The last three rides of mine at Ft Ben have featured a trail user in front of me that had earbuds in. Apparently the music was loud enough that they would not respond to my normal voice or even my raised voice. Look, I love listening to music when I'm riding. I always wear earbuds although I do the "one in and one out" type of thing most of the time so I can, you know, be aware of my surroundings. In all these instances I tried to make myself known by talking to them at varying distances, even as close as right behind them. No dice. I've even tried to wait for a corner for them to catch a little flash of me coming behind. Not paying attention.
So each time I ended up getting fairly close and just started yelling loud, ... "HEY!!! HEY!!". Finally they jump around and realize someone was behind. They let me pass and I try to tell them I've been trying to talk to them for a good distance. But I'm sure they don't hear what I'm saying. I kinda feel like saying saying, .. "Hey dumb$ss, have a little awareness here". But I don't. Maybe I'm just more aware being a biker on the trails but I think it is just common courtesy. I don't mind other trail users at all. I'll stop and let hikers pass, talk with people, encourage those little kids riding bikes, thank everyone I pass, etc. The trails are for us all and are used for many different purposes. I know there isn't any solution to this which is why I put it in the "rant" section. So, .. I guess rant over.
I have to believe you guys and girls have encountered this sort of thing. Is there anything you do differently that might help? I figure it's a lost cause and I'll just have to continue yelling to clear the path.
