Originally Posted by
wphamilton
I don't impute any emotions at all to drivers. I just look at them as machines, following a decision tree that's weighted on individual predilections (which are unknown but also occupy a small domain). You don't have to construe them as sentient at all. It works better that way.
Yep, people have emotions and oftentimes they let it rule their day.
Sorry if you have the impression that people are advocating simple solutions for every scenario. In situations similar to this particular one, I am 100% of the time slowing down and prepared to stop, and won't cross in front of him until (at least) he has stopped completely. Others swing around behind him if there's room. It is a fairly simple algorithm that improves our relative safety.
Have your read some of the response on the Safety/Advocacy threads? People come up with these simple one-line solutions as if cycling is a straight and level occupation in a closed environment. Staying out of the door zone for example, might sound easy until somebody cuts your off and puts you in harms way. Like the lady that was riding in the bike lane.
My point is there is no one simple solution to every possible scenario. At some point you're going to have to pull off the road and that could be the time the door opens. People do wacky unpredictable things. In fact, I've experience cars stopping and doors opening in the middle of the road!
As for slowing down fine, but that still won't remove an unpredictable occurrence. And as you saw in the video, you still can't out think fate or someone with an ax to grind. The key word here is unpredictable. Meaning you can't out think it. I've had to stop completely and people still just walk/run right into me.
Its not that I'm disagreeing with or challenging YOU -- if I did I wouldn't be here -- its just that it kinda takes all the benefit (and fun) out of cycling. The problem with riding to look out for everyone else, is that it never ends, and you never get anywhere. Or at best get around very, very, slowly.
Be courteous and safe, I get that. But you can't look out for the person on your left that might go this way. Or the person on your right which might go that way. Or the car in the middle that may or may not wait for any of you. Which is to say, at some point you just have to go - that's life.