I wouldn't say roadies have issues with triathletes, or any other group for that matter. Most road racers I know are quite impressed with what triathletes are able to do in 3 tough sports. Sure, sometimes they like to tease the triguys but that goes both ways.

In terms of raw riding ability, many triathletes are plenty strong but tend to have just one gear albeit a pretty fast one. Most road riders are more impressed with raw strength (i.e. sustained power: TT, climbing) combined the ability to accelerate and hold a burst. I've seen many a strong triathlete quickly off the back of a weak field in a criterium.

Now, roadies can definitely be cold towards anyone new on group rides who doesn't look like a seasoned road racer. This includes most triathletes, mtb'ers, fitness cyclists and general newbies. This "look" isn't necessarily shaved legs and fancy kit (although that helps! lol), but moreso how natural one looks on the bike. Often, just a glance is needed to know that someone is very experienced and comfortable on their bike.

Why this "elitism" from a bunch of "poseurs"? Simple. You literally put life and limb into the hands of every single person you ride with in a group. Or at least anyone you let get in front of you. Too many accidents happen due to inexperienced riders riding erratically, suddenly swerving or braking. Usually because they overlap wheels or take a bad line, but sometimes for no apparent reason at all. It is actually helpful on group rides to point out those exhibiting squirrelly behavior so they can be avoided or told to stay at the back.

Any new rider has to prove to the group that they can ride safely and be trusted. Don't take offense to this. Every roadie went through it at one point, too.

Many of the top local triathletes in my area ride and race with the road guys, and they are much faster now because of it. But they leave the tri-bikes at home and ride like roadies. Heck, I'd say they are triathletes *and* roadies. Same thing with most of the top local mtb racers....

In Reply To

  Haha, it was interesting to observe the results at a local 10 mile TT a few weeks ago. The roadies (plus one really strong triathlete) all finished the relatively technical course in 21-23 minutes and the triathletes all finished in 26-28 minutes! We triathletes just couldn't compete!

Now being relatively new to BOTH sports, I cant help but be confused as to the attitude of roadies towards triathletes in pack riding. I can understand how riding in aerobars can be incredibly stupid near 10-20 other people, but many triathletes dont come from a cycling background, so how are they supposed to know how to ride in a pack? What exactly is the learning curve for pack riding? I've heard often of how road veterans dislike newbies in the pack, but where does the opportunity to learn come from?

I've always wanted to play ultimate Frisbee. When I was younger (and a smoker/drinker) I used to play Frisbee golf in the park on the river in Tulsa. That was really cool. You can really mess yourself up playing Frisbee golf. My right shoulder used to ache all the time.

I think the way to restore peace and consensus to this thread is to hijack it a bit and for us all to turn our focus onto mountain bikers. What is it about them, anyway? Can't they ever show up anywhere on time? Have y'all ever noticed that, when roadies say a ride starts at N:00, that means everyone shows up at (N-1):45 and is ready to roll out by N:00. When an MTB ride is schedule for N:00, they all start to show up aroun N:10 ... they talk about how many beers they drank the night before ... they futz and putz around and the ride rolls out somewhere between N:30 and N:45. As a roadie, I'm WAY too anal to handle that sort of behavior.

Also, we roadies can beat those MTB guys like a drum in a 40k TT.

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I've always wanted to play ultimate Frisbee. When I was younger (and a smoker/drinker) I used to play Frisbee golf in the park on the river in Tulsa. That was really cool. You can really mess yourself up playing Frisbee golf. My right shoulder used to ache all the time.