rms13

Had one of my more interesting incidents yesterday. I left on a ride at about same time that my neighbor across the street was pulling out in his car. I've lived here for about 2 years and never spoken a word to the guy in my life. I ride about 1/4 mile from my house and stop at the first red light to get out of my neighborhood. Then while stopped I hear crazy honking behind me which I ignore. Then the neighbor pulls up on my side with his window down and yells "what the f@#k is wrong with you? I am going to f@#k you up!". Then he peels out and takes a right in front of me , going through the light without even pausing. So I turn around and go back home and decide to call the police. Normally I would let it go but I know this guy knew I was his neighbor and not just some random person on a bike and he drives recklessly and twice the speed limit through our neighborhood everyday so I have been buzzed by the guy dozens of times at this point and I'm sick of him. While I'm on the phone with the police he pulls back in to his drive way and comes straight to my house and starts yelling at me from my lawn to come out and talk to him.

He tells me he wants to apologize and he honked because he got scared that he was going to hit me because I was right in the middle of the road. Well, I was 2/3 over to the right and he had plenty of room to pass but he was impatient because there was a car in the oncoming lane at the time. The only thing I did was dare to ride my bike in the street! Unfortunately there are too many people that believe you are doing something wrong or intentionally messing with them by riding in the road even when you are obeying all of the laws and they are not.

Not much I can do except hope he's not crazy enough to try to run me off the road one day. The cop told me he was going to sit in my neighborhood whenever he has down time waiting for the guy to speed through so he can pull him over. Well see if that happens but thought I'd share my crazy story for the day

Mr. Hairy Legs

Sounds like a nice guy.

trailangel

Ya know, there are just some people like this.....a lot of anger for whatever reason you cannot figure out.
Don't start up with them, just go on.. they are looking for a fight.
I always consider ever car, parked or running.... A LOADED FIREARM.

rms13

Good words of advice. In this case I didn't say anything to him on the road. When he came to my house I talked and accepted his apology and explained how I was doing nothing wrong by riding how and where I was. Now he knew what me so hopefully it won't be a problem in the future

FBinNY 

People blame others for their own faults and fears all the time. The guy was probably driving fast and inattentively and you didn't register until it was a close call. He made it your fault for being there, rather than his for not being attentive. This is par for the course, plus by making it your fault for being so stupid he's implying that he's no worse than any other driver who might hit you.

I observe this kind of stuff all the time. There's an assumption that people shouldn't play in traffic, which relieves drivers of the awareness that they are the very traffic they consider so dangerous.

During the winter when it's too wet or snowy to ride, I'll take the bus. After heavy snows, high snowbanks separate the sidewalk, so I have to stand at the edge of the 4 lane street. Cars drive by, and honk, or roll down the window and remind me how dangerous it is to stand there (as if there was a choice). However further up the street was a large pothole (lunar crater) and drivers seemed to have no problems gracefully driving around it.

Message, pedestrians and bicyclists get less respect than potholes.

huizar

I've found that no matter how nice a person is, once they get behind the wheel of a car (or handlebars of a bike in some cases), they can turn into a self-righteous turd.

rms13

That's true. I know this guy has anger issues since he lives across the street from me. One day him and his parents were chasing someone down the street yelling and threatening them at midnight. Some people are just crazy

howeeee

I have run in's with motorists all the time, who cares. The problem here is the guy is your neighbor and you have to live with him.

Try to talk with him, get to know him better, maybe even ask him to go on a bike ride with you.

Better than having a run in with him a couple times a week.

murrellington

Sounds like a nice cop but I doubt he'll come trying to catch that guy speeding.

rms13

We did talk so at least we know each other. He is younger and his favorite pastime is pacing up and down the street smoking cigarettes and yelling at people on his phone so we don't have much in common and I don't think he'll every get on a bike

phoebeisis

howeeee has a point.
This AH is your neighbor,so you will cross paths with him pretty frequently
And in light of what you wrote "One day him and his parents were chasing someone down the street yelling and threatening them at midnight. Some people are just crazy"
Who chases people-other than burglars-down the street at midnight-with his PARENTS?? His MOTHER too??-
Close Family!


I would take howeeee's advice-but without the bike ride suggestion
Try to develop a friendly relations with him-get on a first name basis-

The below- committed Lane Controllers should skip.
Yes I know you weren't lane controlling-and you were legally riding-within your rights etc
But anything other than FRAP- annoys AHs and enrages CMFs.
The unproven safety benefits of "not frap" just aren't worth the grief
Now on many streets-cars parked along street-door zones-you have no choice but to ride in the middle of the lane much of the time.
LC just not worth the grief

But try to get on a first name basis with this neighbor-hope he is an AH not a CMF
PS- Both parents engaged in the midnight "adventure"? His Mother too??

rms13

Yes both parents...including the mother. Probably in their late 50s/early 60s running down the sidewalk at midnight yelling at someone. We are on a first name basis now so I'll be cordial and hope that makes him try to not hit me when he's driving. The particular spot this happened was on a two lane road (one lane each direction) with liquor store on both sides of the road so cars parked along both sides with people frequently getting in and out so I am very wary of the door zone in that spot which is why I was over more then I might otherwise be. Not to mention it's a 25 mph zone and flat so I'm usually cruising at at least 20 in that spot so I'm not exactly holding up traffic.

I hope he is just an AH and not a CMF. Oh well, this happens everyday around here just not with someone I have to see every day.

phoebeisis

rms13
Wow mom too- 60 yo folks, chasing someone down the street-midnight-screeching loudly enough to attract the neighbors.
You have my sympathy.
Good that you are on friendly terms with him.
He probably is just a "born AH learned AH"- he had no chance with parents like that!!


Yeah DOOR ZONES make me "effectively" an LCer on my ride through my suburban neighborhood to the river levee-cars parked on both sides-but luckily very little traffic.
I have been very lucky-haven't had a run in with a driver in many many years
Last one was about 20 years ago-beer can-mainly empty-tossed one night

More recently-a had a run in with a bike rider-Maybe 3 years ago a crazy guy on a bicycle thought I was chasing him because I turned around soon after we passed one another(it was late-and I was just doing a certain amount of time exercise fun ride-rain was threatening so didn't want to get more than 1/2 mile from home) well he stops-I'm at least 20 yards away-starts yelling jawing-threatening etc.
I ignored him -I was doubling back again anyway-so turned around never said a word-
went armed at night after that
He definitely was of the CMF variety-wild eyes -crazy threats. Never saw him again.
Those sorts of things are memorable-they suck-and suck some of the fun out of riding!
Oh well-smart move getting on good terms with him.

I wonder why he came to apologize? -Good sign -maybe there is hope for him.

prathmann

Disney recognized this problem long ago:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZAZ_xu0DCg

Metal Man

I was thinking posting the same thing.

FBinNY 

Plus ca change...!

Lone

don't ignore or belittle this guy and his family. there are people who enjoy hating others. he was probably raised by people who he got his behavior from, and he married someone like him, and is passing it on to his kids. calling the cops is good, but there is just as much of a chance that he has a social network of people who will retaliate and join the hating for anything that you do. hope that he doesn't have any cop friends.

read a book about sociopathes. good and bad behavior is not clearly definely in some people's minds.

Jseis 

The day before my neighbor was arrested he did what any good neighbor would do. Politely came over and told me he wasn't the shooter

Pug

The dude sounds bi-polar.

Bluechip

While it's not really a neighbor, I do have to deal with this one guy frequently. It's about 5 miles from my house on a country two lane road. My first run in with him was very strange. I was riding along alone with no traffic at all. I see a motorcyclist approaching from the right from a private gravel road from a trailer park. He looks my way , then looks to the right. Just as I get to the driveway he starts to pull out. He then sees me and brakes hard, locking up the front wheel in the gravel. He almost falls but catches his balance in time. As I pass he yells at me and tells me to get out of his way. I shake my head and keep going on. He then passes me and stops in the road and keeps yelling at me s I go around him. He passes me and stops again. This time telling me to get off my bike. I again go around him this time yelling back at him asking wtf is his problem? This repeats one more time before finally continuing on.

I see him probably once a week as it's pretty much my only way to the roads I like to ride. We have had a few slow stare down drive-bys but I don't think he knows for sure if I am the same guy. There are a lot of cyclist on this road. I'd like to think he was just having a bad day but I am beginning to think he has a screw loose somewhere.

Pug

No doubt. I was just observing that (based on personal experience) when someone is raging at you one second and offering a lame apology the next, they might have a bi-polar disorder. In which case, to the OP, you may never know whether you're gonna catch this guy on a a high or low. So unless he levels himself out with medication or some other treatment, I'd give him a really wide berth, because you might truly be dealing with a nut.

Lone

OP, I've started to rant, so I'll just edit this comment out, and stop posting on this thread.

Lone

Sorry, I deleted that post because it was a rant and off topic. I apoligize.

lostarchitect 

Yeah, this what I always think of here in NYC when someone tells me, "I've almost been hit by bikes tons of times!" I think, "Hmm, if it happens so often, maybe it's you? Maybe you're stepping out into traffic not paying attention? Maybe those cyclists actually saved you from yourself because they WERE paying attention to you, even though you weren't looking for them?"

trailangel

Hmmmm....Glendale+Lives with parents+Smokes cigs= CMF Armenian. Does he drive a German car?