groverdill

From this list, what are your top 3 worst enemies while riding? Some of these will depend on what type of riding you do so feel free to add your own.

1. Rain
2. Cold temperatures
3. Excessive heat
4. Snow/ice
5. Wind
6. Dogs
7. Hills
8. Darkness
9. Car traffic
​​​​​​ 10. Poor riding surfaces

For me personally, it would be wind, dogs, and car traffic. Everything else I can tolerate.

Mike

SpedFast

None of the above. I'll ride everyday despite what's out there. Some days might be better than others, but they're all good

redshift1

1) Cars ( their drivers ) are the biggest risk to life and limb but I minimise my exposure to them by using cycle ways as much as possible.

2) Pedestrians on dual use paths ( bicycles / peds ) who frequently suddenly step across the opposing direction lane, then look...

3) Oncoming cyclists and those who latch onto your rear wheel. Most are fine except the ones who cut safety margins because they think they are pro cyclists.

Troul 

people
temps
surface conditions

Chuck M 

1: Flat tires

Arrowana

Cars, Wind, Excessive heat. The rest are all great.

downtube42

3. Excessive heat << I lived in west Texas. Big fat nope.
9. Car traffic << Yes cars suck.
6. Dogs << Dog owners are the problem. Much much less of a problem in the PNW than the midwest.

And the rest, transitioning into things I enjoy and seek out

5. Wind << HTFU opportunity
4. Snow/ice << Snow can be fun. Ice can be accommodated with studs, but generally I'd prefer not
2. Cold temperatures << Fixable with gear
1. Rain << Also fixable with gear
8. Darkness << Night riding is thoroughly enjoyable
10. Poor riding surfaces << With the right tires and attitude, I'll seek this out
7. Hills << When I lived in west Texas, I'd ride for an hour just to find a hill to ride.

rosefarts

Work
Kids
Wife
Sleep
Skiing
Climbing

rsbob 

Cars and especially double dump trucks and semis at highway speeds.
Wind - excessive wind, where I am struggling to stay upright is no bueno.
Darkness - used to commute in the dark, but ain’t risking it no mo.

Snow means - fat tire bike.

indyfabz

This thread needs a poll.

Desert Ryder

1. 3. Excessive heat
2. 8. Darkness
3. Add- Health issues

Everything else would be fine except we don't get snow/ice enough to be a consideration in our area of southern NV

marko_1111

Out of the OP's list I'd agree with rain. I hate riding in the rain, won't start a ride when it's raining, and hate getting caught in the rain, otherwise I'm out there. The only weather related rescue call I've ever made was in a hail storm on top of a mountain, like about half a foot by the time ms marko picked me up

Around here, hot and windy are your friend, and I get out in winter, so cold and windy as well. I actually love night riding and ice riding and nighttime ice riding and while I don't do my favorite mountains in winter I still climb as much as I can

Otherwise School buses. School buses are the worst, especially in the mountains. Always exciting

Also I'm increasingly suspicious of everything motorized on bike paths and have been taken down head on. Yes, I caused a scene over that one

Maybe you could say something more about your experience with # 6 - dogs?

13ollocks

cars, dogs, heat - in that order. Everything else I can live with or even embrace.

Kai Winters

Dogs that want to eat me and their a..hole owners. I always make sure to save enough dog spray for their owners hehehe
Bad drivers

Sierra_rider

I don't like wind, dogs, cars. Luckily none of those are too bad around here. While there isn't much traffic around here, there are certain roads that I prefer to ride down, but not up...purely because of blind turns and lack of shoulders. Luckily, there are some safer options for roads that lead back uphill.

The rest of the list I can live with or even enjoy:

• Rain...as long as it isn't a downpour, I'll ride in it.
• Cold temperatures...I'm up in the mountains, it gets pretty cold, but not like Siberia cold...I can dress for it. Coldest ride this year was 28F.
• Excessive heat...it's a fact of life in the summer. Luckily the mountains don't get insanely hot, just a mild dry heat.
• Snow...if I can physically pedal through it, I'll ride. However, I'd rather not do the ice that forms after a big snow storm...you basically end up with big banks of snow on the side of the road, 2 lanes turn into 1.5, and the road surface turns into a skating rink. I'm not worried about sliding out on the ice, but I am worried about crappy drivers on the ice.
• Hills...I learned to love them, not really any other options here. Almost every ride is above the 'golden ratio.'
• Darkness...sometimes in summer, I'll throw lights on one of the bikes and head out before dawn. It's hard to beat getting out on top of some ridgetop to watch the sunrise.
• Poor riding surfaces...some of our roads feel like you're riding the cobbled classics. I've got a plethora of bikes, so I just take out the one that best suits my intended route. I've got my climbing bike, endurance bike, gravel bike, XC mtb, enduro mtb, etc so lots of options.

downtube42

Work is indeed the worst, though on the other hand it does pay for bikes and trips, so work is also a key enabler.

CrimsonEclipse

Lack of energy/ambition/motivation.

All the rest are easy.

slow rollin

Out of this list?
cars
heat
downpour rain.

Cars are always worrisome, it's regularly over 100F, but that I can adjust to, rain isn't too bad but I don't like mtbing and tearing up trails when it's pouring and drivers here get worse in bad rain.

My worst would be
desire
:When I get in a rhythm this is a non issue, but sometimes I just don't ride for no good reason.
injuries
:Skin related or muscular. generally once I am on the bike it's fine.
people
some are holy oblivious but I deal with it most of the time.
deer
I ride at odd hours and deer like to cross the road as I am doing over 30mph downhill on a rim brake bike at night. I question this decision frequently, but I love the serene landscape when it's dark outside and quiet.

Small cog

If I could borrow your list but re-arrange it.

1. Cyclists, I have more near misses and two collisions with cyclists than any other road/path user, despite a bicycle being my primary form of transport I hate them and find many are thoughtless and selfish.

2. Cars particularly black VW Golfs, I have been hit by two in the past 3 years including getting four broken ribs the last time.

3. Pedestrians for the reasons you give.

VegasJen

My list is like yours except it's:
1) flat tires.
2) more flat tires
3) even more g*****n flat tires!

Jughed

1. Old people with no experience, blasting down the MUP on E-Bikes.
2. Dogs on long leashes on the MUP.
3. Kids on training wheels on the MUP.

I'll leave this here, the overall #1 - because in all of my years of cycling, its what's hurt me the most:
**-- ASSPLODING Crabon Fibre--**

XxHaimBondxX

People, it's always people. They cause most of the above.

Smaug1

For me, the top three are wind, poor riding surfaces and rain.

Wind never seems to balance out: a headwind is a headwind. A crosswind also kind of feels like a headwind. Only a tailwind is not also a headwind.

Poor riding surface is a killer for me. I live in a medium sized city in Wisconsin. The roads here are AWFUL. Cracked up 30 year-old concrete and asphalt that is all patches is common. I often will ride with more traffic than I like just because the city maintains those streets while ignoring all the back streets. Oftentimes the sidewalk is better than the street.

Rain... I COULD ride in the rain with proper gear, but then I'll be wet from sweat instead. It just feels bad. I drive on rainy days.

Hills balance out.
Cold temperatures I can dress for. (I rode all winter) I make enough heat that I rarely need as much clothing as I think I do. Boots, gloves and overpants are more important than jackets.
Snow/ice would be bad, but if we had enough of that, I could add studded tires. With global warming going on, we don't have that much snow any more. (SE WI)
Dogs are not an issue for me, I'm not in a hillbilly area. I'm more likely to run over a yappy rugrat dog from an inattentive phone zombie on the MUP than be attacked by a dog I have to worry about.
Darkness I don't worry about at all. I feel MORE visible in darkness with a good set of lights than I do in broad daylight, where motorists often see us without it registering in their brains.
Car traffic is pretty considerate where I live. Not great, but not like a big city either.

Brocephus

I've always hated the rain. Also, cell phones. (actually, drivers using them.)
I live in a hilly,semi-rural county, and I ride in mortal fear of pickup trucks pulling trailers that are a little wider than they are.

CAT7RDR

Railroad Tracks crossings and not taking the proper angle. Ouch!!!
Young women texting while speeding and side swiping me.
My own poor personal judgment to press on when I am in heat exhaustion or bonking.
Not keeping up with maintenance and having a mechanical failure.