tandem drafting etiquette

"DRS" wrote in message
...
"MortDubois" wrote in message
om
"Please ask permission before drafting"

This could be on a small card hanging from the seat back or rack if
you have one.

T-shirt.

I gotta admit, if I ran up against a rider wearing a T-shirt with a custom
message on it, or a bike with a sign on it, it wouldn't matter what they
said, I wouldn't be looking to draft them anyway.

Tested today sitting up and putting both hands straight down in the
stopping motion and checking my mirror. Once they back off I
go to the more comfortable arms akimbo mode. Worked like a
charm.

But how do signal we are slowing or
stopping? And how do you signal turning without whacking
the guy on your wheel? I do wear a mirror (and yes it does
look dorky, but I'm already on a softride tandem, so what
the heck) and I do sit up, and take my hands off the handle
bars when we start to slow down. But often that leads to
me elbowing the drafter as he attempts to pass on the right.
(I swear my elbows don't extend past the end of the handle
bars, but they tend to be a bit close at that point.) Are
there signals that don't have you extending your arm that
they can see on the right or the left? And what exactly are
they? Is it okay to turn around and tell them we are going
to be turning at the next light? (These are folks that hopped
on without saying anything, so I'm not sure if they appreciate
verbal directions. Actually, I think they are hoping we haven't
noticed them there.)

Hand signals are fine, but a good alternative is simply yelling what you
doing: "Stopping", "Right Turn", etc. Verbal cues are even better when you
have several individuals drafting you, since not all might see a visual
signal.

A smart drafter will let you know they are on your wheel, since they are
assuming almost all the risk. It is very difficult to take a tandem down
from the rear,


Chris Neary


Chris & Tracey
1999 Co-Motion Speedster

The biggest problem is when you don't know they are behind you. Why
not hang a small sign on the back of your seat that says something
like:

"Please ask permission before drafting"

This could be on a small card hanging from the seat back or rack if
you have one.

Once saw a sign on a tandem stating: "Do we look like a tow truck?"


Chris Neary


Chris & Tracey
1999 Co-Motion Speedster

On Fri, 20 Aug 2004 04:30:29 GMT, Chris Neary
wrote:

A smart drafter will let you know they are on your wheel, since they are
assuming almost all the risk. It is very difficult to take a tandem down
from the rear,

That is far from the only risk. When we rode an upright tandem, I
didn't like anyone on my rear wheel because they often did not pick up
the use of brakes as quickly as when following another single. We were
hit twice at the GEAR in Williamsburg on the same day and I decided
enough was enough.

If I knew the person for about a decade I would consider the
possibility. And now that we ride a Double Vision recumbent tandem, no
one is quite sure how to draft us anyway.

Curtis L. Russell
Odenton, MD (USA)
Just someone on two wheels...

"Chris Neary" wrote in message
...

Hand signals are fine, but a good alternative is simply yelling what you
doing: "Stopping", "Right Turn", etc. Verbal cues are even better when you
have several individuals drafting you, since not all might see a visual
signal.

And always remember that "Flatus" is the correct term, if you feel like
warning the drafter about that.

Something that has always struck me as odd is the use of the terms,
"captain" and "stoker". The captain may be responsible for steering
and braking but the stoker is responsible for setting the pace
(directly or indirectly since the captain is usually the stronger of
the pair and must adjust his/her cadence to a pace the stoker can
maintain), signalling, navigating, and (according to most) deciding
whether or not to give permission to any requests to draft. I've
always thought more accurate terms would be "pilot" for the front
rider and "commander" for the rear.

Regards,
Bob Hunt

Bob Hunt wrote:
Something that has always struck me as odd is the use of the terms,
"captain" and "stoker". The captain may be responsible for steering
and braking but the stoker is responsible for setting the pace
(directly or indirectly since the captain is usually the stronger of
the pair and must adjust his/her cadence to a pace the stoker can
maintain), signalling, navigating, and (according to most) deciding
whether or not to give permission to any requests to draft. I've
always thought more accurate terms would be "pilot" for the front
rider and "commander" for the rear.

wife put ya in the back, bob?
--
david reuteler

Something that has always struck me as odd is the use of the terms,
"captain" and "stoker". The captain may be responsible for steering
and braking

Yes...

but the stoker is responsible for setting the pace
(directly or indirectly since the captain is usually the stronger of
the pair and must adjust his/her cadence to a pace the stoker can
maintain),

For most teams, cadence is a compromise between members, so this doesn't
really hold. Rider strength and preferred cadence are really separate
issues, A team of strong riders could find they have different cadence
preferences, while a team of mismatched strength could find their cadence
preferences are similar.

signalling, navigating,

Yes....

and (according to most) deciding
whether or not to give permission to any requests to draft.

Based on previously agreed team criteria.

I've
always thought more accurate terms would be "pilot" for the front
rider and "commander" for the rear.

The preferred alternative to "Stoker" is "Rear Admiral", for obvious
reasons.

:-)



Chris Neary


Chris & Tracey
1999 Co-Motion Speedster

Chris Neary wrote:
The preferred alternative to "Stoker" is "Rear Admiral", for obvious
reasons.

But what if the "Rear Admiral" is in the front? "Front Admiral" just
doesn't sound right...

http://www.bilenky.com/viewpnt.html
--
Darin McGrew, , http://www.rahul.net/mcgrew/
Web Design Group, , http://www.HTMLHelp.com/

"It's bad luck to be superstitious."

Darin McGrew wrote:
Chris Neary wrote:

The preferred alternative to "Stoker" is "Rear Admiral", for obvious
reasons.


But what if the "Rear Admiral" is in the front? "Front Admiral" just
doesn't sound right...

http://www.bilenky.com/viewpnt.html

That's a REALLY interesting-looking tandem. I wonder what my husband
will think of the idea of being able to kiss while riding. ;-)

-km

--
the black rose
proud to be owned by a yorkie
http://community.webshots.com/user/blackrosequilts