Old School Rules

Hey All! I hope everyone is enjoying the snow, gosh knows we've gotten enough of it the last few weeks! So, I know spring is a ways off, and the spin rooms & trainers are getting waaay to good of a workout, and riding outside is currently being put on the back burner. However, eventually spring will get here, so I thought I'd pass something along. (Thanks Scot) :)

Old School Rules

On a recent Sunday morning ride, it happened again. A young rider passed me on the right, which is the wrong side here in America and didn't say a word. Not 'on your right', not good day, nothing. This sort of thing has been happening with increasing frequency and I'd had enough. I caught him said hello. He was actually a decent young man who just seemed a bit lacking in the normal social graces but also what I considered basic bike etiquette.

I asked a young racer and the older bike mechanic at my local bike shop what this was about. The racer said he'd read in a reputable cycling magazine that keeping one's race day game face on at all times, on all rides, was good discipline for the aspiring racer. Horse pucky I say, so I penned the following:

Old School Rules

Every Rider Deserves Respect: Give It Up!
Thick or Thin, Fit or Not,
Young or Old, Weak or Strong
Every Rider Advances Our Sport
So Say Hey When You Pass

Look or Move Right before Spitting
Announce When You're On or Off
Attack Hard, Don't Gloat, Acknowledge Defeat
Take Your Turn Then Flap You Wing
Point Out the Glass Not Every Rut
Have Fun; Every Day on a Bike is a Good Day


I think this is something all of us sometimes forget, and we all need to remember we were all new to the sport at one time, and there's nothing worse than being out on a ride waving at a fellow cyclist and getting snubbed. So with that in mind, bring on the warm weather and melt some of this snow! Spring is right around the corner, and I can't wait to see all of you out on the roads again.
Cheers!-Niki