Doesn’t matter if you are new or not…if you are on someone’s wheel, that is your wheel. Trying to bump you off it is bushleague and dangerous.
And then to invent some BS about the smaller rider being entitled to special consideration is just asinine
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Steal wheels all the time. If someone loses their teammate’s wheel to you, good on you. Sucks to be them. I’ve been shouted at “that’s my wheel,” to which, I chuckled and enjoyed the primo leadout.
Re: intentional bumping… I think that’s literally against the rules. I don’t think you’re allowed to initiate any contact. Whether that is followed in crits is another thing. But I’d never do it, or fall prey to it. (I also weigh 94kg…)
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Go watch Legion’s sweeper on any number of videos… definitely not followed at that level. 
I believe they even set that IG reel to the tune of a particular Ludacris song encouraging a certain segment of people to remain clear of his path.
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The sweeper post raises a good point regarding the original question about “bumping etiquette.”
1st off, I just took a look at the USA Cycling rules and there is no prohibition on touching another rider although there are rules against “dangerous riding” generally and specifically “extremely dangerous behavior in a sprint” or “failure to maintain a line or other sprint irregularities.” (And you specifically can’t pull on someone’s jersey in case you’re wondering).
So, a friendly little shoulder bump that does not get “dangerous” (a high standard in a bike race …) is not illegal. And, once the sprint is on, the standard gets raised to “extremely dangerous” as long as your holding your line.
Now to the etiquette - in the middle of a race assuming there is not a break forming with folks fighting for wheels, its pretty rude to go intentionally bumping shoulders with anyone. If the chips aren’t down, basically if you’ve been inattentive enough that you have to bump to keep a wheel or you are not already on the wheel and you want to bump your way on, its pretty bad form to go all last lap on someone. Mid race if its calm you should just ask to come in and if the guy says no, move down the line and try somewhere else.
But, as the race nears the end (or other highly critical point), the amount of contact that is ethical, goes up. Which brings in the sweeper - his job in the run up to the sprint is to guard the leadout train and keep everyone off his teammate’s wheel. Once you get to a level where there are going to be organized leadout trains, there will be bumping and the sweepers job, if it comes to it, is to be the bumper.
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Do you have that link to relevant rules handy still?
Congrats doing the correct thing on your 3rd practice crit 
The guy riding on the other side of you and the riders behind him thank you.
As others noted, even if they were wearing the same jersey, it’s your wheel. In non critical moments I’ll usually let people hop on their teammates wheel. Less stressful and the goodwill may be helpful for when I eventually want to do the same thing. But when the pace is up, no.
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Who’s giving you flack? Your line is your line, and if you’re on a wheel, that’s your wheel til someone takes it.
It’s a race, not a group ride. Bumping is part of racing.
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No it is not…or shouldn’t be in the scenario he describes. Sure, when you get to the higher levels of the sport it occurs, but not in the situation in this thread.
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USA Cycling Rulebook links below.
Look at section 8A4 for Pushing or Pulling amongst riders (8A4C) and Dangerous Riding or Conduct (8A4D). Officials discretion would apply as to if contact was on purpose or inadvertent.
Since the event in question was termed a “practice crit” then there likely were not officials. So you are basically looking to riders participating in the gathering to race properly, get a nice workout and have a beer together after.
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ha, he’s luckily you didn’t clobber him. What you did is totally fine IMO; he came into YOUR space. Sorry, not happening. Surely someone will say something since he went down, but that’s his own bad.
And even if it was his teammate, you are already there. It would be a different story if they rode up together, and some how you wiggled in there; not even anywhere near what happened. Sorry to hear he crashed cause crashing is the worst, but that was his bad.
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Contact happens in racing but intentionally using your helmet to make contact and headbutt someone out of your way is dangerous riding. Not specifically prohibited in the USAC book like taking your hands off the bars to make contact with another rider but sprinters have been relegated at the world your level for that move.
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There’s more than enough wisdom on the actual topic here, so I’ll add one more piece of advice:
As a new bike racer, there will be lots of folks giving you advice, especially from folks who are also new. Weight their words and opinions accordingly. When someone with years of racing experience who’s worked their way through the categories has something to say, it probably should be weighted more heavily.
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There are jerks in every field of life. And it looks like you had the unpleasant experience of finding one in your race
And an amateur race at that. Ugh. Perhaps he expected ppl would just slow down and get off their bikes so he could noodle his way along. If he can’t take the position as a racer de sure doesn’t deserve it as a knob
Bump on.
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In a local 200-mile gran fondo type event, I was riding along in a section where you had to take the lane because the shoulder was super narrow and mostly rumble strip. I was keeping to the right in the lane and minding my own business when a guy came along and yelled “on your left” - so I nodded to show awareness of him, and held my line in the right portion of the lane, refraining from making any sudden changes of direction. He then yelled “on your left” a bunch more times, and finally in exasperation yelled “that means you have to move over!”
Just because someone yells something at you doesn’t mean they know what they’re talking about.
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Nah.
Next time:
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Where did the rider expect you to go?
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I know, right?!?
Apparently someone saying “on your left” means that you immediately have to dive off your bike into the ditch and cower until their mighty legs have cycled by… Or something.
As eye-rollingly obnoxious as it was in the moment, I reminded myself that if he rode the entire 200+ miles expecting people to get off the road when he yelled “on your left,” then my day was going way better than his.
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On your left on means move to the right if you’re blocking somebody coming up from behind. Otherwise, at least to me, on your left means I’m coming up on your left stay where you are until I pass.
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That is all “On your left” means…sure, if someone is over too far to the left, they should move to the right if there is room, but the onus of a safe pass is on the overtaking rider.
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Yeah to me ‘on your left’ means hold your line, don’t pull left and a warning that someone is passing you
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