost it 🙂
I'm really surprised how fast Strava times on descents generally are. On many of the segments in the pennines, even the mid-table times would require a dog-walker-free run to achieve. Yet more often than not, I get the walkers and dog walkers.
I normally offer them a Wine Gum.
Wine Gums can solve all the worlds problems.