Our new home in VA is close to a number of bike paths. Although we haven't been here that long, I have spent enough time on the path to notice a number of different characters:
1. You get the guys who decide that on a beautiful weekend day, when the trail is at its busiest, they are going to cycle like they are training for the Tour De France. These guys have incredibly fancy bikes and very fancy cycling gear. I bet they paid more for their super trendy matching jerseys and shorts than I did for my entire bike. These guys just like to bomb up and down the trail, constantly screaming "On your left" as they pass someone. They also are very impatient at cross streets playing chicken with on coming traffic. Frequently seen at bike shops complaining that their rig must not be optimized because they are not as fast as they would like to be.
2. The old dudes who could care less about society's rules. It is not only cyclists who use the path, but also walkers, joggers and apparently even horseback riders (although I have yet to see anyone on horseback, there are all sorts of signs that provide that all traffic must yield to horse traffic). Last weekend I was on a quick jaunt and noticed these two old guys, dressed for a crisp autumn day even though it was nearly 90 degrees, and just walking slowly down the very middle of the path. Generally everyone keeps to the right, except to pass, but these guys were right smack in the middle and could care less. Even better, if someone said anything to them, they just ignored it. I imagine these are the type of old guys that probably smoke in hospitals and around babies!
3. The posers. In many ways, these people are very similar to those in category number 1, they have equally fancy equipment. However, they don't ride that much, and are consequently very slow. I passed someone in this super nice racing set up on my mountain bike. Even more amazing, I was on the gravel path and they were on asphalt. He was far better dressed than me though. These are also the type of people who put on their biking gear to go to the bike shop. Even if they drive there. Sort of like getting dressed up for an event I guess. The last time I was in the bike store I was one of the few people there who was not in cycling gear. I was also one of the few people that had rode to the store instead of driving!
4. Trail police. These guys are in no way affiliated with a legitimate police organization. They are regular guys who feel that it is perfectly OK to boss other people around. For instance, this morning when I started my ride, it was quite dark and I had to use a light on my bike. The trail is pretty empty early in the morning, but not deserted. Most of the time when you are approaching a rider coming the opposite way, you try to cover your light with your hand so to avoid blinding them. So I come around a corner and encounter another bike, he covers his light and just as I am about to cover mine he yells out "Dim your fucking light"! Naturally, I took a bit longer to dim it. The funniest part about the whole thing was that my light is not particularly bright. Also, people are usually nicer on the trail than they are in typical society - for instance you may say good morning to someone as you pass on the trail. If you do this on most streets as a pedestrian people will think you are a lunatic if you engage in any kind of pleasantries. Also, generally when you are exercising you feel pretty good and don't have much stress. So this guy deciding that my light dimming was not fast enough and losing his shit over it leads me to believe that he is a pretty volatile individual. The kind of guy who if he has a few cups of coffee in him might kick you in the balls and chew on your ears if you sent him a memo with a typo in it.
I am sure there will be some more encounters to come. If I owned a horse and commuting to work via a horse were an option, I would definitely do it. If only to tie my horse up outside my office like it is a saloon out of the Wild West.
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