trackhub

The time: Yesterday, early evening, about 6 PM.

The place: The intersection of Linwood Ave and Adams Street in Newton, MA. This part of Newton is better known as "Da Lake!" (Buzzman, you probably know where this is.)

Traffic: Very light, almost non existent.

What happened: This intersection is a four way stop. Whoever arrives at the intersection first, has the right of way to go first. Pretty simple at this intersection. So, I'm approaching on Linwood, and I see this Honda arrive at the intersection on Adams. Pretty simple. I stopped, and waited for them to proceed. The driver, a woman in her 20's. (and hot!) stared at me. She motions for me to go first. OK, I'll do that. I'm just through the intersection, and from behind me I hear the engine of the Honda and,,, "Nice Legs!! A second female voice does a "Wooo-Hooo!" Damn it, where did that Honda go??? I wanted some phone numbers!

Hmm. Maybe they're being nicer to us after all.

Just wanted to share this little piece of "advocacy". No reason, really.

gcottay

Mating dances aside, I can do without "nice" drivers at four-ways. "You were there first. I saw you there first. I've calculated speed to avoid the need to unclip while going through behind you. So please, pretty lady, just go."

Glynis27

^^^This. You were there first, so you need to go first. No, those are the rules and just because you are flashing your lights, honking and waving your hands around like a crazy person it does not change anything. Unless you have a badge and a whistle, I'm not going to go.

leadchucker

I generally agree with that, but there are plenty of 'not-nice' drivers out there to get POd at... I'm not gonna get too upset with someone trying to be nice unless it's actually putting me at risk. Sounds like the OP had already stopped, so the "I've calculated speed to avoid the need to unclip " doesn't really apply.

Wanderer

I have noticed the same thing, as well. Just in the last month or less. Maybe they are just getting used to seeing more bikes.

littlewaywelt

Your post seems to indicate that you might be better looking than most riders. Perhaps this is the missing part of the equation.

Kidding aside, I've noticed that ppl seem to be traveling slower on the highway and in general driving around less aggressively. Maybe high gas prices are causing more ppl to be patient.

AdamD

I think there are a lot more nice cagers out there than we realize, we just forget about them. That 1 jerk who honks or cuts us off sticks in our mind way more than the 10 people that slow down to let us through the intersection, nevermind the fact that a lot of the nice drivers might even be behind us so we are completely unaware of their patience/kindness. The only kind of nice driver that we tend to really remember are the hot chicks that hoot at us as we ride by.

srmatte

I commute in central Ma, the only drivers that are any issue are the teen male drivers, mostly if there are a bunch in the car yelling something stupid. No big deal. Mostly people are very courteous at intersections. I rode a section (1/2 mile) of rt20 (very busy 45- 50mph) just to give it a try, I took the whole first lane and not one car honked at me. I won't do it again tho, I'll stick to the nice quiet road with no cars and a bigger hill.

EnigManiac

While I appreciate the confusion a motorist must feel upon arriving at a 4-way stop and seeing a cyclist approaching, considering most, if not all, cyclists (including myself) ignore stop signs or treat them as yields, as I do, but when eye-contact is made and the cyclist clearly indicates the motorist who arrived first may go, it is frustrating as hell for the cyclist for the motorist to sit there, unmoving, inordinately long as if they don't understand the gesture. I encounter similar interactions multiple times per day and, lately, when they remain sitting there, I now shrug and accept the offer of the right-of-way, proceeding (carefully) through.

Overall, I have noticed a marked improvement in cyclist/motorist interaction, as the OP notes. Sure, there remain those who inadvertantly or purposefully pass too closely, those who make unsafe and dangerous turns in front of me, but the hostile encounters I used to see or even be involved with have decreased dramatically.

tntyz

Funny, but I have noticed this, too. I attributed it to the fact that I recently put a light on back and always run in is a crazy blink mode. Then I thought it was b/c WI (my state) was listed as #2 in the race to be most bike-friendly state. I figger people are trying to live up to the reputation.

Szczuldo

just this morning I encountered almost all of these drivers...I had someone turn right in front of me as I was near the intersection and I was also turning. I had a feeling they wouldn't stop for me so I had my hands on the brake hoods ready. After that the traffic was going at like 20-25 mph through a section of campus roads and I'm easily keeping up with them and of course taking the lane, but no the second there are 2 lanes in each direction, the guy behind me has to slam on his gas and pass me.

I still find that there are more people who do not understand that a bicycle can go >12mph, but the number of people who appreciate cyclists is increasing.

Glynis27

By that point there will be a car from a third direction that will go out of turn because he is impatient and the car behind me will go into the opposing lane to pass me or be honking. The car with the right of way will no doubt be passed by the car behind it that is also impatient. All of this will happen in less than 5 seconds. I may not agree with the laws, but I will still always follow them, and it would make things easier if everyone else did as well.

I can understand why they are reluctant to go as no other cyclist seems to stop, but I am not putting my safety in the hands of somebody else. YMMV.

trackhub

Nah, 'fraid not. You know that guy who gets sand kicked in his face at the beach? That would be me. At 51 years of age, I could have been one of her (the driver of the Honda) dad's drinking buddies.

StrangeWill

As annoying as it is, I'd take the entire population being too nice than the entire population running stop signs.