Lonestar1

We've all read the threads where someone wants/or has actually chased like hell to catch up to a car @ a stop sign/red light to "vent a little frustration" because the motorist got a little too close. Or perhaps has even taken it a step further & actually taken physical action against said motorist. I think all experienced cyclists can distinguish a friendly "toot-toot" of a car horn as compared to a long,steady blast
or the "laying on the horn" which roughly translates "get the f*ck off the road a**hole or even worse you're on a narrow road & half of a double wide moblile home is rapidly approaching from behind. So what I wondered is this? How many acknowledge those "good" motorists? With a small wave, large wave, just a slight lift of the hand off the bar? Maybe saying thanks @ the stop sign/red light if they maybe pulled over & gave you plenty of room when they passed. I believe there are those motorists out there that do actually see us & respect our right to ride on the public roadways.

John E

That is a good suggestion, and something I occasionally practice, but not as often as I perhaps should. Be careful how you wave, to make sure your meaning is clear.

hi565

you go to wave at a person they give you the funger and drive off

I think that is a great idea i do occasionally encounter nice drivers, like teh drivers that instead of flying by me on a cramped road give me a second to pull over to the side fo the road then they pull by and i give the occasional wave, i have actually had someon cheer me on, wasnt sure if they were kidding or not. Oh well i took it as good.

DnvrFox

Our motorists are especially good at stopping at bicycle/street crosswalks on trail systems around here. I don't know why, but they always stop to give me the right of way. Perhaps it is because a huge percentage of folks own and ride bicycles. It is so prevalent, that if I am waiting for another bicycler, I always wait away from intersections, because if you are waiting there the motorists will stop!

And, yes, I always wave, nod my head or verbally say "thanks" to these good folks.

norton

"You can catch more flies with honey than you can with vinegar".....

...... ....Waidaminit!....on what do you see MOST flies?....

Yoshi

I usually look at the driver and nod my head.

galen_52657

If some one is waiting patiently behind me for room to pass, and then goes around me giving plenty of berth and without stomping the gas pedal, I give them a wave of gratitude. I wait 'till they look in the mirror to see if they have cleared me. Many wave back!

TrevorInSoCal

I was just wondering about that this morning. Was out riding one of my usual training-routes which is popular with the local Harley/Cruiser crowd (No twisties. Don't hafta worry about dragging parts when you try to turn your giant poseurcycle.), I was passed slowly, and with plenty of room by no less than 4 different motorcycles. Not all the same group either. Two different groups of two or three riders each.

The usual routine on that road is for a pack of about 10 of 'em to blast by, giving you no room (Even though the traffic almost always light. And there's is about a mile of visibility in the oncoming direction.), and running WFO with their straight-pipes blasting, so you can hear (at a full 120 db) just how cool they are. I wish I coulda acknowledged the courtesy of this-morning's motorcycle crowd somehow. I pondered giving a wave, but figured they might just think I was flipping them off.

It was kinda overcast and drizzly this-morning. Guess the usual poseur crowd stayed home to avoid getting their chrome dirty...

(Before you get all up-in-arms about my motorcycle-rider stereotyping, let me acknowledge that, yes, not all motorcyclists are like that, and I'm not claiming that at all. I also ride motorcycles. I ride courteously, and I know many other riders who ride courteously as well. Doesn't change the fact that there are *plenty* of the types of riders I'm talking about out there, and those are the ones I'm talking about.)

-Trevor

CPcyclist

I have had the opportunity to catch-up to a school bus once to thank the driver for waiting for soace to pass (four lane no sholder/to many parked cars in town). The driver seem supprised to get a thanks but you could tell it ment some thing to him.

Most time I give a slow open hand wave so they can tell it's not the bird.

I try not to react to the bad drivers but it is hard to resist some times.

PaperBoy

If you hang around this forum long enough, it's easy to get the impression that bad-tempered, evil-minded, recto-cranially inverted drivers lurk at every corner. Maybe it's because of where I live, but I have to say that those drivers are in the minority.

I've had a few scares, but I've also encountered tons of courtesy and respect. I can't count the times I've been invited to go first through a 4-way stop sign, or been given a wide, comfortable berth when overtaken and passed.

I always acknowledge courtesy with a nod, wave, or smile. It seems to set a karmic tone or something.

molten

yes, John that would be a good idea. I'm just north of you, up the coast in SD county. I've got a grat xample of who a few are. (but they're not leaving the same amount of space anymore. As they used to. May it be that something occurred with another biker??? or what??) They happen to be the local gravel and cement companies. You know whom they are. They're located all over the county. Try them. Overall, I get better attitude with the truckers in general, than I do with motor vehicle drivers. Get back to Me about this.

Anthony King

I try to wave everytime I am let in while changng lanes, and I try to wave even when somebody doesn't let me in, just to make them feel like they did.

I have also gotten into the habit of waving when I am honked at, even when I'm honked at angrily. Of course that doesn't mean I won't have a friendly pedagogic moment with somebody at a red light/stop sign if they obviously feel I shouldn't be on the road.

Waving is good, we can use all the good will we can get out there.

charlesw

I smile and wave at people.

I love waving at kids. They smile and wave back. I ride in a small city and sometimes I'm next to cars in traffic and at lights. They kids stare at me.

Recently, I was waiting at a school crosswalk. A little boy says "Why aren't you racing?"
"Because I'm riding to work."
"Oh".

So cute.

JohnBrooking

This morning I found myself waiting behind a school bus while it stopped to let on some kids. By the time it started up again, a bunch of 'em in the back were waving at me.

(Of course, I think it was the same bus that my first grader had just gotten on five minutes before. I hope they weren't saying "Hey, Milo, there's your goofy dad on his bike - doesn't he know it's cold outside?" I meant to ask him about it tonight but I forgot.)

ultra-g

I hand them gold stars! Keep a handful of them in my a-ss crack while i'm riding.

operator

Lollercakes...

lsits

I give a little salute a la Dick Clark.

TriBob

I try and wave as often as I can. Doing what I can to increase relations.

trekkie820

I try to, but often they are long gone by the time I get a chance. I try to wave and smile at them as they pass if they have been good to me. I think that the majority of motorists are respectful, but it's the few a**holes that are not that get the threads riled up.

CPcyclist

The best is when you are just in side the city/twone and can draft the bus 25-35, kids pile to the back to see you just riding without a care waving.
In rual areas it fun to sit on tactors at 20-25 for a nice easy ride, if they go any slower waveing at them as you pass is even better.

Helmet-Head

I find that when I ride in accordance with the vehicular rules of the road, all motorists are good to me.

At least that's my experience.

Daily Commute

A wave and a nod work well, but then I will go out of my way to be nice back. I might even slow down and move over to the extreme right side of the road to let them by.

Metro

I smile and wave at motorists all the time. (Heck, sometimes I give 'em a "Jesus Love You" Tract.

I have found that if you examine their faces and the faces of the passengers, many are fascinated by our bikes, gear and the commitment we make to ride rather than drive. Granted, there is a percentage of the population that is generally pi**ed at us for being on "their road", but a smile, wave, a thank you when they yield is good for your soul. You will enjoy your ride that much more.

Sometime we forget that it's not just about us.

QUOTE:
"Living well it the Best Revenge" - Bette Davis
"Thou prepares a table before me in the presence of my enemies" - Palsm 23 (A Psalm of David)

webist

I'll nod, lift a hand, render a short salute, smile, mouth the words thank you or otherwise acknowledge whenever a motorist or pedestrian or even another cyclist yields right of way when I am able to make eye contact and gesture safely.

Then again, I'll smile and say good morning, or whatever, when I pass you in the grocery aisle too, even if you are not on your bike