JoeyBike

All of the above and then some. It gets pretty serious while it is happening for both riders but we all pretty much laugh about it before and after. Lakeshore Drive is a unique place - a 4-lane state highway with no cross streets and a large turn-around at one end. It goes over several flood levees and one fun bridge. The scenery is nice and traffic is light after work on weekdays and anytime on weekends. There are several ambush points too. I can hang out on top of a bridge or levee and "shop" the herd. The best case is when a really fast guy goes by behind a long line of slower riders so by chasing him we both annihilate dozens of poseurs going 16 mph in full kit (as if that will help them). Or I just go out there and try to do 20 miles (2 laps) without being overtaken. Let them hunt me. This is great motivation for all. NO ONE likes getting passed out there.

Burton

Talked to a couple 'geeks' in my area. One is a 58 year old denturologiste who's recently had a hip replacement. Another is young man in his 30 whose stints on a bike are part of an effort to deal with type 2 diabetes. His knees are now starting to give him issues. Both of these guys use equipnent tyat might be considered a little 'geeky' - I guess its their attempt to put a littke fun into something that otherwise could be a little boring. Personally I'd think they could use a little encouragement or a riding partner a lot more than some other guy on a bicycle out to crush any motivation they might have.

You apparently do have a couple friends that you get together to do this with Joey. Whats the attraction? Are they all no fun to bicycle with otherwise?

JoeyBike

Do a Google search for "I hate Triathletes" when you get a minute. Or a few hours. It is a common thing. It's disdain that motivates us. This is our common thread.

dynodonn 

If there's a plus side on Joey's actions, is that he's not "street racing" in a motor vehicle, and most motorists would barely discern that he was racing his bicycle at all.

Personally, I have other reasons to get on my bike, and the one depicted in the OP video is not even on the list. The one thing I've learned in my motorsports endeavors, is that there is always someone faster.

joshuatrio

Just did. Pretty funny. Seems like the majority of triathletes are obsessed with gear, than actually being able to perform.

Shimagnolo

How is that different from BF?

HardyWeinberg

I was gonna say, sounds like commuters (or people who post about commuting)

JoeyBike

This is the main lesson I try to demonstrate on the Lakefront course. Unless a cyclist's air-speed is 25+, Spandex, time trial frames, and teardrop helmets are nearly worthless advantages. A sweet pair of wheels will help some, but all the rest is foolishness. And since I mainly hunt with the wind to my back ALL of the advantages of Geek gear are totally negated. It is hilarious to see a geek all hunkered down on the aerobars while cycling with a huge tailwind! I love to sit up straight with no hands (collecting as much tailwind as possible) and roll by them as whey say "WTF???"

Most of these swimmers/runners look really fit and could probably go fast on a bike if they only knew anything about cycling. Most get scalped by ignorance I bet.

Burton

I guess I get 'scalped' every time I stop for a stop sign and some other idiot roadie behind me just blows through it without stopping. Life is whatever you make it - or make up about it.

buzzman

This was a really fun video and I totally get it. I chase people on my folding bike all the time or on my hybrid 9 speed commuter with milk crate and upright bars.

And I've been scalped too, all spandex suited, while on my road bike, with double water bottles going west on my cross state rides across Massachusetts.

Just as I leave Northampton, MA there's a big climb that all the local roadies (and there's a lot of them in that area) use as a training ride, about 5 miles up to the top turn around and you've done a nice 10 mile time trial. Problem for me is I hit this hill at mile 106 with another 30 to go. I'm usually cruising fairly well at his point but I've got a couple of monster climbs after this one and sometimes I'm pretty baked from being on the bike for 6 or 7 hours.

But it'll happen once in a while I'll have some non-spandexed roadster guy chasing me out of town and can feel him playing me, working it and planning his "attack". Eventually here they come, sometimes they'll pass and give me words of encouragement or maybe some "advice". Other times its the cold shouldered, hairy eyeball pass. Funniest is when they blow up before they crest the climb and I have to pass them.

But you never really know if the guy you just passed is on mile 20 or mile 200, or if he just finished chemo and he's all suited up and out on his bike just to see if he's got anything left to his former fitness. So it's good to deal out the humiliation judiciously knowing that the joke, may, in fact, be on you.

JoeyBike

I don't expect any other rider to consider my current condition if and when they pass me. If they pass me, I'm scalped.

I was finishing up a 140 mile ride one afternoon and was cramping badly. I could go 17mph period. Not 18 or 16. It was 17 or agony. So this guy on a sit-up-straight hybrid wearing flip-flops scalps me. There was nothing i could do about it. I watched his @$$ for half an hour until i finally had to lay in the grass and massage my legs. That is a win for him and i hope it made his week. I expect no mercy or considerstion for the 135 miles behind me that morning.

Ciufalon

I have to agree with Commodus and Ferrous. This hunting thing is like going out and looking for a runner/jogger to run past and try to make them somehow feel defeated, having no idea that they might be 18 miles into a 20 or 30 mile run; something the hunter is likely not able to do. I would think someone training for a 112 mile ride after swimming a couple miles and with a marathon waiting is doing some rather long rides - and perhaps saving something for the marathon that waits to be done. They might even be planning to take a long run within seconds after their ride. Perhaps they just finished a long swim. It doesn't make my week, my day, or anything just because I pass someone. I am not concerned with what they are doing and can't imagine for the life of me why they would be concerned with me, my condition, how fast or slow I am going, etc. I am always just happy to folks out there trying to keep or get themselves good or better shape given the state of health in this country. It's easy to chase and pass someone who is not competing with you. I always get a kick out of folks that think everyone is somehow competing because they are on a bike and I think that attitude turns a lot of folks off to even give cycling a chance. Races are where the competition is. Just my opinion; not passing judgement on those who thrill from passing others.

JoeyBike

Nothing motivates a competitive cyclist to get better/faster/stronger than to be crushed by a teenage girl wearing flip-flops on a beach cruiser with a low back tire, a flowered basket containing a small dog, crank hitting the kickstand, and an orange squeaky chain.

Trust me. Getting scalped is great motivation to improve one's fitness. I love offering that sort of encouragement whenever possible.

I-Like-To-Bike

Agree with everything above.

In the interest of fair disclosure I acknowledge that at one time I made pretend I had machine guns mounted to my handlebars and would shoot down "enemy" cyclists ahead of me before I passed them; but I grew out of it by the time I turned 10. Too bad cheap video wasn't around long ago.

The good news for those who still share those immature fantasies, there are "competitive" cyclists about who believe filming and bragging about their competition against enemy geek cyclists is quite a sporting event.

polishmadman

Some of you guys take this to seriously. Even when I'm commuting, if I see the chance to pass another cyclist I take it. Hardly ever is it a triathlete. The point is these people take it to seriously also. They spend an ungodly amount of money on gear that may not be helping. They don't know but act like they do. Back in high school, my whole track team shaved their legs because they thought it would help them. Most of them barely had any hair to shave. They acted like they knew more then others. It didn't help. But it brought them back to reality. Relax its only for fun and doesn't hurt anyone.

tjspiel

I agree, many triathletes (and cyclists in general) believe that the equipment matters more than it actually does. However, equipment does make a difference and there are resources available that can tell you how much difference (for example) disc wheels make vs. aero wheels vs. an aero helmet vs. taping the laces on your shoes.

As far as spandex goes, you have to remember these people are swimming too and let me tell you it makes a huge difference in the water. A wet suit makes an even bigger difference because of the added buoyancy, - enough that it more than offsets the amount of time it takes to change out of one.

Anyway, how much of an advantage does it need to give you before it's no longer considered worthless?

My brother and I are fairly competitive, especially when it comes to each other. About 5 years ago I finished in our small hometown triathlon 1/100 of a second ahead of him. I kid you not. We joke about it now, but let me tell you he was not a happy camper, even though he was the 2nd local finisher in his age group (I no longer live there). If he would have known that taping his shoe laces would have made the difference between beating me and losing, he would have taped his laces.

Two years ago, I finished a tri about a minute faster than the year before on the same course but I was a more than a little bummed because my cycling time was about 15 seconds slower. Plus, I had gone from a top 10 age group finish the year before to about 15th. Those 15 seconds would have been enough to get me in the top 10 again. Seemingly insignificant things can and do make a difference depending on what your goals are.

There's no question that most people would be better off training and eating better than spending thousands more on equipment. But if your finishing time is important to you, and you're spending hours and hours training each week, why not give yourself every advantage that you're comfortable spending the cash on? The most popular triathlon in Minneapolis costs anywhere from $100 to $150 just to enter. An aero helmet can cost less than $150. Now, not all triathlons are that expensive but if you do several of them a year, the cost of an aero helmet becomes a pretty small investment. In spite of that, I still can't quite bring my self to wear one, but I certainly don't pass any judgement on those that do.

JoeyBike

No, runners don't spent trillions of dollars on gear falsely thinking that will help them run faster. They don't wear aerodynamic clothing with logos of Italian dish soap companies on them either. And they generally don't match the color scheme of their hat, shirt, shorts, and socks to their shoes, their cars, or their kid's jogging strollers. In fact, it is hard to look at most runners and find any good reason to loathe them. Although, if you do a Google search for "I hate runners" you will get 7,500,000 results while "I hate triathletes" will only net you 301,000 returns. Granted there are a lot more runners to encounter and, subsequently, to hate. Strangely, if you enter "I hate triathlete" (singular) you get 2,680,000 hits which, I presume, includes their wives/girlfriends who especially hate one individual triathlete in particular.


You do not know what you are talking about. NO ONE on a racing bicycle wants to, or enjoys being overtaken. But here is the thing about Geeks. They have spent those trillions of dollars on matching go-fast stuff. They are lying down on their aerobars on a race training course. I think we can all assume they WANT to go fast and they don't like being scalped. I don't have to assume it because I have ridden that course since the 1970s before even index shifting was developed. Most serious "looking" cyclists on Lakeshore Drive in New Orleans will do everything they can to not get passed or to scalp the rider up ahead. This is tradition. Sure someone might be warming up or cooling down, struggling through an injury (including me), or just not feeling it that day. But all in all, we all want the same thing - to complete our loops without being overtaken. I like to complete a calendar year without being overtaken. Those days are gone for me, but there are plenty of youngsters who want to go their entire lives without getting scalped and pass everybody out there. When they grind me down I just smile and say "nice job man". Then skip the the ice cream for a week.

JoeyBike

Don't take this too seriously. My geek-hunting Web page explains my motivations in detail but in short here is the deal: I am bored with training, especially Lakeshore Drive which just happens to be a short 3-mile bike ride from my house. Without a "rabbit" to catch, this old hound dog would prefer to lie on the couch. So I trick myself into training by structuring it as a hunt which for me is a lot more interesting than setting out to cycle boring loops. Do I actually hate the human beings riding time trial bikes out there on the course? Of course not. I have a lot of actual respect for them (also explained on my Web page). So why pick on Triathletes? Easy...

1. There are plenty of them out there and I always know where to find them when I want a workout.

2. They have a "cultish" goofiness that somehow dehumanizes them when on their silly looking bikes.

3. Tri-geeks are always alone (like me) and are trying to improve their time so they are always pushing it (as opposed to the roadie crowd who cycle giro training rides in large groups and only push the pace near the end of the ride).

4. Tri-geeks don't draft each other or work together in any way - perfect for the lone Comanche to stage an ambush.

5. Tri-geeks are using fine equipment, take care of their bodies, and WANT to go fast. Why would I chase someone who isn't trying very hard on and off the bike?

6. It is always more gratifying to scalp a rider who might scalp me back. Yes, a lot of women, children, and the elderly on beach cruisers and hybrids get scalped along the way but this gives me no pleasure and does not count in my score.

7. I get double points for passing any Cervelo - the trendiest fashion bike out there.

-=(8)=-

Related in a sort of funny way.
Current BF thread hilarity
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...orts-big-no-no

Burton

Really?

That happened to you?

OK - I guess that explains a few things!

treadtread

I can imagine the flip flops and cruiser, but how did you manage to pass off as a teenage girl away from the internet?

JoeyBike

I'm from New Orleans, remember?

Snowman219

TomCat_Ford

I saw a wannabe JoeyBike on my ride today (street clothes on a decent Trek road bike). About 10 miles into my planned 40 mile ride, I noticed a couple of cyclists up ahead of me a ways. When they noticed me, they sped up considerably (they were casually riding along and chatting before they saw me). The guy on the road bike ended up ditching his buddy so that I wouldn't pass him, but I was still gaining ground pretty quickly. I caught the guy at the base of a short but steep hill. Apparently this wannabee Joey can't climb to save his life (too high of a gear, climbed out of the saddle well before he should have had to, etc.). I passed him on the hill and he passed me back about a half mile later by going through a stop sign. I kept biking along at the same pace I had originally been riding (18-19mph...I don't play the game and I don't care if I get passed) and he never got more than 70-100 feet ahead of me. I saw some odd behavior as he tried to lose me, though. He'd keep looking back to see if I was still there, and then he'd do little 3 to 5 second sprint out of the saddle. He never gained any ground because he was running out of steam. I figured that he would blow up soon enough and continued on my way.

Then something happened. Apparently he needed to get off from the trail, so he flew off from the trail onto a very steep, grassy hill (steep enough that I doubt too many people would even want to walk up it, let alone ride a road bike up it). He didn't even get half way up before he stalled out and proceeded to fall over because he couldn't get his shoes unclipped. He looked humiliated as he watched me go by.

Whoever that guy is, he seems to have seen one of Joey's videos or at the very least he was playing some sort of game where he wanted to get some "points" back for passing me. Apparently he's not very good at the game he seems to enjoy.

JoeyBike

Like i said...nobody likes getting scalped. Some might tolerate it, but no one likes it.