Tip #20: Share the road

If nothing else, September's alleged road rage incident and the ensuing fallout exposed how much drivers resent our presence on "their" roads.

But while it's important to assert our rights and not be bullied or intimidated, we have to concede this point: There are times when we do a terrible job of sharing the road.

And frankly, I'm sick of being scared that I'll pay violent consequences for someone else's lack of courtesy. I'm tired of drivers laying on the horn because we're spread out over the road. I hate being embarrassed for what my fellow riders are doing.

So let's try to keep a few things in mind as we head out on our group rides:

Ride two abreast. It's the safest way to ride, and it's also the law. There are times when going wider is unavoidable -- pulling off of a double paceline, for example, or passing recreational riders -- but often we do it out of laziness or obvliousness. If there's traffic, try to go single-file when overtaking other riders.

Ride tight. Work on becoming comfortable enough to ride mere inches from the riders around you. Ride close enough that you can converse without raising your voice. Riding tight not only minimizes the amount of the road you take up, but it will make you a better racer, too.

Don't run the red if you don't have to. Don't be greedy. Your interval can wait. If it's not necessary to go through the light, don't. It only antagonizes drivers and gives credence to the myth that we have no respect for safety or the law. Drivers will notice when you wait patiently for that red light to turn, mostly because, to our discredit, it's such a rare sight.

Don't swarm cars at the light. So you get to a red light and there are already cars lined up at the intersection. If you're by yourself, it might be fine to scoot through to the crosswalk. Not so when you're in a group. Too often groups of us weave into the spaces between the cars. This is incredibly dangerous and serves only to piss drivers off, especially when we swarm on both sides. (It's not going to get us anywhere any faster anyhow.)

Spread good karma. Don't hesitate to say "sorry" or give a thankful wave when a car lets you go ahead of your turn. Give a happy "Good morning" to the driver waiting at the light with you. (Personally I'm a fan of saying "Bless you" when I hear a driver sneeze.) Each act of kindness reminds one more person that we are human beings and not targets or obstructions.

Tip #7: Wag the elbow

In my first visit to Matteson lo those many years ago, I had a devil of a time insinuating myself into the pack. So not wanting to be stuck at the back, I would race to the front, quickly tire myself and then sit up. This very nearly caused a crash every time because the rider behind me wasn't expecting me to slow down, and a teammate rightly scolded me: "Don't do that!"

But that's why you do Matteson, to learn things like that.

What I learned is that you shouldn't just sit up, and you should always signal when you're about to pull out of a line. The best way to do this is a simple wag of the elbow. Use the elbow of the side on which you want people to pass you. If you want to pull over to the left and have the pack pass on your right, wag your right elbow. If you want to pull to the right, wag the left elbow.

This goes for races as well as group rides. Whether your paceline is a Sunday training ride or a winning breakaway, good communication will keep things smooth and efficient. And just as important, it will keep people from yelling at you.

Tip #6: Shift down at the light

Ellen Wight (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) sends this one my way:

When you're on a training ride and come to a stop -- and your group ride always stops at red lights, right? -- remember to shift to an easier gear. The gear you've been using to cruise at 23 mph is probably not the right gear to get you going from a stop. You'll restart more quickly if you're not overgeared, and the ride will flow better if the group doesn't have to wait for a few guys to grind out of their 53x12.

The same goes for races: Most packs will slow heading into corners, especially at the 4/5 level where people haven't mastered pedaling through corners at speed. If you're overgeared when you exit the corner, you'll get gapped and eventually dropped.

My rule of thumb is to always shift two gears lower heading into turns. This gives me the right gearing to accelerate out of the corner and close any gaps that may have formed.