Clydesdales/Athenas (200+ lb / 91+ kg) - so discouraged by drivers honking, shouting at, and cussing me

Why do drivers feel the need to honk, shout, and cuss at bike riders? On almost every single ride I get some driver honking or shouting at me. It is so discouraging.

Yesterday I was happily riding along on a wide street with low traffic and plenty of room for me and cars, yet this driver pulls up next to me, rolls down his passenger window and shouts out for me to ride on the sidewalk. I get that shouted at me all the time, but never had someone make a point of pulling up next to me to look at me and shout it.

Then tonight as I'm riding home about to make a right into my driveway, (I did use my hand signal in advance to indicate my turn), when I slowed down a little and began to turn this idiot behind me lays on his horn and starts cussing me out, calling me awful names. It doesn't make any sense--there was plenty of room for him to continue on in his lane and I only slowed a little bit. I was faster turning in than a car would have been!

I know many of you will say to just ignore them, which is what I've been doing, but it is getting to where I'm getting tense because I never know when someone's going to suddenly start honking and shouting at me when I'm not doing a damn thing wrong :twitchy:.

The bad thing is I'm also starting to get angry about it and just want to flip those SOB's off! :mad:

i'm always a little puzzled when i see little boys walking around town or at the zoo alongside their parents, when they see a bird that they can get close to, they charge it and stomp their feet so it flies away. i was at an animal sanctuary a few months ago and heard one child tell his mom that he was going to hit the juvenile kangaroo sitting nearby, "noooo, you can't hit the kangaroo" "but why not?" the most puzzling part about all of it to me is why i'm not like that now, when does the mind shift? why? and most relevant to your issue, why doesn't it shift in everyone?

good luck....my father had some luck with reacting with over-the-top niceties, like a wave and a big toothy smile....i think i'd be writing down their plate numbers...

Its happened to me as well, but it is rare in my area. It is best to ignore them, sometimes I'm successful at that, other times not.

I get this as well, usually the phrase "Fat ass" is thrown in with the cussing as well. I've learned to just ignore it or smile at them and nod. It's not really worth getting upset over because I know I'm not doing anything wrong, they really have no logical reason to get upset so they must have other issues and this just allows them an opportunity to vent, and I'm just out trying to get some exercise and enjoyment while saving on gas and that outweighs their negativity by a great deal.

You have one remaining experience to go. I was spat at... But they only struck me on the thigh..They were punk high school twirps... Could have have been worse. Won't keep me off the road. Screw em.

Ignore - Smile and Wave.. It has to do with overall driver ignorance to the actual laws and it has to do with power..

Many drivers yell and cuss at you because they lack power in there lives or relationships.. Just think of yourself as a therapy doll getting yelled at so Jane at home does not get yelled at.. Unfortunately over time you get used to it..

Just remember if things escalate, a driver with a 3000lb car always win over a 200+ clyde with a 20lb bike..

Then again if you feel the need to rage on a driver, make sure they are pinned in between 2 cars at a light and drivers side window is down. I'm not advising this but unfortunately it escalated to this point..

my friend got hit with a bat while he was riding home from work one day. :(

On my ride last Sunday, I was on a three-lane road (a wide one at that), with almost no traffic, when a clown in a Taurus approached from behind. I was about 2 feet out into the road, and he laid on his horn from about 100 yards behind me all the way till he passed. I just smiled and waved at him, and I think that pissed him off even more, because he laid back on the horn again, even though he was already past me. So I smiled and waved again, as big as I could so he'd still see it.

Sometimes I'll flip them off, sometimes shout back, depending on my mood and the situation, but I always feel better when I manage to control those impulses and just wave at them instead. The morning before the above incident I was riding to my WW meeting, and my route takes me across the biggest major multi-lane road in the city. The light where I cross has detector loops in the pavement, but I can't get my aluminum bike to trip them. I guess I need to carry some ferrous material. Anyway, I can sit there forever before the light cycles, and this particular morning it was early enough that there was almost no cross-traffic so I crossed against the light. A car was approaching from my right, but it was easily 300 yards down the road. It didn't stop them from honking at me as I crossed their path, though. That was so completely unnecessary that I did a "get-away-from-me" kind of hand flip at them, which made me feel better, even though they were probably too far away to actually see it.

My FIRST ride in traffic, last month when I got my bike and started riding after decades, had some young kids lean out of a car on the wide 2 lane road I was on and throw a large cup of stuff into the wind to get me. The shoulder of both sides of the road at that point, and continuing for about 2 miles, was literally 6 feet wide and I was in the middle of it. Waaay off the roadway. I just yelled "Thanks! I was getting thirsty! you rotten @#$%^&*(" they didn't hear me...made me feel better anyway.

And for the record...cherry slushy from 7-11 does NOT come out of your standard white and green cycling jersey.

I've had a few incidents myself, but the most bizarre one was last summer.

I was riding down a quiet side street on my commute home from work. A car came from the opposite direction. The driver slowed as he approached me, then leaned way out of the car window and shouted, "Go to hell!" He then sped off.

The only thing I could do was laugh at the absurdity of the situation. Then I felt sorry for him because somebody screwed up to that degree probably doesn't have many friends.

Remember, half of all the drivers on the road are below average intelligence.

I've had a few incidents myself, but the most bizarre one was last summer.

I was riding down a quiet side street on my commute home from work. A car came from the opposite direction. The driver slowed as he approached me, then leaned way out of the car window and shouted, "Go to hell!" He then sped off.

The only thing I could do was laugh at the absurdity of the situation. Then I felt sorry for him because somebody screwed up to that degree probably doesn't have many friends.

Remember, half of all the drivers on the road are below average intelligence.

You are being far too kind about those numbers my friend.... I too have had it with the name calling and not moving and hostile people. I am going to fast become the most frequent caller to the local PD or Sheriffs dept (depending on where I am riding). I am also considering a video camera and posting the videos on facebook and a blog with the drivers actions. I can easily ignore the random, run of the mill, idiot that feels compelled to yell something totally idiotic at a bike rider. The hostile ones are those that I will fight back against. And God help anyone who hits me with anything as I will absolutely report them, file charges and sue them in civil court for everything they have.

The problem is not only sub human intelligence on the behalf of a driver, it is the "me first" attitude that seems so prevalent these days. Education is another. I am going about contacting EVERY bicycling awareness.activist group and wondering why they are not in schools teaching kids the rules of the road. I have started bugging the local Radio Station about using the PSA's available and am trying to get something in the news paper, that is not buried in the back, about sharing the road and what a driver can and cannot do.

I'd love to see harassment laws enacted and I'd like to see driving instructors and state DMV's actually teach cycling rights and driver responsibilities to students. And one more time, I want to see mandatory driver road testing every 5 years! You don't pass, you don't drive. Drive without a license and it is the cooler for you for 90 days. The extra testing fees should more than cover the cost of testing and sitting you butt in a cell...

I tell you this too, riding my bike has made me a far better vehicle driver!

nuttymeg,

I dont get it either? my story i was riding in the early morning to the bike trail/MUP on a four lane street. i was in the bike lane, well really almost in the parking lane and a guy goes from the far left lane to right by me just to lay on his horn. no reason at all. he had to drive in the bike lane just to get that close. he was driving a hooptie beat up car too, i even think my 80's road bike was worth more.

the crazy part he had Wisconsin plates. seriously WTF is a cheese head doing in the citaaay?

nuttymeg you can try talking to your local police rep and pleading a case to have a patrol car witness these incidents and hand out warnings.

and when in the world did a lady on a bike ever warrant anything more than a smile and a long pervy look?

Wow. I'm a little depressed reading your horror stories. And I'm sorry that this kind of crud happens. My sympathies go out to you. I hope that we all can come together and encourage each other to soldier on. I'll pray that a police officer is nearby the next time it happens. :D

Tell someone who says "Get on the sidewalk" that riding on the sidewalk is illegal. Check to see whether your state has road rage laws. If it does, get the plate number and report it. Report it even if your state does not have any such laws. People like them will not stop until they understand that there will be negative consequences associated with that sort of behavior.

Open Carry is legal in TN. A 9mm in a retention holster in plain view does a lot to make obnoxious drivers think twice about yelling stuff at you.

Tell someone who says "Get on the sidewalk" that riding on the sidewalk is illegal.
But only after you verify that riding on the sidewalk is illegal in your state. It's not illegal in my state.

I've never had one negative thing said to me.

nuttymeg you can try talking to your local police rep and pleading a case to have a patrol car witness these incidents and hand out warnings.

and when in the world did a lady on a bike ever warrant anything more than a smile and a long pervy look?

It is not illegal for drivers to yell at me as long as they are not making threats, so cops will be no help.

That so very many drivers act like this surprises me. I've only been riding 2 months and have been yelled at so many times.

As I get smaller maybe the pervy looks will increase and the yelling will decrease. That's kinda sad though.

You have one remaining experience to go. I was spat at... But they only struck me on the thigh..They were punk high school twirps... Could have have been worse. Won't keep me off the road. Screw em.

There's another level after that: getting a beer can thrown at you from a moving pickup.

Redneck ****head missed, but it still pissed me off beyond belief.

Whip out your handy phone cam. Or even better, just permanently mount a bike cam. Video your whole ride, delete if nothing happens.

Then we can collect a whole bunch of these and make a fun website.

Smile and flip them the bird.

I usually ride in my shirt that says "keep honking, I am reloading" or the one that says "ever seen a gun fired from a bike?" As a Goldwing rider, I can tell you idiots are not limited to yelling at just the human powered kind either. I kinda like the camera idea. That might be fun. I have a GoPro rigged for my Goldwing, it wouldn't take much to put it on my cruiser and capture the idiots in action. It sure cut down on that kind of BS when I put it on the big bike.

Normally people are very considerate around here, especially when I go up in the hills. Last weekend that changed. I was buzzed twice by the same truck on a steep climb. The second time he passed he yelled "Get off the road!" I had video recording both times so it was all caught on camera. I was able to make out the license plate numbers after playing the video several times before uploading it to YouTube.

Unfortunately, a few days later when I called the CHP office local to that area, the sergeant they put on the line said no laws were broken. :rolleyes:

Here's the first buzzing incident. Skip to 3:06.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qA7UZtcGVKE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qA7UZtcGVKE

Here's the yelling.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kqAng5CRsOM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kqAng5CRsOM

After that I started recording all my rides, not just the climbing rides. On the second day of recording I discovered that stupidity towards cyclists isn't limited to motorists. I was riding slowly beside a disabled friend who uses a wheelchair. As I approached the corner I saw a man licking his hand and wiping a plastic bag on the ground. As soon as I pushed the button to get a walk signal for us, he asked if I did something to him behind his back. I said no and that I just pushed the button to get a walk signal. He kept insisting I did something to him. He was armed with a stick, so I was watching his hands really close.

I think I inadvertently escalated the situation when I told him he was on video. Luckily me and my friend were able to escape unharmed.

Here's video of that incident.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6zJ8hwsa4o

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6zJ8hwsa4o

I like the idea above about getting the local police involved in writing some tickets. I actually thought about this once recently - get the police to follow me on a bike ride and start writing tickets for all the violations. This is actually a good idea for a bicycle advocacy group to pickup on.

Unfortunately I'm also thinking about buying and carrying one of these...

http://www.competitivecyclist.com/za/CCY?PAGE=PRODUCT_REVIEW&ARTICLE_ID=3996&RETURN=search&RETURNLINK=%2Fza%2FCCY%3Fsort%3Dpriority%2Basc%252Cscore%2Bdesc%26OPTION%3DSOLR_SEARCH_PRODUCT%26PAG E%3DSEARCH_SOLR_RESULTS%26q%3Dpepper%26facet.field%3Dsite%26facet.field%3Dbrand%26facet.field%3Dprod uct_type%26facet.field%3Dcomponent_type%26facet.field%3Dapparel_type%26facet.field%3Daccessory_type% 26facet.field%3Dgender%26facet.field%3Dsize%26facet.field%3Dreview_type%26rows%3D15%26start%3D0

I've gotten to the point where I really don't mind being yelled or honked at. I actually look forward to it happening when I go out. It makes me feel better about what I'm doing. As long as they don't throw anything at me, or try to run me off the road I enjoy the heckling.

I've gotten to the point where I really don't mind being yelled or honked at. I actually look forward to it happening when I go out. It makes me feel better about what I'm doing. As long as they don't throw anything at me, or try to run me off the road I enjoy the heckling.
You know what? I like your attitude! :thumb: I agree. I'm thankful nothing was thrown at me last weekend. If it makes people feel better to vent that way, more power to them. At least they're not beating their spouses and children (hopefully).

I just assume anyone yelling anything at me from a passing car is a coward who couldn't say the same thing to my face and then stand their ground. Just yell, "Jesus loves you!" when they yell.

Memphis

I just assume anyone yelling anything at me from a passing car is a coward who couldn't say the same thing to my face and then stand their ground. Just yell, "Jesus loves you!" when they yell.
So true!

After you yell "Jesus loves you!", think to yourself "but everyone else thinks you're an ass hole". :D

So true!

After you yell "Jesus loves you!", think to yourself "but everyone else thinks you're an ass hole". :D

You can scream the whole thing at them, but all they'll here is "Jesus loves you buuh blah blah blahole!"

Wow, it's amazing that the level of stupidity I observe isn't limited to Texas. My next goal is to get my Go Pro hooked up. My first idiot encounter was this evening, dealing with a 15 MPH head wind.

As I get smaller maybe the pervy looks will increase and the yelling will decrease. That's kinda sad though.

Sadly, I think that is true. Many of the people I've encountered in my 46 years will laugh at/complain about/mock the overweight riders; but if there is a young, good looking girl riding, they don't have an issue.

Like the others said, it takes just one cyclist to cause flared tempers, so most drivers take it out on all other cyclists. People have nothing better to do with their time, so they pick a bicyclist to take it out on. Good thing I don't hear anything without my hearing devices; I no longer know if anyone said anything to me.

On another note; since I started riding again back in February, my co-workers all have been making fun of me, a 220-lb guy wearing "those gay pants" and gloves with a goofy-looking helmet. All were saying how riding a bicycle is stupid, dangerous, etc.

Well, it is now July, I've lost more than 25lbs, no one is making fun of me now. One new young girl, who is trying to lose weight too, made a stupid remark about bicycles in general, and I had to bite my tongue. I was very tempted to say "Well, look what cycling did for me; what are you doing to make your butt smaller?"

Usually those making comments or mocking with passengers are just trying to entertain their friends. Those that are complaing and yelling alone are jerks with a attitude. What are they trying to prove? "Hey,I'm bigger than you and you had better get out of my way".Alcohol effects some that way,others are just born jerks. Wave at them down the road when they get pulled over for speeding.

*shrug* there are idiots everywhere you go. My advice is to take some self defense classes just in case things get troublesome, and to pick better routes that avoid problems, doesn't hurt to be prepared. And when people give you a hard time, just think to yourself "they're probably having a bad day", feel sorry for them, and let it be...Because 9 out of 10 they probably are, I mean we are in bad economic times.

In callie people are a lot more tolerant, I've not had any problems with drivers, but then again I'm one of those guys that just looks eternally pissed off, and it helps to have a muscular shoulder and broad chest to match, it deters a lot of would-be asshats.

People in my area are bike tolerant and even friendly. Even the dogs are friendly. The Narragansett Bay Wheelmen is descended from the union of several other bike clubs and was originally founded in 1879. I believe the several Boston based clubs have a similar history. Cycling advocacy has been on the front burner for a good long time and may partially explain the generally healthy environment. I would urge everyone be a member of a bike club and actively support their advocacy efforts.

My fantasy:

Nutmeg and I go on a ride together. Some young men in a truck buzz us and cuss us out. We pull our weapons. Nutmeg puts a round in their tires. I send one shot through their rear window for dramatic effect. They spin off the road, coming to a stop in the ditch. We ride on by, stashing our weapons at the next drop point in case of police questioning. A couple of harmless old ladies out for a spin, keeping the world safe from ********.

I've gotten to the point where I really don't mind being yelled or honked at. I actually look forward to it happening when I go out. It makes me feel better about what I'm doing. As long as they don't throw anything at me, or try to run me off the road I enjoy the heckling.

I don't tend to get honked or shouted at, just the odd driver who obviously thinks it's critical that they get past the guy on the bike simply because they are in a car. It usually gives me a lot of pleasure when they are stopped in 100 yards or so in a queue of cars at a red light because I gently cruise past to get to the front. There's one road near me with a 20 limit where a car who overtook me (safely, although they had to go slightly over the speed limit because I was doing 20) then provided me with a handy windbreak which helped me up the next hill.

ETA: What's also quite funny is when a driver does cut a bit close or do something stupid figuring they can get away easily enough and then starts to panic when they realise they can't.

I (try to) put as little energy into the whole affair as possible. I wrote recently of a big 4x4 buzzing me activating his air horn mere feet from my ear, and his alter ego in another (smaller) truck meep'ing his anemic (by comparison) OEM horn as he too buzzed me.

AND YET-- This is nothing more than wasted energy with which we express our collective frustration..... and (in this case) it does nothing constructive. No amount of complaining among ourselves, fantasies of shooting the tires off passing cages, Judo chopping somebody who yelled that we ride on the sidewalk....can do anything to resolve a problem that is ALREADY illegal for passing cars to do! All it does is feed the beast within, and when fed TOO well, will result in physical ailments/dis-ease.

It equally saddens me that my fellow motorcycle riders speak of throwing spark plugs at tailgating cars, kicking the door of a car driven by little old lady who failed to see the speeding motorcyclist, or taking anger out on the cager by knocking his side-view mirror off. It does not a pretty picture make, to see a biker (motor or pedal power) flipping the bird, yelling obscenities, or generally acting a fool. By doing so, we are bringing ourselves down to level of those with whom we are 'mad'.... and more importantly, serving to represent the whole biking community by our base & uncouth behavior.

I've learned the Zen of letting it go, not allowing myself to react in similar fashion to a group of monkeys fired up by one. Once learned, this release is life promoting, can be calming, and to the casual onlooker.... and becomes evident who the bigger/more evolved party is.

I've been lucky so far, I haven't had any problems like this yet. Probably the best thing is to ignore people like this , or just wave at them (makes them more PO'ed). So far drivers have been courteous, and usually wave as they go by but I know eventually something is gonna happen. I have my cell phone mounted on my bars, a can of pepper spray velcroed to the bars and a Glock 27 in a fanny pack if things go real bad. Hopefully never have to need these, but you never know and its best to be prepared.

That sucks. I guess your main strategy should be: come to BF and get some sympathy. If there are a bunch of jerks in your area they're probably not going to go away so you'll have to just fine a way to deal with it. They're probably just jealous because they're lousy cagers. ;)

Nuttmeg, I see you are in Memphis. I thought drivers treated EVERYONE that way in Memphis!:twitchy:

Kidding aside, Where you aware that TN has a three foot law, and that it is illegal to ride on the side walk in TN? I have found that the further away from towns I am, the less problems I have out of drivers. The most of our country ridding is DOGS that are running loose. There is also a state wide leash law in TN, and you are allowed to defend yourself against them!


I like the "Jesus loves you" thing, I will have to practice that one myself!:thumb:

I like the idea above about getting the local police involved in writing some tickets. I actually thought about this once recently - get the police to follow me on a bike ride and start writing tickets for all the violations. This is actually a good idea for a bicycle advocacy group to pickup on.

Unfortunately I'm also thinking about buying and carrying one of these...

http://www.competitivecyclist.com/za/CCY?PAGE=PRODUCT_REVIEW&ARTICLE_ID=3996&RETURN=search&RETURNLINK=%2Fza%2FCCY%3Fsort%3Dpriority%2Basc%252Cscore%2Bdesc%26OPTION%3DSOLR_SEARCH_PRODUCT%26PAG E%3DSEARCH_SOLR_RESULTS%26q%3Dpepper%26facet.field%3Dsite%26facet.field%3Dbrand%26facet.field%3Dprod uct_type%26facet.field%3Dcomponent_type%26facet.field%3Dapparel_type%26facet.field%3Daccessory_type% 26facet.field%3Dgender%26facet.field%3Dsize%26facet.field%3Dreview_type%26rows%3D15%26start%3D0

I love the idea myself, but the local PD may not want to. Citing budget or manpower concerns is the biggie. I wish they would do so around here, including citing all the idiot bike riders that ride against traffic and break just about every law in the book.

Heck I have told the Chief to put a car on ANY busy corner and hand out warnings for a week, then tickets for a week and they would fill their coffers! There are a lot of bad and idiotic drivers out there.

I still think education and advocacy are the way to go. I wonder how much the biggest bike groups are doing to promote the rules of the road actually being taught to bike and car users alike? Then there are the local groups. If enough riders have the same issues, why are the local groups not getting involved with education? can they not go to a school and have a lecture? Talk to Scout groups? I know our local club is not very prominent in that regard.

And I went face to face with someone in a bike advocacy group that told me that "they all have lives and no one has time for that." I then asked them to no longer complain about it then. It is great that she is involved and her dues help but it seems to me that the leat invoolved have the most often heard voices.

I am considering starting such a local advocacy group/bike club. All would be welcome but we would be very proactive in educating kids as young riders and see what can be done to try and inform drivers. Despite the odd lunatic and the prevalent bad driver, many folks do not know the laws. Sadly, neither do some in Law Enforcement.

It is easy to fantasize about a rocket launcher on the top tube taking out a nit wit, or to wish the police did something but I feel the way to go is information and education.

Kidding aside, Where you aware that TN has a three foot law, and that it is illegal to ride on the side walk in TN?

Hmmm. I had read some references that said it was not illegal, but I just did more online searching and maybe it is indeed illegal to ride on the sidewalk in TN. How can I find out for sure?

IF it IS illegal, then maybe the thing to do is get the local news station to interview cyclists about how we are almost constantly harassed to do something that is illegal. They can then tell the viewers what the law really is. Even just a few seconds airtime would reach a whole lot of people.

Spinning into a headwind tonight, head down, obviously a little effort on my part to keep the bike rolling. And I hear somebody yelling.... AT ME? It took a good two seconds before the old gray matter figured out what the distant voice yelled..... I look over at a basketball court in the park I was passing, half a dozen guys playing hoop, waiting for me to respond.

"HEY, GOOD EFFORT THERE CHEWEY!!!" or some'n to that effect....

What is that, a line from a movie I haven't seen?

5. Passing Bicycles
• When passing and overtaking a bicyclist
proceeding in the same direction, do so
slowly and leave at least a distance
between you and the bicycle of not
less than 3 feet. It’s the law! Also be
sure to maintain this clearance until
safely past the overtaken bicycle.
• As a driver you should never attempt passing between a
bicyclist and oncoming vehicles on a two-lane road. Slow
down and allow vehicles to pass the rider safely.
• NEVER pass a bicycle if the street is too narrow or you
would force the bicyclist too close to parked vehicles.
Wait until there is enough room to let you pass safely.

Tennessee Driver's Handbook Pg. 63

I would encourage you to look up the TN drivers handbood and refer to pages 104 and 105. Folks it just doesn't get any better than on those pages. The TN DOT is to be commended for it's inclusion of BICYCLE specific driver instructions!:thumb:

Can't say that I share your experience.
I have been yelled at once in 8 years. We were riding in the Metro parks in Cleveland. A car with three college age girls drives bye and one of them yells at us (a group of 4 riders) to get off the road and use the bike path. Right around that moment the light that's about 100ft away turns red. My buddy (who is 6ft 6in 240lbs, all muscle) who is a bit of a "bike" rager takes off after them. As I approach I notice the West Virginia plates. My buddy is along side the driver side glaring at the driver not saying anything, just staring. I figure I would pull up on the passenger side, since she was the one who yelled in the first place, and rattle their cage a bit. You can tell they are scared out of there mind. I relented (I could only imagine what was going through their minds at that moment) and politely explained to them how there are to many people walking their dogs on the "multi-purpose trail" and that its much safer for everyone involved for us to ride on the road. Light turns green. We had a pretty good laugh as they drove off in a hurry.

Sure do miss my friend (he moved to Louisiana). I loved sucking his wheel. He punched a massive hole in the wind. Loved doing long turns on the front to. He went about 6 months before he complained about always ending up following the smallest guy and never getting to follow me (Hmmm...maybe its because I was always following you??!!)

When I used to do all my riding in MS, I'd get the usual yells, cussing, even occasionally death threats (like 'get the f*** off the road or I'll run you down). Pennies whipped at me from passing cars and even beer cans full and empty. The worst was this redneck who had the BRILLIANT idea to give my perky rump (I weighed 120 lbs at the time) a slap as his car went by at 40 mph. I went over the handlebars and did a tucking roll as my bike crashed into me. I came out of it with just scrapes, bruises and a cracked helmet, but the agonized scream from the car was music to my ears. Idiot broke his arm when the speed of the car and impact against my butt slammed it against the door frame. He threatened to sue, I threatened to press charges for assault with pictures of the hand-print bruise for evidence. He clammed up and I guess went to the hospital. I wonder if he had warrants out or something? :P

As for the friend who got hit with the bat, I hope he's okay. Bad as the slap was, I can't imagine being hit with a bat. :/

I've only had a couple incidents in the past year, both were 20 somethings in pickup trucks peeling rubber and screaming sexual remarks, consider the source. I did have a guy at a stop light order me to the sidewalk recently. Since I had time,I asked,"when have you ever stopped and looked both ways before crossing a sidewalk in your car?" He just stared. I said,"You are the reason sidewalks are unsafe!" The light changed,I left.

Marc

You know, after a while, I think we all grow a thick skin and a somewhat warped sense of humor. Most memorable shoutings at me in recent memory:

Driver: Hey! That's not a car!
Me: OMG! Those bastards ripped me off!!!

Driver: (elderly woman wanting to turn onto the freeway where I have red light. After a minute of horn diarrhea on her part) I don't want to hit you....
Me: Then don't. Problem solved!

I'm sure we all have tales to tell. Kind of comes with the territory, but don't let that get you down.

In Tennessee it is illegal to ride a bike on the sidewalk in a "Business District" which is a city block with multiple businesses. Now in Nashville the only place I see people (including bike patrol) riding on the sidewalk is in business districts.