Originally Posted by
asmac
Toronto is in Canada, not California.
My commute is on a 50km (30mph) busy route with (mostly) 2 1/2 lanes each way (it had streetcar tracks at one time) and no rush hour parking. So there is mostly lots of room but occasionally the road narrows and it's a good idea to take the lane.
Sometimes I misjudge those occasions (hard to predict the occasional giant vehicle driven by an idiot at a narrow spot) but it doesn't give them the right to run me over. I invited nothing. If people are angry with you and choose to buzz you they will do so regardless of where you are riding.
LOL! You need to forgive some folks in California. We do have Ontario, California and it has an airport and I used to fly into that stop a lot. But I'm a Canuck too, with roots in Vancouver, and relatives in Toronto, so it goes both ways, and I forgive the confusion. Granted, though, I have observed both Canuck drivers in general from many provinces and SoCal drivers. And skill wise, I'd prefer a SoCal driver buzz me than most Canuck drivers, so don't have guns and haven't lived by SoCal freeway rules in the mid 1980's when good driver skills were established down there.
While I do sympathize with folks who get buzzed and I get buzzed almost daily, I brush it off. Primarily, we are trying to share the road. And maybe it's me. I tolerate a narrow path and hold my line. I understand that car traffic is trying to squeeze through as well. And I also understand that many drivers have poor judgment and I just accept that fact. It keeps me alert and focused on listening for cars and anticipating really bad behaviour that might require a rapid reaction. If it gets bad, I do a little research and find a different route and/or try a different time to see if there is less traffic, and that's worked will for me. I'm pretty sure most of us can do a little research. Still, yeah, I hear ya about getting buzzed. Hey, on the bright side, getting buzzed is better than getting hit.