Bike Creep
The other day I was enjoying the wonderful cool autumn weather on my ride home.
When all of the sudden I was interrupted.
And I realized there was something lurking over my shoulder.
I thought he was trying to pass me… but he didn’t.
I know drivers complain about tailgators. But they should consider themselves lucky that they can’t feel that stranger’s breath on their cheek.
It is strange, that person biking so much as you never heard of PELOTON.
Or did I missed something obvious? 😀
@batat: what, exactly, does a peloton have to do with bicycle commuting? I think you missed the fact that the other rider was “creepy” and thus unknown to bikeyface. the same cannot be said of a typicale bicyle pack, in which the members are all part of a team, and are well-known to each other.
@bikeyface: it’s great to see the ol’ houndstooth helmet back. Thanks for another great post.
It’s not a peloton lane, and lane splitting is illegal, even in a bike lane, typically. That said, when I get the bike creep, I can 1) usually see ’em in my mirror, and 2) intentionally swerve towards them. Being 240 pounds and having a bike with an oversize luggage rack and very sturdy fenders, even if we do make contact, I’m not the one going down.
I call them stealth drafters on the MM bike path. Mirror helps, I just wave them on. In cases where is is not safe to pass, I just hang back at least 3 bike lengths.
Beauty! While most of us are capable of riding a very smooth pace in a very straight line, this is one of those times when becoming unpredictable helps a lot. Look unsteady by wavering on the bike and using a pedal-coast-pedal-coast nonrhythmic pace. Turn to look at the jerk, and take your handlebars with you when you look back. You’ll soon persuade them that it’s in their own best interest to get clear of you – ahead of behind. (As an aside, “practiced unsteadiness” on the bike is a well-proven defensive tactic to scare the beejesus out of motorists, causing them to pass leaving a wide berth.)
“…ahead OR behind…”
Normally I am mildly amused at the pictures you draw, but this one not so much, probably because I encounter the flip side of this a bit.
I guess this is timely because yesterday I was the, “bike creep” to some lady riding up Queen Anne hill. She was on a racing bike, earbuds in; I was on my big MTB. I was riding up through Seattle to get to a store at the top of a fairly big hill. I approached a lady also riding up the hill, who looked back, saw me, sped up slightly as I approached her, and then proceeded to keep looking back at me giving me the distinct, “bike creep” feeling. Eventually she stood up on her pedals, pulled away for a bit, then fatigued and slowed down. I passed her on the other side of the one way street because there was enough space to do it safely. At the time, I distinctly remember thinking “why is she speeding up? This isn’t a race. The only race I’m in is against the clock… A&J Meats is closing in 15… 12 minutes… Oh, I need to take the next right… ”
The previous time up Dexter Ave with the same experience: “I don’t think I can overtake safely yet, but if I wait a little bit the road gets wider up ahead and I have an opportunity to do it.”
Or Ballard Ave last week: “I was hit by a car here in 2009, if I ride with someone else maybe cars will see me this time.”
As temporarily inconveniencing to you as it may be, many of these “bike creeps” probably have a good reason for riding where they are. If they’re sitting in your blind spot instead of your wheel, at least they have the good sense not to draft a complete stranger, and hopefully they’re smart enough to also not overlap wheels.
Rather than get annoyed, practice your inner zen and help them overtake – drop your speed slightly and give them the opportunity to pass. Maybe it takes you 30s longer to get to your destination, but you gain so much more from doing it. Unless, of course, you’re heading to A&J meats and they’re closing in 15… 12 minutes…
Hello neighbor!
I find this behavior weird and unpleasant. Maybe they think they have a good reason, but they’re in my personal space and make me feel uneasy. If I have to swerve or stop suddenly, they’re going to crash into me even if I call out a warning. Pass or don’t pass, there is no try.
I do have someone sidle up next to me and ask about my lighting system several times a week, and none of them creep. They just speed up a bit, hang out to my left at a safe distance, and say hello.
Sorry, there is no reason to within 2 bike lengths if you are not passing. Just wait some. Racing, don’t you know
cat 6 commuter racing ?
Lots of people in the comments so far are saying, “just ride 3+ bike lengths behind them”
In October 2012, right before I was assaulted in the international district this is exactly what happened to me. The rider followed me at a distance so they could assault me when I rode to a less populated area of the international district. So now, I’m uneasy whenever someone could be following me at a distance. That’s what I find creepy behavior – someone following me at a few bike lengths.
I’ll take feeling uneasy over being backboarded in to an ambulance after being hit by a car any day too. That is not something I would wish upon anyone having gone through that experience twice, once for being doored, once for a taxi not paying attention.
All of this unease says more about me than it does about the drivers and riders around me. It is public space after all. We share, even if it’s not convenient or comfortable or even if we disagree with how it’s shared. I try to do what’s safe, then what’s comfortable for everyone else within reason, but there are situations where there is no “right” answer and someone’s going to be uncomfortable. Being a tall, somewhat big non-white guy on a big bike, maybe I’m the very definition of someone else’s cause for unease, and if that’s the case we’ll just have to do our very best to live with each other.
Or the alt-creep that passes you very quickly on the left, and has no front or back lights. Screw that guy, man.
Or the alt-creep who passes silently on the right while you’re waiting at a red light.