10 Wheels

Road Rider here. Most wear Ear Buds listing to music.
I watch them then pass.

Use my air horn if they seem to need an Alert.

Kabuki12

I do not use MUP’s and I have a bell that I ping when I pass. That’s just me and how I ride. SoCal is so densely populated now , when you are out riding , you get what you get. I try not to let it get to me . Some riders know how to ride and be safe, others are just ignorant or don’t care. That’s life in the city, try to focus on the good and hope for the best. Enjoy the ride!

CycleCommuter

I completely agree with all three points and I ride most of the time as a commuter around the streets, greenways and multi-use trails in NYC and the tri-state area. I believe in bike culture, that it is not only for safety that we should be polite but also to build community. As some of the greenways and trails that I ride are among the busiest paths in the country, it can be extremely dangerous not to announce yourself.

Unfortunately, few people use this etiquette. I have found the area becoming more dangerous due to e-bikes and electric motorcycles that have started populating the trails and bike paths. On numerous occasions I have been in the middle of passing someone, only to be passed myself by an electric bike traveling well in excess the safe speed on these trails, as they are often winding paths with limited visibility.

indyfabz

IKR. I was on a mass start charity ride with about 4,000 other people. We were crossing a bridge in the first mile. Everyone was surrounded by everyone else and passing each other. Woman yells at me for not announcing my pass. I told her that until the crowd thins out assume someone is about to pass you.

BTW...I’ve led groups over the Brooklyn Bridge more than a dozen times during a yearly ride. Sunday before Labor Day, so it’s extra crowded with tourists. My exploits in plowing the road are legendary.

crankholio

The only time I give a verbal warning when I'm passing is if there's not much room or if there are kids (and I generally slow down if there are kids because they'll make a 90 degree turn right in front of you with no warning, even if you say "on the left"). Otherwise, I just stay silent and give plenty of space.

GlennR

When you say "on your left", kids and many adults turn their heads to the left to look followed by their shoulders and then the bike turns left.

Kids and dogs are unpredictable so I always slow down just to be safe. It will be a really bad day for me if I hit a kid or a dog. If it's an adult their fair game

delbiker1 

If it is an adult, you are fair game, a game nobody wins.

Reflector Guy

I've come upon groups on the path, families in particular, and if it looks like they might be a handful to pass I am not opposed to laying back for a little while and then I can pass them at the next street crossing. Within reason, of course; I won't follow them for miles but if it's just a few hundred feet? Gives me chance to catch my breath.

c_m_shooter

Some of you need to spend some time racing mountain bikes and motorcycles on singletrack or fixed gears at a Velodrome. Any pass that doesn't stuff you into tree with a shoulder is a good pass. I give dogs and kids extra space because of the unpredictable nature of the creatures. I have a bell and use it, most riders I pass are wearing earbuds and don't seem to hear it anyway.

Vismund B

I commute daily in NYC and my experience is the same. I’ve been passed while passing others. I’ve seen e-bikes pass in the most dangerous spots on paths. They will pass anywhere, anytime, any situation if they feel like it. Like around a curve. Where you can’t see any oncoming traffic. I’ve noticed a lot of times they’ll slow down to check their phone or something and then all the sudden when they’re done they’ll just speed up and go where they need to with out even looking. I don’t feel bad passing any of them “too closely”.

For the normal civilized riders, I’ll usually ring the bell and say good morning or a thank you if they’ve slowed or moved over a bit as I’m passing.

AlgarveCycling

Hmmm, I pass cyclists most training rides - cycling is very popular for sport and fitness here, less so commuting though although ebikes among tourists is very common. I usually say "Bom dia" (Good morning) as I go past and get the same greeting in return. Heck, here in Southern Portugal, most pedestrians or anyone out and about greet everyone regardless and if we are in a Group, we'll get some banter going with locals wherever we are. Had some elderly folks making me feel I was in the Tour de France yesterday on a hill, such was their support as they sat by the roadside! It's a friendly place. Waving and greeting is the norm, riding or no.

Sometimes I do fail to say hello though, like today, went past a few individuals but I was in time trial mode and doing between 25-30mph, concentrating - knackered towards the end so unlikely to say anything! I always pass wide so no probs.

It isn't the same as cycling in a dense suburb, let alone a city, here. In Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Ghent, it is all bells and warning etc...here, very tranquil, lots of personal space, mostly empty roads, low population density. Lovely.

ofajen

At the moment, the frenetic squirrels are a big concern here. So many, so active and so random. I really don’t want them dashing to and fro and ending up in my front wheel. That would be a mess for all involved, I reckon. Hard to anticipate, though. Sometimes they dart across at the very last moment.

Otto

ofajen

There can be a safety reason to give a signal before passing.

A rider passed me on the road about a year ago and nearly caused us to collide. I rode down a fairly steep hill, slowing because there was a car right in front of me and going slow and I was going to turn left soon anyway.

Just as I’m past one street and about to put my arm out for the left turn signal for my upcoming turn, a rider who hadn’t slowed down to observe the pace of the traffic flew past without prior notice. It was pure luck that I didn’t clobber him in the face with my turn signal or collide with him as I began to ease into my turn.

So also as a matter of safety, it’s good to make sure riders know you are behind them, because you can’t assume they will follow the straight route where turns are an option.

Otto

GlennR

Aim for where they are, cause they won't be there when you pass.

BlazingPedals

Once I was putting away my bike after one of those big day rides where you pay money to a charity. I start walking to the HQ building and I hear, "there he is" as a woman was pointing me out to a policeman. Huh? Turns out I had passed her a few miles from the end, going completely into the other traffic lane, but didn't warn her. Cop waved me away and was trying to explain to the woman that I'd done nothing wrong; She of course (being a total noob to riding - probably did the 6 mile route) was incensed by not being warned even though I'd probably left her 10 feet of room.

aplcr0331

Yes, I do think you're expecting too much. But lectures are fun. Plus, apparently, you hate getting passed.

As you can see everyone here has never done anything wrong when cycling, just like you. We always wave, always announce, always stop at the stop sign on empty roads when nobody is around, always signal every turn and stop when in traffic, always wax our chains and never-ever-EVAH throw our SiS Gels into the bushes like we're Alaphilippe attacking on the last climb.

There's two measures when it comes to cycling with others (cars, pedestrians, cyclists and those dreaded roadies with their drop bars, lycra, carbon and other snobbery) and those two measures is all there will ever be.

1. First Measure: Not Hit.
2. Second Measure: Hit.

Number two is bad. Number one is what happens to the vast majority of cyclists. We don't get hit. Close pass? Irrelevant. Don't hit. Period. A cyclist passed within one foot? I don't see the problem. But I'm not scared.

If you're scared, pull your mask on tight....tighter....and go back inside on Zwift. That way you don't have to worry about the lumpenproletariat roadies passing without a personal greeting, written invitation, and signed non compete clause filled out prior to any engagement with you as you're crushing the downhills at 35mph.

No worries though you can still get your lecture fix because when you're inside and some Asian dude passes you on the Alpe du Zwift at 8.7w/kg you can come on here and still post great "well I never!" threads so everyone can understand (finally) about how egregious weight doping is.

Reflector Guy

Apparently "Karen" has taken up cycling.

FoldingSpace

If the rule on the mixed path is verbal or audible signal then you should do it. Cyclists of different abilities, some easily startled are using those trails - which should be accepted and acknowledged. It's not a distraction if you're an accomplished rider, and it's an expected courtesy if you're not. If you're from some place where no signals or required or expected, there still might be utility in the courtesy, but most places in the US it's expected, posted as a rule or even a legal statute in some scenarios (signage etc)

There are definitely spots where that might be a counterproductive thing to do - I've given vocal signals and had people panic, swerve or wobble into the exact wrong side and yoou should use your best judgment - but the most common bad behaviors I see on mixed use trails are silent whip-speed overtaking maneuvers from cyclists whose equipment demonstrates they should know better. And if the trail is mixed use, speeding pack and three abreast riding is dangerous and made more so without signals of some kind. If that's inconvenient, or a trail is full of oblivious slow moving tourists etc, then do what I do and take a different route for that stretch.

And covid of course, complicates it further. Each situation is different - if somebody ahead is wearing earphones for example, then signal may be useless anyway. I use bell for those as a courtesy and moral liability insurance.

Also, GEESE don't care what you say or do. They're gonna go where they like.

Mojo31

Hey bud, watch your comments about us 6 milers.

Miradaman

It depends. If I'm in a trafficky area and I'm passing someone at close quarters, I'll call out. If I can give the other rider wide berth, say 10 feet or so, I don't. I feel a certain degree of situational awareness is every rider's responsibility and as such, it's on each cyclist to look behind and to the left before making a maneuver that might cut another rider off. I'm much more likely to call out when passing pedestrians, because I assume they're paying less attention to their surroundings given the more relaxed nature of walking. Plus, frankly, "on your left" always struck me as just an attention seeking ploy from a certain type of rider - like they want to make sure you're fully aware of how fast they can go, how fancy their bikes and biking outfits are and so on. Instead of "on your left", maybe try adjusting your speed to something more appropriate to the location and traffic density instead...

hubcyclist

If one is easily startled by someone passing over 3 ft to their left then maybe the path is not the correct place for them. I'm never going to close pass someone, and oftentimes I'll wait behind someone while someone coming in the opposite direction can go (too many people try to split in the middle, I would never do that).

I'm going to stand by my original point that *adults* should have enough awareness of their surroundings to not have to not be surprised by passing individuals, people should be maintaining a predictable path of travel, and if they want to pass/change lanes/cross the path, they should be looking behind them (lots of folks have those dorky mirrors, nothing should be a surprise to those folks). Heck, maintaining a straight, predictable path is something my 9 year old already knows when we ride. I mean this is a moot point for me, ultimately, since the only time I've been on a bike path lately is with my child and I train indoors 6 days a week or ride on the roads. But again adults should not be surprised/startled by cyclists if they are actively choosing to use a path which contains bike traffic.

Miradaman

My sentiments exactly. And I'd love for others to do the same. I'm not impressed that you have to announce your presence to me so you can show off the pricey bike you're riding at a hazardous pace on a crowded MUP. Maybe just ride at an appropriate speed and not say anything...

Sorg67

I have found "good morning" to be effective and well received also.

work4bike

I don't give anyone a head's up that I'm passing, because I give plenty of space between us -- I hate bells. I'm not too concerned about people not giving me a head's up when they pass close by me (although I can see how that can be annoying), but I already know well in advance, thanks to my mirror.

FoldingSpace

I'm with you in that I expect a basic level of competence, but I also expect it to not be met. Mixed trails are exactly where I expect to find novice riders.

Again, if those are the rules, or even the local traditions, you should follow them unless there's a safety reason not to - if they're NOT the rules then you're really just deciding how courteous you want to be or not -- and we're only talking about mixed use trails. Your standards or expectations might be irrelevant in the event of a crash.

There will be novice, terrible, clumsy or confused riders on those trails and unfortunately the physics of hitting them or falling off your bike are the same regardless of how you feel about it. If someone falls off their bike in a situation where me giving an audible signal would have prevented it, then I'd personally have that on my conscience regardless of their ability or idiocy.

I find it mildly inconvenient to have to give verbal or audible signals sometimes, but that's the cost of sharing a resource. And it's about the lowest cost-benefit calculation I ever have to do. And I don't always get it right, sometimes I say something too late, or I'm out of breath, or occasionally just space, but I always intend to and I always try to except in the situation I sketched - headphones, a small child, a suspected non english speaking tourist etc. Sometimes I simply slow all the way down because some combination of those things makes it pointless to try.

It's like signaling turns. Usually it's not essential and so you do it to ensure it happens for the rare times it turned out it was essential. And manners.