dipy911

People take tissues with them on bicycle rides??? Not me. If it's too much for the glove, then it's time to start spitting. Don't pass so close to me. It's still a 3 foot law for bicycles as well.

Phil_gretz

...unless you blow a snot rocket while looking at fine art, which would be a "no-no".

My wife hates it when I blow snot while we're going for a walk or are out somewhere (not in crowds, obviously). I tell her I've been doing it for a long, long time.

I don't have any trouble with cyclists clearning their noses. I get it.

Hypno Toad

It's allergy season in Minnesota, I'd be stopping every mile. Same story when I ride in the winter, once the temps are below 45F, sinuses are gonna run. Clear your sinuses or stop breathing, simple choice. Therefore, I shoot snot-rockets often. However, I also look around me prior to clearing my sinus, 'cause I'm not a jerk.

Homebrew01

The advanced version is to try and hit a target. Manhole cover, Drainage grate, telephone poles, puddles ...
Same with spitting.

rm -rf

I tried tissues years ago. In fall and winter, my eyes tear up, and some of that is redirected into my nose via the nasolacrimal duct. I saturated a bunch of tissues within the first 15 minutes. It's just too much volume.

Aim downward, and allow at least 3 or 4 bike lengths to the rider behind. Or better still, be the last rider.

Yendor72

I wish I could launch a snot rocket, I can't produce enough force to get it out of there right. My wife on the other hand is a snot rocketeer, at least that is what I call her. She warns me first though. It's the way of the road. I carry tissues and have to stop once it is bad enough that I can't breathe, or I hork a massive loogie, whatever I need to do.

corrado33

You guys are being a bit prudish. I think it's gross in public when it's not necessary. But any athlete will tell you that it's absolutely necessary when your sport takes place outdoors. Biking makes it a bit harder because of the wind.

fietsbob

Best to not follow too closely , downwind.

J.C. Koto

When shooting snot rockets I like to play the "Peter Gunn" theme music in my head and pretend I'm the Spy Hunter deploying an oil slick.

Machka 

And we'd just laugh.

Machka 

I got so I was doing them regularly on long distance rides, and I was doing so many long distance rides for many years ... and occasionally I'd do one walking down the street because I'd forget I wasn't on my bicycle anymore.

Probably fortunately there weren't too many people around ... might have startled some to see a woman doing that.

Wanderer

It's inexcusable that anyone would expel bodily fluids, without knowing where it was going. In some states, it's considered assault with a deadly weapon....

79pmooney

Two comments: one on why we should blow snot and the second on how to do it.

The first: I have had sinus issues since I spent 6 years working with fiberglass resin building boats, spending my workdays in contact with chemicals the body is not meant to see. I have had allergy and allergy-like symptoms ever since. Congestion is a fact for me. Yes I do inhale an antihistamine every night. Also a corticosteroid. And still, sinus congestion is always there. When it loosens up, it drains into my throat. In the past I was a "proper" and polite type and usually swallowed what I could. In those days, every 18-24 months, my sinuses and the drainage would get out of hand, I would develop a sore throat and ultimately have to do another go-round of antibiotics.

Well, I married an RN. Every time she caught me swallowing, I would get an elbow in my ribs. I got better about spitting into toilets, bushes, whatever so I wouldn't have to swallow. Marriage fell apart after 6 years. I started riding seriously again, almost always alone. And started "honking". Pressing one nostril shut and blowing hard. Wow! Did I feel better late in rides and after! So obviously a healthier way to live! Maybe my wife was on to something. (That a person who spent decades attending to the health of humans could have a good understanding of the working of such human organisms; what a concept!)

And second; how to honk (or spit) in a group of riders: with conscious respect for the riders behind. This has been done in racing circle and group rides for the past 130 years. Be aware of any wind and how that might change the trajectory of your "snot rockets". When the need comes up, arrange it so you are on the downwind side of your group. Edge a little further in the direction. Honk or spit, doing your best to keep it low. If you have to do it on the upwind side, drift back so there is no one behind you. Now, if you are in a race, drifting back may well be something that you do not want to do. If that is the case, do your best to keep the discharge really low or use the back of your glove.

And while on this note: If you approach a rider from behind, tuck in and draft him and never tell him you are there, you get (and deserve) what you get.

As my wife made known to me, a society that honks and spits is a healthier society. (As long as we take care to have our projectiles land in appropriate places. And on the street is one of those places. Anyone eating off that street and subjecting themselves to those germs has other issues that really should be addressed.)

Ben

Phil_gretz

Please, don't be dramatic.

In a nanny state.

Wanderer

It's called courtesy!

caloso

This.

jfowler85

Now, if this was truly some gent launching a snot rocket up into the air while riding with cyclists behind him, that is a bit of a jerk move. However, I find it a little hard to believe that someone would put the effort into leaning the head that far back, which on a moving bicycle, to launch a booger train in that manner. Maybe I have a detail wrong.

In every other case, don't be such a weener. I don't intentionally launch snot fliers at other people, nor do will I take the time to carry a tissue and/or actually use it. Is this forum for cycling or dinner parties?

jbarham

Someone capable of shooting a snotrocket straight up into the air while in the saddle has balancing skills that I can't even begin to fathom.

sjs78

The problem isn't so much the fact they are spitting or blowing their nose, it's that they do it while still riding without caring who is around them. At that speed there is no way you can aim properly, let alone control where the drops of fluid are spraying. They just go into the air. Say you were in an elevator or on a bus, do you guys like it when people sneeze or cough without covering their mouth or nose? Intentional or not, those particles of bodily fluid are going all over the place into the air no matter how hard you try to 'aim' it downward. If you must do it, at least stop and do it to the side.

JanMM

This RN wonders what the problem is with swallowing mucus/phlegm/snot or what the benefit is of expectorating it out of the body. Not talking about huge amounts - just typical nasal secretions. Agree that clearing the airway is a good thing.

RoadTire 

+1. I need more practice though. Earlier this season blew one up onto my my eyeglasses. Now​ that is gross.

RR3

The proper technique precedes a long, hard pull at the front.

As you pull off and drift back, you have earned the right to let it rip but to the left and away from the other riders who are hopefully deep into oxygen debt and thus unable or unwilling to sissy up and complain.

On the other hand a wheel sucker of a rider used the Italian Hanky right in front of me on a 400K Brevet on Saturday. I did not like getting wet. Bad form.

Camilo

Yea, I've never heard of such a thing - nor while XC skiing.

I guess I'm surprised that anyone doesn't know that blowing snot rockets a normal part of any active outdoor activity. Use a tissue? On a bike? Really??

That said, good manners are in order. Don't blow a snot rocket if you know someone's behind you.

bovine

I carry them when winter commuting. I don't see how it's a big deal; It's a few Kleenex as you head out the door. That said, if people want to blow on their gloves, that's fine. I just don't want to gunk them up and clean them every night as I'm going to have to use them the next day, and the next. Blowing into the wind isn't really a solution either as I don't want to accidentally muck up my work pants on the way in.

The people decrying blowing w/o a Kleenex as uncivilized are pretty over the top though.

I'm also a guy who has eight bungee cords of varying lengths strapped to his cargo bike at all times and a large bug-out grade first aid kit with a permanent place in my pannier, so perhaps a case could be made that I over-prepare.

rebel1916

Sorry lil homey, athletes blow snot rockets. My wife is a master of the art.