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Catching people at stoplight after they aggrivate you.

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Old 04-03-09, 06:12 PM
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Catching people at stoplight after they aggrivate you.

I have read quite a few posts about people who catch up to people at the stoplights after the cager has done something to aggrivate you. This happens quite a few times and maybe I am really slow, but in Utah most of the stop signs are anywhere from 1/2 to a 1 mile plus apart. How far apart are the lights that you can catch up. I can get real close, but the light always seems to change when I try to catch up. Just curious.
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Old 04-03-09, 06:50 PM
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In NYC it depends on where you are. Lights are spaced in either 1/20 mile or about 1/10. Some lights are timed really well and cars car get away fairly quick (2nd ave). Others, esp in the outer boros, are a little further apart but aren't as well timed.
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Old 04-03-09, 07:03 PM
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No wonder the city guys can catch cars easier. I just thought this whole time that I was slow as a tortise.
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Old 04-03-09, 07:23 PM
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No stoplights at all here. I have no chance to catch up to anyone, ever.
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Old 04-03-09, 07:26 PM
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I try to ignore bad drivers. I live in Chicago, are there any other kind?

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Old 04-03-09, 07:28 PM
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Originally Posted by ItsJustMe
No stoplights at all here. I have no chance to catch up to anyone, ever.
I caught someone after 1.5 miles before (not a rude driver, but a friend, but same idea), but only because there was an accident. (No stoplights in this particular area)
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Old 04-03-09, 07:36 PM
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Also cities tend to be more congested, meaning slower motor traffic. I can keep up with traffic literally indefinitely sometimes.
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Old 04-03-09, 08:08 PM
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Downtown you can always catch a car, stoplights are everywhere. Not to mention you can probavbly ride as fast/faster anyway.
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Old 04-03-09, 08:34 PM
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With my temper I am better off if do not catch them. A temper with an obnoxious mouth such as mine combined with the body of a 150lb cyclist is not a good combo.
I can catch mistimed motorists in the suburbs and those downtown.
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Old 04-03-09, 08:46 PM
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12 mile commute with 4 lights, and fast traffic for me. There's usually no catching up, and I think it's probably better that way. Confronting motorists seldom accomplishes anything.
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Old 04-03-09, 11:45 PM
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I caught and knocked on a car window after being buzzed at high speed just a couple of days ago. It was the first time ever that I did this and I don't plan to make a habit of it.

After buzzing me the car was stopped at a red light maybe 1/4 mile down the road. It's a long red which gave me time to catch up. It's not like me to confront a driver like this, but this particular driver really came close and scared the crap out of me.
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Old 04-03-09, 11:54 PM
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Not a smart time to get into a fight after you've just sprinted half a mile.
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Old 04-04-09, 12:02 PM
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Originally Posted by gholt
I have read quite a few posts about people who catch up to people at the stoplights after the cager has done something to aggrivate you. This happens quite a few times and maybe I am really slow, but in Utah most of the stop signs are anywhere from 1/2 to a 1 mile plus apart. How far apart are the lights that you can catch up. I can get real close, but the light always seems to change when I try to catch up. Just curious.
Good question. There is a current thread: "How to handle a deliberate buzzer?, and it's interesting to know how people would act on their impulses if they caught up; to rant out, get license plate number, or even key someone. The OP had an interesting response (at the time of the buzz):

https://www.bikeforums.net/commuting/526591-how-handle-deliberate-buzzer.html

Originally Posted by duke_of_hazard
...One bmw driver has deliberately buzzed me twice now. The first time I gave him the blast of my airzound...
I replied:

Originally Posted by Jim from Boston
I think that airzounds could be a really great response to a cager since it would be so unexpected, compared to insults and obscenities. It would be really cool if it came in obnoxious sounds, like flatulence, or "rasberries." I have seen such noise makers in joke shops, but I wonder if they would be loud enough. Pthftttt.
Further in the thread:

Originally Posted by Jim from Boston
...I think a lot of cagers just don't realize they are buzzing, or don't care, so they can, in their opinion, report a cyclist's retaliation as unprovoked mayhem. And don't forget, the police are likely cagers too.
I am now considering an airzounds if it's not too cumbersome:

https://www.deltacycle.com/product.php?g=1

Last edited by Jim from Boston; 04-04-09 at 10:17 PM.
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Old 04-04-09, 08:08 PM
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Originally Posted by f4rrest
Not a smart time to get into a fight after you've just sprinted half a mile.
I once sprinted to catch up to someone who almost right hooked me, only to be totally out of breath by the time I caught up to her. I probably sounded like an insane person trying to yell at her.
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Old 04-05-09, 09:44 AM
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I've been caught at a stoplight and chewed out by a fellow commuter who didn't hear my "on your left". He also offered a helpful critique of my reckless riding style as observed from his vantage point behind me. The interesting thing is, I think that the same guy chewed me out for the same slight on the same stretch of road about a year earlier. So either he is hard of hearing or I really need to yell louder.
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