Quite aside from the safety issue of travelling so close to someone whose degree of cycling proficieny is unknown to him (I could stop, swerve or do any manner of unpredictable things) and the fact that his goals are not the same as my goals and therefore should not have come so close to me without asking.
I think you have to realise that a "wheelsucker" is actually also helping the rider in front thanks to an improved overall airflow.
So besides the security aspect, I personally don't object if/when a total stranger wants a bit of a lift. I wouldn't do it myself behind a MTB though as they are sometimes less predictible than road bikes in my experience.
I did that once after a fairly long hilly ride, couldn't understand why I was having such a problem even staying on his noisy,knobbly wheel. I later discovered he was a world class rider,so didn't feel so bad.I did say thankyou at the time, though. TerryJ
