The Bad Cycling Habits Thread

[MalibuStacy]

So as the title suggests this thread is about the bad habits we all see and in some cases are guilty of.

I personally know I am guilty for not using effective hand gestures and not shoulder checking on the bike often enough. I also have been known to ride on sidewalks on occasion.

Personally I hate to see cyclists who completely ignore the rules of the road. Running reds, lane splitting. I also really hate seeing riders not wearing helmets or using lights in the dark, just plain stupid.

Squeaky chains are annoying too, but that's just my perfectionist tendencies coming through.

How bout you guys?

[D'z Nutz]

I have a habit of crossing paths with benyl to and from work semi-frequently I wouldn't say it's a "bad" habit cause he's a pretty chill guy haha

[Hallowed_point]

Oh man , this could be long..cyclists that like to stop within one inch of your passenger side at a light (if they actually stop!) Keep your distance, I don't want my car getting scratched or risking hitting you.

Same goes for the ones that park right behind your ass. Hmm..if you get rear ended by a car behind us that's gonna work out well.

Wearing all black clothing at night and no light on.

Wearing an ipod so that you can't hear anything around you in traffic.

My favorite is when they look directly at you, and then blow through the 4 way stop. It's like, I'm better than you because I'm on a bike. Even better when they have their little daughter riding behind them playing copy cat. Really smart

[benyl]

Originally posted by D'z Nutz
I have a habit of crossing paths with benyl to and from work semi-frequently I wouldn't say it's a "bad" habit cause he's a pretty chill guy haha

haha, I am never sure if that is you. You Asians all look the same!

I have a bad habit of leaving my bike dirty. Probably extra wear and tear.

[msommers]

Not having a bell while on the pathway. I normally just say 'on your left' but I've had a few people yell at me about my lack of bell and I keep meaning to put it on

[ercchry]

Originally posted by msommers
Not having a bell while on the pathway. I normally just say 'on your left' but I've had a few people yell at me about my lack of bell and I keep meaning to put it on

you.... monster

my bad habit is always taking something with a motor instead of the bike...

[msommers]

Oh yeah, it's not a bad habit of cycling myself but of other cyclists while I'm driving. Like 4-way stops. This cyclist thought he didn't have to stop, so I went on my turn and cut him off The look on his face was priceless

[speedog]

Dark clothes, no helmet and no lights when it's dark - I just don't get it. Saw a lady (20-30 something) last night juts after 11:00pm on 4th Street NW at 16th Avenue - no lights, no reflectors, no helmet, attempted to run the red south bound on 4th Street and only managed to get half ways across 16th Avenue where she remianed stuck until the EB 16th Avenue traffic cleared enough for her to finish running that red.

My biggest faux pas - rolling through stop signs, am trying to do less of it. Have never run a red or yellow on my bicycle and I need to treat stop signs the same way. Difficult to do when on an evening ride through a quiet community but those signs are there for a reason and just because I'm on a bicycle shouldn't excuse me from the law. Maybe it's because I can just react quicker on a bicycle and because I'm generally not moving as fast.

Also, cyclists listening to tunes - that I don't get. How can you hear anything around you, a car coming up behind you, a dog coming out at you, etc?

Something I used to have on my bicycle when I cycle commuted - a handlebar mounted mirror. It may have looked a bit odd but that mirror sure as hell is one great extra safety feature - gonna have to get another one. Really great when riding in a group of cyclists - easy to keep tabs on who's behind you and how close they are, much better than constantly turning one's head.

[Mitsu3000gt]

By far the most annoying thing is the lane splitting to get to the front of the line of cars at a red light, so that all cars behind are limited to a maximum speed of ~10-20 km/h until the cyclist turns off. If the odd car manages to safely pass the cyclist, it doesn't matter, because they ride to the front again at the next light. Then you miss the next green light because you're driving so slow, and end up waiting at every single red light, each of which of course the cyclist is at the front of the line for. I'm sure there is the odd one that doesn't do this but nearly every single cyclist I have seen on the road does this downtown.

The other thing I don't like is the blatant disregard for all the rules of the road so many of them seem to have, such as ignoring stop signs and not stopping for pedestrians.

Some of them seem to like to ride on the sidewalk as well, and I have even been hit by one cyclist who decided to use the sidewalk instead of the bike lane 6 inches away on 10th ave. It's especially bad under the 8th street bridge. This one isn't as common.

Couriers scare me as well. They weave in/out of traffic inches away from everyone's car. They slow down traffic so much because people are scared to hit them. This doesn't really apply to the average commuter though, mostly just couriers. You only really see these guys in the core at least.

[speedog]

Oh, and I absolutely hate it when a motorist stops for me when they have the right of way and I am stopped astride my bicycle waiting for traffic to clear so I can safely cross. I am not a pedestrian when I am still astride my bicycle - if I want to cross as a pedestrian, I will dismount my bicycle, walk beside it and get over to the pedestrian crosswalk area.

As a motorist, I will not cede my right of way to a cyclist who doesn't have the right of way - if you're in the crosswalk are and off of your bicycle, then I'll yield. But if you're going to be a pedestrian for that moment in time and I stop for you in my car, then you sure as hell better remain a pedestrian for that whole crossing event - do not all of a sudden get back on your bicycle and be a cyclist, that will just really piss me off because you're now changing the rules.

[bspot]

I've noticed there seem to be way more cyclists and pedestrians on the River Walk these days. I've definitely slowed down the speed that I ride home in the summer, as I notice tons of bikes are just total dicks to all the pedestrians, especially on the shared sections of path by Eau Claire where they buzz way to close to people with no warning and cut some people off pretty hard.

No wonder everyone hates us

[bspot]

Originally posted by speedog
Oh, and I absolutely hate it when a motorist stops for me when they have the right of way and I am stopped astride my bicycle waiting for traffic to clear so I can safely cross.

I HATE this

Sometimes I'm eyeing the gap behind the offending car to make my move, and don't even notice they've stopped, which holds up the traffic behind them even longer.

I know people are trying to be polite, but it's just dangerous and frustrating. It's like stopping mid block for a jaywalker.

[D'z Nutz]

Originally posted by benyl
haha, I am never sure if that is you. You Asians all look the same!

That must be why I can only recognize you half the time haha! I like viewing the flybys on Strava just to see how many people follow similar paths and sure enough, you're on some of my rides going the opposite direction

Originally posted by msommers
Not having a bell while on the pathway. I normally just say 'on your left' but I've had a few people yell at me about my lack of bell and I keep meaning to put it on

Eh, to be fair, a lot of people listen to their music so loud (bikers and pedestrians alike) they wouldn't hear your bell anyways so it's not like you'll get everyone.

[Moonracer]

Originally posted by speedog
Oh, and I absolutely hate it when a motorist stops for me when they have the right of way and I am stopped astride my bicycle waiting for traffic to clear so I can safely cross.

Originally posted by bspot


I HATE this

Sometimes I'm eyeing the gap behind the offending car to make my move, and don't even notice they've stopped, which holds up the traffic behind them even longer.

I know people are trying to be polite, but it's just dangerous and frustrating. It's like stopping mid block for a jaywalker.

happens to me a couple times a week normally. I just end up putting my head down and give it a shake, they'll get the hint or they'll get honked at.

Originally posted by D'z Nutz

Eh, to be fair, a lot of people listen to their music so loud (bikers and pedestrians alike) they wouldn't hear your bell anyways so it's not like you'll get everyone.

a bell is pretty much useless these days with so many people wearing their earphones. I have the loudest bell you can get and people still don't hear it.

[MalibuStacy]

I am guilty for letting cars have the right of way in a four way stop. Often around the schools and the university. Half the time people have absolutely no clue how to use them when its just cars, but add a bicycle to the mix and all hell breaks loose. Thus often in a four way I will wait till it is safe, stand and take a water break. I do know the rules of the four way, but in all honesty, I don't have six feet of metal around me, so if one of the asshats in the stop sign decides to go I always lose.

Sometimes I feel although I have the same amount of rights as a car on the road, you still got to use your head, and remember that the bike always loses.

[MalibuStacy]

Originally posted by Moonracer


a bell is pretty much useless these days with so many people wearing their earphones. I have the loudest bell you can get and people still don't hear it.

But isn't not having a bell illegal?

[benyl]

I wear earphones. I can hear a cyclist behind me. How fucking loud are people playing their music that they can't hear a bell?

My commute is 90% path.

When I am on the road, if a car is going to hit me, they are going to hit me whether I can hear them or not.

[MalibuStacy]

Originally posted by benyl
I wear earphones. I can hear a cyclist behind me. How fucking loud are people playing their music that they can't hear a bell?

My commute is 90% path.

When I am on the road, if a car is going to hit me, they are going to hit me whether I can hear them or not.

I spend most of my time on the paths too, but when push comes to shove, I will yield to the cars as I enjoy the art of being able to walk

[Joel_D]

Originally posted by bspot
I've noticed there seem to be way more cyclists and pedestrians on the River Walk these days.

My commute to work is half on the road and the other half on the pathway during rush hour. This year I actually feel safer and less stressed sharing the road with cars. Way too many PathAthletes making dangerous/unsafe passes. Especially on the narrow section just west of Crowchild & Memorial, where you have a mixture of walkers, runners, bladers, and cyclist all travelling at different speeds.

One of these days some ones likely to end up over the concrete barrier or in the river.

[Moonracer]

Originally posted by MalibuStacy


But isn't not having a bell illegal?

Yup