Wife vs. Dumb Driver

[vtjim]

My wife cycled into town on Friday afternoon to meet me for dinner/beer/etc.

She was climbing a hill toward a red light, and she's not a regular rider so she was spinning her low MTB gear. She stopped at the red light. A car on the cross street (that had the green light) stopped.

She looks at the lady driving the car, wondering what the woman is doing. The woman toots her horn. My wife continues looking at the driver. Finally the driver waves my wife through the red light.

Now, I told my wife she shouldn't have gone, so she understands that now. But the weird thing was, when she did go, the driver yelled at her that she shouldn't be riding that way and that she'd get hit! :rolleyes:

Synopsis: Wife stops for red light. Driver toots horn and waves wife through red light for some reason. Driver yells at wife for "riding like that." Maybe she was off her meds. Some drivers have absolutely no idea how to deal with a bicycle.

[Bockman]

I detest 'good samaritans' who stop traffic against their light and/or slow so you can (illegally) cross in front of them.

[billh]

This was no doubt a sting operation by the VC Secret Police. Your wife will be issued a summons to appear at a LAB Road I course and forced to chant Effective Cycling, while rocking back and forth in the lotus position.

[chipcom]

This was no doubt a sting operation by the VC Secret Police. Your wife will be issued a summons to appear at a LAB Road I course and forced to chant Effective Cycling, while rocking back and forth in the lotus position.

Are you saying the driver was HH in drag? <shudder> That is a visual I didn't need. :eek:

[caloso]

Yup. I group the stupid-but-well-intentioned with the drunk, the texting teenager, and the distracted soccer mom. All very dangerous. Beware.

[ItsJustMe]

Bizarre. When she said "riding like that" I bet she meant "on the road" - she might have been waiving her through so that she could yell without having to actually move very much.

[JohnBrooking]

My kids and I almost got caught by this one last week. We were actually dismounted, waiting to cross at a crosswalk (the youngest is 6, a bit too young for VC), and someone coming from the left, with the green light, waved us through. I looked to the right to check, but failed to anticipate someone in an adjacent lane to the left, who fortunately saw us in time as we started across, and stopped in time. After we got across, I told the kids we really shouldn't have done that and explained why, and silently swore at myself.

[Alox]

Yes, I've had a similar problem: On my commute I regularly cross a four-lane road with a generous greenbelt up the middle. I cross in an area with ecellent sightlines, but often, traffic will clear in only one direction at a time - which is fine with me - I'll wait for a break, cross to the median, then cross again when the traffic is clear. I'm happy with this, havign learned to judge the speed and distance of oncoming traffic. and in doing so I behave exactly as any motorist would do in the same situation.

The vast majority of motorists speed by, and I'm content to let them go. When someone slows or stops, I tend to wave them on, mostly because I know that just because they're stoppign one lane of traffic, it doesn't mean the other lane will stop as well. If anything, it's almost certain that someone will take the opportunity to pull out and pass the lane full of stopped cars.

To all the motorists out there: If you see a cyclist waiting to cross a street or intersection, leave them be. I can't be sure that they know what they're doing, but I'm SURE that they will have NO IDEA what YOU'RE doing.

[webist]

Good post. I can't count the number of times I have had to unclip and put my foot down at a 4-way stop because a "good" driver is letting me go when it is his or her turn. I prefer they take advantage of my clumsy track stand effort and just cross in front of me.