Originally Posted by
Leo H.
Ok. I had a traffic incident that wasn't THAT big a deal all in all, but it hacked me off and I'd appreciate the collective's thoughts as to what I should have done.
I'm in the middle of a 3 lane short feeder street into a major arterial. Our light is red, I'm in the middle, traffic in the left turn lane, none in the right turn lane.
I'm relatively close to the intersection, but apparently not going fast enough for momma, who zooms around my left suddenly through the turn lane to get in front of me at the light, so instead of me being first in line, she is. 2 tweens in the car.
I go modestly ballistic, no cursing, but I roll up to her window and inform her that I was there in line and she had no right to cut me off like that. She does the hand on head ignoring me schtick. I roll back in line, then roll back up to further inform her that I am SUPPOSED to be in the road and that she shouldn't have done that and roll back. Kids are wide eyed looking at me, but ya know, they are old enough to learn that the driver's actions can have consequences.
And your goal here was... what, exactly? What were you expecting to accomplish by venting at someone who already doesn't care what you think?
Originally Posted by
Leo H.
We're sitting stopped still then some lame dyed blond greenteeth in a Volvo Cross Country, of all things (trust me, looking at her, she didn't EARN that fancy a car)
Now you're just being an ass.
Originally Posted by
Leo H.
rolls her window down and tells me to cool it, THERE ARE KIDS IN THAT CAR! I told her, oh, so it's okay for the kids see their mom drive like that? and she repeats that there were kids in the car. I told her, so what, she shouldn't be cutting people off in traffic like that and she says **** happens then gives me the single finger salute. Typical Volvo owner's response
I don't think risking my neck for a bicycle length difference in traffic is **** happens, though I admit that I don't like when people take advantage of me so I POSsibly overreacted. I don't think so. Comments?
What, are you kidding? You WAY overreacted. People out there aren't going to validate your choices for you. Someone acted like a jerk and cut you off, but did not (according to your OP) actually endanger you. Welcome to traffic. What the hell is getting all butt-hurt and confronting someone suppose to accomplish in that situation?
I've been riding in traffic for a few years now. Some people are jerks, it's a fact of life. The most valuable lesson I have learned from my experience is that getting pissed off and confronting motorists who do something obnoxious doesn't reduce the incidence of obnoxious treatment. It does increase the incidence of anger and stress on my commute. The math is pretty easy from there - it's just not worth it. People are still jerks (and I will grumble to myself when I get cut off or something), but my commutes have become far less stressful than they were when I started.
Originally Posted by
Leo H.
I do think next something like that happens, I'm just going to try to keep my cool and just roll my bike in front of the car and regain my spot. If I could have done it again, I would have liked to have yelled at the car, 'nice driving lessons you're teaching your kids!'
Right, that would be effective.
Responding to a jackass by being a jackass yourself doesn't make you less of a jackass for doing it. It just increases the local jackass population. For next time, I prescribe a healthy dose of getting over yourself and letting it go.