Advocacy & Safety - I love the youtube era

OK, so I know this may have nothing directly to do with cycling, but it does shows the type of drivers we often encounter.

This is a video of [an apparently] drunk driver, driving down a closed street and honking at the sledders (in his way??), stopping and trying to pick a fight with the sledders.

http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2008/12/22/i_love_the_youtube_era

Isn't this the kind of guy that gives cyclists grief?

yep, those are the guys!

motorists with a bad case of entitlement syndrome.

Yeah, get back in the car and drive.

DB of the year candidate for sure.

I'm saddened that no one grabbed the keys and threw them into the snow while he was being loud and stupid in the group of people.

I'm saddened that no one grabbed the keys and threw them into the snow while he was being loud and stupid in the group of people.

I think that's what I would have done. Surreptitiously make my way to the SUV, grab 'em and ditch 'em.

'Course, they'd all have to deal with him for that much longer and he'd be a wee bit more pissed.

My take away is that that guy is very lucky to have the wife/girlfriend that he's got. She never got involved in the dispute, but just kept trying to calm him down and get him back in the car. At times when it was getting pretty hot she stayed between him and the people he was yelling at and helped prevent the situation from escalating.

Speedo

I thought that too.

I've seen that type of care more than a few times (mostly in or outside of a bar - when I used to be in the band).

Gee, why do ya think it's mostly big guys that do this?

Closed street signs, driving drunk=no regard for for laws or anything but himself. Pretty sad.

-side note, there is a bike shop in the background-

except of course that the guy is probably going to pay for it.

Before cameras we hold in our pockets and youtube, this jerk just might have gotten away with it.

except of course that the guy is probably going to pay for it.

Before cameras we hold in our pockets and youtube, this jerk just might have gotten away with it.


I would assume he did get away with it. But I liked how the camera person sneakily moved over to the car and got his plate on film.

Don't blame us big guys for this. I find that jackassery is pretty evenly distributed in the population of humans.

jim

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Don't blame us big guys for this. I find that jackassery is pretty evenly distributed in the population of humans.

That is true, but the big guys do like to get close and physical a wee bit more often. I think it is because they don't often run into a fist while doing it.

The guy in the video is a real moron. I hope something happens to him due to his conduct.

...

Don't blame us big guys for this. I find that jackassery is pretty evenly distributed in the population of humans.

jim

it's true small guys often try to show they're bigger than they look, but big guys who are jerks seem to mix it up more because it's easy to pick on someone smaller, seemingly less of a threat (but that's just my thought- not sure if it's true)

Nah. Its just that you notice big jerks more because they are BIG jerks.\

Anyway, on behalf of my people, we are sorry.

jim

Yeah, the guy appears to be drunk, and is a butthead, but is the street really closed by the authorities, or did the kids just put out signs without permission? He wasn't the only car driving on that street. There are parks and playgrounds for playing. When we played in the street we got out of the way when a car was coming.

That street gets officially closed by the city in snow events like the one(s) that just hit Seattle; I've seen that street filled with several hundred sledders during snow closures and have linked telemark turns down it.

The bikeshop in the video background is named "Counterbalance bike shop" in reference to the old street trolleys that ran that hill needing to clip to a weighted running cabled counterbalance to get them up the steep grade- as steep as an street I've seen anywhere here in Seattle or in SF.

That street gets officially closed by the city in snow events like the one(s) that just hit Seattle; I've seen that street filled with several hundred sledders during snow closures and have linked telemark turns down it.

The bikeshop in the video background is named "Counterbalance bike shop" in reference to the old street trolleys that ran that hill needing to clip to a weighted running cabled counterbalance to get them up the steep grade- as steep as an street I've seen anywhere here in Seattle or in SF.

If the city closes it, they should at least pop for the signs with the flashing yellow lights on them, and put enough out so cars can't get by. We played hockey on a residential street that wasn't closed, but we could see cars coming easily. In today's cell phone age, I'm wondering why the cops didn't show up, the guy was there long enough.

motorists with a bad case of entitlement syndrome.Not to be confused with cyclists with a bad case of entitlement syndrome -- totally different animals!

and the sledders with the entitlement syndrome ... look out!

This reminds me of Critical Mass. Drunk guy yells at people on the road, people on road try to look big and tough, then it's a puff-up fest until somebody leaves.

Nah. Its just that you notice big jerks more because they are BIG jerks.\

Anyway, on behalf of my people, we are sorry.

jim

Clearly, you are no big jerk :)

Geez, even if the little urchins have stolen the rights to use the road as a sledding hill, let them live. Being a jerk is just wrong, even if the kids have been irresponsible.

Clearly, you are no big jerk :)

Thanks. All I ask is that I never loose my temper like the guy in that video and start bullying people around.


jim

My take away is that that guy is very lucky to have the wife/girlfriend that he's got. She never got involved in the dispute, but just kept trying to calm him down and get him back in the car. At times when it was getting pretty hot she stayed between him and the people he was yelling at and helped prevent the situation from escalating.

Speedo

If she was more sober (as it appeared was, why wasn't SHE driving!?

Geez, even if the little urchins have stolen the rights to use the road

The "urchins" - who probably ranged in age from 15-50 at various times - didn't steal anything. The road was officially closed to motor vehicles, as it was for days. Once it's closed to motor vehicles, it's open for other uses. This is true every time it snows here.

I haven't been over to Queen Anne area in a few days, it might still be closed. There are still roads closed in my neighborhood - Capitol Hill.

Bottom line - the belligerent drunk put himself, his wife, and all bystanders at risk by driving drunk and choosing to drive down a road that he most certainly knew was closed. The folks calling him an A-hole were spot on.

If she was more sober (as it appeared was, why wasn't SHE driving!?

Small penis syndrome? He's the man, of course he's goin to drive... ;-)

The most unfortunate part of this whole thing is that this fellow has apparently already procreated...

[QUOTE=SeattleShaun;8077204]Geez, even if the little urchins have stolen the rights to use the road

The "urchins" - who probably ranged in age from 15-50 at various times - didn't steal anything. The road was officially closed to motor vehicles, as it was for days. Once it's closed to motor vehicles, it's open for other uses. This is true every time it snows here.


[QUOTE]

Notice the "if" in my sentence. My point was that even if we give the galoot the most charitable interpretation we possibly can, he is still a jackass.

Let the record show I am all for sledding rights ahead of driving rights. Probably even ahead of cycling rights!

jim

Wasn't really heckling, just explaining. :-)

The phenomenon of closing streets during snow events, like we do in Seattle, hasn't happened in any of the snow places I've lived before...

My take away is that that guy is very lucky to have the wife/girlfriend that he's got. She never got involved in the dispute, but just kept trying to calm him down and get him back in the car. At times when it was getting pretty hot she stayed between him and the people he was yelling at and helped prevent the situation from escalating.

Speedo

She probably gets a lot of practice with that sort of thing, so she's become good at it, poor woman.