Mid-day traffic...arghhh
 

Okay, so I realized I don't ride all that often in mid-day weekday traffic, and I was astounded at how much worse it seems than when I ride at the usual 9 and 5 -ish time. First, a lady in minivan almost pulled out from the curb right into me. I swear she looked right at me in her rear-view mirror...guess not. That lady deserved a yell! :mad: Then, some guy turning left at an intersection almost ran me over as I was proceeding through the intersection from the other side...well, I should say two cars almost ran me over. The lady in the first car cut me off...I had to brake seriously, and then the next guy in line decided since she went, so could he. He did look a little embarrassed so I did not yell at him, but I made a face. :( And, then...so many cars double-parked in bike lanes :mad: I am thinking about making a flyer I can tuck under their windshield wiper, or something. In my city, that's a parking violation. I wish I could write tickets and get a commission from it...nice second income I could have, sure. :p Oh, and I almost forgot the pushy dork in the Land Rover on his cell phone who nearly sideswiped me. Maybe he should drive a smaller car, since he seems to have some trouble with the spatial relationship of his car and the lane it should be in. Sheesh!

You need to carry a whistle.
Seriously, rush hour is just about the when I'm having the most fun cause if there isn't a lot of traffic, chances are, cars are going faster than I am so I have to make way. But if we're all going at the same speed or they're going even slower, it's all good.

I hear ya, and you were being as careful as you could. Whenever I hit an intersection, I automatically assume that every moron behind a wheel cannot wait to get home to make that call they are currently distracting themself with in the car. It took me a while, but I think I've perfected the hand gesture for, "May I go first?" also loosely translated as "Please do not run over me."

The lady misjudged my speed. I was moving as fast as the rest of the traffic going through that intersection. Had I been a car that did not brake suddenly, there would have been a car wreck. (Had I not braked I would have gotten in a serious accident) I try to note what the left turning car is paying attention to...this woman seemed to have seen me coming. Which makes it kind of scary...I don't think I am invisible. I try to wear bright colors, etc. And, I should get a whistle, or something shrill.

Please share with us this hand signal.

Sounds like you're riding too far to the right.

You might want to be pick up a copy of the book Effective Cycling by John Forester and learn to ride vehicularly.

Serge