Well, today was my first day off from work in awhile so I decided that it was a nice day so I would finally take my bike out for a ride. The temperatures were in the high 80's with a moderate head wind so that subsided the heat significantly. I was heading into town through a small back road. THe area was rather urban with a large number of houses on either side of the road with signs all over the road cautioning motorists of pedestrians. I slowly headed my way through the neighborhood and reached a pretty large hill, and naturally any biker is going to want to pick up some speed. By this time, the posted speed limit was 40 mph and I was going about 30mph. I reach a turn shaped like a "L" only the turn wasn't too sharp. Along this turn there was a side street for entering traffic. A woman with a large SUV came down the side street and speeded through the stop sign. At this time I was only a matter of feet from this side street and going 30 mph I had to slam on my brakes causing me to partly lose control, but I managed to regain control. After figuring out the situation I gave the driver a few choice words and gestures and proceeded to regain speed and follow her. Luckly, she pulled into a Wallgreens parking lot and I circled a small area of the lot some distance from her SUV until she got out of her truck. She got out of the truck, but with a small child so I kept my anger in me and rode off. I wanted to go up to her and tell her, "Thanks for almost hitting me." Should have gotten her plate and called her in for blowing through a stop sign though. Not too big of a deal but in a situation of getting seriously hurt, it made me furious.
Sprocket Man
06-07-05, 07:58 PM
She got out of the truck, but with a small child so I kept my anger in me and rode off. I wanted to go up to her and tell her, "Thanks for almost hitting me." Should have gotten her plate and called her in for blowing through a stop sign though. Not too big of a deal but in a situation of getting seriously hurt, it made me furious.You did the right thing. I'm not sure how long you've been riding, but at the risk of sounding "preachy" here's a few things I've learned in the 20 years or so that I've been actively riding.
1. If you call the police to report that someone blew through a stop sign, was speeding, or was driving erratically, they probably won't even bother to take your statement. Usually, the only time they will do anything is if they witnessed the infraction.
2. The only time the cops might be compelled to do anything is if the driver threatened you. And unless there was a reliable witness there, the driver probably won't get anything more than a warning.
3. If you confront the driver, about 10% of the time you'll get someone who is sincerely apologetic. 80% of the time, the driver will give you that, "What the hell are you talking about" look and not care one iota that they put your life at risk. And 10% of the time, you'll get someone who will want to fight you or will threaten to run you over the next time they see you on the road. The thing is, you never know how someone will react. I once was almost run over by a lady that looked to be about 80 years old. Followed her into a mall parking lot. When she got out of the car, I calmly told her, "Be careful how you're driving because you almost ran me over back there." Her reaction - "You'd better stay on the f___ing sidewalk because if I ever see you on the road again, I'm going to flatten you!"
I don't even bother to confront bad drivers anymore because the situation is futile at best, dangerous at worst.
BostonFixed
06-07-05, 08:30 PM
You should have said how bad you would have felt if you hit her child, and that is what she almost did, or something to that effect.
Just last week, I embarrased and yelled at a elementary school kid after he doored me. I dropped a f-bomb or 2, and slammed the door in his face, and generally embarrased him in front of his mom. Too bad I didn't have my u-lock on me, or I would have brandished that as well.
Sprocket Man
06-07-05, 08:52 PM
You should have said how bad you would have felt if you hit her child, and that is what she almost did, or something to that effect.
Just last week, I embarrased and yelled at a elementary school kid after he doored me. I dropped a f-bomb or 2, and slammed the door in his face, and generally embarrased him in front of his mom. Too bad I didn't have my u-lock on me, or I would have brandished that as well.Is this sarcasm? Please tell me this is sarcasm!
slvoid
06-07-05, 09:00 PM
Almost hit? Welcome to my daily commute.
You can't really avoid it, just keep your eyes open and be careful.
BostonFixed
06-07-05, 09:33 PM
Is this sarcasm? Please tell me this is sarcasm!
There is a little [read: a good deal] of exaggaration in my account, along with a sensationalist writing style but that is a true story.
Here's what went down, free from as much exaggartion as possible:
Elementary school kid [12ish years old 5/6th grade age] doors me on a busy street near an elemntary school. I get up, yell in his face in front of his mother, and when he tries to open the door, slam it back in his face. I then ride away.
I didn't have my u-lock on me. He was scared, as he tried to roll up the window when I got up.
DCCommuter
06-07-05, 09:42 PM
I had a similar situation once where I went up to the kid afterward and said, "your mommy just did a very dangerous thing" and left it at that. I figured if her kid was anything like mine, she'd spend the rest of the day answering questions about why that man said that.
I'm not saying that it was a good thing to do, I was mad and it came to me. I think Sprocket Man has the right attitude, and the right percentages. I generally believe in calling people on their behavior, but there is something about being behind the wheel of a car that changes people's outlook, particularly when someone on a bicycle is trying to talk to them.
Bike nut
06-07-05, 10:31 PM
I usually ride my bike very early in the morning to go to the gym. Yesterday I was riding down a busy road that has a wide shoulder and a white line to keep cars from riding on the shoulder. These three pickup trucks decided that traffic was going too slow and decided to use the shoulder to pass a big-rig. It scarred me so bad that I have decided to ride a different way now. I love riding but I am always wondering when will I be hit. My friend flies a Medi-Vac helicopter and tells me that picking up cyclists is one of the most common calls he gets. It's scary
aadhils
06-08-05, 12:17 AM
Welcome to the world of commuting. As long as you follow the street rules set for bicycles and be attentive at all times, your chances of being hit are minimum.
Of course there are always idiots who seem magnetically attracted to bikes....
tippy
06-08-05, 05:10 AM
... after he doored me...
I know I'm going to get pounded for saying this but no one has ever voted me the smartest person in the room. So here goes ...
If you were close enough to a vehicle to get doored then you were doing something wrong. I make every attempt to stay out of the door range of autos.
d.tipton
recursive
06-08-05, 08:21 AM
If you were close enough to a vehicle to get doored then you were doing something wrong. I make every attempt to stay out of the door range of autos.
So do I, but that doesn't excuse anyone of not checking traffic before opening their door into it.
chemcycle
06-08-05, 06:10 PM
but that doesn't excuse anyone of not checking traffic before opening their door into it.
Yeah, plus it's apperently a great opportunity to yell at kids..........
sbhikes
06-08-05, 08:22 PM
There's also the .01% that will pull out a gun and shoot you. It happened recently in Buellton. Some guy killed another guy because he didn't like the way he was driving. (Both were drivers.) If someone is willing to go that far they could aim that anger at a bicyclist.