Originally Posted by genec
Originally Posted by Serge *******
I used to encounter moron drivers on a regular basis on my commute, every day. It used to piss me off and freak me out, but I learned to deal with it, was extra careful, and somehow didn't let it bother me so much.
Then I read Effective Cycling and took the LAB Road 1 course (
www.bikeleague.org) and learned how to ride vehicularly. All the morons disappeared.
This is the equivalent to G. W. Bush saying: since we have started fighting terrorism, all the terrorists have disappeared.
They're still out there!
Of course there are still some morons out there. But my point is that since I adjusted my riding, all the ones I used to run into regularly, daily, are gone. Of course, what I'm saying is that the way a cyclist rides greatly affects the level of moronic driving around them.
Just the other day a cyclist was complaining to me about all the motorists that cut him off on westbound Palomar Airport Rd at El Camino Real in Carlsbad. I asked him a few questions and found out that he was "following the bike lane" and trying to go straight across El Camino Real from a position to the right of two right turn only lanes. Now, from his perspective, all those "morons" who didn't look to see the cyclist in the bike lane and let him cross, cutting in front of him and almost killing him, are, well, morons.
My point is that if he had properly merged out of the bike lane into the rightmost through lane, to the left of the two right turn only lanes, then all those morons would... disappear.
Of course "they're still out there". But my point is it doesn't matter, if you ride accordingly.
Serge