This is so embarrassing. I always thought it would happen to other guys. I’ve always been so full of life, so virile.

Granted, I’ve not been as active in that area as I should have been but you know how it is, work is very busy, I’ve got a lot on my mind right now, I just didn’t have the time. They say it happens to all blokes of a certain age but I never thought it would happen to me.

You see…../holds back tears….on my commute in this morning…..another bloke on a bike ……passed me!!!

…

I know. I’m a poor excuse for a man. he didn’t just meander past neither, he shot past me. i’d relaxed a bit after some lights to get a drink of water from my bottle and obviously he’d taken advantage to get up to attack speed and WOOOSSH! he was past. Black mountain bike, skinny looking bugger in Campag gear.

Obviously I immediately attacked and got on his wheel but he really was very quick indeed. He checked over his shoulder a couple of times and clearly decided to keep the power down, I matched him for 15 seconds or so but that was me done and he was gone, very quickly.

Now OK, I had a big heavy bag on my back, and some knobblie tyres but I was on quite a light cross bike. I always wondered how my Strava KOM was lost by so much on that section. I see why now.

So…

A) Was he cheating? There was a big silver box on his seat tube. Could have been a tool kit/spares box and I couldn’t see any obvious drive hub but I’d like to believe he was electrically assisted.

B) Was he really a lot faster than me? I suppose this is possible and I am getting on a bit now plus I’ve not really ridden that much this year but for obvious reasons I’m reluctant to accept it.

C) What should I do now? kill myself? My family will probably have locked the doors when I get home and will throw faeces at me until I spend my whole year at a brutal training camp in the alps learning how to be a proper rider.

deduct 1 from Scalp count. Accept you are a past it shell of a man, and prepare for this to happen many times in the future.

Or take to drink, and telling people how you could have been a pro…

It was an electronic motor
And all you need is a BIGGER motor to beat him at his own game

you could try drugs? Worked for some well known cyclists in the past…

He checked over his shoulder a couple of times

uncool dude.

Agreed, but I needed to double check if it was who I thought it was.

It wasn’t you Ian. This guy was skinny and really quick.

I thought that was you.

Could it have been David Millar?

Yeah, it was probably some elite rider. That makes sense.

Or drac of course

Bradley Wiggins lives in Eccleston, that’s close to you Samuri. I mentioned you while we were out for a training ride last week so he might have decided to pop over and check you out

…and the ‘scalped by’ counter ticks over to 001.

Terribly embarrassing old chap.

If I knew you I’d now de-friend you on facebook and everything. But I don’t know you which feels right because I wouldn’t know people like you.

(definitely electric motor btw)

You’re old now Samuri, the young guns can kick your @rse.

Wait, he was on a MTB?

The only answer is upgrade the bike, fad diet and boxercise. Or jazzercise.

Maybe glue some tubs on?

Now lets not rub it in, he’s already shut down his Facebook account presumably out of embarrasment, we don’t want him to top himself or anything, he’s still an icon that we can use to inspire the youth

Well obviously he wasn’t on a normal MTB. It had slick tyres and everything.

Your new weapon of choice for your early morning commute.
Skin suit is a must, you must throw your bottle away after one swig, you aren’t allowed to tow nor be towed, no rules against carrying laptop bags nor pies for lunch, no rules on mudguards neithers so feel free to fit them.

[/url] image by bikebouy, on Flickr[/img]

Ummm. Papa_lazarou rides a slick-tyred black MTB as a commuter, I think, not sure he goes past your house though

Excuse the sexism but I was well and truly done by a girl, heading south from manc on the A34 on Monday. To make it worse when I pulled up next to her at some lights I spotted the Aldi bike shoes she was wearing! She must be a regular on that route – its not my normal commute.

I think the worse fact is that you didn’t accept defeat, you were *that guy* and tried to catch up.

And then failed again.

😆

I’m not bothered about this or anything but the box on his downtube looked a bit like this.

I call Strava cheat!

i had a similar thing happen to me one morning… however as i was going to town rather than work i followed the bloke who blasted past and found him a few hundred yards round the corner puffing like a train about to explode and leaning against the wall… 👿

I got scalped the other day, it completely stunned me. I just couldn’t understand how some guy could possibly have caught me. Me, the definition of athlete! Even the pizza and beer wouldn’t let me sleep easy that night.

Samuri were you not on a recovery ride this morning? That’s excuse I’d use reason I’d have if anyone ever passed me on my commute.

I am embarrassed for you though.

You were on a cross bike and he was on a mountain bike. On the road.

Proof that cross bikes aren’t a jack of all trades, just sh*t. Thats the reason you lost. You need a proper bike.

ppfftt – some bloke at least 30 odd years my seniour ran past me whilst i was cycling up hill – not just doodled past, but with some pace and carried on out of my site… a gave an envious/nervous laugh as he passed..

I have the 39 stone cyclist with a KOM local to me! I gunned it the other night, cross wind but not head wind, straight through the lights…………

Came 5th!!! God damn it, he was 39 stone, 39 stone only a few years back!

Battle is on! (No harm meant Gaz if you read this, id love to ride with you but you were a propper FB not so long ago)

Times like that, you have to think…what would lance do?
then you dig deep and go fast, proving lance and the overtaker were both wrong to do what they did…

blasted past and found him a few hundred yards round the corner puffing like a train

this. anyone who ever overtakes, especially on a hill, just lives round the corner, not even at the top of the hill.
this happened to me last night on my drag up to where I live. I was overtaking EVERYONE and some guy slipped past and I knew if I caught him it wouldn’t stick so I let him go. half way up the hill he turned off on a side road and stopped. this is all the proof I need. 😀

I recently tried to keep up with a guy on an electric Brompton. no chance, even uphill where he has a weight penalty. those things should be banned.

Excuse the sexism but I was well and truly done by a girl, heading south from manc on the A34 on Monday.

Ahh yes you were chicked, it happens to a lot of the guys that I ride with, doesn’t it portlyone 😉

I was leaving work the other day and settling into my pace on my commuter cx bike. I noticed a small wheeler, shopper type, bike on my six. Put this down to the slight downhill gradient.

Put some metal to it and the shopper dropped off, normal service resumed, turned around the corner and started up the hill (top 10 strava segment for me) feeling pretty cool – heard a “click, whine” sound and the shopper came hoofing past at 30+ pedals stationary.

These electric bikes are getting pretty stealthy! It looked like a hub motor.

I’d have kept up if i was on the road bike…

You can all stand down chaps and finally, I can sleep at night again.

You see. I met this chap again this morning. I glanced over my shoulder at the lights and saw him coming, got a reasonable pace going and waited for him to pass. As he did I looked down and there was a dirty great big motor and battery pushing him along.

In that instant it was like a huge weight had been lifted from my shoulders. Still, a race is a race so I got down on the drops, changed it down a cog and chased after him. Caught him, pulled alongside.

We were probably doing about 75mph now though so eventually, presumably with a flick of a switch, he pulled away again. I latched onto his wheel but yet again, his electrically assisted pedalling eased him away until I could maintain the pace no more.

It didn’t matter though. One day am I sure I will keep up with him but for today I am happy that me and my original Strava KOMs on this section can hold their heads high. 😉

Wearing Campag gear with motor-assist is shameful stuff. Get some slicks on your crosser, leave your work bag at work, and have the bugger next time.

You could write a short story about this. Oh, hang on . . . 😉

Electric bikes are limited to 15mph, you should still be ashamed that one overtook you.

next time catch him up and then

It’s the modern equivalent of slapping someones shifters when you went by them (back in the days of thumbies)

I believe that point was covered in another recent thread on electric bikes. Legally, yes. In reality 35mph is quite possible.

I reckon we were doing between 25mph and 30mph when he pulled away from me. I’ve just checked my endomondo figures and since this is the fastest part of my commute anyway, especially when I’m nailing it, I’ll take the 28.3 mph max as being the speed I was going.