Luddite

Yesterday, I was cycling up the evil long incline I normally take to get home, it was kicking my ass a bit worse than usual as I made the mistake of going for a jog the night before . Anyway, the route I take is bike-friendly with roundabouts, signs etc to let the cagers know there are bikes there.

Anyway, I was near an intersection (it's very residential, not much cager traffic normally) I was where I was supposed to be, but going really slow, 10 km/h max because of the looooooooooooooong incline. I heard rude honking behind me, figured it was some jerk cager freaking out I wasn't going fast enough, I could not "move over" as a big vehicle was parked on the side just ahead. I ignored the honking ******* as I was too winded etc to deal with it. When the guy could, he got beside me and him and the teenager with him were flipping me off. I flipped them back. WTF? This made the freak gun his cage and start acting crazy.

He started going down an alley, then reversed and did a three pointer to come back at me. He matched my speed and was acting, well, menacingly towards me. Some part of my brain went "oh ****" but I ignored that, glared at the ******* and said "back off, I'm warning you" I started trying to figure out which pannier my U Lock is in and where my cellphone was. He did not go away at that point, started flipping me off more (the kid, too) then sped away very fast while talking on his cellphone. I lost my temper and screamed something very rude at him I can't repeat here.

The rest of the commute home I was worried he would come after me with maybe some other people (who the hell was he talking to? The cops?)

Did I mention I'm a girl? I'm sure he was seconds away from getting out of his cage to beat the **** out of me. The hell? It would be a mistake on his part, I may be female but I would fight back, hard. Gods, I hate cagers!

SSP

That's why I always carry pepper spray in my right jersey pocket (cop strength, not that watered down "Halt" stuff for dogs). And a cell phone with camera in my middle jersey pocket.

cyclefreaksix

Sorry 'bout your brush with the idiot Luddite, unfortunately it wont be your last. Keep your cellphone handy at all times.

BTW, I bet a call from a female to the police stating that two males in a car are threatening you with sexual assault and appearing to be armed would get a pretty quick response from the police.

Luddite

I didn't see any sign of a weapon, and my impression was that they were intent on deliverin' an arse whoppin' not raping me though i could be mistaken.

Sadly, where i live, I don't even think it's legal to carry pepper spray to fend off vicious dogs anymore. Only criminals are allowed to be armed, it would be seem.

I don't trust pepper spray anyway, if the wind shifts you get a faceful of it.

I abhor knives, I gotta come up with something that is not illegal and easy to carry. I wish I had stayed in kickboxing longer than I did. I do know how to punch but my odds against two males isn't great. I'm not a small female, almost 5'9 and not scrawny, with enough scots/german ancestry to make me not a good person to mess with.

Usually my defence method is to yell profanity/insults and act slightly deranged, works like a charm usually.

This lunatic didn't seem fazed by my growling "Back off" though. I do have to cycle past the same area all next week, it does occur to me he could seek to do something to me if he spots me, he didn't seem completely sane.

prathmann

Glad it didn't escalate any further but I do appreciate your concerns about future rides in that area.
I haven't actually called the cops for any incident yet, but I do keep the cellphone handy in my jersey pocket. A few times I've taken it out and pretended to be calling 911, including giving the vehicle license plate and our location very loudly - i.e. so the driver and passenger could hear it. So far that's been effective in ending the confrontation with the driver hightailing it out of there.

Nerdanel 

I thought stuff like that didn't happen in Canada. I'm so disillusioned.

Luddite

It's a first for me, these guys were immigrants so maybe they went to the USA before coming here and picked up rager cager syndrome? lol.

I'lll have my blackberry within easy reach next week, so I'll do the faux 911 call but what else can I do? If he stops his car and comes after me while I'm climbing that incline I will not be able to pedal faster than his fat ass can run, I gotta have a contingency plan in place.

I had this stupid woman in a SUV cage insult my bike once though, but she didn't come after me.

SingingSabre 

I'm glad you came out of it unscathed and without ant more confrontation that what did happen.

SSP

Even if your phone doesn't have a camera, you can hold it as if it does. If they think their picture is being taken, they're much less likely to continue their harassment.

Also, bikes are much more maneuverable than cars and SUV's. On your hill, you could do a quick U-turn and get away before they could respond (preferably after a swift kick to the door panel, or knocking off a side mirror with your U-lock).

bluegoatwoods

Behavior of this sort is really pretty uncommon, when it comes right down to it.
The better news is that these sorts rarely come back on another day with the desire to repeat.
(I suppose someone might come along now and say, "well, there was this one time......." But that's one-in-a-million.)

You're still correct in thinking that you want to somehow be prepared, but chances are that you'll never need to use your preparations.

Good luck.

larue

Filling a water bottle with your own urine really helps when you want to move people away from you.
But in all seriousness I'd like to say that you really should have noted the plate number and immediately stopped to call the police and reported it.

exile

I'm glad to hear you are relatively okay. Just think of this as a learning experience to have your cellphone handy and don't hesitate to call the police. They may not be able to do anything (your word vs. theirs) but hopefully a cop showing up on thier doorstep to "ask a few questions" may help.

If worded correctly you could get a better response because you are not sure they were accosting you because you were on a bike or because you were a female alone.

Cyclaholic

That would be awesome fun until the day you mistake it for your drinking water

seawind161

I assume this is done in advance? (Although I would imagine doing it on the spot may have some effect, too...)

wharfrat

Ride with a partner (male with Scot ancestry).. Not suggesting you couldn't handle yourself though.

Luddite

Unfortunately, I can only commute alone. :/

LJ325

I'm glad to hear you're ok.

Check your local laws. Find out what options are available for self defense. Be prepared next time.

`

MMACH 5

I used this very method just a week and a half ago. This guy had done the turn-off-and-wait-at-the-next-intersection thing. When he saw me "taking a picture" of him and his license plate, he drove away without another word.

I'm glad you're okay and wish you more peaceful commutes in the future.

travelmama

It is a good thing you were able to get away without any problems. I think you should carry around some sort of ball and chain so that you can bang up someones care if they start to harass you. That will teach them a lesson.
Fortunately I have not run into any problems while on my bike but I do confront people when I am on my scooter. My scooter goes about 34 miles per hour so people get pissed and start to make their own lane to get ahead of me. I stop most in their tracks and start to ride in the middle of the lane. They get pissed then properly pass me. For the ones who successfully pass on the right, I catch them at the red light they anxiously rushed to and either park in front of them or give them a piece of my mind. They come back with some lame story or are surprised that I said anything. It will make them think about their bad driving for at least a minute. Being a woman too, I don't think too much of it, I just do it.

seenoweevil

I usually carry a slingshot and a handful of marbles in my pocket. Yes, you have to use both hands, but if you see a dog or other threatening creature in advance, you can make them wonder if it's worth further pursuit. And I bet you can carry a slingshot anywhere. Of course it's always best to just ignore irate buttheads whenever possible. Not that I often take my own advice.

DX-MAN

Get hold of a flat handlebar from a dept. store bike, leave one grip on it, and carry it as a club; if you get stopped by the cops, you're taking it home for your bf's new bike build....

Laggard

Drivers like that are so crazy that I can't do anything but just laugh at them. I mean, to get so worked up about a cyclist makes you a loony. I had a guy freak out at me simply because I failed to signal my turn. He acted like I'd killed his dog.

Lots of unhappy people out there.

abstractform20

i had some fkface yell at me to get in the bike lane the other day...i was in the bike lane. he was seriously pissed at me.

wunderkind

Are you in the Marpole area? Careful... .South Vancouver has some east indians that pack heat. I know friends who live in the Oakridge/Marpole area and told me all kinds of harmones enraged egoistical guys in that area. Not worth it. Just blow it off with a nice ride.

Nerdanel 

Turn around.