I'm pedaling to work last week. Up ahead I see another rider. Cycling clothes, backpack, mountain bike with slick tires. Must be a fellow commuter. Who else would be riding at 7:30 on a Thursday morning in freezing temps ?

I'm slowly gaining on him. Oh, good. We'll say hi, commiserate about numb fingers and dumb drivers, maybe plan a lunch ride together.

Yeah, right. And I'll go curtain shopping on Saturday instead of doing the club ride.

He glances back, sees me coming. He jumps out of the saddle and sprints. A few seconds later he looks around again. The gap has grown. Then, disaster: The traffic light turns red.

Thinking fast, he bunny hops the curb onto the sidewalk and powers through the three-way intersection. He looks back, sees me stopping at the light. Game over. He could've been road kill, but that's a small price to pay for victory in the commuter wars.

What is it about bike commuters that makes them more competitive than any Cat 1 racer? I've seen it all in my 20+ years of cycling to work.

There's the guy who overtakes you after a five-mile chase, then turns at the first side street and hyperventilates in the gutter. Or the rider who goes past the building where he works just so he can catch you -- and then U-turns and heads to his office. Or the cyclist who, rather than saying hi when passed, shouts: "I have a cold, and a broken pelvis, and I'm carrying gold bullion in my saddlebags."

Me, I just want to get to work. Heck, the other morning I got passed by this dude on an ancient, filthy department-store mountain bike with knobbies. He was wearing jeans and sneakers. And drinking a beer.

une page mise en archives par SVP

Consultez notre ENCYCLOPÉDIE sportive