Why EVERYONE Hates Road Cyclists? 

I tailor my rides to stay away from people and busy roads because I am sick of it and it blights my rides. I am older now and I don't like confrontation. It came as a shock when I started riding. I even experienced it before I bought correct clothing but more now though. Cycle paths are a no no because it gets really personal. Maybe I am a bit too sensitive but I really cant be doing with it.

Gotta wear decent kit! It is a transformation, similarly when I put on a wetsuit to go surfing, I become an amphibian or a harness to rock climb, I become part lizard, part bird! Stepping out of the ordinary to do something extraordinary (and so find fulfillment in what can otherwise be a miserable existence). Maybe the people who never step outside of their normal comfort zone are simply jealous? Angry at themselves for not being adventurous. Keep the faith, keep pedaling. Stay extraordinary

Nice vlog, looking forward to the spring

They hate us , cuz they ain’t us ! Bravo Federico ! Well put once again . We got the guts and the courage to wear Lycra . And yes , we’re are all dreamers at heart ! Ride on mi amigo . 🚴🏼✌️

come ride in spain where drivers are very patient towards cyclists. theres a reason pro teams train down here apart from the lovely weather ofcourse

When I drive a motor vehicle, I am very considerate of cyclists. When I am the cyclist, I hate the dangerous motorist, I hate those lazy ass drivers, I hate the smell of vehicle exhaust, and I hate the obtrusive noise that comes with traffic's presence.

Very enjoyable to listening to you and your views. Basically, I agree with all your observations. I’ll that since COVID-time road cycling has become dangerous due to driver behavior. Are drivers texting more? Rushing? I prefer gravel or quieter roads. Keep up the great vids.

It’s not about doing damage to the road or not. “Road” tax is vehicle emission tax. No emissions from a bike hence no tax. Your council tax contributes to upkeep of the local roads .

Great conversation my friend. I hope the horse didn't feel the same way when I was coming around the corner of some brush. The rider was ticked for sure, I guess he thought I was superman and could see thru objects. CHEERS all my fellow riders!! Keep it up

heh, that little dig at the road tax argument at the end! Looks like a lovely morning. Was that Richmond Park? Personally I'm trying to be a bit less aggressive and hopefully that circulates amongst other road users. It's hard being on the defensive all the time though, especially when surrounded by 2 ton vehicles driven by people not paying attention! (I can feel the anger already...)

As always Fred excellent video & content, love the visuals so never stop what you are doing in bringing us your continued biking experience & knowledge.., 👊🏾👍🏾

I bought a radar light and a bright orange POC helmet. Made a huge difference.

I ride a road bike as a reasonably but not excessively fit 60 year old. I ride at a gentle pace with a smile on my face, showing maximum consideration towards other road users, especially pedestrians. I'm on blood pressure medication, and really try to avoid getting stressed, and don't mind at all when old people, children, or dogs stray into my path.

.....I'm in small regional city...I find a wave acknowledging courtesy of drivers helps....small city people are less stressed...no lycra....use quieter streets outside busy periods

Enjoyed your video, I love wearing lycra and riding my bike. It feels great wearing the same kit as the pro's. We often look miserable but it's quite hard at times riding on the road and smiling isn't the first thing that comes to mind. Last point is the majority of drivers can't do what we do on a bike and they are jealous just sitting in their metal box pressing a pedal without any effort whatsoever, often going nowhere fast. 😂

Great vid, Fede. Side question: - what eyewear are you using there? And are they photochromatic? Looking good. Cheers

I've been pedalling for 40 years and driving for 50. I think that at a base level, drivers really don't want to hit/injure cyclists - even if nothing else, because would be inconvenient. When you surprise or one-up a driver by swerving into their space, not signalling turns, running stop signs without even slowing down etc., the adrenaline trickle they get manifests as ill will. Face it, your behaviour has a consequence. Then do as you will. Plenty of car-driving dickheads on the road, why "arouse" them? As well, where I live, the urban bike lanes are surprisingly clean and open. I hesitated to use them but now feel safer, with very little loss of "pace". The only downside has been needing to (gasp) mount a bell to my handlebar. Daytime running lights also help reduce the element of surprise.

Funny, but truthful. Excelent video, great look, nice kit - better than some pros =)

Almost everyone becomes a bully when they feel powerful, a car does that to you. It's the same reason many drivers get the biggest and tallest car they can, it makes them feel above everyone else and act like it too.

Sometimes we’re our own worst enemy… I’ve been on countless group rides where we’re to the right of the road (in the US) and they’ll be one cyclist way out to the left… we’ll say “car back” and they won’t move to let a car go by… at that point the issue isn’t that individual cyclist, it’s cyclists in general… some of us need to be better stewards of our sport… 🤷🏽‍♂️

Welcome to Cycling you must be a post Covid Gen rider? Don’t worry about others, pay attention to yourself, your training and have a good time! 🚴🏽

And the most important thing is wear a good matching kit - Castelli is optimal.. this will ensure motorists despise you properly

I’ve found I have had more angry ppl on Trails than I have on the road. Great video

They hate us because they ain't us. 😂

I respect the traffic rules on my bike and EXPECT other cars to treat me as another vehicles on the road. Most of the times it's fine, every now and then you have some drivers doing maneuvers because they don't expect you to move as fast on a bike, but that's easy to deal with and understandable to a point. Where I draw the line is when some dumbass drivers act in a way that one can easily assess as aggressive for no good reason, there are many arbitrary examples here and I'll not get into the psychology of those drivers because it's an utterly pointless exercise, but that's where I draw the line and they will hear many, many things and be faced with a ridiculously aggressive man dressed in lycra because I will not put up with it. Everybody make slight judgement errors and those I treat with a smile a hand wave, but you start acting like a twat behind the wheel and we're not friendly anymore!

Roads are shared space. Some have good negotiation skills. Many do not, and act out aggressively - regardless of their mode of transport. I was recently lapping Regent's Park before vehicles are allowed. Hooray! No car dicks to worry about, I thought. 10 minutes in, a chain gang came up behind and the leader ticked me off and told me to get in the gutter. He got a blunt lesson in road courtesy.

🤣🤣🤣I feel you Federico, I want to feel like a racer gong up a 10% hill at 500 watts butt in reality I suffer just cranking out 150ish, oh well one day i’ll get my overweight 60 years old body to crank out 200 up the hill😂..good one sir.

People tend to hate or be jealous of those who have good habits like cycling or going to the gym, especially when they don't have the courage to do the same.

I’m a MTB, well just moved to EMTB and I really dislike the cyclists by my area. Here in the US is usually the guys that have good coin that could afford those $15k bikes. They always tend to look down at people, so I can appreciate your honesty regarding the attire, bc at the end of the day we are all kids at heart. It’s refreshing to hear the truth and not some BS! But when you guys get in big groups man o man, you guys ride with your heads up high like your shit don’t stink and block the entire street. To be clear I’m not saying you, whomever is reading this is or is not that person. I’m just hoping you can realize that a lot of cyclist do this. Mainly when riding in big groups. Whenever I’ve met a cyclist on a one and one basis in more down to earth or “affordable” areas they go out of their way to be cool. So perhaps it’s the people who can afford such expensive bikes and or gear that is the issue and not so much as the sport. 🤷🏻‍♂️ Really, really appreciate your honesty in this video. Made me understand the whole attire thing more. Now I can relate 💯 with it. 🤙🏽🤙🏽🤙🏽

Fede I suspect the battle in London is significantly worse than the rest of the UK, although we still have our fair share even in the glorious north of Lancashire. I usually find its based on the general radicalisation of the media, the middle ground has been lost and now you have to "pick a side". Often I find the most vociferous hate comes from the larger girls and boys, who I suspect are somewhat jealous that they are not fit enough, and its easier to break something than build. Its ironic as during covid some of the haters became converts and are now back to hating again... is seems to be the cool thing, lead by Clarkson ( see comment on unfit above ) and his urk. I have to say when I am in London some of the cyclists however dont help the narrative, and some of the behaviours are pretty poor, for balance.

It’s that some road users had to take tests to use the road and road signs like theory and practical where the bike jumps on any given path with no knowledge of the road signs, we all have to share the road nobody hates on anyone it’s the ignorance of some cyclists at the end of the day there’s a reason for a theory test and road signs I drive and cycle and choose to ignore any negative attitude rather than ride around thinking everyone hates me and I’m a victim good luck

When I designed clothing #1 was to make a cyclist more visible to cars a lot of bright colors

Good Morning Federico, Wich shoes are you waering in this Video? Nice You Tube Cannel.

Nobody pays road tax in the UK, it was abolished decades ago. Vehicles are charged excise duty based on their emissions.

Mate they also hate us Downhillers and Enduro riders, full face helmet and goggles and very big noisy bikes. 🤣 I also have three pimped up single speeds and I love wearing lycra because it's part of the experience and somewhat dream, phantasy. Mate stay safe and keep the rubber side down. Greetings from a Brit in Berlin. ♥️👌

They hate us because we sit at the café all day sipping espresso, eating cake, and still looking good in Lycra 😂

Symbiosis and synergy?? Dude who ate a dictionary for breakfast this morning?? 😁 Myself I’ve had a few bad reactions. The usual “get off the fuffin road!” And “Pay some fuffin road tax!” To the guy driving in front of me and my mate and slamming his brakes on. 😳 I’ve also had some lovely conversations whilst sitting at traffic lights. The things that infuriates drivers most (me included) is when cyclists run red lights and block the road unnecessarily. This is not just a UK thing either, seems cyclists are hated in a lot of countries except for maybe Holland and Belgium. We’ve all seen dickhead driver and dickhead cyclists, so maybe we all need to just have a bit of patience with each other, because with all the “zero emission” cities coming in there’s only going to be more & more bikes.

When people passing cars and others start making fun of my tight lycra, and bright colors, I just crank up my Frankie Goes to Hollywood through my earbuds and ignore everything around me.

"...the search for performance at all costs..." 🤣 First to sacrifice is the looks...lol 😉 So yeah it has to look right.

It’s funny because as a runner, before I also started road cycling, I always thought riders are fairly aggressive, particularly around RP. Now that I am also riding and joined a club, I still think that a lot of riders are very aggressive towards both pedestrians and cars. It’s just odd and I don’t understand why…at the same time, car and van drivers are often aggressive towards cyclists too so it’s very much reciprocated! It remains all a mystery to me 😂 maybe there are a lot of isolated cases where people are just having a bad day…because I also had a lot of positive experiences.

Ti racconto un aneddoto capitatomi più di 15 anni fa, domenica mattina, strada di paese, in mezzo alla campagna, nessuno. ad un certo punto sento arrivare una macchina da dietro, mi passa e sento lo specchietto sfiorarmi il gomito, partono le imprecazioni, la macchina si ferma mi avvicino e dal finestrino una cretina mi dice testuali parole: Ma non siamo mica al giro d'Italia? perchè mi aveva visto con casco e tutto bardato. prende e se ne va e io continuo a imprecare fino a che sparisce all'orizzonte. altra domenica sempre in mezzo alla campagna, sempre il vuoto, ad un certo punto dalla parte opposta sopraggiunge un pik up, lo vedo che piano piano cambia corsia e alla mia altezza in pratica era nella mia corsia, sono riuscito a vedere il conducente che ghiggnava. e questo a metà anni 2000. sono più di 10 che non tocco la bici, mi piacerebbe riprendere gli allenamenti, mi frena solo che nel frattempo gli smartphone hanno preso piede e i pazzi per strada sono quintuplicati.

Hey Fede, you forget two things! (1) Not all cyclists wear lycra; I wear ordinary clothes when I cycle and have panniers on my bike (it's where I keep my shopping). When a car driver pulled out and narrowly avoided knocking me over on Leopold Road and I caught up with him and asked if he'd seen me he replied, 'Yes'! (2) Some cyclists, like some drivers, deserve the opprobrium: on Saturday, when crossing at pedestrian green light at Waterloo, I was hit by a cyclist going through the red light (who apologised) and, minutes later, sworn at by a cyclist on the pavement because I was in their way. Now, these were Lime bike riders - presumably they don't count as cyclists!

cycling is addictive you can say that again. Being injured sucks I cant ride for maybe 2-3 weeks and now Im depressed 🤣🤣

Hmmm.... Here in Poland, I find many non-cyclist men see wearing lycra as something humiliating in some way, as something un-manly, so to speak. But as for now, I've never met with any kind of aggression or another negative attitude towards me because of wearing lycra. I guess people think just this is what those weirdoes doo. 😉 Hate from car drivers - this is of course quite a different story.

Car drivers like me lol do not pay road tax no such thing but we all pay for the roads as part of the council tax We pay every year.

Jealousy is a terrible thing, or maybe the haters mother's didn't love them enough as kids 🤷‍♂️😉🤷‍♂️ plus some people need to educate themselves, road tax was abolished on April 1st 1937...

The memes 😂

Your rules video kinda explained why! You even said the road cyclest community in that are snobbish

I can see why people get pissed off with them but im more like if I hit this person or cause them inconvenience its going to be bad so I just really try to be considerate they only really get on my nerves when theres a lot of them together and they are following the wrong line also some cyclists in my area,,, they must be going for their PR constantly based on some of their decisions which I dont like. and its not what the road is for. as some of them will obviously not go to a full stop when they should for safety or try to run some ridiculous gap

There is a perception that ALL cyclists jump red lights, ride on pavements etc so we all get lumped in with those that do break laws etc. Also behaviour from some is poor, a big one is groups of cyclists who take up whole lane of road chatting so vehicles behind cannot safely pass. Yes it happens! However, no excuse for motorists to endanger cyclists. Simple answer is cycle safely and with respect for all other road users but at the same time do not accept bad behaviour from others. Hence I record all my rides and report to Operation Snap any close passes etc. I will say I live/cycle in a quiet rural/coastal area so rarely in traffic that big cities get but same exact "rules" apply. Finally, I also drive a car so see things from both sides.

We are proud the be a MAMIL🚴‍♂👙

I hate everyone because nowadays it’s probably the only luxury left to us that’s for free and you don’t have to pay any tax for it.

I think road is a racing and war place for men. And maybe when they're in their boxes (in their cars) they feel much safer and feel more brave to other men. All your rivals on the road, whom you can overtake and be overtaken, hate you. Even when I'm not wearing a cycling clothes I had difficulties from drivers even motorcyclists. But contrary the biggest vehicles like truck drivers They are much nicer to cyclists. Maybe they don't need to prove they're the greatest on the road. I don't know I'm just talking nonsense.

Motorists have an attitude that the road is simply for them and them alone. Disproportionate rage surfaces immediately if they are mildly inconvenienced. There's zero comeback for a motorist hitting a cyclist. Imagine that going all the way through the magistrates and action being taken? You must be joking. Half my family is Dutch and boy is it different over there. Automatic strong assumption that the motorist is at fault, and proper sanctions. Rather terrifying driving in their cities when you're not used to it. Here's an example: a family member was cycling (on the road, unusually) and did not give away at a crossroads as he should have. A car was coming, collided gently and did wreck his bike. The motorist had to pay for half of the new bike - the point being that vulnerable road users have top priority at all times. It's a national attitude and psychology. Pains me greatly to say that I truly believe that it will never change in the UK.

I've found that if you don't ignore traffic, but co-operate with other users, you don't get hate, but they give you respect back. I've had much more trouble with Richmond Park road types (you know the type - £7000 bike, £300 for hipster colour bibs, 1 lap around the park, 2 hours in a coffee shop, Instagram post about it) than I've ever had with drivers, and this pushed me off to gravel and off road almost exclusively. I'm a cyclist, and I hate a lot of cyclists, sorry to say.

I think drivers hate it until they try cycling themselves. If only more would realise the huge physical & mental health benefits.

In the words of Millwall fans, everybody hates us but we don’t care. I’ll carrying on riding my bike and continue to wear Lycra as it’s the best tool for the job, I don’t go out of my way to p people off, but I have every right to be on the road, so deal with it!

I hated them too until I became one. Still hate those who rides in the middle of the road.

Most of the media moan about cycling so in people's eyes it is ok to hate cyclists.

Non si molla Federico

The fact cyclists take up less room than a car, don’t pollute (electric cars the exception) don’t add to traffic jams and are not in a big 4 wheeled weapon (the speeding driver take note) and cyclists are still hated! Some drivers need to re-evaluate themselves and maybe get on 2 wheels.

The Lycra is a big part of it, but also I feel most people just can't relate - there are a lot of people (myself included) that hate how non inclusive road cycling is to most people/themselves - there is a barrier to entry of knowledge, wealth, and skill that a lot of people can't meet - there is pressure, and judgment from other road cyclists to commit to their meta in their communities to be apart of those communities - I find all of us riders have a very strong ego about our abilities, and thoughts, so already it makes us a type of people that are more hard to deal with for people that are casual/don't know much, and even with each other. As a sport I don't like where it has gone, and don't feel a connection to it anymore - I ride for my own best speed/fun time. - I ride my $600 27 pound mountain bike on the road in traffic at 25 kmh, and that's good enough for me until I can save up for a quality road bike - No I'm not buying Lycra or joining a riding community EVER lol. Our brains are just way different then people that don't ride, and people that ride slowly, there is a different chemical reaction going on, and we cannot relate, people hate what they cannot understand. - I don't like amateur fixie riders myself because a lot of them don't have brakes and endanger others/themselves constantly. - every bike alone is a different experience down to the colours of the bike even.

If you own a car, you are in fact paying road tax. When you are riding your bike, you are simply not doing the damage to the roads that the same journey in a car would do. No apology required....

Cyclists in full cycling kit are perceived by some motorists as not human. Cyclists in casual attire are perceived somewhat better. One can only hope that the rise of eScooters will give them something new to not like.

IOW, Kitted-out cyclists are turned on and having a great time. And motorists aren't. They're jealous.

They all look miserable because to worried about what others think! It can't be fun honestly? How many times do you think ohh no when you clock another in sight? Don't need to follow all the rules for road cycling your not a pro racing so its got its limitations I'd say when just riding back n forth on the road. It's the part ofnthe flock following snobbish rules you said your friend was stopped at the lights and told he was wearing the wrong socks! Hope he gave the boy a sore nose!

not paying road taxes?.. but I’m pretty sure you have a car (like I do) or your wife does. I pay plenty of road taxes.. cyclists normally have a car too

Its jealousy.

Cyclists have very little impact on the roads. We take up so little space

why do all cyclist look miserable? lol that is so true, there is a reason for it, but we do :D

Actually this video / most of your videos you are filming toooooo much… that pisses me off as a Road cyclist since 1980… then a driver since 1987… stop filming so much you might not get so much abuse

Only no discipline drivers hate cyclists! Some drivers are too arrogant, they don't want to share the road with anyone, they drive/ overtake recklessly. And when they have accident they will play victim.

Cheek of you using the road and not paying the tax! Watch drivers face when you educate them. 🫢