be safe !
unfortunately you never know - especially if you live in a place with lots of firearms - when those kinds of confrontations will turn really bad.
i’ve done it twice this year and regretted it both times. once i was riding with my two kids on a 25mph local street, residential, four way stop signs every block, and the road marked “bike route” with sharrows right in the middle of the lanes. this ******* in a pickup truck is behind us honking like crazy, passes my 10 year old while honking, scaring her into almost crashing, and then buzzes me and my 4 year old, still honking. amazingly, he comes to a stop at the stop sign that’s about 50’ away (small blocks) and his window is open. i yell at him. “what the hell is your problem?!??” he yells back “get out of the road !!!!” we proceeded to yell and scream at each other, me explaining the law, he claiming we’re not allowed to be in the road, finally i pull my phone out to video his truck as he pulls off and he refuses to, so we go ahead of him, only to get honked at again.
the other was worse. an uber smack in the middle of a bike lane on a fairly busy airport access road, forcing me into the single northbound lane at around 15mph (very bad headwinds) while traffic is more like 40. i yell at him and give his mirror a slap on my way by. he immediately gives chase, weaving around cars as he can and eventually catching up to me, at which point i’m between him and a jersey barrier. he slows and starts screaming, “what gives you the right to attack my vehicle.” so of course i yell back to get the F out of the bike lane. we come to a stop at a light. i have now totally lost my cool, get off, lean the bike on the barrier, and walk up to his car and tell him to get out and await an officer to explain himself to, i’m calling 911. of course now he just floors it and takes off.
i can’t imagine doing this sort of stupid **** (because it truly is) as a woman or a smaller person or a person in a place where there’s a decent chance the hothead in a car has a gun. i’m 6’2”, can be plenty imposing if needed, but it won’t stop a bullet.