This thread may give us a little insight into the mind of your average motorist, unfortunately. Enjoy:

http://web.camaross.com/forums/showthread.php?t=448557

that's disturbing, sounds like theres some anger management issues over there

Most car boards are pretty bad, but I think that thread just knocked my IQ down about 50 points. The best is that the dumbass OP a) has the grammar of a six-year-old, b) misspelled "padestrians" (LOL) and c) owns a Toyota Matrix but posts on a F-body forum. Talk about small pee-pee self-esteem projection.

Loo-hoo-zer-errrrrr! :D

Looks like some cooler heads jumped in, thankfully. :o

It's interesting to note that every infraction of the law by cyclists that the OP in that thread points out is done by motorists too. It's also interesting to note that the car-forum thread's OP's "legal advice" is opposite most vehicular laws I've seen in most jurisdictions. If someone is going to criticise based on legal grounds they should at least familiarise themselves with and obtain a good grasp of the law first. And let's not even get started on the whole sidewalk riding thing. I'm going to guess the ignorant fool didn't bother doing much research into that area either. I sense a future in radio broadcasting is in store for that OP... likely at a Clear Channel station.

THe problem with this country is that most of its citizens are entitlement-filled idiots, or desperately insecure poor people who want to be entitlement-filled idiots.

THe problem with this country is that most of its citizens are entitlement-filled idiots, or desperately insecure poor people who want to be entitlement-filled idiots.

And very self righteous.

Az

Well, the thread ended up better than I thought it would have. There were some car people that straightened some things out...

It's a comedy thread? Had me laughing.

You Americans are lucky to be able to take the whole lane.

Are you sure it's not a troll?

more importantly what are you doing on a car forum!!@#@#

hah jk.

yeah that sucks.

w/o hijacking I've always wondered about the psychology of traffic and road rage i.e. why does it just really piss you off if somebody is not obeying the rules? if I analyze it I'm not angry with someone if they run a red because of safety its something else... something selfish even. I wonder where it comes from.

Like people motorists vs cyclists, I mean why do they get so angry? Is it really even a safety issue?

w/o hijacking I've always wondered about the psychology of traffic and road rage

When one of the moderators wonders if it's a troll thread, you're probably in the clear for hijacking it into a civil discussion. :D

Honestly, I get PO'd when somebody is doing something that makes it less safe for me and other people on the roads out there.

I used to ride on a route with bike lanes on both sides, clearly marked with arrows encouraging bikes to ride with the flow of traffic rather than against. Other than myself, more than half of the bike riders on the street rode against traffic. Sometimes I would have to take a lot of effort to get out of the bike lane and into the main traffic lane in order to avoid the wrong-way cyclists. It felt unsafe to be approaching some schmoe head-on in a bike lane with a barrier of parked cars on one side and a fast-moving line of cars on the other side. So even when there were no cars coming and it was easy to take the lane and leave the bike lane to mr. wrong-way, it made me mad because he obviously didn't know when he started riding the wrong way that he wouldn't meet me or somebody else going the right way, at a less safe time.

Part of it is that most people figures "I have a pretty good idea of how everybody ought to use the road, and if they all consistently used the road my way then i, and others, would know what to expect out of everyone."

It's actually one of the more balanced initiated as anti-cycling discussions I've ever seen on a cager forum.
Al

That is pretty bad. I don't come across that attitude a lot in real life, do you?

Also remember, this was the opinion of diehard cagers, who love driving enough to get on a car forum. Also, this thread was in a subforum that is the equivalent of our "Foo" or maybe "politics & religion." You can read some pretty outrageous bike rants in those subforums too! :)

I was really impressed by the way that thread turned around... I figured, camaro forum.. Uh-oh! I would imagine that there are a surprising number of 'cagers' that are very angry at anything in their way. The traffic is getting worse and worse and people arent able to get places as fast as they used to be. This frustrates people in this 'no-waiting' world.

I can feel my blood pressure rise whenever I get behind the wheel of my (fairly efficient, but still dino-burning) car. This is why I'm trying to end up there less and less :)

If you're looking for open-minded cagers, I'd check out SAABcentral.com. That's were I used to surf most of the time before I bought my bike and started trolling over here :D A mature crowd, some of whom are accomplished bike riders.

Good luck to all, and hopefully if you ever see Toyota-man on the roads, he'll be out of gas :rolleyes:

more importantly what are you doing on a car forum!!@#@#

Heh, that's actually a valid question! At one time I was very "into" cars. I guess you could even say I was a car enthusiast. But eventually I got tired of spending tons of money on repairs, gas, insurance, etc. Also, traffic around here has gotten so bad that driving has become nothing more than a huge stress-creator, so even if I were still interested in them I couldn't enjoy driving one. :o I still visit lots of various boards occasionally when I'm bored (including a photography forum), and after reading that thread I thought some here might find it interesting. :)

damn, he's from Vancouver too.
what a ******.

Wait a minute... Did poster #2 actually call a recumbent rider a "lazy mofo"?

Wow, talk about some cretins over there. So, Im a tree loving hippie in there eyes eh? Im too broke to drive a car? I have no licence? What is it with that?
Chances are I have a fatter bank account then majority of them because of all the money I save by not owning a vechical. Let alone at my young age of 23 years old. Sure they were flat broke at 23, and for the ones that are my age over there...."Thank you Mom and Dad, this is what I really wanted!"

Straight tools over there...

THe problem with this country is that most of its citizens are entitlement-filled idiots, or desperately insecure poor people who want to be entitlement-filled idiots.

Unfortunately very true and not limited to car drivers. I spent Saturday afternoon riding around Manhattan. I did three loops of the drive in Central Park and also road across town and back. I was careful to position myself in the middle lane when going straight through intersections but only heard a horn a couple of times.

When I was in the park though, I noticed many cyclists going in the wrong direction including the police. What was worse was seeing this on the 1st avenue bike lane when I was trying to use it. I did not see any other cyclist stop at a red light in the park even though peds were sometimes waiting to cross. Saw plenty of peds behaving badly too of course.

No surprises there really. I get beeped at and hear people yell "get on the sidewalk" fairly often, even when riding on roads with a 25 or 35 mph limit, so I'm really not slowing them down that much.

I think suburbia is the place where you get a lot of anti-cyclist attitude. Most places in the burbs are unwalkably far apart, the road networks aren't planned very well, and thus many people spend too much time rushing around in cars.

I think suburbia is the place where you get a lot of anti-cyclist attitude. Most places in the burbs are unwalkably far apart, the road networks aren't planned very well, and thus many people spend too much time rushing around in cars.
I think it really depends on where you live. Around my area, cycling is a very popular activity both in and around the city as well as the suburbs. Thus people are used to it, drivers are more lilkely to also be cyclists or have a relative who is a cyclist. As a result, I rarely have problems. I find that I get more attitude out in very rural areas. Generally speaking, I just shake it off when someone honks up a storm and yells, "get off the road!" However, I have been known to yell back, "you first!" Of course you have to "know your opponent" before reacting like that. Remember that they are in control of a deadly weapon and although you may be right, you don't want to be dead right.

First off... it was a Z28 forum. His rationale is complete $h!t. Lets be honest, most people driving a Z28, at least where I come from, are the trailer trash dudes. (sorry if this offends anyone on here, but this is MY experience) Basically, these cornfed 250lb gorillas who drive em think they are the coolest crap on the road. And while he is complaining about the cyclist in the road breaking laws, he probably just finished drag racing his buddy and speeding down the road while talking on his cell phone to his Meth hookup.

Basically, F these guys. Maybe if any of them understood what excersize was, or had spent thousands of dollars on a road bike, they might understand. Oh yeah... but these guys have WAY too much money to be riding a bike. Only us "po' folk" ride bikes. Its a damn shame they dont realize these bikes are worth more than his 1986 camaro.

I guess thats what happens when your mom and dad are brother and sister....

Anyway, apparently there are at least a couple guys with a brain stem on that forum
Some guy posted this on here as rebuttal... pretty good.

"1) Sidewalks are not safer.
--Kids, strollers, dogs, elderly walkers, big wheels, tricycles share sidewalks.
--Drivers backing out of driveways can't see a cyclist travelling 15-20mph.
--A lot of sidewalks still have curbs and dropoffs that will damage wheels
--When turning, motorists are more likely to see a cyclist in their lane as opposed to checking sidewalks to see if the cross road they're turning onto is clear
--Most localities have laws against riding on sidewalks because of directional differences and space constraints. In traffic, a cyclist is supposed to be following the flow of traffic wheras sidewalks are not directional.

2) Bicycle lanes are not always safe
--Debris from the road gets blown to the curb, where cycling lanes are generally located. Sharp objects blowing out tires can quickly cause a cyclist to lose control.
--Cycling lanes located between parked cars and traffic is nothing more than an opportunity to open a parked car door into cycling traffic, giving the cyclist no time or place to react.

3) Not every cyclist is as lacking in mental capacity as you, and is therefore unable to get a license.
--Cycling to work is a great way to squeeze exercise into a busy day.
--Cycling is a good way to lose weight
--Cycling is a good way to get moving in the morning and shake out the cobwebs.
--Cycling's a good way to "stop and smell the roses." You can travel at a decent speed while still having the chance to see things you might not at 40mph.
--Gasp, I know it sounds kooky, but hey, it is more inexpensive than a car, and it does save gas money, and it does reduce emissions.

4) Cyclist riding in the lane of traffic is known as "taking the lane." This technique makes a cyclist more visible, and makes it less likely that the cyclist will be pinched off the side of the road.

5) Riding a recumbant bicycle does not make one "lazy." Some people have difficulty with their backs or the pelvic areas and this is a good way to address those issues. They are inefficient in some aspects, particularly hill climbing, so one could argue that they do more work than other cyclists to get the same distance.

I know, there are bad apples in the cycling world out there, but we don't close all bars because people drive drunk, nor do we ban cars from roads as an answer. Cyclists can get ticketed just the same as motorists.

I also know, cyclists on the road means you have to pay attention to actually driving, and I understand, that's totally unreasonable."