Why do many cyclists ride on the road outside of town instead of on the cycle path?

This applies to both racing cyclists and regular cyclists, regardless of whether the cycle path is mandatory or not, and ideally also in bad conditions (e.g. heavy rain) and without lights. I would never think of driving on the road, but since a lot of people do it, why?

What do you think about velomobiles that travel 60 km/h on cycle paths?

Hello You are probably familiar with these fully faired recumbent bikes. Certain models can reach 50 km/h on flat terrain with just 135 watts of pedal power, and 60 km/h and more for longer periods, so no problem on flat terrain. What do you think if they drove 60 km/h on cycle paths? Question to…