TheDudeIsHere

Actually, I did not express myself properly.

I meant if I am doing 17 mph, passing a guy who is doing 14 mph, many times the guy speeds up, drafts for a couple miles then sprints around like he had been going faster than he had been. He could hold 14 before but all of a sudden, he was a speed demon before he hopped on my wheel.

Of course they fade down the road anyway. Just seems funny when someone is doing their pace, I'm doing mine then all of a sudden, they think they are faster than they were. That's what I meant.

caloso

I would not assume that wheelsuckers are doing structured workouts.

79pmooney

Question for the OP. Your username is hipsterfixie. Are you riding a brake-less fix gear when you get on people's wheel? I have folks doing that here in Portland and it really pisses me off, especially when I say hear nothing (brain typo) and even more so when I am riding my fix gears. All my bikes have really good brakes and can stop fast. I have no issues with using them to keep myself out of crashes. (At 50+ years of riding and 200,000" miles, my body has seen too many crashes already.) Being taken down by a bigger, heavier rider when I grab a handful to avoid a traffic or pedestrian or whatever situation is not my idea of a good ride. And to have it happen by a rider without the insurance or pockets to reimburse my ensuing expenses and setback in health? I expect it to happen some day and I am not looking forward to it. (More than a few times I have looked in my mirror to discover a brake-less fixie has been silently fracking me for who knows how long. All I had to do was touch my brakes when their cranks were vertical and I just took them out.)

Now, if you ride with a good front brake (and lever rapidly accessible) those CX levers on the tops don't count), the above isn't directed at you.

Ben

burnthesheep

Come again?

San Rensho 

what are all you wimps complaining about. Apparently none of you race, because when you race everyone is on your wheel. When I am out riding and someone is on my wheel the only a problem I have with them is when I wave them ahead and they won't take a pull hi. Nobody who's sucking your wheel will ever be able to crash you, what is your major malfunction original poster.

Bah Humbug

When someone hops on my wheel uninvited, I do everything I can to make the experience as unpleasant as possible. I will act like a breakaway trying to shed a pursuit, snot rocket, anything. I've given up on politely asking people to drop back or move forward, since in almost all cases they'll say they're just resting a bit or make any other excuse to not respect my request. No one gets a pleasant, easy draft on my wheel without permission.

Then sometimes they think the answer is to move past me and draft or half-wheel my wife. Then I get unpleasant.

caloso

I do race. Since I haven't been a Cat5 in a very long time, I know that every time I pin on a number that every other rider in the race has also raced before. And that they've all put in the time and effort do so, which means that I have some assurance that they know how to draft safely.

When I'm out on the open road commuting, doing intervals, or JRA, and some random unknown person hops on my wheel, I have know idea if they know what they're doing.

Also, I have seen an instance where a following rider took down the rider in front: he overlapped wheels and managed to put his spokes into the rear derailleur of the guy in front. RD tore off, rider behind went over the bars, and took down the guy in front. It's an extremely unlikely occurrence, but possible

TheDudeIsHere

Wow, that is pretty awesome, you race, I am impressed!

But as far as the person behind drafting, sure he can cause damage to the front rider's bicycle. A buddy of mine and I were riding, proud of his new rig, top of the line. Some wheelsucker latched on his back wheel. The rider behind hit him and thrashed his rear derailleur. The back guy crashed but not my buddy the front rider. But the wheel sucker did do damage to my bud's new bike. He offered to pay for it but the fact is, wheelsuckers can do some damage.

himespau 

Cypress

big john

I had a friend get his pedal stuck in my rear wheel at a left turn when we were moving slowly. He went down, I didn't , I was able to get my feet out. Bent some spokes.
Had another guy step on my foot at a light and break the strap off my shoe.

Just remembered my worst crash ever was on the mup, idiot coming at me head-on. I move right, guy behind me touches my rear wheel and pitches me sideways collapsing my front wheel. 1987.

Doge

When you are racing, you have an agreement. Same as when you are in a group ride.
There is no agreement when folks just show up.
There is a distance we want to have strangers, in both our personal life and on the road.

You can always be crashed by someone else. In front is more common, but rear works too. If you are not crashed, they can mess up your stuff.

That and I don't like them butting into my 2020 election campaign discussions.

Princess_Allez

I sucked someone's wheel for the first time recently. I was wondering why it seemed as if I was faster than him. We were on a slight downhill and I felt like I could overtake him, but there wasn't a safe place to do so. I got home, looked at that particular segment on Strava, and it turned out I PB'd on this segment and was faster than the guy by a few seconds. I guess people poking holes thru wind for you actually does work! Science!

TheDudeIsHere

I've had wheelsuckers tell me they felt as if they could overtake me on some sections seeing the draft had made their effort far less. Of course, once they do, a few seconds later the wind hits their faces then they fade like cheap ink. I've had a few conversations with people in that same scenario and we usually end up laughing about how they "thought there for a second" that they may be stronger or able to overtake and stay ahead.

guadzilla

Count me among the people who arent too bothered by someone holding my wheel. There is a lovely out-and-back stretch that i ride on which has hellish headwinds on the way back. Quite common to see riders with assploded legs plodding back and eager for relief.

Yeah, there is a theoretically greater risk to me, but I think that anyone who has the experience to hold a wheel really closely probably wouldnt do it or would know enough to ask - certainly, the few times someone has grabbed my wheel, they havent been all that close, from what i could tell.

If it bothered me, I'd just tell them and not be a dick by blowing snot rockets on them or brake-checking them.

Princess_Allez

WhyFi

A few years back, I was riding along when I noticed the guy in front of me getting increasingly agitated - gesturing, talking to himself, hocking loogies, etc. Then it dawned on me - wait, does he think I'm wheel-sucking?! I swear there were at least five bike lengths between us, but dude was heated and I couldn't think of any other reasons for why he would be getting so upset.

guadzilla

There's always someone having a "get off my lawn" moment.

Paul Barnard

I would say that when I am bored I am known to make sport of hypersensitive riders, but I won't. One rider's unpleasant is another rider's game.

Bah Humbug

I hope this helps people understand why I don't bother asking people off my wheel.

colnago62

Why not ask first? It’s not like you can’t do all those other things if they don’t comply. I think sometimes the person doesn’t realize that they are making the person in front uncomfortable. If a person races a lot or is a track rider is used to threading the needle in between cars, their perception of what is too close could easily make a person who rides solo nervous. It’s not on purpose.

GlennR

Hey, don't like someone on your wheel? Drop them if you can.Or you can try a brake check and hope that don't run into you.

I actually enjoy jumping on the wheel of electric bikes.

colnago62

Brake checking gets people mad. It really only works if they are really close to you. If you brake check someone and they are not close enough to you, they simply ride around you. If they are really savvy, they might come around you and then hip check your handlebars and ride you into the curb. It’s not worth antagonizing people.

burnthesheep

Had a d-bag do this just recently. I unfortunately have to take a couple miles of greenway to not turn my out/back to the gravel park into a prolonged waste of time. I much prefer quiet neighborhood streets to greenway. On the way home chilling and pass a guy, rang the bell, yada yada. I proceed to hear freewheel after a bit. Mind you I'm going a mph or two faster, not yoyoing. Not a word, not a hi, nothing. I speed up slowly/progressively hoping they get the idea. I finally slow without doing a break check and "c'mon Fred, I just want to ride home".

Dude was surprised at me responding. It wasn't even a mean response, compared to mine. Either way, I deviated my route on purpose after that a way home I didn't want to go because of this person. I would have immediately upon noticing if it was possible.

It just reiterated to me how childish it is. I went to the hospital in a road race from a touch of wheels. I'd rather not have some tagalong hit my bike or me because they were trying to have fun at my expense.

No other life activity is this similar kind of thing acceptable. "I'm randomly going to join you and get in your personal space/activity, and top it by not saying a word."

tomato coupe

A zombie thread, but worth reviving for the above post ... nothing funnier has been posted on the forum since this thread went dormant.