This on-road section of the ride used to be
our least favorite, but we may be starting to change our minds with the lack of
courtesy shown on the trail by joggers, walkers and, most surprisingly, by
fellow cyclists. I know we are travelling faster than the average person getting
in touch with nature out on his/her cruiser bike for the weekend, but we are
very conscious of giving notice that we are “Passing” or “On your left”.
However, it’s difficult these days to tell
if someone is even listening to a warning, with people listening to music on
earphones or, my personal favorite, having a conversation on the phone. The
trails on the weekend are simply too congested to be in your own little world.
I will only wear headphones on very isolated trails, where interaction with
other cyclists, etc. is infrequent. The Schuylkill Trail also has the added
danger of several road crossings that make earphone use unwise.
If you don’t know by now, I HATE cell phones
and vow never to use one unless it’s an emergency - if I’m not at home, I really
don’t want anyone bothering me. I think that for most people, cell phone use is
a convenience that has become an addiction; there is no reason to be talking on
the phone if you are out exercising, unless you have collapsed from said exercise!
There were numerous walkers who didn’t
bother to acknowledge my voice when I came up behind them, and other than a
couple of old folks, cell phone use was the primary reason. I lost my temper a few
times when I saw someone riding by while on the phone or better yet, texting.
Really, you must have a transplant donor trying to contact you with that new brain!
I don’t want to leave out mentioning the
people who just have a bad attitude towards cyclists. We were coming up behind
a pack of people walking across
the trail, and I yelled out to alert them. They didn’t move very
much, and Sue repeated a warning, which was met with a whiny, “Okay, okay, we
heard you the first time.” I generally refuse to respond to such comments, but
I certainly thought, “Maybe if you had moved more than an inch we wouldn’t have
thought you were deaf!”
I must admit that parents have improved in
their responsibility to watch out for their cycling kids and remind them not to swerve
all over. If children are holding a reasonably steady line, sometimes sneaking
quietly by them, instead of giving verbal warning, seems like a better strategy.
God only knows what they’re going to do if I yell “On your left!” They usually
just panic completely, but I imagine their little minds racing with “Whose left?
Wait, which direction is left?”
I only wish the parents would improve their
action, such as the couple riding their mountain bikes side by side on a
particularly narrow section nearing Boat House Row. Again, they didn’t budge a
bit when we called out! We were then met by the new Scourge of the Schuylkill,
the rental pedal car, with two grown men badly completing a U-turn right in the
way of oncoming cyclists in both directions. I won’t share with you the words
that Sue and I muttered, but remember that we are fluent in “French”.
My all-time favorite trail etiquette story while riding the trail
near the Art Museum could include people of any size, shape, sex or race, but
to provide a perfect mental image, I will tell you that three wide-hipped black
teen girls were walking side by side, with absolutely NO ROOM for us to pass
by. I gave plenty of warning without any result, and then reworded my phrase, “Passing,
please”.
I slowed to a standing-on-the-pedals crawl
and said, “Excuse me.” One of the girls
responded by turning slightly so that I could squeeze by. Understandably
annoyed, I turned and said, “The trail is here to share, girls,” to which one lovely female answered, “SHUT UP!
I had no response –
really, what do you say to that?
No comments :
Post a Comment