Maybe he'd been watching Footloose the night before and thought you guys were reliving the scene with the tractors, playing chicken? :D

I'm sorry about your tooth and your face, and I agree that you had every reason to expect that he'd wise up and move the heck over! I probably would have handled it about the same way you did, all the way up to trusting that he'd do the smart, expected thing.

The problem was that you expected him to behave like you would, like a cyclist would. I have had similar conversations about drunks or bums on bikes - they are not necessarily what I call cyclists, but rather people that lost their license and are forced to ride a bike. When I approach someone on a MTB trail or a road, I always yield, even if I have the right of way -- I simply move way over or dismount. At least then I know I have done what I can for my own safety. People are friggin' stupid -- I won't let them wreck into me.

Just as it is unwise to presume that all motorists are rational, it is also not a great idea to assume the same just because they're on two wheels.

It reminds me of the phrase I teach my children. We repeat it like a mantra: "Drivers are dumb." I tell them that even I, their redoubtable father, am dumb when I'm driving. As a non-driver, you must always assume that the guy behind the wheel of a car is a blind idiot. I guess the same thing holds for students on bikes.

You wouldn't have happened to be riding to the math building at OSU, would you? (I'm putting the "bike2math" together with the Ohio location and the largest university in the state, which still leaves a lot of room for error.) In that case, the "sidewalk" is actually 18th ave., closed off to all but service vehicles. It's essentially a MUP, though it is as wide as a city street.

I'm also reminded of the thread about DUIs. I'm surprised at the number of participants on this forum who have drunken-riding experience. Maybe the other party will show up here someday?

http://img429.imageshack.us/img429/1...mealblk9cx.jpg 980grams...too hot in the summer, but I love mine.

Something like that would be great when it's snowy and icy. Slap some goggles on and you are good to go.

I wear it all winter on my rides and only need a balaclava in the sub -15

I've probably posted this one before, but your story reminds me of the old epitaph:

Here lies the body of Edward Grey, who died, defending his right of way
He was right, dead right, as he pedalled along
But he's just as dead as if he'd been wrong

My sympathies are with your injuries, but when faced with some plonker with the apparent IQ of a mentally-******** jerbil and the judgement of a drunken fruit bat, get the hell out of his way