Central Park...How I love Thee

During a great ride in the park tonight, I experienced all that lovely central park has to offer. All in all, it really was a great ride. But during my last two rides in the park, I have had a few 'typical' run-ins that got me thinking about my favorite 'types' of cyclist in Central Park. In no particular order:

1. The 250-lb man who gets 6 inches off my wheel and grunts as he lets me pull him around the park. [The same person has done this to me more than once.] When I very clearly brake and very clearly move to the side, he very clearly has no intention of riding by. This is when i throw in a pick-up, or just wait until Harlem Hill to try to get rid of him.


2. The man riding the bike that costs probably as much as I make in a year, who is poking along until I ride up next to him, and he promptly hammers away, jumping from 17mph to 25mph. Because God-forbid you let a GIRL pass you on a SMALL, entry level bike....


3. The 15-20 men riding in a double pace line in full team attire at 7:30pm in the park. I mean....really? (I almost got run over by one of these pace lines today. Actually, not by the pace line, but one JACK-A$$ in particular who seriously almost mowed me over , even after I had moved to let the stupid pace line go by. I mean, it was so close that the guys on the end of the line slowed down to make sure I was OK and I heard them yelling not-so-nice things at him they rode away).

But my all time favorite person I met in a lovely exchange last week. During an already miserable ride where I just wanted to be home, I was heading down the back Harlem Hill, and was passing a bike-commuter on the right. I didn't make it known I was passing, but I had more than enough room that I wasn't anywhere NEAR him, that is until he decided to start swerving towards me (as 28 miles per hour). I let out a simple 'Whoa, on your right'.

His response, with no hesitation?

"F*ck you, you fat whore!"

I have never laughed so loudly in my life. Someone clearly has some unresolved mother issues.

BUT so this isn't a 'I hate Central Park' (which I don't!) post, I will share some pics from last night, when the NY Philharmonic played one of their free shows on the Great Lawn