As you know, singletracks.com is all about the trails. We love checking out new trails and always having good places to ride no matter what town we might be in. We’ve checked out trails in Georgia, North and South Carolina, Ohio, and Colorado and in the process, we’ve observed a few things about bikers and bike trails. The following is a summary of some of the attitudes we have encountered and what we’ve found makes for an awesome place to ride!
If you’ve been biking for more than a couple weeks, you have probably encountered a few jerks out on the trails. There are many different flavors of jerks and you may find them when you least expect them. One flavor of jerk that I encountered recently is the “I’m-such-a-freakin’-hard-core-rider-I-gotta-make-sure-everyone-knows-it” guy. This guy (who is a complete stranger) has to tell you to “be careful” when you start down a technical section so you don’t get hurt. He is also the same guy that tells you “you shouldn’t be on this trail if you have to walk parts of it.” Obviously he has forgotten that in order to learn technical skills, you need to push yourself and see what you’re capable of. He is always in a hurry to get down the trail and has no time to wait for you to cautiously attempt HIS section of trail. He’ll ride your tail all the way down and won’t let up until you stop and let him pass by. Jerk #1, as we will refer to him, is usually an average skilled rider who thinks he can ride any trail (although you won’t see him trying any trails that necessitate a portage or two). These guys usually ride alone at the local trails every single day because they have nothing else to do.
Next you have the “I’m-too-fast-to-be-considerate-to-other-riders” guy, or Jerk #2. This guy spits on the IMBA rules and has no consideration for other riders, the environment, etc. He is always going too fast to yield to you (especially when you’re going up and he’s going down). Often times he will stay in the middle of the trail and force you to either stop or ride off trail just to get out of his way. He often lacks the capacity for normal greetings like “Hi” and “Sup?” and generally ignores any attempts to acknowledge that you too are on the trail. This guy also loves taking “bootleg” trails and seeks out the most “extreme” terrain, even if that means causing severe erosion or taking out small plants and animals. Jerk #2 is always out there for himself and doesn’t think about the possibility of trail closures, biker bans, injury, etc. He laughs when he sneaks up on hikers, delights in spooking horses, and is elated when he wins a game of “chicken” with a fellow biker. Most of these guys are still in high school (at least mentally).
Finally, (for this article anyway) there is the “I’m-too-sexy-for-my-bike” guy, a.k.a. Jerk #3, a.k.a. “The gram counter.” This guy has the latest gear, the cleanest, most colorful beer themed jersey, and the basic skills of a slug. Actually, these guys aren’t really jerks but they are frustrating just the same. You will know these guys because they pull up to the trailhead in their brand new SUVs with nary a scratch or a speck of mud. They always have way too much bike for the trail they’re riding (for example, a full DH bike for the local greenway path). They take forever pumping their tires to just the right pressure and lubing their chains to precisely the correct viscosity. They talk to each other A LOT about biking but you never seem to see them out on the trail (sometimes you do but they’re stopped, drinking an Evian, talking about biking). Maybe some of this is exaggerated but you know what I’m saying. It is especially frustrating when you are a 15-year-old kid riding a 5-year-old Huffy because you can’t afford anything better. The funny thing is that the 15-year-old kid is probably 3 times the biker Jerk #3 is – even WITHOUT shocks! Keep ridin’ Mr. 15 year old and some day you too can own a bike that costs more than a car!
I’m sure each of you have also a list of your least favorite individuals on the trail but the whole point of this is to make people aware of behavior that gets on other people’s nerves out on the trail. Hopefully some good can come of this and one day we will all be a little more civil to one another when we share the trails.
