Hey Old White Guys! Now is your moment to shine.

Only YOU can put out the dumpster fire that is your demographic’s behavior.

I live in a town known for it’s mountain biking trails. More specifically, for the joy people experience riding up and down flowy singletrack. It sounds simple, and it is. Get on a bike, get sweaty and dirty, raise your endorphin level, make room for other bikers who are doing the same. No matter what other problems are happening in our lives, bike trails are happy places.

But you were expecting a story about angry old white guys (OWGs) igniting metaphorical dumpster fires with their laser-hot rage, right? And surely that wouldn’t happen on a happy mountain trail, right? Okay, here it is.

Over the past weeks several women bikers have shared their stories about encounters with older male bikers, with whom they had to share the trail. Riding solo, these women experienced intimidation, harassment, and even physical threats. Picture lots of red-faced fist-shaking name-calling spittle-spraying fearful anger. Blocking the trail. Moving in close. A slap. Full capacity rage over sharing a bike trail.

This scene is a micro-snapshot of the shameful behavior we’ve all seen in the media over the past few years. Compared to OWG behavior at BLM marches, at the Supreme Court, at the Capital insurrection — this bike trail belligerence is a tiny drop in the bucket of damage done by enraged white men terrified to share their power.

But if sharing a trail with a strong, independent woman on a bike is enough to trigger a tantrum, has the red-faced bully mentality become the norm? How can we ever bring civility back, even when it’s the simplest of conflicts?

There’s only one demographic who can make these men change their behavior. You guessed it: other OWGs!

I know you’re out there, good hearted OWGs!

These red-faced scowlers are not the majority of the OWG demographic. Not even close. They are just the loudest. They’ve used bluster and bombasity make themselves seem bigger. For every one of them, I believe there is a small army of reasonable, good-hearted OWGs who each have a sense of humor and an ability to share and play fair.

They also possess the power to raise the bar for acceptable behavior among their peers. I’m talking about peer pressure, at it’s finest.

What does it mean to raise the bar for acceptable behavior? It means speaking up when you see your peers being bullies. More than giving a little grunt and a side-eye stare. Start having those hard conversations about what the rage is all about, and why its not okay.

It means not laughing at the not-funny jokes; not joining the mob mentality. More than not laughing — verbalize why you don’t agree.

It means stepping up to defuse escalating situations. Showing that it’s possible to make your point while keeping your perspective, your sense of humor and your grip on reality.

It means becoming the Atticus Finch of your neighborhood, the Gandolf of the school board, the Yoda of the trail. Our world needs more wise elders of all genders and races, and we need them equipped with a strong moral compass, a slow fuse and an ability to share power.

Good-hearted old white guys, this is your moment to join those wise elders and help the bullies among you become decent people.

This is your moment to shine.

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P.S. — Some comments to this story helped me realize that I should clarify two issues:

First, I have not personally experienced the kind of negative encounters described above. My interactions on the trails have always been friendly, which is why the other women’s stories shocked me into writing this story.

And second, I completely understand and agree that people in every demographic can be angry, bitter, and violent. This is not limited to any age or gender or race. Also, every demographic possesses the kind of peer pressure to raise the standards of behavior.

I do appreciate all the comments below!