When someone thinks you are a newbie... and you have been riding 4 years.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I have a friend who is infamous for talking down to people. When he starts doing that to me I've learned to just stop and stare at him. He gets the point after a minute or so of a blank stare.

That's a very effective technique. My DH uses it on ME when i start babbling irrationally about something or other. But he'll start it by very S-L-O-W-L-Y turning his head towards me.....then when the stare finally gets pointed in my direction it's just too much, I totally crack up. He kills me!

[sundial]

I mean he came up beside me on our group ride... He was also complimenting me on my muscular thighs. Of course, I gotta say he was like 20 years old then me.

LOL! That reminds me......last year when I was in our LBS a cyclist guy that appeared to be in his mid 50's or so invited me to do the Arkansas Hilly 100. Then he studied me and added, "You'll need to train awhile for it." Whatever. Ol' coot.

[Miranda]

We know that statistically cycling is a more male dominate sport. I think even just the sight of a woman makes you stand out, and for those men inclinded, they begin to yammer. If I run an errand straight from spinning and have on my cleats it never fails that a complete stranger of a man will approach me. Or just even looking at bike gear anywhere. I just usually smile and nod if I have a moment to listen. I think if they have nothing else they can talk about, it's an opportunity to feel an ease with a subject they know (or think they do) and blab to a pretty woman. Chivalry (they are trying to rescue you from your statistically newb self)... through manly man eyes.

[TxDoc]

Gosh, not sure what screams "NEWBIE" about me lately... but in the past week I've had 2 different guys talk to me like I have never been on a bike before.

It's actually kind of funny.

Shoot, I ride a good 400-600 miles a month... and yet, I do something that says, "I'm a newbie". Who knows.

I had to hold back telling one guy, "Look! I'm not new. I've been riding for years. So yea, I know that when I got salt on my shirt that means I've lost salt that I need to replace."

I know he was just trying to be nice... but I really did get annoyed after 30 mintues of him trying to teach me things.

Anyone else out there get this?

Yep, and after many years I found that the most effective strategy is NOT telling them that you've been cycling for like 30 years, BUT just shut up and pull the whole group for a while.
When he gets to the rest stop two minutes after you and he's still panting, just look at him with a big grateful smile and say "oh, by the way, thank you so very much for your great advice!".
Always works...

[Geonz]

Welp... I value attempts at help and communicating, even if they're not perfect. There's usually something I'm doing that says newbie when it happens - tho' some folks are simply patronizing. There are lots worse things to be, I tell myself...

[Susan126]

I've never had this happen to me until this weekend when I was going shop to shop test riding bikes. A young kid (maybe late teens early 20s) who worked in the shop came out onto the floor and asked me if I needed help. I said I would like to test ride the cannondale synapse fem 3 compact that was hanging on the wall. He asked if maybe I would like to try the cannondale road warrior first. I said no the synapse fem 3. He took it down and before we went out side he then asked me if I knew how to shift a bike like this! Hey, I was wearing shorts and my "biker's tan" was evident. My hands were also white while the rest of my arms were a dark tanned color. The shirt I was wearing said 2004 RAMROD (Ride Around Mount Rainier In One Day). I replied nicely that yes I did know how to shift. I took the bike from him, jumped on, and took off through the parking lot shifting and turning. My hubby finally came out, he was inside talking to the owner, who by the way we have ridden with on both mountain bikes and road bikes. I know this young man was just being helpful but I was a bit upset by it because I knew he would never have asked my hubby if he knew how to shift a bike like this! Would he?

[OakLeaf]

I knew he would never have asked my hubby if he knew how to shift a bike like this! Would he?

Probably he would've. A lot of people with years of riding experience are still new to brifters. It might even be that the LONGER someone's been riding, the LESS likely they are to have upgraded their current bike to brifters. The bike shop guy (and I) explained them to my DH when he went for his test ride - and IIRC we showed up there on our hybrids (with grip shifters).

EDIT: I gotta say this: if someone doesn't take their pulls, I DO assume they're a noob. Less so if they know what to do when they get to the front of the line (someone who peels off at the same time as the one ahead of them has immediately branded h/hself as a noob). But if someone's not trying to get stronger by taking at least a short pull, why are they in that group at all? And if you're pulling at the same pace as the paceline was going before you got to the front, why would you need to look back to know what your computer can tell you? So I can excuse the guy for thinking that.

[Kano]

He took it down and before we went out side he then asked me if I knew how to shift a bike like this! [snip] I know this young man was just being helpful but I was a bit upset by it because I knew he would never have asked my hubby if he knew how to shift a bike like this! Would he?

It's possible that in his early training, he was taught to ask everyone -- never assume that anyone knows how the equipment works. May not have had anything to do with being a "girl."

Now, fat chick (me) walks into shop asking about road bikes and being led to comfort beasts and hybrids....

Karen in Boise

[Zen]

LOL! That reminds me......last year when I was in our LBS a cyclist guy that appeared to be in his mid 50's or so invited me to do the Arkansas Hilly 100. Then he studied me and added, "You'll need to train awhile for it." Whatever. Ol' coot.

Hmmm.
Mid 50's....old coot....how many women did you just dis'?

[Susan126]

I guess I am the unenlightened one here. I know brifters are combo brake/shifters found on road bikes but I guess I didn't realize, at the time, the people the bike shop guys must deal with on a daily basis. So bad of me to think this way. The young man probably sees a lot of novice cyclists in a day and just thought I was another one! He was a nice guy and I was nice to him . . . lucky for me he couldn't read my mind though! Here's where keeping things in has worked for me. I guess there are worse things then being thought of as . . . OMG . . . a NOVICE!

[cooprn]

If I saw you riding and noticed you had salt, I'd think WOW this chick has been riding a long time and wish that I had the same signs of a long distance ride. Don't take it personally and keep going.

[blondiebiker]

My experience last week... I had problems shifting and took the bike in. I said, "I noticed that my cork tape was torn after taking my bike off the rack at my last race. I'm afraid that when that happened the shifters may have been damaged at the same time. Would you look at them for me?" Reply: "Oh, your handlebar tape doesn't affect your shifters." Duh! Maybe I wasn't clear enough, but it would be nice to get the benefit of the doubt once in a while... Although after years of fighting with car mechanics over my truck, I'm used to it!

[sundial]

Hmmm.
Mid 50's....old coot....how many women did you just dis'?

You're an ol' coot when you act like one. TE'ers are exempt.

[bmccasland]

I got the "new to riding" saturday when I rode my cruiser to run a couple of errands. I was having trouble with my bike lock, and this man standing next to a beater bike drinking a beer (in a brown paper bag) asked me if I was new to biking? I think he meant "was I new to the forced-to-ride crowd because the Law has taken away my driver's license after my third DWI." Batted my eye lashes and told him that my other bike is a rode bike and I usually ride 20+ miles at a time on it. THIS bike is my run-around-the-neighborhood-bike, and I ride it just for fun. The lock is just being a pain.

[OakLeaf]

I actually had sort of an opposite experience one day this spring and it was kind of fun. There's a triathlete I've been on group road rides with before, a pretty strong guy. One day I passed across him in traffic - he was on his road bike going the opposite direction, I was on my grocery getter, in street clothes, with my backpack, panniers, and bunny-shaped squeeze horn. I waved at him and the double-take he did was priceless! He had to mention it the next time he saw me on my road bike.