Originally Posted by
indyfabz
Great example of one reason I retired from the ride. It's especially annoying when slower riders weave their way to the front of the pack at a light. When the light turns green, the faster riders have to pass them again.
Swarming cars at lights is another example of bad behavior. For years I used vacation days on the Friday before the event to put out most of the safety and other signs you see along the route. Get out of the car, grab a sign from the back seat, place it in the ground, get back in the car, drive a couple of miles, get out of the car, grab another sign, place it in the ground, get back in the car...lather, rinse, repeat for some 50 miles.
Those signs included "Don't Swarm Cars", which are placed at the crossings of major highways where the lights are long. Yet without fail people would swarm cars. Imagine if it were you in your car waiting at a light at, say, U.S. 322 and all of a sudden you have 20 or more cyclists surrounding your vehicle.
I guess it's the price you pay for having such a well attended and organzed ride. I applaud you for being part of the setup crew. The route was always well marked and there would be no possible way to get lost.
The crowd was something that caught me off guard on my first ride. I trained for weeks before the ride by doing solo rides whenever I could. I never realized I'd be caught between disorganized wandering fools AND well organized pelotons screaming by at top speed. It was fun and terrifying at the same time.