Originally Posted by Brian Sorrell
I second that emotion. It comes back to you eventually; it always has for me.
My wife and I pedal around the neighborhood quite a bit: she has a loud, two-tone bell which she rings whenever she sees anyone. Maybe half of them respond and wave back, but the other half tend to be real sour-pusses. I try to be optimistic and think that it's worth ALL the effort to be friendly and helpful even if it only pays off once. (Or is that just my holier-than-thou righteousness chattering away??)
I wouldn't respond particularly well to a bell, either. A bell on a bike is equivelent to a horn in a car. I don't like getting honked at, and I'd only expect to get the bell from a bike if I was in the way or something.
If you want me to be friendly, give me a nod or a wave, don't just make loud noises at me.