Bad Behaviour at 3sis/Evr grn mtn

[btadlock]

Saturday, holiday weekend, and you can imagine the trails were a bit crowded. I was on the downhill side, riding wild iris loop in the meadow, and a family is approaching, mom, dad, 3 kids and a dog, they step off to their right, giving me the trail, I slow down to a near crawl and hug the far side of the trail, as I just about pass them, some guy blows thru space that both me and the family had given up in an attempt to be courteous.
Truly uncool and really not going far in keeping the mtb biker crowd in a positive light.
This guy was fully kitted out in local sponsor gear, riding a pretty nice bike, so I am thinking he should know better.

[Wiggs]

Well....we're waiting. What was his kit?

Rat him and his sponsor out.

[smmokan]

Did you say something to the guy when he did it, or did you just go to the internet to complain after the fact?

[SunnyinCO]

Well....we're waiting. What was his kit?

Rat him and his sponsor out.

Agreed. It starts with cyclists policing themselves so we do not loose privileges and reduce negative public perception.

[bipolarbear]

I thought I yelled "STRAVA" loud enough for both parties to hear. Sorry, next time I'll use my megaphone. You cheeseballs were just sitting there blocking the trail, don't you know that segment is one of the most contested KOM's on the front range.

Thanks for noticing my kit, hope you continue to buy products from my sponsors. BTW, if I hadn't gotten that Strava KOM, my sponsors were gonna drop me anyways...

[cbw]

All weekend I ran into people not giving the right of way to uphill riders/being rude. More than once it was so bad that I was elbowed going uphill as they plowed downhill, almost losing it. I would always yell at them to yield the right of way.

However it didn't stop me from being polite and thanking everyone that did yield/were not aholes. Almost felt the need to ask for forgiveness for all the rude riders when I did run into some nice people.

But it was a great weekend and a few bad eggs couldn't take away from the perfect conditions.

[cocavaak]

cbw, what trails did you have issues on?

[SkaredShtles]

Bad behavior on trails on the Front Range on one of the busiest holiday weekends of the year??

[UncleTrail]

Saturday, holiday weekend, and you can imagine the trails were a bit crowded. I was on the downhill side, riding wild iris loop in the meadow, and a family is approaching, mom, dad, 3 kids and a dog, they step off to their right, giving me the trail, I slow down to a near crawl and hug the far side of the trail, as I just about pass them, some guy blows thru space that both me and the family had given up in an attempt to be courteous.
Truly uncool and really not going far in keeping the mtb biker crowd in a positive light.
This guy was fully kitted out in local sponsor gear, riding a pretty nice bike, so I am thinking he should know better.

Maybe he was "finding his own path"?



Women and children just happen to be a barrier in his way.

[btadlock]

Did you say something to the guy when he did it, or did you just go to the internet to complain after the fact?

Not too proud to admit it, but the guy smoked me, I tried catching him, it was a non-starter. Did not see him at the parking lot either.
Did not really feel like it was a rant or complaining, just an observation of the environment on the trail.

[btadlock]

All weekend I ran into people not giving the right of way to uphill riders/being rude. More than once it was so bad that I was elbowed going uphill as they plowed downhill, almost losing it. I would always yell at them to yield the right of way.

However it didn't stop me from being polite and thanking everyone that did yield/were not aholes. Almost felt the need to ask for forgiveness for all the rude riders when I did run into some nice people.

But it was a great weekend and a few bad eggs couldn't take away from the perfect conditions.

Sounds like you and I were on the same ride, granted it was a holiday weekend and crowded, I still had a great ride, actually suprised how few other trail users I encounted given the number of cars in the lots. This incident did not rain on my ride, just thought it was a DB move.

[btadlock]

Bad behavior on trails on the Front Range on one of the busiest holiday weekends of the year??

Busy or not, does not justify a DB move.

[WKD-RDR]

ya know, building a good one-way trail or two would go along way to reducing trail conflict

[Devildog1775]

http://static.squarespace.com/static...-Trail_Map.pdf

Read those glorious rules posted on that map. I miss some of this now that I'm out here.

[ryan12210]

http://static.squarespace.com/static...-Trail_Map.pdf

Read those glorious rules posted on that map. I miss some of this now that I'm out here.

It's funny to see someone post that. I'm from Atlanta and am moving out to Denver in 2 weeks. I never have issues out here and most uphill riders will yield to downhill, but it seems like this is a real point of conflict among mtb riders in Co.

I've been riding mtb for 16 years and have never understood the yield to uphill traffic rule. You suffer on the ride up to get to go down so wouldn't it be more considerate for uphill riders to yield? But that being said, nearly all the time there is a way for both riders to get by without coming to a stop. And why is it such a big deal if someone passes you at a decent clip if there is room. I'm not saying this is the case here, but I think half the time the people who complain are ones who are kinda jealous because they're not good enough riders or comfortable enough to downhill at a decent speed.

[billybobzia]

http://static.squarespace.com/static...-Trail_Map.pdf

Read those glorious rules posted on that map. I miss some of this now that I'm out here.

love that.. maybe in some future decade we will get some biker only directional trail

[Ithnu]

ya know, building a good one-way trail or two would go along way to reducing trail conflict

Take your common sense and GTFO of the Front Range!

[td_mn]

I
I've been riding mtb for 16 years and have never understood the yield to uphill traffic rule. You suffer on the ride up to get to go down so wouldn't it be more considerate for uphill riders to yield? But that being said, nearly all the time there is a way for both riders to get by without coming to a stop. And why is it such a big deal if someone passes you at a decent clip if there is room. I'm not saying this is the case here, but I think half the time the people who complain are ones who are kinda jealous because they're not good enough riders or comfortable enough to downhill at a decent speed.

I'm not saying this is the case here but, please stay in Atlanta

[MtbRN]

I've been riding mtb for 16 years and have never understood the yield to uphill traffic rule. You suffer on the ride up to get to go down so wouldn't it be more considerate for uphill riders to yield? But that being said, nearly all the time there is a way for both riders to get by without coming to a stop. And why is it such a big deal if someone passes you at a decent clip if there is room. I'm not saying this is the case here, but I think half the time the people who complain are ones who are kinda jealous because they're not good enough riders or comfortable enough to downhill at a decent speed.

Oh goody, can't wait to welcome another transplant to Colorado who thinks that riding off the trail so "both riders to get by without coming to a stop" is ok. And complains that uphillers should yield to downhillers. And thinks that it is ok to blow by other trail users if there is room. Truly, we just don't have enough of that here!

[cocavaak]

I've been riding mtb for 16 years and have never understood the yield to uphill traffic rule. You suffer on the ride up to get to go down so wouldn't it be more considerate for uphill riders to yield?

One of the main reasons for giving uphill riders the right-of-way is that on difficult climbs it can be hard to get going again once you stop. For the downhill rider, it's much easier to regain momentum. Many folks like to work on their uphill technique and continue to work on cleaning difficult uphill sections. And many of these folks enjoy the "suffering" of a hard uphill. You can feel yourself get stronger with work.

[ryan12210]

Oh goody, can't wait to welcome another transplant to Colorado who thinks that riding off the trail so "both riders to get by without coming to a stop" is ok. And complains that uphillers should yield to downhillers. And thinks that it is ok to blow by other trail users if there is room. Truly, we just don't have enough of that here!

Well you're in luck, sweetheart. I'm coming out primarily to annoy you personally.

[Pau11y]

Well you're in luck, sweetheart. I'm coming out primarily to annoy you personally.

Sweet jesus...a Georgian Texan!

[ryan12210]

Sweet jesus...a Georgian Texan!

I plan on skidding, everywhere... I'm talking about even in my pumas walking down the sidewalk.

[the need]

I've been riding mtb for 16 years and have never understood the yield to uphill traffic rule.

Seems like your logic's been going downhill, brah...

[zorro]

I'm not saying this is the case here but, please stay in Atlanta

+1.

[ryan12210]

Seems like your logic's been going downhill, brah...

Troll uptight bike rider logic was pretty on point if you ask me, sis.

[SkaredShtles]

It's funny to see someone post that. I'm from Atlanta and am moving out to Denver in 2 weeks. I never have issues out here and most uphill riders will yield to downhill, but it seems like this is a real point of conflict among mtb riders in Co.

I've been riding mtb for 16 years and have never understood the yield to uphill traffic rule. You suffer on the ride up to get to go down so wouldn't it be more considerate for uphill riders to yield? But that being said, nearly all the time there is a way for both riders to get by without coming to a stop. And why is it such a big deal if someone passes you at a decent clip if there is room. I'm not saying this is the case here, but I think half the time the people who complain are ones who are kinda jealous because they're not good enough riders or comfortable enough to downhill at a decent speed.

[ryan12210]

I may be trolling them a bit but I really am moving out to Denver from Atlanta in 2 weeks and it really is true that people, especially fellow bike riders, don't fight about this as much out here. I've been following this forum since I decided to move 6 months ago, and it's something that's posted about constantly.

[SkaredShtles]

Extrapolating what happens in the FR forum of eMpTy BeeR to real life is kinda silly.

[ryan12210]

Extrapolating what happens in the FR forum of eMpTy BeeR to real life is kinda silly.

That seems like sound advice.

[Ithnu]

people, especially fellow bike riders, don't fight about this as much out here.

There's a reason why CO is one of the least obese states...the 2.5 million people in Denver get out and use the trails. The trails are F&#KING busy. No way around it.

Don't be a dick.

[Devildog1775]

I may be trolling them a bit but I really am moving out to Denver from Atlanta in 2 weeks and it really is true that people, especially fellow bike riders, don't fight about this as much out here. I've been following this forum since I decided to move 6 months ago, and it's something that's posted about constantly.

There's a reason why CO is one of the least obese states...the 2.5 million people in Denver get out and use the trails. The trails are F&#KING busy. No way around it.

Don't be a dick.

This is a true statement. The sheer volume of people out there, especially on weekends is the source of many fits.

I can remember riding Bull Mt. (Dahlonega, GA) and my only encounter the whole day was a dude on a horse. Georgians in general are not as interested in Mt. Biking or hiking as Coloradans. The trails out there on weekends can be pretty lonely. Except for Blankets creek but the directional traffic keeps that place happy.


So, when you get here, get educated, learn the rules and be an ambassador, keep others in check too.

[UncleTrail]

I plan on skidding, everywhere... I'm talking about even in my pumas walking down the sidewalk.

Puma makes underwear?

[btadlock]

It's funny to see someone post that. I'm from Atlanta and am moving out to Denver in 2 weeks. I never have issues out here and most uphill riders will yield to downhill, but it seems like this is a real point of conflict among mtb riders in Co.

I've been riding mtb for 16 years and have never understood the yield to uphill traffic rule. You suffer on the ride up to get to go down so wouldn't it be more considerate for uphill riders to yield? But that being said, nearly all the time there is a way for both riders to get by without coming to a stop. And why is it such a big deal if someone passes you at a decent clip if there is room. I'm not saying this is the case here, but I think half the time the people who complain are ones who are kinda jealous because they're not good enough riders or comfortable enough to downhill at a decent speed.

Don’t get the wrong impression from my original post, my post was not a complaint about how the other biker passed me, heck, I am old and slow and get passed a lot. The post was about the rider blowing thru the space between me and the waiting family and how his actions could be viewed as reckless by the family and add fuel to the trail conflict fire that is always smoldering here in JeffCO.
In my 12 years here, I have only been truly annoyed by the actions of another rider 2, maybe 3 times. I am more concerned about the perception that other trail users get from the bad behavior of a few riders.
Please be aware that in Jefferson County Open Space areas, mountain bikers are at the bottom of the list when it comes to trail users, we are required to yield to all other trail users, regardless of uphill/downhill direction. We are required to stop for ever runner, hiker, dog walker, bird watcher, horse rider, not to slow down and pass, but required to stop. Like many rules/laws, we may not agree or understand, but nonetheless, we have to follow them.
I have no idea what the level of trail use is in the ATL area, but out here, we have a ton of people getting on the trails, and with that number of users, there is bound to conflict.
I am not concerned about how some other mtb rider affects me, after all I won’t complain to JeffCO about another mtb rider, but the hiker/walker will complain if they feel they were endangered by the perceived recklessness of one of our own.

[meat-market]

duuude, I ran the four runner out of gas, again...

[xcguy]

It's funny to see someone post that. I'm from Atlanta and am moving out to Denver in 2 weeks. I never have issues out here and most uphill riders will yield to downhill, but it seems like this is a real point of conflict among mtb riders in Co.

I've been riding mtb for 16 years and have never understood the yield to uphill traffic rule. You suffer on the ride up to get to go down so wouldn't it be more considerate for uphill riders to yield? But that being said, nearly all the time there is a way for both riders to get by without coming to a stop. And why is it such a big deal if someone passes you at a decent clip if there is room. I'm not saying this is the case here, but I think half the time the people who complain are ones who are kinda jealous because they're not good enough riders or comfortable enough to downhill at a decent speed.

You're going to fit in just fine here.

[ryan12210]

I can remember riding Bull Mt. (Dahlonega, GA) and my only encounter the whole day was a dude on a horse.

I'm planning on getting my last bull mtn ride in this weekend. How far does one have to drive to get away from the crowds? My house is in Westminster. One good thing for me is that I work from home second shift so I can get out and usually have trails to myself in the AM but I don't mind travelling to get away from the crowds on the weekend. Afterall, I'm used to driving 5 hours to Boone/Pisgah or 12 to Snow Shoe.

[cocavaak]

Maybe if you pick a weekday and drive a few hours to someplace not many people go, then ride in a few hours, you may not see anybody.

[SkaredShtles]

I'm planning on getting my last bull mtn ride in this weekend. How far does one have to drive to get away from the crowds?

I'd say about an hour to 90 minutes.

[Devildog1775]

I'm planning on getting my last bull mtn ride in this weekend. How far does one have to drive to get away from the crowds? My house is in Westminster. One good thing for me is that I work from home second shift so I can get out and usually have trails to myself in the AM but I don't mind travelling to get away from the crowds on the weekend. Afterall, I'm used to driving 5 hours to Boone/Pisgah or 12 to Snow Shoe.

Buffalo creek is usually a ghost town on the weekdays, and most places around Evergreen are pretty painless during the week.

[JonathanM]

I'm planning on getting my last bull mtn ride in this weekend. How far does one have to drive to get away from the crowds? My house is in Westminster. One good thing for me is that I work from home second shift so I can get out and usually have trails to myself in the AM but I don't mind travelling to get away from the crowds on the weekend. Afterall, I'm used to driving 5 hours to Boone/Pisgah or 12 to Snow Shoe.

I moved here from Seattle back in January and lived outside of DC before that. You really only have to go ~30-45 minutes in my experience so far. I went to Elk Meadow last Saturday at 11AM and it was not crowded at all, especially on the loop up to Bergen Peak. Seems like the only places to avoid on the weekends are trails in Golden or really close to Boulder/Lyons.

[SkaredShtles]

Buffalo creek is usually a ghost town on the weekdays, and most places around Evergreen are pretty painless during the week.

Almost every JeffCo Open Space park is as well between the hours of 6am-3pm on a weekday. Ghost town.

[jugdish]

It's funny to see someone post that. I'm from Atlanta and am moving out to Denver in 2 weeks. I never have issues out here and most uphill riders will yield to downhill, but it seems like this is a real point of conflict among mtb riders in Co.

I've been riding mtb for 16 years and have never understood the yield to uphill traffic rule. You suffer on the ride up to get to go down so wouldn't it be more considerate for uphill riders to yield? But that being said, nearly all the time there is a way for both riders to get by without coming to a stop. And why is it such a big deal if someone passes you at a decent clip if there is room. I'm not saying this is the case here, but I think half the time the people who complain are ones who are kinda jealous because they're not good enough riders or comfortable enough to downhill at a decent speed.

F-ing wonderful. Another nozzle.

[Devildog1775]

Almost every JeffCo Open Space park is as well between the hours of 6am-3pm on a weekday. Ghost town.

I figured. Don't make it down the hill very often, thanks.

[zrm]

Well, I did a 37 mile ride at BC on Fri and everyone on a bike yielded to me when I was climbing without riding off trail - actually came to a stop - and I yielded to all climbers and hikers. On Memorial day I rode CT/Indian creek area for another big ride and ditto, everyone, regardless if they were kitted or wearing baggies or traveling on foot did the same. I ran into a couple groups of equestrians and I yielded to them, was friendly and guess what, they were friendly back! Hard to believe, but everyone was friendly, said hihowareya, got along etc.

Since then I've been out on the limited dry terrain here in Summit and gasp, everyone was basically courteous! Not one person ran me off the trail and I ran no one off the trail.

What's the world coming to?

[Ithnu]

Almost every JeffCo Open Space park is as well between the hours of 6am-3pm on a weekday. Ghost town.

[sloppyart]

Seems like I see more conflicts at this time of the year.

Problem is (IMO) more users out there, combined with a combo of year round riders and seasonal riders. Also with limited trails in good shape means more riders per mile.

I've had a few encounters where I startled some uphill riders that had their heads fully down, talking to the guy behind them. Although these riders do have the right of way they also need to pay attention to the trail ahead of them. I'm probably partly to blame as I'm used to being able to carry a little more speed in the winter months without having to worry about uphill riders. (That being said, I don't blow past people like the OP witnessed and only had to stop a little quicker to yield to them).

Seems like more of the seasonal riders closer to town. The 2 times I surprised riders were near Boulder. Rode Nederland this week. Encountered 100% highly experience riders up there.

[Ithnu]

Seems like I see more conflicts at this time of the year.

Problem is (IMO) more users out there, combined with a combo of year round riders and seasonal riders. Also with limited trails in good shape means more riders per mile.

Also a true story. Once the high country dries up everyone spreads out, bikers and hikers.

Horses can still go f#%k themselves.

[Scotty]

This is a true statement. The sheer volume of people out there, especially on weekends is the source of many fits.

I can remember riding Bull Mt. (Dahlonega, GA) and my only encounter the whole day was a dude on a horse. Georgians in general are not as interested in Mt. Biking or hiking as Coloradans. The trails out there on weekends can be pretty lonely. Except for Blankets creek but the directional traffic keeps that place happy.


So, when you get here, get educated, learn the rules and be an ambassador, keep others in check too.

For the most part, I too agree with what Ryan is saying. This forum has been very helpful to guide me to the right place in terms of shops and trails, but you cant get through a single page without 2 or 3 trail riding complaint threads (maybe make a sticky for them?). I just moved from Phoenix, AZ where we don't have a much hills, but surely the same amount of traffic once temps cool. I totally agree with the bike etiquette and rules that are set out here, but I think that some people take it too seriously.

All I am saying is, rather than posting about it on here, possibly see if you can 'nicely' provide them with the right etiquette, or maybe see if you can find them at the bottom of the trail after the ride and give them advice how to better handle a passing. Maybe replace "*******" or "strava!" with "dude, slow down when you are passing another rider!".

I will take this as strike 1 since I am new to this forum, and my post wasnt directed at the OP or anyone in particular. Kisses!

[brokefork]

For the most part, the riders who are the problem already know the rules, just don't give a s**t about anyone but themselves. Call them out all you want, they won't change their behavior.