Originally Posted by aLeev

yeah, that happened on the corner i work on. unfortunately i saw a girl eat the asphalt from that fishing line. well, heard it first. she was really messed up.

then someone i knew posted it on here.

what sucks about philly, and most cities, is that there really isn't any telling what d-bag will lash out at you and where. the only reason i felt it necessary to post this was that it has been happening consistently and not everyone is as paranoid as i am when i ride, so unfortunately people tend to ride right into bad situations where bad people are waiting.

i've been-like other cyclists i know-dragged, slapped, harassed, run off the street, pinched between cars, etc. by motorists, but never pedestrians, probably because i never get close enough to people on foot for them to get near me. mace helps; i'd never carry a knife for fear of some dude wrestling it out of my hands and using it against me.

besides reading "beware" posts like this, the most helpful thing i've found is to avoid the streets you've had bad experiences on (obviously), ride as fast as you can at night (i don't ever really even stop or slow down at traffic lights up north, i usually will just go between cars) and act deaf. i never confront anyone, no matter how loud they are yelling at me. some dude called me the C-word last week cause he really was trying to yell some s*** at me and i wouldn't even look at him. it actually worked to my advantage, because it made him so incredibly mad he just started spewing incoherent words and phrases and i just continued on my way without even acknowledging him.

long story, but i don't think philly is any more ****ed up than other cities when it comes to aggressive people. although, North philly is a different city altogether--if you live up here, take an hour to watch the BBC doc Law and Disorder and you'll see what i mean, if you don't know already.