I'm new to riding on roads. Just a couple months experience. But reading all these threads makes me more nervous. Every time out there, I seem to encounter some driver who is doing something stupid or careless. And sometimes I think: Is this really safe to be out on the roads? Just yesterday I went on a 35-miler along more rural roads and I encountered the following:

a. A huge SUV that decided to blow its horn for about 2-3 seconds right as it passed me. Not a polite toot, but a long aggressive honk. The huge booming noise right next to my ear startled me and made me jerk. Not enough to lose balance, but it startled me.

b. A car coming in the opposite direction deciding it was OK to pass in a no-passing zone. A two-lane road out in the country, and suddenly I'm staring at two cars bearing down at me. One in its proper place on the other side of the road, and one on the wrong side of the road doing the passing coming right at me.

c. A Mercedes zoomed past me too close for comfort. I was near the shoulder. Then the car zoomed past my buddy in front of me, who tends to ride more toward the center of the lane. I saw the car go past my buddy no more than 3-4 inches from him. Not exaggerating. This is all in just one day.