It seems like every time I ride these days, at least someone has to ruin it by making idiotic comments or crazy driving skills. :mad:

I was riding last nite and had pulled up to an intersection where I was in one lane and there was a turn lane next to me. As the light went green and I started to go, a woman in a car in the other turn lane yelled out "That's why they make sidewalks!!!" in a huff and proceeded to turn right. The thing that bugged me most was not her moronic comment, but the fact that she felt the need to say something even though I wasn't impeeding her in any way...she was in a totally different lane, heading the opposite direction! :(

Then I had a couple close calls w/ some crazy drivers that I swear just try to see how close they can get to you while you are riding the white line as far to the curb as you can get at times w/o hitting pot holes. One I swear tried to force me into hitting a parked car, and I had to all but lay on the brakes big time...of course ruining my nice clip that I had been maintaining...

Anyone else get tired of idiot drivers?

It's all part of the fun. I make a particular point of nodding my thanks to the courteous drivers. Makes me feel a lot more positive in the long run. If you start thanking all the good ones, you start to notice the bad ones really are the minority.

Oh, I had a completely strange "lady" complain to me about the fact I was walking my bike on a sidewalk (my girlfriend did not have her bike with her, so we both walked). We had passed her earlier, my gf went in a shop while I waited outside, so she caught up with me.

She was still several meters away when she started explaining in great detail how we cyclists are a major pain, always riding on the sidewalks or then just standing around with our dirty bikes blocking the way. She kept repeating the same things like a broken record. All this time she was walking on, with people looking at her and then at me and then at her again.

After she had passed me she apparently got out of breath, so I managed to squeeze in a loud "And a very good day to you too, Ma'm!" which passers-by seemed to find hilarious. She looked over her shoulder and I could swear she went in the "dirty bikes" loop again, although I could no longer hear exactly what she said.

What is it with these people?

--J

Then I had a couple close calls w/ some crazy drivers that I swear just try to see how close they can get to you while you are riding the white line as far to the curb as you can get at times w/o hitting pot holes.

When you hug the side of the road, you encourage some drivers to pass you without moving over. Try riding farther into the lane so drivers must move at least part way into the adjacent lane to pass you. If some drivers buzz you anyway, at least you have some room for evasive action. When you are passing parked cars, maintain a consistent line outside the reach of open car doors. If you hold a straight line and ride predictably, you are much safer than if you weave left and right to ride around parked cars. Of course, if you realize you are holding up traffic, you can pull off at a safe, convenient place to let cars pass you. It also helps to give a friendly wave when a driver is patient and waits until he/she can pass you safely.

I was riding back from the store once when a black SUV pulled up behind be on a 4 lane road. There was a little traffic so he couldn't pull around immeadietly. He starts honking and flashing his lights so, of course, I slow down a little and move a little farther into the lane. When he finally gets a chance to pull around, he swerves back into my lane just ahead of me and almost hits a tree b/c he's using one hand to hold his cell phone and the other to give me the finger. If that guy had gone off the road it would have been one of the most beautiful moments in my life.

tim

It seems like every time I ride these days, at least someone has to ruin it by making idiotic comments or crazy driving skills. :mad:

I was riding last nite and had pulled up to an intersection where I was in one lane and there was a turn lane next to me. As the light went green and I started to go, a woman in a car in the other turn lane yelled out "That's why they make sidewalks!!!" in a huff and proceeded to turn right. The thing that bugged me most was not her moronic comment, but the fact that she felt the need to say something even though I wasn't impeeding her in any way...she was in a totally different lane, heading the opposite direction! :(

Then I had a couple close calls w/ some crazy drivers that I swear just try to see how close they can get to you while you are riding the white line as far to the curb as you can get at times w/o hitting pot holes. One I swear tried to force me into hitting a parked car, and I had to all but lay on the brakes big time...of course ruining my nice clip that I had been maintaining...

Anyone else get tired of idiot drivers?

You are not alone. I find it depends on the area. I live in a college town. You drop down in one valley by and the resentful red necks yell at you swerve at you threaten you ect. Drop down to the other valley where all the professors live and everyone waves. Maby money has something to do with it? The mean people[who definatly suck] are a minority but they are a very vocal minority and it seems to be contageous in certain areas. I can't figure it out? I rode in a very rural area, Floyd Co VA, last weekend and I thought I died and whent to biker heaven. People waved, slowed down to pass not one incident on an 80 mile ride.

Okay, in some areas there appears to be significant resentment/negativity about cycling.

Why?

When you hug the side of the road, you encourage some drivers to pass you without moving over. Try riding farther into the lane so drivers must move at least part way into the adjacent lane to pass you. If some drivers buzz you anyway, at least you have some room for evasive action.

It also helps to give a friendly wave when a driver is patient and waits until he/she can pass you safely.

Exactly. I'm sometimes "honked at" because I refuse to hug the right side when it's too dangerous to do so. I wave after they pass. I especially like to wave for the many who drive behind me until it's safe for them and me to pass.

Al

Last night I actually had some idiot use one of those long plastic horns you see at football games and hoot out the window. What an idiot! He looked like those creatures from the Muppets from back in the 70s, you know the ones that go YIP, YIP YIP YIP. I did have one guy buzz me also when the other lane was completely free.

I would have grabbed that assclowns horn and played a tune on his head with it. :mad:

Why not just carry some pepper spray and when one of these Jabroni's sticks his head out of the window to do or say something stupid, blast him with the spray.

I can't say I've ever had much a problem in Denver. The odd comment here and there, but mostly from high school kids trying to look cool in front of their mates. On the whole I've found the drivers and passers-by on my commute, shopping and weekend road routes to be quite courteous towards me and other cyclists I've seen.

For the most part I stay off major roads - could this be a factor? Drivers have more tolerance on neighborhood streets where passing is not really an issue? I'm sure the demographic make-up of the area has a lot to do with it to. I mostly ride in south-east Denver/Parker/Englewood.

I had a lot more problems with rude, arrogant people when I used to live in Brisbane, Australia.

Oh, I had a completely strange "lady" ... started explaining in great detail how we cyclists are a major pain, always riding on the sidewalks or then just standing around with our dirty bikes blocking the way. What is it with these people?

They're prejudiced.

They're making asumptions about all cyclists based on the actions of a few. You could retrot, all women drivers are worse than men. Would she be happy with that?

DnvrFox asked, why? I say, we're a minority. It's easy to pick on us if we don't stand up for our rights.

Same roads, same rules, same rights.

Why not just carry some pepper spray and when one of these Jabroni's sticks his head out of the window to do or say something stupid, blast him with the spray.


Or a handful of pennies .... I'm sure you can all figure out what they're for ;)

I try to have a good attitude about it but my patience occasionally wears out. One morning I'm on my way to meet my buddy for a training ride and this guy in a p.o.s. wannabe rice rocket sits on my wheel for several blocks. It was really annoying and unnecessary for the conditions.

When we got to a red light, I turned to him and said, "Look it's 6:00 in the morning, I'm the only person on this street, and you've got two other lanes. You can't be bothered to pass me safely?"

The guy revs his engine and flips me off. I guess I should have expected that.

....so i'm waiting in the toilet line with the bike and all these people behind me are gettin' all pissed off because i have my bike with me. i'm thinkin... and eventually saying "wtf!? it's only gonna take like 10 extra seconds for me to maneuver the bike through the door."...

It is not as bad as it used to be, but when you go across borders in central america you should take your bike with you at all times and keep in in plain sight. I carried it up to the 2nd floor of the customs office on the El Salvador border, when I had to fill out some extra papers. If you didn't do that, odds are the bike or some of your equipment can disappear in a split second. It is a good idea to have a customs official in the US or whatever write your bike registration number (or whatever that is) in your passport, and place a stamp over it.

I definitely think taking your bike into the toilet was a good idea. What would ya have done if ya needed a stall? Stand the bike up on its back wheel?

roughstuff

My expieriences run from good to bad. For the most part I stay on the trails and avoid the roads. When I am on the roads I try to take roads with frequent lights and less traffic to avoid speeding cars. Sometimes I get a polite honk when a car is hehind me. This might frighten some, but I thinkit is polite for them to announce themselves. About once a week I do the the *******s that think that the road belongs to them. I don't take the kill them with kindness approach, I retaliate. Maybe I shouldnt.

Last week a car full of highschool kids in an old accord buzzed past me with an air horn. Scared the crap out of me! I caught them at the next light and hosed them down through their sunroof with my mix of OJ and accellerade. They weren't happy. Oh, and if someone throws something at me they can expect to be followed. It would be hard for anyone to get away from my sight in the downtown Denver area. There are just too many stops.

I've never had anybody say a word to me as far as i know.

I've never had anybody say a word to me as far as i know.

Just curious are you deaf? Or is So Cal a biker heaven ;)

consider yourself lucky for now and knock on wood ;)

One of the joys of cycling is the ability to communicate with other road users - cyclists, peds and occasionally drivers. It has been my experience that most of it has been friendly. Come to Montreal to ride.

Wildbill I'll bet my life you live in America?

Car is King there.

Hundreds of polite drivers can pass by you on a commute. Thousands every month. But you will only remember that one jerk. I like the idea about making a practice of waving to the polite drivers. It will make the commute more pleasant and give me some perspective on how rare the jerks are.

so i'm waiting in the toilet line with the bike and all these people behind me are gettin' all pissed off because i have my bike with me. Just tell 'em the bike has to go, and you have to help. Just to see how seriously they take a total nonsense comment like that.

You told someone that your bike had to go to the bathroom, and then say you should have acted insane.... P)

Most of it is ignorance. I live in North Carolina in the mountains and most of these damn tourists are the worst. But, when I finish grad school I'm looking to move to another country. It always makes me laugh when I think how the American culture can run off its best and brightest. I just don't let it bug me anymore. If I mention all the times people are jacka**es to me (like the guy today who actually swerved to hit me after honking at me for no reason) then I would have to tell you on a daily basis.

Like george carlin says, "think of how stupid the average person is, and half of them are dumber than that." And the bad part is that they are all driving.

Let's be honest, cyclists as a group are at least as lawless as drivers. Maybe we should start yelling at our cycling brethren (and sistren?) when we see them break the law and/or do something stupid.

Added in edit: I started a new thread with this comment.

I had someone throw a cigarette at me the other day. Usually, I can't hear the comments, so they don't bother me much, although I did have someone drawl out at me, "Get the **** out the road" while riding my wheel with no traffic in the next lane. It's pretty easy to get fed up with it, but I try to ride out in the countryside on the weekends, away from cagers.

Live in So Cal..Last two days rides. One nasty comment per day..Somewhat lucky..For most of the places I ride, there are wide bike paths, getting us out of way of cars...
One woman two days ago in a luxury car, said idiot at a red light turned green...Yesterday, got flipped off by punk kids in other lane, with hands extended out of sun roofs opeings.
Sometimes, I almost loose control...Wish a way to politely take these idiots on..w/o being out of control...Stick up for our rights..
once a foreighner passed me on a hill. say my VOler , Bike to work"jersey with the stamp out cars symbol...Said I had some nerve to display that in the US..
I am proud of my jersey. Hope motorists can figure it out at intersections...The symbol is like 8 inches in size. Red and black on white.

Couple of HS age girls with boys walking along the bike path to fish in the lake whistled at me last night. I said thanks. The boys didnt like it much, but it made up for a few of the negative's in the past. =)

Moral of the story, Girls be more vocal!

Just curious are you deaf? Or is So Cal a biker heaven ;)

consider yourself lucky for now and knock on wood ;)

Maybe i'm a bad***** or maybe because i'm older or whatever but nobody has said anything and i ride just as the highschool gets out. Maybe because i'm nice.

nah, So cal is biker heaven.

I have had a few people make comments on how I should ride on the sidewalk and about my attire(your gay, your a f*g etc.).

I have had just about anything you could think of happen to me here in Boston. I have been clipped by mirrors, doored, side swiped(would have been t-boned if not for my cat like reflexes), pushed by someone in their car while driving by, swung at by drunken St. Patties day party goers, bottles thrown at me, an MBTA cop in his car try to force me into a parked car and a whole hell of alot more that I just don't remember anymore. My reaction can vary depending on my mood. The guy that pushed me received a broken passenger window for his prize but most people get some yelling and maybe some middle finger action. I really don't know where I am going with this but I just thought that I would put my 2 cents in.

Last night I actually had some idiot use one of those long plastic horns you see at football games and hoot out the window. What an idiot! He looked like those creatures from the Muppets from back in the 70s, you know the ones that go YIP, YIP YIP YIP. I did have one guy buzz me also when the other lane was completely free.

a few words...air horn in a can..."WROOOOOOOOO!.....ow my ____ing ears!!!!!...." :D

Oh and a sidewalk is named a sidewalk due to the fact that you are supposed to walk on it not ride a bike upon it. If that was the case then they would have called it a bike trail. And I also say that you should take a lane whenever possible. Sure it may inconveniance some people in a car but are they willing to help fix a possible flat or pay for your hosptal bills. Probably not. I also think that if you are riding next to parked cars that you should try to keep an eye on the rear window. If someones getting out you may just be able to see them. Also if you atre riding on a one way stret then ride on the side of the passenger side of the cars. There are always more drivers then passengers.

as far as crap i've recieved....lots of it...had stuff thrown at me form windows...people cuss me out, even had a police officer give me a hard time because "scum like you could never have afforded a bike like that"....he changed his tune real fast once I presented a copy of my signed reciept and told him he was one step from a racial profiling case...I may not make $70k a year, but I DO make enough money to afford a decent bike.

BTW my bike is a $200 cheapo, it just looks like a far pricer bike due to my accessories and despite the scratches on it i keep it extremely clean (gets a weekly cloth cleaning).

All in all I tend to blow anyhting that is not a direct personal attack off. I'll admit my lack of daily shaving and my constant helmet hair and having one leg of my jeans rolled up to my knee may not make me look like man of the year (i always forget my velco straps..), but that is not an open invitation for people to judge me based on it....I find the treatment I get from people who claim to "know everything about bikes" to be the ones to do that the most...and it's always condescention on how I could afford my bike....despite only having a $200 cheapy with about another $150 in accessories on it.

even had a police officer give me a hard time because "scum like you could never have afforded a bike like that"....he changed his tune real fast once I presented a copy of my signed reciept and told him he was one step from a racial profiling case...I may not make $70k a year, but I DO make enough money to afford a decent bike.


What the hell would make him say a thing like that? And in San Jose of all places where you really can't tell a person's wealth by how they look. The guy walking about with ripped up skater-shorts and a beanie cap could have just sold his startup company to Cisco for a hundred million dollars (yes, even in today's depressed high-tech economy). Waiters and waitresses in fine restaurants all over the Bay Area learned a long time ago never to assume based on appearances...

You are not alone. I find it depends on the area. I live in a college town. You drop down in one valley by and the resentful red necks yell at you swerve at you threaten you ect. Drop down to the other valley where all the professors live and everyone waves.
I think this is exactly right. I think it's cultural. Ignorance comes strongly into play, here.

Most drivers, understand, are courteous to me and respect me. This morning, a Dekalb County policeman "whooped" his siren (you know, not a real, "whoop," just a tiny puppy bark) and waved at me. A lady at at bus stop always smiles and says, "hello." ;) But once in a while there are those mal-adjusted, angry, delerious drivers who think they can pass me with only a foot to spare, honk as they pass, or give me stupid advice.

In between are those who don't know any better, and cut us off or turn in front of us because they are inexperienced.

Educating motorists and enforcing laws against aggressive driving is the key. But most motorists are sensible, in my opinion.

Well at least I know that I am not alone out here with my thinking.... ;)

You are right, 90% of the drivers are cautious and slow down / slide over into the other lane and do everything they can to NOT hit you...but it's that dang 10% that keeps sticking in your mind. :(

I normally try to stay a couple feet from the bearm, but it depends on the road conditions, some are very narrow around here (Ohio) and you don't have much of a choice BUT to ride the line. In the case of the parked van, it was an area that people park on the street and it was empty, it's just I swore the driver KNEW what he was doing... :rolleyes

I typically get quite a few smiles, waves & hellos from people which do make up for the bad experiences...but oddly enough I find alot of fellow cyclists aren't really very outgoing / cordial. I try to give a wave or nod to any cyclist I encounter, and usually get the most responses from recreational riders. I guess because I don't ride with a club or have my aerobars on yet I'm not a "true" cyclist eh? ;)

I too like the idea of waving to everyone....I do try to say hello to other joggers, walkers, etc....and killing the idiots with kindness will only infuriate them more...tommy likey!!!! :)

What the hell would make him say a thing like that? And in San Jose of all places where you really can't tell a person's wealth by how they look. The guy walking about with ripped up skater-shorts and a beanie cap could have just sold his startup company to Cisco for a hundred million dollars (yes, even in today's depressed high-tech economy). Waiters and waitresses in fine restaurants all over the Bay Area learned a long time ago never to assume based on appearances...

No clue either...either way it was uncalled for though...

One I almost forgot about was folks on the light rail who bawl you out for having a mountain bike. You have to have seen the hangers for bikes on these trains to understand...anything that is not a roadbike will have handlebar problems....namely your likely to snag someones handlebars and knock their bike off the rack. There is a trick to it...you ask the other person for assistance...instead there is one guy on a roadbike who often cusses me out, gives me the bird, etc over having a mountain bike....on april fools I had to work...so I went and bought a thank you card, and lo and behold htere he was cussing me out....out comes the card...and one embarassed prick sulking to his seat. Amusingly enough, he never bawled me out again :D


On the bright side, I do end up sometimes striking converstaions with motorists (usually at the gas stations where I am grabbing another bottle of water) about my commutes...mostly along the lines of "aren't you scared of getting hit?" or "isn't it faster to use the light rail?"..."don't you know riding at night is dangerous"...and of course the few folks who have to comment on the bike...still trips me out how a nice saddle, and tasteful choice of accessories can make some people think the bike is really that much more expensive than it really is. On that note, I need to find my CF reader so I cna post a pic of it in the reader's rides section :)

Other then stuff being thrown, most of the time very poorly, at least you got noticed! It's the drivers that don't "notice" us that worry me.

Okay, in some areas there appears to be significant resentment/negativity about cycling.

Why?

I would guess it's the same reason there are other forms of bigotry more prevalent in some areas than others. I note that in my travels in this country, Queensland seems to be the place where cyclists cop by far the worst treatment compared to other places. I also note that the most recent Lonely Planet guide to Queensland warns travellers of some of the other forms of bigotry prevalent here (racism in particular). I don't think this is a coincidence.

Let's be honest, cyclists as a group are at least as lawless as drivers. Maybe we should start yelling at our cycling brethren (and sistren?) when we see them break the law and/or do something stupid.

Or at drivers who do stupid things, or pedestrians, or roller bladers etc etc. What's the point? Stupid is in the eye of the beholder in anycase, and to be honest, I really don't think it would make any difference. If every cyclist in the world was 100% law-abiding, drivers would merely find another "reason" to complain. This is how bigotry works -- and bigotry is what we're discussing in this thread. For my part, I just aim at setting a higher standard of behaviour for myself and refuse to get drawn into it. I try to set a positive example, and maybe somebody out there will follow. If not, well, at least my conscience is clear.

In answer to the original question, I was tired of being heckled within 12 months of moving up here, (and I did bugger all riding in 1995 anyway). Now I don't care anymore. I'm simply too desensitised. I just ride and ignore it. The abuse just happens -- sometimes it doesn't. Still, when I get out of the city and into the beauty of the rainforest, or the mountains, or the quiet (but not for much longer) beaches of the Tweed Coast, I forget the abuse and immerse myself in the beauty of the ride. Of course, it helps that I don't participate in the "slanging matches". My conscience is clear.

Oh and a sidewalk is named a sidewalk due to the fact that you are supposed to walk on it not ride a bike upon it. If that was the case then they would have called it a bike trail.

Then why are the so-called "bike trails" clogged with people walking, rollerblading, dog walking, etc...?

makes you go "hmmmmmm....",
bkr

I can't say I've ever had much a problem in Denver.

Denver's one of the best biking towns, IME. Pretty easy to get away from the traffic on the side streets and parkways - at least around the area from Capitol Hill to Park Hill where I used to live. Most of the ignorant yahoos don't go into that part of the city. (They're probably afraid of having to see gays or something - oh no!) YMMV, since I didn't need to try to bike sprawlburb areas like Lakewood, Parker or Broomfield, though.

bkr

I would have grabbed that assclowns horn and played a tune on his head with it. :mad:


Why pull it away from him? An "accidental" bump for being too close would push it down his throat like a funnel.

You have to have seen the hangers for bikes on these trains to understand...anything that is not a roadbike will have handlebar problems....namely your likely to snag someones handlebars and knock their bike off the rack.

Although I have lived and biked in the the BA, I've never used the bike hangers on the train. How do they work? Are they just hooks to hang the bike vertically by a wheel? Can you reverse your bike and hang them upside down from the roadbikes?

your supposed to hang your front wheel on teh hook, so the bike sits at a 90 degree angle. There are rails that keep th bike from moving too far laterally.

Problem is if you turn your bike upside down, now the guys on both side of you have to lift his bike OVER yours to get it out...which is close to impossible....and chance of the person falling and ruining neighboring bikes is almost inevitable with that type of hanging....usually every biker on the train will bawl out someone who mounts their bike this way for that reason.


From what I understand the old trains had decent bike hangers, but whoever designed these new trains must be living in the 70s or something, because the spacing is the exact minimum to fit four american roadbikes side by side...now consider the majority of bicycles owned anymore are mountain bikes...so it would make sense to design the racks for that....but I guess common sense isn't all that common :p

your supposed to hang your front wheel on teh hook, so the bike sits at a 90 degree angle. There are rails that keep th bike from moving too far laterally.

Problem is if you turn your bike upside down, now the guys on both side of you have to lift his bike OVER yours to get it out...which is close to impossible....and chance of the person falling and ruining neighboring bikes is almost inevitable with that type of hanging....usually every biker on the train will bawl out someone who mounts their bike this way for that reason.

Seems like CalTrain needs to revisit their implementation design. Has anyone written/complained to them about this?

It's the real world, just be glad you haven't lost it yet.

Over here in Dublin I got a guy sitting on my tail honking like crazy when I took the middle of the road just before making a right across traffic (we drive on the left). I was doing about 18mph. He undertook me at about 35 (30 zone) engine screaming in 2nd gear. He then pulled up at my junction, rolled window down and started bawling at me for not hugging the kerb. Tried politely explaining some of the rules of the road to him, but he was having none of it. I'm surprised I didn't lose it with him, but he went off very stressed, cursing and blinding. He was not the most intelligent or educated of folks, semi-deprived background by the sounds of him. I was stressed for 2 mins, then let it go.

I find that I take a fairly relaxed approach to urban cycling now, I commute, so am usually in a rush to work. Started backing off a little and treating it more like a Sunday ride, and it's much less stressful. If someone cuts me off, ah well - no big deal, they've got some issues or something, but I'm not letting it affect my day anymore.

Following the rules of the road gains a lot of respect from drivers.

I always carry my U lock (Kryptonite Kryptolok Plus ATB) on my bars cos it won't fit on the frame. It's reassuring to have a seriously heavy lump of metal easily accessible, and I hope that it acts as a deterrent for anyone considering road rage. When cycling through very bad areas I leave it hang loose (round end pointing up). Normally it sits nicely with the round end pointing forwards, one of the sides resting on the top of my suspension fork (doesn't bounce around). Not that many people want to mess with a front row rugby player ;)

Then why are the so-called "bike trails" clogged with people walking, rollerblading, dog walking, etc...?

makes you go "hmmmmmm....",
bkr

Because cyclist are second class people. We are always in everybodys elses way. These dumb *****es riding on the wrong side are doing us no favors, more bullets for everybody else to hate us.