caloso

I agree with you that it's rude, but "I will defend myself" seems a bit over the top. Maybe just sit up, turn around, and ask him not to?

livedarklions

I've also dropped people doing that. You have to figure someone lazy enough to do that on a MUP typically doesn't have a lot of endurance, so a couple.mph is usually more of an increase for them to handle. Soon as they've moved back a couple feet, they generally can't catch again.

restlessswind

Yeah, but if I slow down, and he gets ahead, and then I will eventually catch up to him and he would just do it again. People like that need to know it is unacceptable social behavior, PERIOD! He wasn't a bike's length behind me, he was on my @$$. If I needed to stop suddenly, it would have been an ugly situation. There are often times turkeys or other critters jump out playing chicken. I will try my darnedest to avoid hurting the animal. They don't know better. A bike rider does!

wphamilton

If I hear tires sliding behind me when I slow down for pedestrians, that's it I'm speeding up and leaving him. But no one will draft you for long on a MUP if you make a habit of slowing down for pedestrians, waiting for it to be clear to pass, dodge small creatures, and accelerate hard every time after you slow down.

indyfabz

I like it when someone tries to drop me on an MUP while I hang with them, but no close enough to get any draft. A few years ago a guy tried so hard to shake me but couldn't. At my original pace, I was going to catch him and pass him. But when he realized I was approaching he turned it up a notch. I stayed with him and he kept dialing up the pace little by little each time he realized he couldn't shake me. I finally had to turn back for home to get ready for work. His ego must have been bruised.

sumgy

Another cool MUP story, but needs more Stormtroopers and Muggles.
You know what cyclists are annoying?
The ones with Air Zounds.
And who rides fast enough on a shared path that someone would want to draft off them?

Ross520

I ride quite fast on my city's MUP, but slow down and announce when passing pedestrians and other cyclists. Also, I typically pick times to ride when the path isn't busy.

What's wrong with that?

sumgy

Depends what "quite fast" means.
About 25kmh is my max on our shared paths.
They are not training tracks.

Rajflyboy

I would not ring a bell

I would pass them and pass them at a pace in which they would not be interested in trying to keep up

restlessswind

Perhaps I was thinking, "only if I had an incredible bout of intestinal gas." That would have been devine! 😜

trailangel

So... he did drop you after all. No bruised ego for him.

restlessswind

Apparently, you've never ridden in suburban California

indyfabz

Uh. No. I turned to head back for home as I had work that morning. In reality I should not have played his little game as I had a century to ride two days later. I was really out there for a light spin, but I had to show Fred that he, with his wire basket and canti brakes, was not all that.

caloso

Meh. Everyone in Sacramento rides on the ARBT, including some pretty strong riders. It’s not a big deal if you use a little sense.

sumgy

Judging by the ongoing whiny stories about MUPs, it sounds like that is a good thing.

anon06

Yeah. I've only ridden on a crowded, MUP in another city, once or twice. While, I guess, it might've appeared as though I was drafting or following behind a family of cyclists, I only was riding behind them (not too close or fast) because I found out it was the quickest and easiest way to cycle past those who were walking 2/3 or more people abreast (the MUP I used was full of mostly families of walkers, with occasional cyclists passing through).

It would take a while for groups of them to move to the side for passing cyclists, and the groups of walkers would notice if there was more than one cyclist on the path in front of them, quicker, than a solo cyclist; so, for example, if I was too far away from other cyclists, the groups of walkers who'd moved for the cyclists, seconds ago, would move right back onto the path, 2/3 + people, which would take a while longer for them to decide to move, again, for me, cycling solo).

That's why I'm unsure whether or not the guy really was trying to draft OP (because I wasn't trying to draft other cyclists).

Bryan C. 

So what's the appropriate terms to use for wanting to draft a stranger on an MUP?

I'm guessing "Hey bro, can I suck your wheel?" would be inappropriate?

Reynolds 

Perhaps "Excuse me, sir, would you mind if I follow you? I assure you my intentions are completely honorable".

caloso

Serious answer: “Do you mind if I sit on?”

Metieval

I always offer for them to grab a wheel. if someone wants to sit on my wheel, I don't care I am faster for it. I won't sit on theirs but they are welcome to sit on mine.

livedarklions

Depends on the MUP. There are some paved ones where I might see 3-4 people per mile, and I regularly go 25 mph on such paths, knowing I'll have plenty of room to slow if needed. They are not all crowded paths narrowly threading traffic in each direction.