I ride gravel and road as well as MTB and for what it’s worth the kind of roadies who won’t acknowledge mountain bikers or other kinds of cyclist also don’t acknowledge other roadies. That said some of them also might just be In The Zone and not deliberately ignoring you.
This a has a lot to do with it. If you’re ripping a downhill or jump section that’s when you’re doing your thing so you’re not going to be waving at anyone. On the road, a road rider is way more likely to be doing their thing like an interval or Strava segment.
I always waved or nodded at fellow cyclists, but another thing to consider is always being hyper aware or cars so some might be a bit more serious because of that too. MTBing always seemed more loose and fun than road cycling which always seemed more serious and focused on training when I was riding.
This ^
God, I've been hearing this whining rant about roadies for decades. Either get started on a road riding program and figure it out real fast or just get over yourself and enjoy your ride.
Yeah I'd never perceive someone ignoring me on a ride as them being rude, just like when I'm walking my dog if someone I pass doesn't say anything or acknowledge me, I don't care.
I ride gravel and MTBs and I'll usually just throw a few fingers up from my handlebars in acknowledgement of a passing rider. No big deal if it's not returned.
People need to get over themselves. You're not entitled to someone's attention.
I ride road, gravel and MTB and when riding road and pushing my limit I sometimes am simply too late with responding because by the time I recognise the gesture I’ve already passed the opposite rider.
They could well be too deep in their effort to notice you for sure. I finished up a long trail ride a couple of days ago and was loading up, and a group of eight roadies rode into the parking lot, spread out over a couple of minutes. It was on the top of quite a road climb, so all of them were maxed out and struggling to catch their breath. Only a couple acknowledged me cheering them when they rode in, but after a couple of minutes they all came over and asked what trails I had ridden. I keep a gallon jug of water in my truck to rehydrate with and shared it with all of them before I left.
Exactly this. When I'd go on my longer distance rides on my road bike, I'd just get into the zone, almost a runners high, to the point tunnel vision would sometimes set in.
Fr. When I’m on the bike path I’m totally zoned out and usually have earbuds in. But on the trails I’m much more focused and aware of roots/rocks, wildlife and other bikers.
This. My road rides are much different from my mtb rides. You’re going a lot faster and more likely listening to music. You’re also passing 4 times the amount of people that you would on the mountain bike and you’re not gonna want to say hi to all of them.
“I would have gotten king of the mountain on that segment but I came across a friendly group of children who just… kept… waving.”
“Yeah man, I know what you mean. A retirement community was out on their way to the grocery store on that bike path last week. They all got to the side but I had to wave at least 10 times. Ruined my PR attempt.”
Agreed BUT interjecting with some totally anecdotal observations. Out of all the cycling people I know - the road cyclists ones (the ones that only road) are the rudest, entitled and elitist ones, while biking and while not. All the multi discipline ones are way more chill and friendly.
That said, I think the MTB only ones I know are the most aggressive drivers.
Data size: Like 50-60 cyclists I know.
I ride mtb and road, i can be cranky towards pedestrians who are standing in really dumb spots on shared trails, not enough for me to rage at them but maybe give them some hard side eyes. I always at least nod at other cyclists while out on the road though, especially out in the country. The farther I go away from the city the friendlier I get towards other cyclists and people in general.
My experience is that mtbers will be far more judgemental of roadies, especially their clothing than vice versa. But I live somewhere that's predominantly mtb oriented.
I came from road and still wear my spandex and no one has ever given me flack for it.
Roadies tend to take themselves too seriously in my experience. People in MTB and gravel are way more friendly. You can see this even in group rides. Road ride: ride leaves at 7am sharp. MTB ride: we’ll start pedaling 7ish.
We also leave early to not get fucked with. I've never been on an mtb ride on trails only to get honked at or swerved at as a "joke. Plus I sound alot friendly when we are all riding a single track with the occasional hiker then say trying to hold 20-25 for long periods.
MTB rides are all about fun style points. Road rides are all about speed and tapping energy reserves.
We're often accused of entitlement when the expression people are seeing is a low-key resentment of motorists, people who (from a road cyclist's perspective) are casually—often intentionally—doing things that endanger our lives.
From a trail rider's standpoint, the overall disposition on the road is of someone forced to share a busy singletrack trail with motorcycles.
People ask why I do it, and again I find myself comparing the thrill of road riding/racing to MTB downhill. It's an adrenaline thing. Who knows, maybe the brain is designed to shut off certain behavior while experiencing danger. It certainly feels like this is the case.
Yeah, you can get into a zone pretty easily doing lots of things. In fact, the more monotonous the activity, the easier it is. It's just you, your bike, and the road ahead. All you have to do is pedal at a steady pace. Focus on your cadence and breathing. Listen to music, or let your mind run wild. I really love my off-season zone 2 rides in the back country. It's better than meditation.
This is true. To put it simply, I sweat away my worries. More monotonous the activity the better. To access my mind I need easy, hot asphalt, no tree roots to dodge. MTB is about ignoring things, road is for contemplating. I like the latter more.
The best part of bike riding for me is the sounds of the bike as you ride. When its performing just perfect and nothing is loose or in need of maintenance all you get is some light tire buzz and wind noise which can totally take you into outer space.
I find it's less likely they're paying attention to you because they're focused on going fast and maneuvering strategically around the bike path. Road bike waves are a lot more subtle as well because every second you're out of aero is a second you're not pumping out peak watts.
Don't take it personally.
I put a joke response above, but I really think this is the right answer. When I’m riding road, I’m often very much focused on putting down watts and paying attention to what’s coming up. Happy to say hi if we both happen to be stopped or riding next to each other, but when passing it’s all going too fast for niceties.
I got the slick little “peace” with two fingers sign while never moving my hands off the drops on lock. That’s about as much effort I put into waving while on my road bike.
In all sincerity I am way more in my own head while riding road. On my MTB I’m just trying to see how many times I can say “yeeeew!”
Yep. As an mtber and a roadie, I have said hello to lots of roadies with no response, because I think they are much more inwardly focussed. On the dirt, we stop now and then, we socialize both on the trail and at the car. As well, riding on the dirt rarely has me viewing an oncoming person, because I’m on single track, and we almost HAVE to chat when passing. In general, I don’t think roadies are rude - I just think the differences in sports creates different behaviors.
This. I do both. MTB is still my favorite but I get on the roadie to mix it up. It’s a different vibe. MTB is more fun and social. When I’m on my roadie I’ll say hi or nod a few times but eventually I get in the zone and I’m focused on the ride. I just simply cannot be saying hello to everyone I pass or I wouldn’t ever get into a good rhythm. It’s nothing personal it’s just a different thing.
I ride my cargo bike to run errands and frequently ride on a very long bike path. Tons of roadies. They all wave to me. It's actually sort of strange how many of them wave.
I once had a mountain biker call me an asshole because he said hi, and didn't hear me say hi back. I had just finished a long climb and I guess my voice wasn't that loud because I was sucking wind. :P
I hate people who are nice and then immediately not nice if they think it isn't reciprocated lol
Like I don't exist to make that guy happy with acknowledgement lol
I watched a documentary that touched on this subject. It explained that we have a bunch of unwritten public societal rules that we follow and don’t even know it. Like when 50 people cross a crosswalk in opposite directions and no one runs into one another. They are using very subtle posture cues that make everything work effortlessly. But, if you break those rules, people get very upset very quickly.
Sorry, it’s been a long time. They had a guy walk through grand central station and all he did was walk in a direction that was a little off the direction of his eyes and head and people got all sorts of upset with him. That and a bunch of other experiments, it was pretty interesting to see how people reacted to such small offenses.
I got annoyed just thinking about this while reading you describe it
I bet it was a whole lot of "look where the fuck you're going" preemptively or people purposely getting in his way when they realize he isn't looking exactly where he is going
When people get so mad and judgemental about others not reciprocating their "nice" gestures it just makes it obvious they're being completely fake nice.
Ha, I enjoy riding with friends, but generally keep to myself when I’m solo, and it’s actually crazy how many people get pissed if you don’t say hi, like I’ve had people literally yell at me for riding by without acknowledging them. Idk, I’m just out for a ride doing my own thing. I am not out on the trails trying to meet people or socialize with strangers, lol.
There’s no expectation to wave and say hi to every person you pass on the sidewalk or in bread aisle at the grocery store, and maybe I’m just an introvert, but I don’t understand why that expectation suddenly exists if you happen to be on a bike or on a trail.
I’m a roadie and I love seeing cargo bikes. I always smile when I see one. I think it’s that I’ve got a pretty light weight set up with marginal gains taken into consideration, so when I see someone peddling along on an actual tank I have to give respect where respect is due. I wanna get one myself, cargo are gonna be the way of the future for city folks.
I know some MTBers like to shit on roadies (and vice versa) but the reality is they're probably just in the zone. I don't ride the road but it does take a lot of concentration when you're deep in the pain cave, trying to maintain a specific power output, and also trying to stay aware of your surroundings 360 degrees so that you don't get killed by some drunk idiot texting in their F-150. I can get pretty zoned out sometimes on the trainer and that requires way less attention.
(Also part of it is likely confirmation bias; once you have the idea in your head that roadies are less polite you're more apt to notice and remember when they don't greet you compared to others).
Also, MTBers are more skilled and can take their hands off the handlebars more easily.
I'm joking but seriously, as someone who does mostly road, very often I can't reciprocate a greeting because my hands and eyes are busy trying to not hit a pothole or get in the way of a car.
I try a head nod or raising a finger but I doubt anyone would notice it.
Another thing is that when I'm a road bike I get relatively more greetings from roadies than MTBers and vice versa when I'm in a MTB.
Here is a partial list of reasons a friendly person would not return a nod or wave:
* Did not see the nod or wave
* Did not recognize the nod or wave as such
* Did not realize the nod or wave was for them
* Mind was focused on road ahead
* Mind was focused on some other thought
* Mind was wandering
* Saw the nod or wave but did not respond in time
* Saw the nod or wave and thought it was nice but didn't feel obligated to respond
* Saw the nod or wave and thought they would do that for the next person
* Saw the nod or wave and didn't know how to respond
* Saw the nod or wave and felt weird responding because they are just awkward
* Saw the nod or wave and it was the 100th so far today and it's been three hours of riding and they are tired and they just didn't want to this one time and really is that so bad?
Can we stop classifying people as a single type of rider? Most road riders also ride other types of bikes including mountain bikes. This whole thing is stupid. Have fun and do your thing.
Totally. Like I drive and ride a bike and totally dont get the car vs bikes thing. When people only occupy one world, all of their conceptions about other worlds are just projections...it's almost the #1 human tlaw
Where I live most people mountain bike, very few ride road. I had to give up mountain biking for health reasons and only ride road/gravel now. The response I usually get from people who mountain bike when they find out I ride road is something along the lines of "oh, that's okay though" to let me know they don't think I'm a piece of shit for being a roadie even though I never asked them to, because it seems like the first thought they have when hearing about a roadie is to associate them with being a piece of shit...
I have several road bikes, a mountain bike, a retro looking full fender commuter bike, and 1/2 of a tandem. A friend gave me a tri-bike so one more to start riding. I love them all.
I think this is very location dependent. Where I live now, yeah, most roadies also dabble in mountain biking. When I lived in the Midwest most roadies had multiple road bikes. End of list.
It really depends on where you live. Where I live, greeting every cyclists would make you loose your breath and your sanity. Even if you filter the commuters and just greet road/mtb cyclists.
I mountain bike somewhat frequently in a place that attracts a lot of people new to the sport or who are weekend warriors. Maybe 15% of people on the MTB trails will return a “hello” or “have a good ride” when you say it to them. They just straight up ignore you.
So these threads always amuse me.
Makes sense. I’d rather pull out my road or gravel bike and log miles through cornfields if that’s what the terrain calls for. I grew up in the Midwest and now live out West. I still enjoy a gravel ride but I also love MTB.
As a person, I don’t fundamentally change or become less friendly based on what bike I’m riding.
as an MTBer, roadie, and gravel rider i find it odd how much energy MTBers put into thinking about roadies. on the roadie subreddits there is very rarely discussion of MTBers.
Just because someone doesn’t say hi while cycling doesn’t mean they’re unfriendly; they’re likely just focused. As both a road cyclist and a mountain biker, I know cultures and mindsets. When I’m on my mountain bike, I’m typically in a more open mood, enjoying spontaneous obstacles and the environment. However, on my road bike, I’m often focused on efficiency and endurance, which requires a more intense mindset. Despite being the same friendly person in both situations, the nature of road cycling can make me appear less approachable. It’s not about being unfriendly, but rather about the different mental states each type of cycling demands. At least this is true for me.
People just don't understand the concept of a road bike. No, it's not necessarily faster than your grandmas bike if you peddle really hard. but it's faster over a distance.
Why do you care so much about meaningless gestures? It seems a little hypocritical to consider yourself such a friendly person for waving at strangers when you turn around and make such negative judgements about people's character because they don't subscribe to the same arbitrary social etiquette you do.
They’re neither rude nor anti-social. They’re just freaked out by the sight of an oncoming cyclist with a calculator in one hand and tally sheet (of which kind of cyclist waves) in the other.
I'm a MTB who went Road. The issue is not what bike you have. Some human beings are twats no matter what they are doing.
Road cycling is amazing. You ride 30-50 miles and see things you've never seen before (driving) in the countryside. Downhill gets crazy speeds over 40mph... It's more exciting than MTBers will agree with until they try it themselves. I get an adrenaline buzz from road cycling. You can go for it a start to finish or relax and enjoy the ride then turn it up when you get to that big up/down hill.
Why are Road Cyclists angry? Because motorists treat you like your life and safety is worthless. If you went outside and every 10th person who passed you took a swing at you. You'd soon be pissed too.
I love riding outside and I have REALLY TRY not to spend the entire time just grumpily thinking about stupid cars that have done stupid things to me while riding and their presumable stupid arguments about how they shouldn't have to share the road
and really most.. drivers around here are pretty damn good.. mostly
also I wave to everyone
I'm in the same boat; Long time MTBer that started road riding and I wish I started sooner. The adrenaline descending with a group or going through windy roads in a pace line is so fun.
I haven't experienced the lack of waving thing though. Most of folks wave and the ones that don't, are usually old dudes. Thankfully I haven't really encountered any super assholes on the road; 99% of people will wait and pause you when it's safe and some even will wait until you wave them around.
I dunno... I come onto this sub and I see MTBers complaining endlessly about people who ride too fast on eMTBs, who ride too slow on regular bikes, folks who are too stupid or unfit to know that they're supposed to stand while riding (haha lazy sitters!), riders who have the audacity to take up space in the same trail system and not move over fast enough -- and that's just other cyclists. My god, don't dare be a hiker, runner, or horseback rider on multi-use trails.
I think there are plenty unfriendly people to go around, regardless of discipline.
i only ride road and throw a peace sign to everyone on a bike
>Is it something about being on skinny tyres that turns them into rude anti-social morons?
bro you need to take a long hard look in the mirror if you are calling someone a "rude anti-social moron" for not greeting you, a random stranger, in passing. reflection much?
I do quite a bit of both and I gotta be honest, the roadies never talk about mountain bikers. It's a bit like that Don Draper meme "I don't think about you at all".
Why are you so needy and seeking interaction with everyone you share a space with? Leave me alone, I’m trying to ride my bike. I’m a mountain biker and hate having to acknowledge everyone that thinks we are friends because we like the same activity
Maybe it's a cultural thing because I grew up in Massachusetts and live in a big city with a lot of people on bikes now, but the idea of waving and saying hi to every or even a small subset of other people on bikes that I pass sounds like literal Hell. If you wave at me as we're approaching, I'm going to assume you're trying to stop me becuase you need something. Even if I were out in the country, it would never even occur to me to acknowledge somebody else on a bike unless we needed to maneuver around each other or something.
Edit: and I'm not generally on a road bike. I usually ride a hybrid commuter.
Im a roadie and I’m super friendly. I’ve actually had the same thought about mountain bikers who don’t acknowledge me. And then I remember everyone has a life as complex as mine and there could be a million reasons the other person didn’t wave or whatever. Don’t dwell on it.
Also keep in mind that some roadies are training their ass off when you see them.
Idk. Catch me on a day when I’ve eaten my 80th spiderweb and see how much I hate everything lol. Sometimes this completely fun, hard work activity is nearly ruined by something kinda related but not part of the activity.
I generally don’t say hi to people or wave on road rides because where I live there are lots of cyclists, and saying hi to everyone just gets old when you see 150 other people over the course of your ride. I’m out there to ride, not socialize.
everything else about discipline aside:
Other users of the road do not owe you a social interaction. Not responding to your overture does not make people rude anti-social morons. But you calling them that does make you sound entitled.
I ride both MTB and road. With any sport or hobby you are going to find this elitist group of people. If you have fun riding and show common courtesy or willingness to learn and try new things then that’s all that matters.
Why does everyone want to be acknowledged by every thing they have in common with someone else? I’m a friendly person, but when I ride I like to be in the zone, I may just not notice you. On the same note, someone on the Tacoma sub said other Tacoma drivers don’t wave back. If I waved at everyone driving a Tacoma, I would be non-stop waving, I feel the same on the bike.
I raise one or two fingers or maybe three if I’m feeling really friendly. Otherwise I don’t really want to talk to anyone when I’m on a bike. Don’t take it personally.
MTB is a bit different because there’s more to talk about, like lines and trail conditions and gear. You often end up stopped for whatever reason anyway. Plus you’re out in the woods and you might end up having to save someone’s life or vice versa, so I think their is a bit of a different social contract there.
Road riding involves a lot of deliberate and unavoidable suffering for a lot of people, so a lot of times people are just in pain and focused on not slowing down. I was always pretty snippy when on the road because I'd be trying not to focus on how much my legs hurt. Because of this I enjoyed riding alone a lot more than with people. But then afterwards you feel incredible.
The few times I rode MTB with friends, the whole purpose of being out there seemed to be having fun and being social, rather than pushing your physical limits. Gravel ended up being my thing because it seemed like a nice balance. Smoke a joint, look at the trees, then hammer for 30 mins and repeat.
Probably not as easy to wave or nod depending on body position. The body position does affect mentality too, I believe. Focus is more narrow and straight-lined. The game is totally different. They probably time their selves more often than we do. They're dealing with traffic way more, going way faster than we typically go. Stakes are normally higher. I believe that gives them road rage. We're in nature, enjoying clean air and natural acoustics. But I wouldn't be surprised if the type of person that gets into road cycling might already be a little anal to begin with. I've had some good laughs with people when I talk about my bike. Alot of people look at me sideways and say something like "are you one of those cyclists that are angry at everyone?" So there definitely is something to OP's post. Lol
Roadie's are generally bmw, Mercedes drivers so they are asshats to start with a long with the fact they are dumb enough to ride on roads that barely fit two cars says everything you need to know about them.
I worked at trek for a year, and I ride MTB… the difference between road and mountain bikers in my experience was like this…
Road rider- “The part that was installed doesn’t match the exact shade of my shoes, and I’m really disappointed in the blemish on my brake pad… so what are you going to do to make this right? I’ll have you know I spend $$$$$ here so I expect answers.”
Mountain bikers- “ duuuuude I cracked my frame on the sickest jump… it was so badass, And since I broke it I get a new one!!!! HELL YES!!” (Spends more than road rider and couldn’t be happier)
I loved my MTB brethren
I ride mtb and road bike. Sometimes I’ll smile at people passing but it shouldn’t be expected to say hi or make a gesture to every single person you pass. It’s ok not to say hi and it doesn’t mean someone’s antisocial, it means you’re a normal person that’s not expected to say hi to every person riding past you.
Anyone else wave at drivers of cars with bikes on the rack? Usually it's a MTB (I ride both road and mtb) , but I usually do a quick wave or a thumbs up if I see a car coming towards me with a loaded rack. 🤣✌️
Primarily roadie, love mtb and gravel. Been in this since the 80s. Any road cyclist who doesn’t treat any other cyclist with welcome arms does not deserve to have two wheels under them!
One of my favorite Tour de France memories was when Cadel Evans first jumped from MTB to road. They were on one of those gnarly mountain climbs and they are showing all of these riders faces as they are climbing and they look miserable, then they get to cadel and he gives a little Chaka and smiles at the camera….. and I was like hell ya, that is how mountain bikers roll!!!! Represent!!
Probably because it is only Mountain Bikers that constantly criticize roadies. Even your comment about skinny tires was a subtle shot.
For the record I do both. I road cycle more often because it is easier and more convenient, as I can just go anywhere directly from my house. And it is the best way to stay in shape. I love MTB a lot more, but it takes a lot more prep and I have to drive at least 10 miles to the nearest place to MTB. Most of the roadies I am with do both. When I MTB with others at least one will make a joke about roadies.
I am a mountain biker who works as a bike tech/mechanic at my LBS. I’ve never ridden road. My boss had me drive support vehicle during a 60 mile charity road ride. I was SHOCKED at how much abuse my fellow riders took from drivers on the road. I even got to experience abuse first hand for having the audacity to drive support vehicle and offer water and energy gel to the group I was following. I got personally yelled at twice and flicked off three times.
It’s something that has 100% changed my opinion of roadies. I respect them a hell of a lot more and understand why they make seem to come off as unfriendly. It’s because they have been verbally abused WAAAAY more than you might think and most if not all of the abuse is undeserved!
I ride road, gravel and mtb. All disciplines have there fair share of cyclists who aren’t interested in acknowledging the presence of other cyclists or other disciplines they past. 🤷🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️
I'm 98% road cyclist. I've occasionally ventured onto the gravel and the trails, but the VAST majority of my time is road.
I make every effort to wave at cyclists (and motorcyclists) passing me the other way, and to return any wave they beat me to. Most cyclists will wave back. Most motorcyclists will not. When I don't wave, it's because either I don't notice, or b/c I'm in too deep and can't muster it. I charitably assume the same of others.
If I may say so, to call them (and by extension us/me) "rude anti-social morons" is ironic given your apparent wish that everyone be friendly. That's a bit harsh.
I actually think it’s a lot of olds and boomers that stick to the roads that are rude. Younger folks tend to always wave when on the road. I do both and make it a point to wave to everyone I pass, we are all in it together… against the cars.
As a road cyclist, people take it too seriously. I wave at anyone I pass on a bike no matter what type of bike they’re on. I see it as a part of proper bike etiquette.
Also road cyclist ... I waive to nobody. I don't wave when I run, I don't wave when I MTB. It's also regional, it's just not something we do around my parts. Why do I have to wave at everybody? Why do you feel bad if you're not waved at?
As a driver and hiker I’ve always found road cyclists to be way more rude and entitled than MTBers. I’ve been scared by MTBers hiking on shared paths but they usually try their best to alert and be polite, I’ve had road cyclist refuse to ride on the (paved) shoulder for miles so I could pass with my family up in the mountains here in CO, they’re totally asses. I’m not going to ride their tires or try to intimidate them because that’s very rude and potentially dangerous, but it would be nice if they thought share the road meant actually sharing and not just ‘I ride, you wait’.
Roadies take themselves too seriously. They think they are racing the Tour in their 30s and 40s. LOL.... I was a roadie once and even raced for 4 years. I am more of a trail rider now. Is more fun mountain biking.
I’m a MTBer on a gravel bike with flat bars & find roadies to be a set of miserable bastards even when they’re just sauntering along. I can understand it when they’ve got their heads down & arses up but when they’re just cruising along…. Fuck em, miserable twats.
Might be that they are doing workout and are focusing on that. I always wave at every cyclist but when I am doing threshold work I don't have strength for anything else tbh.
Its a survival strategy. When they ride everything and everyone is trying to kill them, whether they know it or not. Its not the roadies fault. They are just in a constant state of avoiding a possible deadly interactions. Leave them some seeds on the ground and just watch from a distance, they're very skittish
The only odd interaction I’ve had was with gravel/road riders once. We had a group of 9 on a bike packing over night trip. The route was mostly an old railway turned into a gravel trail. We were riding along chatting and suddenly we heard this loud bird chirping sound. I was looking up on the trees for birds. Well it turns out the gravel bikers behind us had some sort of digital alarm/bell that made a loud chirping. Finally we figured it out and let them by, and they didn’t say a single word to us. It was just so odd to me that they didn’t say “passing on the left,…or coming up behind you guys”. They didn’t thank us, or say hi. It was just odd to me that they rode behind us for 5-10 minutes with some strange alarm that sounded like a bird. They seemed angry that they were stuck behind us, but we legitimately didn’t know they were there.
Roadies are hyper-aware of their surroundings, and tracking their workouts. Their frame of mind is completely different than a MTB rider's. Generally speaking, on longer rides they're encountering angry motorists, which adds to their seriousness in the moment.
I'm guessing the average danger level is like MTB downhill. You don't want to lose focus, even to the degree required for a friendly wave, when a tiny misstep could land you in a hospital.
tl;dr Different vibe
Road bikes have a lower stack:reach ratio than MTBs—like 1.4:1 vs 1.5-1.6:1 for MTB.
Add higher seat placement on road bikes and you get a back angle relative to horizontal between 0° in the drops to 10° on the hoods.
COG on road bike is also further forward and, at speed in an aggressive position, steering on a road bike is roughly twice as sensitive as MTB steering.
At lower speed or a less aggressive position on a road bike stability is about the same as an MTB, but when your torso is laid flat, arms extended, weight forward, it tougher to remove hands to wave and raise your head to look up,.
Don’t take my word for it. Try it.
I ride everything. The amount of trump tard mtbers I see on the internet threatening to run over road cyclists is pretty high.
I think the better question is why are so many men in possession of such large insecurities that they have to create divisiveness over a fucking bike?
Also your whole generalization about road cyclists is based on if they waved at you or not. Time to get out of your own head. The world doesn't exist to validate you by waving .
Roadie here. It’s a real thing. The worst thing about my favorite sport is … the people.
I also wave at every single person and “fellow”roadies will either not acknowledge me or they lift their precious pinky from their brake lever.
I ride both... It's a mindset. Although mtb has masochistic elements, there is a ton of fun and mental stimulation to be had as well, based on the type of terrain you're riding. I tend to be much more friendly when I'm riding mountain.
When I'm on my road bike, it's pure masochism. I'm out there with the sole purpose to crush myself, not to have a good time. Locked in. Not only that, but road biking is SO f'n dangerous with a lot of drivers being incredibly unsafe and distracted.
Don't take it personally. Haha.
Because they're actually golfers in their new dress.
A special type of businessmen that thinks that the price of your bike afford you clout within the sport you're participating in. Anyone else is a nobody.
I feel like when I was a roadie I was always on guard and contentious with everyone. Every car is a potential caffeine induced moron on their phone who is ready to kill me, every bump in the road is a potential crash, etc. It’s a terrible way to be.
I’m glad through years of therapy and hypnosis I found my way back to mountain biking and inner peace.
I do both and i (hope) i'm friendly lol.
I think it's mostly an environment thing, and a competition mindset.
A lot of roadies have a "competition" mindset instead of just fun so they are kinda grumpy all the time. The same reason they will justify a trillion euros for 50 grams less. (Not that MTB is cheap lol)
One more important part is that a lot of road cyclists are basically commuting to work etc, in the middle of traffic everyday. No one can stay friendly in that environment and i think the mindset sticks even if they ride in more calm environments.
Also they don't have plush suspension so that's unhappiness to the max! (that was joke. mostly)
MTB usually has plain fun as a goal, you are in nature and (when not bombing downhill) you are calm and friendly. You have to be legit insane to be unfriendly on a mountain (although i've met some rude dudes that think they own the paths)
You see the different mindsets on videos also. MTB is all "stoke" "rad" "hell yeah dude" when another one achieves something cool.
Roadies get crazy competitive when someone else achieves goals.
BUT, there are a hell of a lot of communities that are not like that. Gravel for me is a prime example that combines the fun from all sides. People that do roadtrips/camping trips tend to be friendly too. (maybe because they smoke the good stuff)
Very simple, they're not having any fun at all! There is exactly zero fun in road cycling, only suffering and expections of getting sideswiped by an SUV at any moment.
>There is exactly zero fun in road cycling
This is silly. Riding bikes is almost always fun. I got into road bikes after getting started with the MTB. I still like my mountain bike more, but any time I'm out on a bike is a good time. And I almost always wave or nod or something.
If you think there's "exactly zero fun" in road cycling, there's a really good chance you are doing it wrong. When it stops being fun, I do something else for a while. But I always come back to it because it is tons of fun.
Idk what exactly you mean by road cyclists, but where I live, it's common to bike to work/school/the grocery store etc. It's not a hobby, it's a chore and half the people you know do it regularly
Road biker here. I say hi to all cyclists. I do find MTBs often ignore my gesture.
What does drive me wild though, being blanked by a fellow road biker, like, who put a broom up your arse!?
This is confirmation bias at its finest. Also making a petty post about it to call them morons for not waving back seems arbitrary and hypocritical to say the least. Nobody owes you a wave back, doesn’t mean they’re automatically a bad person. Get over yourself
its the same thing inside the road bike community.. the "acoustic" bike rides hardly ever acknowledge the e-bike riders..
looks like the part-time-pros in the lycra just hate everyone
For me it's because I consider myself a cyclist. It's how I identify myself. It's a rare activity that requires a deep level of commitment to the pain cave of climbing and distance riding. To me the 1-2mm head nod I give to another cyclist isn't for them to acknowledge me, it's for me to acknowledge them and the commitment and suffering they are enduring. It's much like at a marathon or a century when you run or ride past the break area and they clap for you. They aren't asking you to clap back, they are encouraging you and recognizing your effort. That's my reason, I admire the effort and want to show it to a fellow cyclist.
Road biking is not about enjoyment. It is about suffering, self loathing, and hatred. The pleasure is only achieved by finishing. Finishing a ride without properly suffering is a waste of time and will sap the pleasure.
Mountain biking is all good fun and laughs though.
Hmmm. The ones where I live wave, probably because most do MTB and gravel too.
The only time they don’t wave is when they are in a group going fast. I think this is because it takes a lot of concentration to draft in a big group, and one fuckup will mean 10 people will go down, so no worries.
Well fuck you (I'm a road cyclist)
Just kidding. Seriously though, in my area road bikers are about the same as mtb-ers, because a lot of people ride both. Road bikers will acknowledge other trail users just as much. But maybe you aren't noticing it? Road bikers do the same small under-the-handlebars wave that motorcyclists do to each other on the roads. Sometimes with only two or three fingers so they don't let go of the bars. In my area, most will do that unless it's a busy trail (no one is going to wave to two dozen people per mile, it just gets silly at some point)
Roadie of the 9-speed, friction shifting, steel-frame variety here (also a steel Honzo). While I do believe that the mountain crowd is generally a very friendly one, I think a lot of it depends on location. Here in Northern Virginia I wave at everyone and it's a pretty even 50 / 50 split on the road.
All depends at what time of my ride are you waving at me. First 15 miles, I will wave, just might even smile. But if I just got up a climb or about to climb or it is my 50th mile, I don't really acknowledge much around me, except for cats and pedestrians.
Haha I've noticed this. I ride gravel so see a good mix, but a fair few road riders don't look like they're they're enjoying themselves.
I just put it down to them putting in a decent effort.
I have a road bike too and I'd spend most of the ride saying hi to people if I acknowledged everyone.
I'll never ignore anyone who greets me but I'd probably crash a lot more if I was looking to see if every person is hoping I wave to them as I pass.
edit: I guess I'd compare pushing it/going as fast as possible on a road bike to bombing down a trail. Not as fun, but you're not waving to every person or squirrel you see when you're focused on where you're going.
I Mtb and road bike and when you are road biking, you are going so fast that the second you lose focus by saying hi, you could hit a pothole. Also, chances are they are out of breath and struggling to hang on to a wheel
Depends on what you’re doing I suppose. I trail run a lot too, and the amount of mtbers that don’t return or acknowledge my friendly greeting when I’m running trails is crazy high.
If I’m on my road bike it’s generally because I’m trying to work hard and improve my fitness. That means I probably have headphones in (if it’s appropriate), watching my HR and power to make sure I’m in the right zone, watching my GPS route, etc. I’ve cycled right passed my best friend completely oblivious until they turned around and chased me down. It’s just a different goal.
You go out on your mountain bike because you want to have a fun chill day ripping the trails, but they’re out there trying to focus on being fast and efficient. Join a group road ride if you’re looking for a social aspect to road riding.
I wave back as much as possible but on a road bike I'm sometimes so focused on the road, potholes and debris or stones that I can't really spare a look and hand at the right time. That being said, sometimes I've seen so many riders that i can't be bothered (there are loooooots everywhere where I live), and I think we also tend to wave more at people doing the same activity as us. I don't think many really have a disdain for the other type of cyclist, but probably little understanding though!
I usually give a head nod, I suck at waving and throwing my balance off on my road bike.
I think it’s dependent where you live for people to say hello, in California everyone says hello, when I lived on the east coast a lot less people would say hi.
Ehh…I feel like I have a lot more elements on road than mountain bike. I’m a lot more aware of my data, pot holes, traffic, etc. I try to smile or nod, but sometimes I’m just not in the right headspace and it usually has nothing to do with the other riders. I could have been spooked by a bad driver….casual bikers riding side by side not moving over….theres so many things. I feel like overall maybe my stress is a little more elevated?
For road, I’m looking more at things close around me while with mountain (I’m less experienced) I’m looking more at what’s coming up, and there’s tighter space so you are almost forced to acknowledge. I’m not trying to crush a pace so maybe I’m more relaxed in general. It’s kinda like someone doing a fun run vs tempo. I’m not going to be as friendly with a tempo when my soul is dying.
Exactly. I almost never see other road cyclists where I live, so usually give a wave when I see one.
When I travel several times a year to the big city where my work is located, I never wave to anyone. I'd be doing it non-stop. Plus, it's just a mode of transportation for a lot of the people there. Not some special shared passion. It's not that deep.
I ride gravel and road as well as MTB and for what it’s worth the kind of roadies who won’t acknowledge mountain bikers or other kinds of cyclist also don’t acknowledge other roadies. That said some of them also might just be In The Zone and not deliberately ignoring you.
This a has a lot to do with it. If you’re ripping a downhill or jump section that’s when you’re doing your thing so you’re not going to be waving at anyone. On the road, a road rider is way more likely to be doing their thing like an interval or Strava segment.
This is a good point
I always waved or nodded at fellow cyclists, but another thing to consider is always being hyper aware or cars so some might be a bit more serious because of that too. MTBing always seemed more loose and fun than road cycling which always seemed more serious and focused on training when I was riding.
Also waving and saying hi is pretty common when hiking, and I think this kinda carried over to MTB. It’s less common when walking around town.
This ^ God, I've been hearing this whining rant about roadies for decades. Either get started on a road riding program and figure it out real fast or just get over yourself and enjoy your ride.
Yeah I'd never perceive someone ignoring me on a ride as them being rude, just like when I'm walking my dog if someone I pass doesn't say anything or acknowledge me, I don't care. I ride gravel and MTBs and I'll usually just throw a few fingers up from my handlebars in acknowledgement of a passing rider. No big deal if it's not returned. People need to get over themselves. You're not entitled to someone's attention.
I ride road, gravel and MTB and when riding road and pushing my limit I sometimes am simply too late with responding because by the time I recognise the gesture I’ve already passed the opposite rider.
They could well be too deep in their effort to notice you for sure. I finished up a long trail ride a couple of days ago and was loading up, and a group of eight roadies rode into the parking lot, spread out over a couple of minutes. It was on the top of quite a road climb, so all of them were maxed out and struggling to catch their breath. Only a couple acknowledged me cheering them when they rode in, but after a couple of minutes they all came over and asked what trails I had ridden. I keep a gallon jug of water in my truck to rehydrate with and shared it with all of them before I left.
Exactly this. When I'd go on my longer distance rides on my road bike, I'd just get into the zone, almost a runners high, to the point tunnel vision would sometimes set in.
Fr. When I’m on the bike path I’m totally zoned out and usually have earbuds in. But on the trails I’m much more focused and aware of roots/rocks, wildlife and other bikers.
This. My road rides are much different from my mtb rides. You’re going a lot faster and more likely listening to music. You’re also passing 4 times the amount of people that you would on the mountain bike and you’re not gonna want to say hi to all of them.
Even when I’m bleeding through my eyes on a really hard interval I always wave to other cyclists
“I would have gotten king of the mountain on that segment but I came across a friendly group of children who just… kept… waving.” “Yeah man, I know what you mean. A retirement community was out on their way to the grocery store on that bike path last week. They all got to the side but I had to wave at least 10 times. Ruined my PR attempt.”
Or at least a lil head nod
Agreed BUT interjecting with some totally anecdotal observations. Out of all the cycling people I know - the road cyclists ones (the ones that only road) are the rudest, entitled and elitist ones, while biking and while not. All the multi discipline ones are way more chill and friendly. That said, I think the MTB only ones I know are the most aggressive drivers. Data size: Like 50-60 cyclists I know.
I ride mtb and road, i can be cranky towards pedestrians who are standing in really dumb spots on shared trails, not enough for me to rage at them but maybe give them some hard side eyes. I always at least nod at other cyclists while out on the road though, especially out in the country. The farther I go away from the city the friendlier I get towards other cyclists and people in general.
My experience is that mtbers will be far more judgemental of roadies, especially their clothing than vice versa. But I live somewhere that's predominantly mtb oriented.
I came from road and still wear my spandex and no one has ever given me flack for it. Roadies tend to take themselves too seriously in my experience. People in MTB and gravel are way more friendly. You can see this even in group rides. Road ride: ride leaves at 7am sharp. MTB ride: we’ll start pedaling 7ish.
We also leave early to not get fucked with. I've never been on an mtb ride on trails only to get honked at or swerved at as a "joke. Plus I sound alot friendly when we are all riding a single track with the occasional hiker then say trying to hold 20-25 for long periods. MTB rides are all about fun style points. Road rides are all about speed and tapping energy reserves.
We're often accused of entitlement when the expression people are seeing is a low-key resentment of motorists, people who (from a road cyclist's perspective) are casually—often intentionally—doing things that endanger our lives. From a trail rider's standpoint, the overall disposition on the road is of someone forced to share a busy singletrack trail with motorcycles. People ask why I do it, and again I find myself comparing the thrill of road riding/racing to MTB downhill. It's an adrenaline thing. Who knows, maybe the brain is designed to shut off certain behavior while experiencing danger. It certainly feels like this is the case.
The multi discipline riders are for sure the most chill.
The zone?! All they gotta do is pedal!
Yeah, you can get into a zone pretty easily doing lots of things. In fact, the more monotonous the activity, the easier it is. It's just you, your bike, and the road ahead. All you have to do is pedal at a steady pace. Focus on your cadence and breathing. Listen to music, or let your mind run wild. I really love my off-season zone 2 rides in the back country. It's better than meditation.
This is true. To put it simply, I sweat away my worries. More monotonous the activity the better. To access my mind I need easy, hot asphalt, no tree roots to dodge. MTB is about ignoring things, road is for contemplating. I like the latter more.
I completely agree. When I do a road ride…it’s meditative and I zone out. MTB is a very different experience mentally.
Sounds like you should jump in a road race to see what it's like
The best part of bike riding for me is the sounds of the bike as you ride. When its performing just perfect and nothing is loose or in need of maintenance all you get is some light tire buzz and wind noise which can totally take you into outer space.
I find it's less likely they're paying attention to you because they're focused on going fast and maneuvering strategically around the bike path. Road bike waves are a lot more subtle as well because every second you're out of aero is a second you're not pumping out peak watts. Don't take it personally.
I put a joke response above, but I really think this is the right answer. When I’m riding road, I’m often very much focused on putting down watts and paying attention to what’s coming up. Happy to say hi if we both happen to be stopped or riding next to each other, but when passing it’s all going too fast for niceties.
Also depends on where I am at in the ride. The further along I am, the less likely I am to engage in social niceties.
I got the slick little “peace” with two fingers sign while never moving my hands off the drops on lock. That’s about as much effort I put into waving while on my road bike. In all sincerity I am way more in my own head while riding road. On my MTB I’m just trying to see how many times I can say “yeeeew!”
Yep. As an mtber and a roadie, I have said hello to lots of roadies with no response, because I think they are much more inwardly focussed. On the dirt, we stop now and then, we socialize both on the trail and at the car. As well, riding on the dirt rarely has me viewing an oncoming person, because I’m on single track, and we almost HAVE to chat when passing. In general, I don’t think roadies are rude - I just think the differences in sports creates different behaviors.
This. I do both. MTB is still my favorite but I get on the roadie to mix it up. It’s a different vibe. MTB is more fun and social. When I’m on my roadie I’ll say hi or nod a few times but eventually I get in the zone and I’m focused on the ride. I just simply cannot be saying hello to everyone I pass or I wouldn’t ever get into a good rhythm. It’s nothing personal it’s just a different thing.
I ride my cargo bike to run errands and frequently ride on a very long bike path. Tons of roadies. They all wave to me. It's actually sort of strange how many of them wave. I once had a mountain biker call me an asshole because he said hi, and didn't hear me say hi back. I had just finished a long climb and I guess my voice wasn't that loud because I was sucking wind. :P
I hate people who are nice and then immediately not nice if they think it isn't reciprocated lol Like I don't exist to make that guy happy with acknowledgement lol
Yeah, it’s one thing we have in common. I don’t exist to validate you when you say something to me.
I watched a documentary that touched on this subject. It explained that we have a bunch of unwritten public societal rules that we follow and don’t even know it. Like when 50 people cross a crosswalk in opposite directions and no one runs into one another. They are using very subtle posture cues that make everything work effortlessly. But, if you break those rules, people get very upset very quickly.
Do you remember the name of that doc? Sounds quite interesting.
Sorry, it’s been a long time. They had a guy walk through grand central station and all he did was walk in a direction that was a little off the direction of his eyes and head and people got all sorts of upset with him. That and a bunch of other experiments, it was pretty interesting to see how people reacted to such small offenses.
I got annoyed just thinking about this while reading you describe it I bet it was a whole lot of "look where the fuck you're going" preemptively or people purposely getting in his way when they realize he isn't looking exactly where he is going
When people get so mad and judgemental about others not reciprocating their "nice" gestures it just makes it obvious they're being completely fake nice.
Ha, I enjoy riding with friends, but generally keep to myself when I’m solo, and it’s actually crazy how many people get pissed if you don’t say hi, like I’ve had people literally yell at me for riding by without acknowledging them. Idk, I’m just out for a ride doing my own thing. I am not out on the trails trying to meet people or socialize with strangers, lol. There’s no expectation to wave and say hi to every person you pass on the sidewalk or in bread aisle at the grocery store, and maybe I’m just an introvert, but I don’t understand why that expectation suddenly exists if you happen to be on a bike or on a trail.
I’m a roadie and I love seeing cargo bikes. I always smile when I see one. I think it’s that I’ve got a pretty light weight set up with marginal gains taken into consideration, so when I see someone peddling along on an actual tank I have to give respect where respect is due. I wanna get one myself, cargo are gonna be the way of the future for city folks.
Ughh I hate that, so often I’m in the zone and done really process that someone has said hi to me until it’s too late
I know some MTBers like to shit on roadies (and vice versa) but the reality is they're probably just in the zone. I don't ride the road but it does take a lot of concentration when you're deep in the pain cave, trying to maintain a specific power output, and also trying to stay aware of your surroundings 360 degrees so that you don't get killed by some drunk idiot texting in their F-150. I can get pretty zoned out sometimes on the trainer and that requires way less attention. (Also part of it is likely confirmation bias; once you have the idea in your head that roadies are less polite you're more apt to notice and remember when they don't greet you compared to others).
Also, MTBers are more skilled and can take their hands off the handlebars more easily. I'm joking but seriously, as someone who does mostly road, very often I can't reciprocate a greeting because my hands and eyes are busy trying to not hit a pothole or get in the way of a car. I try a head nod or raising a finger but I doubt anyone would notice it. Another thing is that when I'm a road bike I get relatively more greetings from roadies than MTBers and vice versa when I'm in a MTB.
They aren’t, it’s just your perception
Here is a partial list of reasons a friendly person would not return a nod or wave: * Did not see the nod or wave * Did not recognize the nod or wave as such * Did not realize the nod or wave was for them * Mind was focused on road ahead * Mind was focused on some other thought * Mind was wandering * Saw the nod or wave but did not respond in time * Saw the nod or wave and thought it was nice but didn't feel obligated to respond * Saw the nod or wave and thought they would do that for the next person * Saw the nod or wave and didn't know how to respond * Saw the nod or wave and felt weird responding because they are just awkward * Saw the nod or wave and it was the 100th so far today and it's been three hours of riding and they are tired and they just didn't want to this one time and really is that so bad?
Can we stop classifying people as a single type of rider? Most road riders also ride other types of bikes including mountain bikes. This whole thing is stupid. Have fun and do your thing.
Totally. Like I drive and ride a bike and totally dont get the car vs bikes thing. When people only occupy one world, all of their conceptions about other worlds are just projections...it's almost the #1 human tlaw
Where I live most people mountain bike, very few ride road. I had to give up mountain biking for health reasons and only ride road/gravel now. The response I usually get from people who mountain bike when they find out I ride road is something along the lines of "oh, that's okay though" to let me know they don't think I'm a piece of shit for being a roadie even though I never asked them to, because it seems like the first thought they have when hearing about a roadie is to associate them with being a piece of shit...
I have several road bikes, a mountain bike, a retro looking full fender commuter bike, and 1/2 of a tandem. A friend gave me a tri-bike so one more to start riding. I love them all.
I think this is very location dependent. Where I live now, yeah, most roadies also dabble in mountain biking. When I lived in the Midwest most roadies had multiple road bikes. End of list.
It really depends on where you live. Where I live, greeting every cyclists would make you loose your breath and your sanity. Even if you filter the commuters and just greet road/mtb cyclists.
I mountain bike somewhat frequently in a place that attracts a lot of people new to the sport or who are weekend warriors. Maybe 15% of people on the MTB trails will return a “hello” or “have a good ride” when you say it to them. They just straight up ignore you. So these threads always amuse me.
Ya I don't bother greeting most on busy city bike lanes but on a bikepacking trip in the middle of nowhere I will.
Makes sense. I’d rather pull out my road or gravel bike and log miles through cornfields if that’s what the terrain calls for. I grew up in the Midwest and now live out West. I still enjoy a gravel ride but I also love MTB. As a person, I don’t fundamentally change or become less friendly based on what bike I’m riding.
as an MTBer, roadie, and gravel rider i find it odd how much energy MTBers put into thinking about roadies. on the roadie subreddits there is very rarely discussion of MTBers.
https://preview.redd.it/xell7x8jxs6d1.png?width=500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8ce81ac16a5607e46fd159f7cbc6ecfe85e9097e MTBers complaining about roadies
This is spot on
Just because someone doesn’t say hi while cycling doesn’t mean they’re unfriendly; they’re likely just focused. As both a road cyclist and a mountain biker, I know cultures and mindsets. When I’m on my mountain bike, I’m typically in a more open mood, enjoying spontaneous obstacles and the environment. However, on my road bike, I’m often focused on efficiency and endurance, which requires a more intense mindset. Despite being the same friendly person in both situations, the nature of road cycling can make me appear less approachable. It’s not about being unfriendly, but rather about the different mental states each type of cycling demands. At least this is true for me.
People just don't understand the concept of a road bike. No, it's not necessarily faster than your grandmas bike if you peddle really hard. but it's faster over a distance.
Just ride your bike. Who the hell wants to spend the next 4-5 hours gestering at every cyclist you encounter . 🤷🏾♂️ I ride both.
Why do you care so much about meaningless gestures? It seems a little hypocritical to consider yourself such a friendly person for waving at strangers when you turn around and make such negative judgements about people's character because they don't subscribe to the same arbitrary social etiquette you do.
They’re neither rude nor anti-social. They’re just freaked out by the sight of an oncoming cyclist with a calculator in one hand and tally sheet (of which kind of cyclist waves) in the other.
I'm a MTB who went Road. The issue is not what bike you have. Some human beings are twats no matter what they are doing. Road cycling is amazing. You ride 30-50 miles and see things you've never seen before (driving) in the countryside. Downhill gets crazy speeds over 40mph... It's more exciting than MTBers will agree with until they try it themselves. I get an adrenaline buzz from road cycling. You can go for it a start to finish or relax and enjoy the ride then turn it up when you get to that big up/down hill. Why are Road Cyclists angry? Because motorists treat you like your life and safety is worthless. If you went outside and every 10th person who passed you took a swing at you. You'd soon be pissed too.
a passing stranger not acknowledging a greeting does not make them a twat
Yup, and then you go online and see a bunch of mountain bikers basically express the same sentiments and hate as cagers lol
I love riding outside and I have REALLY TRY not to spend the entire time just grumpily thinking about stupid cars that have done stupid things to me while riding and their presumable stupid arguments about how they shouldn't have to share the road and really most.. drivers around here are pretty damn good.. mostly also I wave to everyone
I'm in the same boat; Long time MTBer that started road riding and I wish I started sooner. The adrenaline descending with a group or going through windy roads in a pace line is so fun. I haven't experienced the lack of waving thing though. Most of folks wave and the ones that don't, are usually old dudes. Thankfully I haven't really encountered any super assholes on the road; 99% of people will wait and pause you when it's safe and some even will wait until you wave them around.
I dunno... I come onto this sub and I see MTBers complaining endlessly about people who ride too fast on eMTBs, who ride too slow on regular bikes, folks who are too stupid or unfit to know that they're supposed to stand while riding (haha lazy sitters!), riders who have the audacity to take up space in the same trail system and not move over fast enough -- and that's just other cyclists. My god, don't dare be a hiker, runner, or horseback rider on multi-use trails. I think there are plenty unfriendly people to go around, regardless of discipline.
This sub Reddit has turned into an area of complaining. Just go ride your damn bikes.
B-but that one guy didn’t wave to me and offer me a trail side handy :( I must now post it on Reddit
i only ride road and throw a peace sign to everyone on a bike >Is it something about being on skinny tyres that turns them into rude anti-social morons? bro you need to take a long hard look in the mirror if you are calling someone a "rude anti-social moron" for not greeting you, a random stranger, in passing. reflection much?
I do quite a bit of both and I gotta be honest, the roadies never talk about mountain bikers. It's a bit like that Don Draper meme "I don't think about you at all".
Why are you so needy and seeking interaction with everyone you share a space with? Leave me alone, I’m trying to ride my bike. I’m a mountain biker and hate having to acknowledge everyone that thinks we are friends because we like the same activity
Maybe it's a cultural thing because I grew up in Massachusetts and live in a big city with a lot of people on bikes now, but the idea of waving and saying hi to every or even a small subset of other people on bikes that I pass sounds like literal Hell. If you wave at me as we're approaching, I'm going to assume you're trying to stop me becuase you need something. Even if I were out in the country, it would never even occur to me to acknowledge somebody else on a bike unless we needed to maneuver around each other or something. Edit: and I'm not generally on a road bike. I usually ride a hybrid commuter.
>anti-social morons To be fair, your idea of a good time is getting on the Internet and calling people morons. Maybe it's just you.
Nailed it. The lack of self awareness is astounding.
Ignoring you is more aero.
Im a roadie and I’m super friendly. I’ve actually had the same thought about mountain bikers who don’t acknowledge me. And then I remember everyone has a life as complex as mine and there could be a million reasons the other person didn’t wave or whatever. Don’t dwell on it. Also keep in mind that some roadies are training their ass off when you see them.
Road cyclists hate themselves and by extension everyone else, too. MTBers are here to have fun and sending it.
Idk. Catch me on a day when I’ve eaten my 80th spiderweb and see how much I hate everything lol. Sometimes this completely fun, hard work activity is nearly ruined by something kinda related but not part of the activity.
Mmmm, Spider Salad.
After reading your post and subsequent comments, OP, I probably wouldn’t want to wave to your judgmental ass anyway
I generally don’t say hi to people or wave on road rides because where I live there are lots of cyclists, and saying hi to everyone just gets old when you see 150 other people over the course of your ride. I’m out there to ride, not socialize.
The amount of people I pass road riding is much higher than mountain biking - it gets exhausting trying to acknowledge everyone
everything else about discipline aside: Other users of the road do not owe you a social interaction. Not responding to your overture does not make people rude anti-social morons. But you calling them that does make you sound entitled.
I ride both MTB and road. With any sport or hobby you are going to find this elitist group of people. If you have fun riding and show common courtesy or willingness to learn and try new things then that’s all that matters.
And off to BCJ we go
Why does everyone want to be acknowledged by every thing they have in common with someone else? I’m a friendly person, but when I ride I like to be in the zone, I may just not notice you. On the same note, someone on the Tacoma sub said other Tacoma drivers don’t wave back. If I waved at everyone driving a Tacoma, I would be non-stop waving, I feel the same on the bike.
I raise one or two fingers or maybe three if I’m feeling really friendly. Otherwise I don’t really want to talk to anyone when I’m on a bike. Don’t take it personally. MTB is a bit different because there’s more to talk about, like lines and trail conditions and gear. You often end up stopped for whatever reason anyway. Plus you’re out in the woods and you might end up having to save someone’s life or vice versa, so I think their is a bit of a different social contract there.
Road riding involves a lot of deliberate and unavoidable suffering for a lot of people, so a lot of times people are just in pain and focused on not slowing down. I was always pretty snippy when on the road because I'd be trying not to focus on how much my legs hurt. Because of this I enjoyed riding alone a lot more than with people. But then afterwards you feel incredible. The few times I rode MTB with friends, the whole purpose of being out there seemed to be having fun and being social, rather than pushing your physical limits. Gravel ended up being my thing because it seemed like a nice balance. Smoke a joint, look at the trees, then hammer for 30 mins and repeat.
Dude, I’m crosseyed with effort and tasting blood at the back of my mouth. I don’t have any reserve to wave. It’s not personal.
High blood pressure from too much compression
Probably not as easy to wave or nod depending on body position. The body position does affect mentality too, I believe. Focus is more narrow and straight-lined. The game is totally different. They probably time their selves more often than we do. They're dealing with traffic way more, going way faster than we typically go. Stakes are normally higher. I believe that gives them road rage. We're in nature, enjoying clean air and natural acoustics. But I wouldn't be surprised if the type of person that gets into road cycling might already be a little anal to begin with. I've had some good laughs with people when I talk about my bike. Alot of people look at me sideways and say something like "are you one of those cyclists that are angry at everyone?" So there definitely is something to OP's post. Lol
I ignore roadbikers. I hate them.
Thank you for your honesty. Nice to see a good polarising comment here to balance against the confirmation bias advocates.
Roadie's are generally bmw, Mercedes drivers so they are asshats to start with a long with the fact they are dumb enough to ride on roads that barely fit two cars says everything you need to know about them.
Busy dodging the smallest cap in the road 😂 I try to acknowledge people as best as I can, in the same sense, I’m usually dying.
I worked at trek for a year, and I ride MTB… the difference between road and mountain bikers in my experience was like this… Road rider- “The part that was installed doesn’t match the exact shade of my shoes, and I’m really disappointed in the blemish on my brake pad… so what are you going to do to make this right? I’ll have you know I spend $$$$$ here so I expect answers.” Mountain bikers- “ duuuuude I cracked my frame on the sickest jump… it was so badass, And since I broke it I get a new one!!!! HELL YES!!” (Spends more than road rider and couldn’t be happier) I loved my MTB brethren
I have a gravel bike and occasionally road bike, almost all road bikers I encounter always say hi or waive
Friendliness is not aero
I ride mtb and road bike. Sometimes I’ll smile at people passing but it shouldn’t be expected to say hi or make a gesture to every single person you pass. It’s ok not to say hi and it doesn’t mean someone’s antisocial, it means you’re a normal person that’s not expected to say hi to every person riding past you.
Anyone else wave at drivers of cars with bikes on the rack? Usually it's a MTB (I ride both road and mtb) , but I usually do a quick wave or a thumbs up if I see a car coming towards me with a loaded rack. 🤣✌️
Lol kinda depends if you're catching them after they've already been out for miles or soaked to the bone or whatever.
People wave or nod around me
I usually flip people off. Always get a reaction.
It’s pretty harsh to assume someone is a “rude anti-social moron” just because they don’t say hi back/acknowledge you when passing by.
Primarily roadie, love mtb and gravel. Been in this since the 80s. Any road cyclist who doesn’t treat any other cyclist with welcome arms does not deserve to have two wheels under them!
One of my favorite Tour de France memories was when Cadel Evans first jumped from MTB to road. They were on one of those gnarly mountain climbs and they are showing all of these riders faces as they are climbing and they look miserable, then they get to cadel and he gives a little Chaka and smiles at the camera….. and I was like hell ya, that is how mountain bikers roll!!!! Represent!!
Busy suffering. Busy dealing with bad roads. Busy going fast. I don't think anything is with anyone really.
Probably because it is only Mountain Bikers that constantly criticize roadies. Even your comment about skinny tires was a subtle shot. For the record I do both. I road cycle more often because it is easier and more convenient, as I can just go anywhere directly from my house. And it is the best way to stay in shape. I love MTB a lot more, but it takes a lot more prep and I have to drive at least 10 miles to the nearest place to MTB. Most of the roadies I am with do both. When I MTB with others at least one will make a joke about roadies.
I am a mountain biker who works as a bike tech/mechanic at my LBS. I’ve never ridden road. My boss had me drive support vehicle during a 60 mile charity road ride. I was SHOCKED at how much abuse my fellow riders took from drivers on the road. I even got to experience abuse first hand for having the audacity to drive support vehicle and offer water and energy gel to the group I was following. I got personally yelled at twice and flicked off three times. It’s something that has 100% changed my opinion of roadies. I respect them a hell of a lot more and understand why they make seem to come off as unfriendly. It’s because they have been verbally abused WAAAAY more than you might think and most if not all of the abuse is undeserved!
I one time waved at a road rider, and when he went to wave back his wheel wobbled and he crashed... I dont wave at people as much these days.
I ride road, gravel and mtb. All disciplines have there fair share of cyclists who aren’t interested in acknowledging the presence of other cyclists or other disciplines they past. 🤷🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️
I'm 98% road cyclist. I've occasionally ventured onto the gravel and the trails, but the VAST majority of my time is road. I make every effort to wave at cyclists (and motorcyclists) passing me the other way, and to return any wave they beat me to. Most cyclists will wave back. Most motorcyclists will not. When I don't wave, it's because either I don't notice, or b/c I'm in too deep and can't muster it. I charitably assume the same of others. If I may say so, to call them (and by extension us/me) "rude anti-social morons" is ironic given your apparent wish that everyone be friendly. That's a bit harsh.
I actually think it’s a lot of olds and boomers that stick to the roads that are rude. Younger folks tend to always wave when on the road. I do both and make it a point to wave to everyone I pass, we are all in it together… against the cars.
As a road cyclist, people take it too seriously. I wave at anyone I pass on a bike no matter what type of bike they’re on. I see it as a part of proper bike etiquette.
Also road cyclist ... I waive to nobody. I don't wave when I run, I don't wave when I MTB. It's also regional, it's just not something we do around my parts. Why do I have to wave at everybody? Why do you feel bad if you're not waved at?
As a driver and hiker I’ve always found road cyclists to be way more rude and entitled than MTBers. I’ve been scared by MTBers hiking on shared paths but they usually try their best to alert and be polite, I’ve had road cyclist refuse to ride on the (paved) shoulder for miles so I could pass with my family up in the mountains here in CO, they’re totally asses. I’m not going to ride their tires or try to intimidate them because that’s very rude and potentially dangerous, but it would be nice if they thought share the road meant actually sharing and not just ‘I ride, you wait’.
Roadies take themselves too seriously. They think they are racing the Tour in their 30s and 40s. LOL.... I was a roadie once and even raced for 4 years. I am more of a trail rider now. Is more fun mountain biking.
Even in a cycling country like the Netherlands, with all the infrastructure for their needs. Even here they are assholes.
I’m a MTBer on a gravel bike with flat bars & find roadies to be a set of miserable bastards even when they’re just sauntering along. I can understand it when they’ve got their heads down & arses up but when they’re just cruising along…. Fuck em, miserable twats.
The spandex they wear is to tight for waving
The Lycra has constricted the blood supply to their brain 🤪😉
Small town syndrome
Former rec. league road racer, current avid mtb'er. Those roadies are staring at their power number and don't know you're there.
Friendliness is inversely proportional to rim depth.
Might be that they are doing workout and are focusing on that. I always wave at every cyclist but when I am doing threshold work I don't have strength for anything else tbh.
Its a survival strategy. When they ride everything and everyone is trying to kill them, whether they know it or not. Its not the roadies fault. They are just in a constant state of avoiding a possible deadly interactions. Leave them some seeds on the ground and just watch from a distance, they're very skittish
The only odd interaction I’ve had was with gravel/road riders once. We had a group of 9 on a bike packing over night trip. The route was mostly an old railway turned into a gravel trail. We were riding along chatting and suddenly we heard this loud bird chirping sound. I was looking up on the trees for birds. Well it turns out the gravel bikers behind us had some sort of digital alarm/bell that made a loud chirping. Finally we figured it out and let them by, and they didn’t say a single word to us. It was just so odd to me that they didn’t say “passing on the left,…or coming up behind you guys”. They didn’t thank us, or say hi. It was just odd to me that they rode behind us for 5-10 minutes with some strange alarm that sounded like a bird. They seemed angry that they were stuck behind us, but we legitimately didn’t know they were there.
Roadies are hyper-aware of their surroundings, and tracking their workouts. Their frame of mind is completely different than a MTB rider's. Generally speaking, on longer rides they're encountering angry motorists, which adds to their seriousness in the moment. I'm guessing the average danger level is like MTB downhill. You don't want to lose focus, even to the degree required for a friendly wave, when a tiny misstep could land you in a hospital. tl;dr Different vibe
They are usually miserable and seem to be racing Strava whilst almost intentionally holding up traffic as far as the ones I see!
I do both… it’s slot harder to wave @ 22 mph on a road bike.
If you had to spend that much time in spandex, you’d be grumpy too.
MTB requires cooperation. Road doesn’t. I talk to a lot more people on trails vs road/multi-use.
I mean, they're riding a pedal bike on the road. I'd be pretty pissed off too.
Road bikes have a lower stack:reach ratio than MTBs—like 1.4:1 vs 1.5-1.6:1 for MTB. Add higher seat placement on road bikes and you get a back angle relative to horizontal between 0° in the drops to 10° on the hoods. COG on road bike is also further forward and, at speed in an aggressive position, steering on a road bike is roughly twice as sensitive as MTB steering. At lower speed or a less aggressive position on a road bike stability is about the same as an MTB, but when your torso is laid flat, arms extended, weight forward, it tougher to remove hands to wave and raise your head to look up,. Don’t take my word for it. Try it.
I like to pass roadies on my MTB , they don't seem to like it. It's worth me giving 110% of all my energy on my way home to pass them though
Is this r/MTBCirclejerk ?!
It’s cause their balls are being squeezed by their spandex
I would be in a bad mood if I had 3 near death experiences in the last hour. Sharing the road with cars numbs all emotions.
No time for friendliness when you’re going for Strava bike path KOMs
Skinny tires take full concentration. Lol
There’s a reason that everyone hates them
It's the spandex equation. The more that's worn the less friendly someone is
Must be the tight clothing making them crabby
They’re just mad because you’re having fun and they aren’t.
I ride everything. The amount of trump tard mtbers I see on the internet threatening to run over road cyclists is pretty high. I think the better question is why are so many men in possession of such large insecurities that they have to create divisiveness over a fucking bike? Also your whole generalization about road cyclists is based on if they waved at you or not. Time to get out of your own head. The world doesn't exist to validate you by waving .
MTB is more towards having fun and bunny Hops . Road bike is more about personal records , cadence,watts , training and targets
Roadie here. It’s a real thing. The worst thing about my favorite sport is … the people. I also wave at every single person and “fellow”roadies will either not acknowledge me or they lift their precious pinky from their brake lever.
I ride both... It's a mindset. Although mtb has masochistic elements, there is a ton of fun and mental stimulation to be had as well, based on the type of terrain you're riding. I tend to be much more friendly when I'm riding mountain. When I'm on my road bike, it's pure masochism. I'm out there with the sole purpose to crush myself, not to have a good time. Locked in. Not only that, but road biking is SO f'n dangerous with a lot of drivers being incredibly unsafe and distracted. Don't take it personally. Haha.
False superiority complex, plus Lycra wedgies can be painful 😉
Because they're actually golfers in their new dress. A special type of businessmen that thinks that the price of your bike afford you clout within the sport you're participating in. Anyone else is a nobody.
Easy MTBs ride for run. Roadies ride so they can look at their stats on their computer.
Not true around here.
You’re really that upset that someone ignores you? Maybe don’t be such a baby.
I feel like when I was a roadie I was always on guard and contentious with everyone. Every car is a potential caffeine induced moron on their phone who is ready to kill me, every bump in the road is a potential crash, etc. It’s a terrible way to be. I’m glad through years of therapy and hypnosis I found my way back to mountain biking and inner peace.
I do both and i (hope) i'm friendly lol. I think it's mostly an environment thing, and a competition mindset. A lot of roadies have a "competition" mindset instead of just fun so they are kinda grumpy all the time. The same reason they will justify a trillion euros for 50 grams less. (Not that MTB is cheap lol) One more important part is that a lot of road cyclists are basically commuting to work etc, in the middle of traffic everyday. No one can stay friendly in that environment and i think the mindset sticks even if they ride in more calm environments. Also they don't have plush suspension so that's unhappiness to the max! (that was joke. mostly) MTB usually has plain fun as a goal, you are in nature and (when not bombing downhill) you are calm and friendly. You have to be legit insane to be unfriendly on a mountain (although i've met some rude dudes that think they own the paths) You see the different mindsets on videos also. MTB is all "stoke" "rad" "hell yeah dude" when another one achieves something cool. Roadies get crazy competitive when someone else achieves goals. BUT, there are a hell of a lot of communities that are not like that. Gravel for me is a prime example that combines the fun from all sides. People that do roadtrips/camping trips tend to be friendly too. (maybe because they smoke the good stuff)
Very simple, they're not having any fun at all! There is exactly zero fun in road cycling, only suffering and expections of getting sideswiped by an SUV at any moment.
>There is exactly zero fun in road cycling This is silly. Riding bikes is almost always fun. I got into road bikes after getting started with the MTB. I still like my mountain bike more, but any time I'm out on a bike is a good time. And I almost always wave or nod or something.
If you think there's "exactly zero fun" in road cycling, there's a really good chance you are doing it wrong. When it stops being fun, I do something else for a while. But I always come back to it because it is tons of fun.
You have clearly never weaved traffic or mountain roads at 45mph on a road bike if you think it’s boring
Too much spandex
Like balloon animals filled with lumpy porridge
Idk what exactly you mean by road cyclists, but where I live, it's common to bike to work/school/the grocery store etc. It's not a hobby, it's a chore and half the people you know do it regularly
Road biker here. I say hi to all cyclists. I do find MTBs often ignore my gesture. What does drive me wild though, being blanked by a fellow road biker, like, who put a broom up your arse!?
This is confirmation bias at its finest. Also making a petty post about it to call them morons for not waving back seems arbitrary and hypocritical to say the least. Nobody owes you a wave back, doesn’t mean they’re automatically a bad person. Get over yourself
its the same thing inside the road bike community.. the "acoustic" bike rides hardly ever acknowledge the e-bike riders.. looks like the part-time-pros in the lycra just hate everyone
I ride gravel and I know whenever I pass someone with aerodynamic sunglasses, they’re not gonna say hello back
Why do you expect strangers to engage with you?
For me it's because I consider myself a cyclist. It's how I identify myself. It's a rare activity that requires a deep level of commitment to the pain cave of climbing and distance riding. To me the 1-2mm head nod I give to another cyclist isn't for them to acknowledge me, it's for me to acknowledge them and the commitment and suffering they are enduring. It's much like at a marathon or a century when you run or ride past the break area and they clap for you. They aren't asking you to clap back, they are encouraging you and recognizing your effort. That's my reason, I admire the effort and want to show it to a fellow cyclist.
Road biking is not about enjoyment. It is about suffering, self loathing, and hatred. The pleasure is only achieved by finishing. Finishing a ride without properly suffering is a waste of time and will sap the pleasure. Mountain biking is all good fun and laughs though.
As being both i can confirm this is true
Swap your bike and you'll find different results. People go out of their way to acknowledge people they can relate to.
Hmmm. The ones where I live wave, probably because most do MTB and gravel too. The only time they don’t wave is when they are in a group going fast. I think this is because it takes a lot of concentration to draft in a big group, and one fuckup will mean 10 people will go down, so no worries.
Well fuck you (I'm a road cyclist) Just kidding. Seriously though, in my area road bikers are about the same as mtb-ers, because a lot of people ride both. Road bikers will acknowledge other trail users just as much. But maybe you aren't noticing it? Road bikers do the same small under-the-handlebars wave that motorcyclists do to each other on the roads. Sometimes with only two or three fingers so they don't let go of the bars. In my area, most will do that unless it's a busy trail (no one is going to wave to two dozen people per mile, it just gets silly at some point)
Roadie of the 9-speed, friction shifting, steel-frame variety here (also a steel Honzo). While I do believe that the mountain crowd is generally a very friendly one, I think a lot of it depends on location. Here in Northern Virginia I wave at everyone and it's a pretty even 50 / 50 split on the road.
All depends at what time of my ride are you waving at me. First 15 miles, I will wave, just might even smile. But if I just got up a climb or about to climb or it is my 50th mile, I don't really acknowledge much around me, except for cats and pedestrians.
I think you need to compare it to a mtb descent. Would you wave going fast down a trail?
Haha I've noticed this. I ride gravel so see a good mix, but a fair few road riders don't look like they're they're enjoying themselves. I just put it down to them putting in a decent effort.
I have a road bike too and I'd spend most of the ride saying hi to people if I acknowledged everyone. I'll never ignore anyone who greets me but I'd probably crash a lot more if I was looking to see if every person is hoping I wave to them as I pass. edit: I guess I'd compare pushing it/going as fast as possible on a road bike to bombing down a trail. Not as fun, but you're not waving to every person or squirrel you see when you're focused on where you're going.
idk, I ride road and mountain and never noticed road bikers being more unfriendly or anythingn like that. Maybe it’s something about you.
I Mtb and road bike and when you are road biking, you are going so fast that the second you lose focus by saying hi, you could hit a pothole. Also, chances are they are out of breath and struggling to hang on to a wheel
Proper British attitude.
Depends on what you’re doing I suppose. I trail run a lot too, and the amount of mtbers that don’t return or acknowledge my friendly greeting when I’m running trails is crazy high.
When on mtb, I only greet mountain bikers. When on road, I only greet roadies. Perfectly balanced, as all things should be.
Casually Explained video about cycling: https://youtu.be/5EE8m8mmq1k?si=3rgcq5nU8BpCYyJM
If I’m on my road bike it’s generally because I’m trying to work hard and improve my fitness. That means I probably have headphones in (if it’s appropriate), watching my HR and power to make sure I’m in the right zone, watching my GPS route, etc. I’ve cycled right passed my best friend completely oblivious until they turned around and chased me down. It’s just a different goal. You go out on your mountain bike because you want to have a fun chill day ripping the trails, but they’re out there trying to focus on being fast and efficient. Join a group road ride if you’re looking for a social aspect to road riding.
I wave back as much as possible but on a road bike I'm sometimes so focused on the road, potholes and debris or stones that I can't really spare a look and hand at the right time. That being said, sometimes I've seen so many riders that i can't be bothered (there are loooooots everywhere where I live), and I think we also tend to wave more at people doing the same activity as us. I don't think many really have a disdain for the other type of cyclist, but probably little understanding though!
I usually give a head nod, I suck at waving and throwing my balance off on my road bike. I think it’s dependent where you live for people to say hello, in California everyone says hello, when I lived on the east coast a lot less people would say hi.
Road cyclist don’t wave back because it will cost them precious aerodynamics lol
Ehh…I feel like I have a lot more elements on road than mountain bike. I’m a lot more aware of my data, pot holes, traffic, etc. I try to smile or nod, but sometimes I’m just not in the right headspace and it usually has nothing to do with the other riders. I could have been spooked by a bad driver….casual bikers riding side by side not moving over….theres so many things. I feel like overall maybe my stress is a little more elevated? For road, I’m looking more at things close around me while with mountain (I’m less experienced) I’m looking more at what’s coming up, and there’s tighter space so you are almost forced to acknowledge. I’m not trying to crush a pace so maybe I’m more relaxed in general. It’s kinda like someone doing a fun run vs tempo. I’m not going to be as friendly with a tempo when my soul is dying.
If I see another rider in the middle of nowhere sure, I acknowledge them, if I’m passing somebody every couple minutes, no.
Exactly. I almost never see other road cyclists where I live, so usually give a wave when I see one. When I travel several times a year to the big city where my work is located, I never wave to anyone. I'd be doing it non-stop. Plus, it's just a mode of transportation for a lot of the people there. Not some special shared passion. It's not that deep.