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Nobody screams, throws things or harasses me. What am I doing wrong?

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Nobody screams, throws things or harasses me. What am I doing wrong?

Old 04-06-11, 09:43 PM
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Nobody screams, throws things or harasses me. What am I doing wrong?

The sure-to-be summer-long litany of complaints about drive-by screamers, throwers-of-beer cans and shouters of insults has already begun, and my feelings of inadequacy have flooded back.
I've been riding since college, nearly 40 years. I don't know how many miles, but my top year was 9,000 and even now, in my 60s, I do a couple of thousand miles a season.
One time, ONCE, somebody flipped an empty Coke can at me. Maybe three or four times--call it once per decade--somebody's yelled, "Nice legs" or "Go, Lance!" Nobody's ever "tried to hit me," which we'll read here half a dozen times (if that's as common as we say, how come they're all such lousy shots?). There have been brushbacks, but I'm sure they're due to inattention, not malice (doesn't change the outcome if you get hit, but there's no point in being paranoid if you don't have to be). I've ridden in six or seven states, mostly in the West, so it's not just where I live (Reno's not that good a bike city anyway).
One thing I've noticed over the years is that drivers give me more room and yield right of way more graciously when I'm wearing human clothes, like MB shorts and a T-shirt, than when I'm in my superhero peloton kit. And I don't chop anybody, ride against traffic or zigzag in and out (I know who'll win that crash; I don't have to test it).
I don't know if this story has a moral, but I do have a suggestion: If you're constantly getting scared/threatened/hammered by drivers, maybe some of the problem is you.
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Old 04-06-11, 10:43 PM
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Having ridden for over 20 years, I also have never had anything thrown at me, never even seen an "Interstate Waving Finger" waved at me. I've had several close calls from inattentive drivers, but have had those in my car. At no time did I ever feel I was being targeted by a car.

I HAVE had, a bunch of smiles, waves, and nods from drivers of autos and motorcycles alike. We must be doing something right. :^)
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Old 04-07-11, 03:22 AM
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I was sort of thinking the same thing about where I live and ride.
I do not have a problem with drivers around here. I have had the "Lance" yells and a few honks but I think those were more just to give me a rise and not to do harm.
I ride as safe as I can I want to believe people see that and give me my space and are safe as well.
When I first started to ride a few years ago I did maybe take advantage at traffic lights but now I have learned to filter in like one should and I think drivers see that as well and are again nice about it and give me room.
Where I ride I think more than likely the same people see me because I ride more or less the same time of day so they know me kind of. If I show them respect they return the favor.
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Old 04-07-11, 06:01 AM
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If you're a grown man riding a bicycle, you deserve to get some cr@p from time to time imo.
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Old 04-07-11, 06:07 AM
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Time wounds all heals.
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Old 04-07-11, 06:32 AM
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Velo Dog,
Do you tend to ride the same routes? I believe that since I do, the regulars have gotten used to me. And it seems that I don't get yelled at as much anymore. Usually, if someone yells at me, it's from a car load of kids, though they don't have a monopoly on the phenomenon.
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Old 04-07-11, 06:44 AM
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I must say I've been ignored myself with only one or two incidents in close to 50 years of riding. In the last few years motorists have become more aware of cyclists in my area and often lane out or adjust speed to provide additional room. Cyclist's attitude has also improved WRT not impeding the progress of motorized traffic. Fortunately most new road construction around here include some form of bike lane.

Brad
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Old 04-07-11, 06:51 AM
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maybe it's regional or the roads you choose to ride. tell us your city and some of the roads you ride so we can get some insight. also so we can find you and harass you. (just kidding)
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Old 04-07-11, 06:53 AM
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My experience is nearly identical. I've been on the streets for forty years in a half dozen midwestrrn and eastern states. I think drivers have gotten much more courteous over the years. In the past few years I've had 2 people yell at me (both were 20 somethings in pickups) but overall people express more encouragement than complaints.

Marc
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Old 04-07-11, 07:27 AM
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We just flat out number the cargrumps here. The futility of their grumpiness has kept them in check.
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Old 04-07-11, 08:05 AM
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Originally Posted by Velo Dog
I don't know if this story has a moral, but I do have a suggestion: If you're constantly getting scared/threatened/hammered by drivers, maybe some of the problem is you.
Possible, but certainly not a rule. I've been out riding rural roads in NY with my son, no traffic, way over on the wide shoulder, in single file, when HE'S had people throw crap out of car windows at him while screaming. The last time, he was eight and was small for his age, so he looked more like a 5-year-old. I've had it happen maybe five or six times in 30+ years, and it has always been from yahoos in a pickup truck in the middle of nowhere. I've never had deliberate harassment in suburbs or cities.

There are some people who honestly believe that cyclists are legitimate targets for dangerous harassment, regardless of age or how they're acting.
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Old 04-07-11, 09:46 AM
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While I have uttered the words "they're trying to kill me", its mostly through inattention to driving rather than maliciously targeting me. Drivers on my normal routes seem inordinately challenged by the concept of Stop Signs and most seem to be holding cell phones. Maybe its over reacting, but I'd surely support a national handsfree driving law (and regular road testing).

I ride solo most of the time though. When I do ride in groups (maybe a dozen times a year) driver animosity seems to increase proportionally with the size of the group.
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Old 04-07-11, 10:00 AM
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I have toured all over America. West Coast was mostly no problem. In northern BC I had a diaper thrown at me and got buzzed a few times way too close on deserted roads, may not have been intentional. In Midwest not too many problems really. In industrial Eastern US I got yelled at a few times.

At home, going for road rides I have gotten screamed at far more often, usually by teenagers in trucks. I think the difference is if you are wearing a jersey and bike shorts people hate you.
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Old 04-07-11, 10:18 AM
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I've had a very few people yell at me or throw things at me over the years. I've had a few more ignore me and pass me when they shouldn't or pass cars and take my lane when I'm coming from the other direction. I've had one car hit me and nearly kill me, but that was from distracted driving, not aggression. For the most part drivers have treated me at least as well when I'm on my bike as they do when I'm in my car where I am tailgated almost every time I drive. I have not seen any difference in drivers' behavior whether I'm dressed in regular clothes or in cycling gear.
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Old 04-07-11, 10:20 AM
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I experienced the most shouts, etc, when I lived in eastern Illinois, about 150 miles south of Chicago. Less incidents when I lived in Indianapolis (1988 - 1999), and only 3-4 since I have lived in Phoenix. There is much more opportunity for this here in Phoenix since we can ride year round. Most of the incidents were kids.

The funniest was a couple of years ago on the 4th of July. One of the clubs I ride with has a tradition of riding from north Phoenix to Tempe Town Lake for a picnic and fireworks. On the ride back there were 3 of us a bit behind the group (maybe 15 or so in the group). I was in the lead, a friend was in the rear, and his wife in the middle. She did not have lights on her bike (which is why we had her in the middle). A pickup truck yells at us as he speeds by. A few seconds later a Scottsdale police cruiser pulls along side. My first thought is the guy is going to gig us for her not having lights. But he asks "Did that truck yell at you?" I answer yes, and the cruiser speeds off. A few blocks later we ride by and the officer has the truck pulled over! LOL
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Old 04-07-11, 10:38 AM
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The area you live in makes a difference.

Also, I would not assume that close brushes are inattention. I believe a fair number of them are deliberate intimidation. I commuted years back. There was one guy who passed me close nearly every day. I reported him to the police. The police did interview him and his reported level of anti cycling invective was impressive. I also, had a discussion once with a guy who did the honk and squeeze intimidation game with me. Again, it was completely deliberate. He was encouraging me to get "off MY road". I guess that since had had paid for a driver's license, he personally owner very road in the nation and all others were there by his sufferance.

Fortunately, these deranged people are still a small part of the driving public.

I have noticed an odd thing. The driving population and their level of hostility/courtesy varies markedly and systematically by locale. I know a little area near where I live. It is an enclave of semi rural land within the confines of sprawling suburbia. The drivers there tend to be very courteous.

I also get up to Live Oak FL up in the panhandle about once per year. It is a sleepy small town. It is rural and poor. One would think that they are all bubbas and I think that just might be accurate. But they seem to be completely happy with cyclists. I guess a group of riders in incandescent jerseys is about the most entertaining thing they see all week. I have seen levels of driver courtesy there that I have never seen anywhere else. Shoot we had a long paceline on a major stateroute and we were turning left onto a secondary rural road. The oncoming driver (traffic there was going 60 mph) slowed down and motioned the whole big bunch of us to make the left turn.
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Old 04-07-11, 12:12 PM
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Years ago I frequently rode my bike to school when I lived in Minneapolis. I once was purposely run off the road by a truck. I hit the curb and wrecked my front wheel. I was a bit skinned up but not really injured.

In my early working years I used to ride my bike in a mini skirt. I got lots of "feedback." Now I have only been riding a few months and no experiences at all to report. No more mini-skirts either.
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Old 04-07-11, 12:55 PM
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OP, I lived in Reno for a few years, and So Cal before and after the fact. There is a sharp contrast between driving styles and they are as different as night day. While it wasn't an especially cycling friendly city, the drivers are about a hundred times more placid than in Los Angeles and many major US cities. The aggressive driving is one of the reasons everyone in that area seems to hate people from Southern California. Anyway, back East there are similar drivers, in the south; rednecks, etc.
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Old 04-07-11, 01:27 PM
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Up till about 10 years ago we used to get plenty of abuse from drivers when riding back from the hills on the road. Few occasions when we caught the miscreants in traffic and gave them a warning---You don't argue with 180 lbs of muscle that is warning you that if you move your car it is is going to get the aerial and mirrors ripped off by the 3 other riders that are on the other side of the car. The BIG rider then gave the driver a lecture on road etiquette and a very severe warning.

But about 10 years ago there seemed to be a change in drivers attitude. Whether they realised that we all have a place on the road or that there are more cyclists sitting in cars wishing they could get out of the traffic- I do not know but there have recently been a few highlighted cases of police prosecuting abusive and dangerous drivers due to evidence supplied by the cyclist using a head cam.

Over here the cyclist is beginning to win the battle but if a car driver is going to get you- you are in trouble.

Don't know if you can read this over there- but one incident in the news last month.Thank goodness not in the UK.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-12604639
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Old 04-07-11, 01:35 PM
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Originally Posted by goldfinch
No more mini-skirts either.
Aw, why not!

Just kidding!
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Old 04-07-11, 03:53 PM
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Over 30 years here and only a few incidents. I was cut off by a car turning right and slamming on the brakes to intentionally block the shoulder. Then yell out the window something like what was I doing on that road. Fairly rural road only about a mile from a velodrome. . I just went around him.

I had an 18 wheeler drive over onto the shoulder and honk his highway horn right behind me multiple times. Probably the same guy. It was in the same general area and time.

One time a guy in a hopped up Chevelle pulled up along side yelled at me and burned rubber. I guess I should have been impressed. However he either didn't know or forgot about the 90 degree left turn and ran off the road. I couldn't help myself I laughed at him. Made him mad. Gunned the car in reverse and got stuck!!!

What bugs me now is the people that pass on blind curves and almost hit someone coming the other way. Even if I motion them to not pass.

Bill

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Old 04-07-11, 07:23 PM
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I think the OP is not riding enough - ride more and maybe you will get yelled at.
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Old 04-07-11, 07:46 PM
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Originally Posted by LongT
What bugs me now is the people that pass on blind curves and almost hit someone coming the other way. Even if I motion them to not pass.
+1
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Old 04-07-11, 07:54 PM
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One of my bike trails crosses three streets over a 5 mile route. If there is a car in the street when I approach the street, they always stop and wave me on. I was yelled at once about 10 years ago when I was on a group ride by some teenagers in a pickup. Other than that, all is fine the past 13 years.

Are there regional/state differences?
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Old 04-07-11, 08:07 PM
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OP is interpreting this wrong, and is in grave danger. Clearly from the stories, motorists ocasionally commit these acts without just cause. There's one explanation: dude, they don't see you! Those "inattentive" close calls are the smoking gun. You're invisible, and that's not good.
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