Mr IGH

It's called "stand your ground", law of the land in many states. We do have the right to protect ourselves, running away from a dangerous situation can have its own issues.

bmthom.gis

Hmm...I would have done what you did, as I don't think that guy was worth a fight. I've avoided fights all my life, and not entirely sure I could win one...but if the situation warranted it, I sure as heck would try.
RE the guy on the NYC subway - that's assault. Business suit guy didn't start a physical altercation.
RE carrying mace: if you are being assaulted, the law will come down on your side. I would rather use that than a weapon that would inflict deadly force.

wphamilton

If I am attacked and cannot escape, I'm going to defend myself. As anyone would. But I have no inclination for a physical confrontation to teach someone a lesson, dispense justice, nor escalate my objection to some minor transgression. So I do carry pepper spray, but it's just an extra edge for the unlikely event that there are no options.

I wouldn't be on the lookout for OP's fixie creep, let alone prepare for another incident. Most likely he's just some guy who's a bit unbalanced, who had an emotional reaction to an imagined slight. He won't be cruising around looking for victims. My motto is "don't engage the crazies" but in this case, if I were OP and I did come across him again I'd probably try to throw him off with "nice bike" or something like that.

rhm

I agree! The response was completely out of proportion to the offense. Clearly Business Suit Guy thought he could talk this way without consequences. Judging by his tone, I'd guess he was in the habit of talking that way a lot. He may have moderated his tone since then.

Darth Lefty 

I thought I lived in a nice suburb until I signed up for a local crime watch group on FB. Turns out it's a hotbed of homeless and druggies and thieves. And now I'm noticing them. Reputedly because we are in unincorporated county, they surrounding ritzier incorporated towns drop off their problems at their borders, and here the sherriffs are too stressed without a local city force in tandem. So yeah, I've been thinking about mace.

Leebo

Got a mirror? Easier to see approaching trouble from the rear. I too usually will avoid issues but can defend myself when needed. Do police patrol that area?

spare_wheel

it's amazing how many fixie creeps i've escaped because i don't wear headphones!

DVC45

I agree. I would lure him on an area where there are no potential witnesses, then unleash whatever you have on him.

I am partly kidding.

Corben

[QUOTE=DVC45;17664304]I agree. I would lure him on an area where there are no potential witnesses, then unleash whatever you have on him.
I think that was his plan.

DVC45

Yup, three foot rule. Ask the person to step/move back if he violates the three foot rule, if he doesn't.........BOOOM!

I miss Texas!

FBinNY 

IMO any reaction or adjustment resuling from this non-event is an over reaction. You never said, but I gather that you've ridden this route before many times with no incidents or encounters. So now a down and outer accosts you and tries to engage you in a race. You ride away with no problem. So what is there to adjust to.

No earbuds is probably a good idea, not because of this, but because it helps you be more alert to real hazards like approaching motorists.

Ride your route and live your life as you did before, because in reality nothing has changed. You could go weeks or months without another encounter, or you might have another sooner but it wasn't a big deal before and is unlikely to be one next time.

If you let this kind of stuff dictate how you live and ride, you'll end up riding on a trainer in a heavily fortified house, and never going out again.

no motor?

This. Especially if you have to turn your head to talk with them.

I took martial arts many years ago, the idea of not being in a fight was taught over and over again in class.

AlmostTrick

+1. I've been training in martial arts for 25 years. Avoiding fights is lesson #1 . Oddly enough, number two is quickly dispatching creepy fixie riders.

zandoval 

I feel for ya buddy... I am not sure what I would or should do. I know around here someone getting too close to you or your bike will just about get your arse kicked every time...

I would talk to the sheriff about this one. He most likely has a history. Messing around with a nut ball that doesn't mind taking his life into his own hands is very, very, dangerous...

Darth Lefty 

But that's how all the same-day packages get delivered. Is it not a goal?

kickstart

The voice of reason.

These are people who aren't bound by the same morals and conventions as polite society. Even if one is trained and prepared, they can still deliver nasty surprises. Some things are best ignored and avoided.

velocity

This^^^^

But I think that you should have just raced him for sport anyway. It shows your tough to take a challenge and it sounds like a fun way to get him to stop asking someone to race. PLUS~ you can brag about it on Strava
Stay safe my friends, I deal with them all the time here in Portland on the trails. Regular campouts going on here.
V

cobrabyte

Well that's exactly it IMO. Either the OP is tool box guy or he's not. Judging by OP's original reaction I'd say he's more non-confrontational, and I don't think he should engage this guy in any way unless all options are exhausted. You don't become tool box guy overnight just because someone picked on you. Keep being you, OP and leave it to the tool box guys of the world to teach crappy fixie guy a lesson...he's bound to mess with the wrong dude if he keeps that act up. Don't risk everything you have because of a bruised ego.

velocity

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10152607755010736&theater This guy is what we are dealing with now. Bike thieves and chop shops on the trails.
V

lostarchitect 

That's one of the most disgusting things I've ever heard. Congratulations, you are taking humanity backward.

Walter S

Thank you. I'm glad we have people making posts like yours.

On your point about not underestimating your aggressor, he might in fact be a very skillful and experienced and ruthless and perhaps even expert fighter and you don't have a chance. I'm the first to admit that the last time I was in a fight was in the fifth grade. I'm not signing up for an abrupt confrontation that I can just pedal my little butt off and avoid instead. I'm strong and I'm fast. That's been to my advantage a few times in life. Times that I'm reasonably confident would not have left me uninjured otherwise - or quite likely so.

It also helps in poor neighborhoods to not look like a yuppie with all the splashy clothes and graphics and electronic equipment and everything real clean. I ride thru some pretty rough parts of southwest Atlanta. I have duct tape over the little slogans and stuff on my bicycle that make it look special. Poor people actually have a little instant respect for cyclists. Many of them are car free cyclists themselves even though perhaps not by choice. Even though my senses are on alert, that doesn't mean I can't be freindly and I think having a genuinely friendly attitude and nodding and waving to people helps them accept you. Getting along and fitting in is way better than having to flee a dangerous situation.

I ride regularly in front of a housing project where frequently I see the same man in a wheelchair, often outside on the sidewalk. When he sees me coming, he starts calling out to me yelling encouragement and waving his arms like he's calling a race. I hear "come on man! I know you can do it. Let's see what you got!". Now I'm usually up on the pedals sprinting past and he calling out "way to go! I knew you could do it! look at him go!". It's a fun exchange.

Thanksgiving to Christmas is the worst time in these areas. I stay out that time of year. I don't known what's going on then but I know it's real. I've seen the intolerance and frustration and anger at whitey that time of year. I think it's people lashing out that feel their economic situation doesn't allow them to enjoy the holidays like middle class people with vacations and paid holidays. I finally wised up when a teenage boy threw a 2x4 at me and it grazed my shoulder.

It is important to be heads down with a clear direction. Don't look like you're just riding around. And especially don't look lost. I keep a pretty good pace like I'm on a schedule. If people talk to you then talk back and be friendly and wave. But don't engage. It's a fine line. For example a guy on the sidewalk waves and says "hey man..." (I know immediately this guy is hustling me for something but I don't give that away). I quickly nod and say "hey how are you?" with a casual friendly tone. That's the end of the conversation as far as I'm concerned. And now I'm riding past him, and he's actually behind me when I hear "let me ask you something". Well we all know how much wind noise you have on a bicycle at speed. I don't think I heard that. That's why keeping your speed up is good. You avoid getting drawn into trouble of various sorts. And you don't have to be confrontive or rude or anything. The potential trouble is now behind you before it can really incubate.

kickstart

My gut reaction is to agree with you, but I'm also conflicted with it. There are people who thrive on spreading misery and fear.

Grillparzer

Headphones = No.

Pepper spray = Maybe. The problem with pepper spray is that no matter which way the wind is blowing, you will be downwind of it.

Fight= Maybe. The problem with fighting is that there is always someone who is a better fighter than you. In my experience that has usually been the guy I am fighting. If the situation demands that you fight, then throw the first punch. It's safer and easier to throw subsequent punches if they're already on the ground bleeding. It does however require you to get off and drop your bike.

Weapon = Maybe. Showing a weapon can end, or escalate, a situation very quickly. If you shoot someone because they kicked your bike then you deserve what ever the law, criminal and civil, can do to you.

Ride to a safe place and call the police = Yes, if possible.

Thinking about your incident, I suspect he had a not very well thought out plan of leading you some place and robbing you.

TransitBiker

In my experience the best thing to do is keep on truckin'.

- Andy

auldgeunquers

... Yyeeesss ... but this can also lead to a lifetime of watching your back.