I normally don't have a short fuse, but not even five minutes into my ride to the grocery store (about a 2 mile trip) I had some car slow down, roll down the window, and the passenger said to "use the sidewalk."

It's about 6pm, the end of rush hour. The next stop light I catch up to this car, still minding my own business as I roll to the front of the line (they were first car at the light). It's a T intersection where they can go straight or right, single lane. They try to tell me again to 'use the sidewalk, that's what it's there for."

I replied "Thanks for the information, but It's called side-WALK for a reason."

"No, it's for bikes too. It's the law!"

"Okay. Answer me this, Johnny Cochran, did you get your law degree the same place you got your GED?"

Then her husband, the driver, speaks up "Don't you dare talk to my wife that way!"

Realizing I wasn't going to enlighten them on the legality of cycling on the road, I decided to be a real jerk. I quickly footed my bike in front of his car with about 6 inches to spare. The light turns green. I just sit there sideways.

He's honking like there's no tomorrow, cursing and me, making creative gesutres with his hands, but he's too chicken**** to come out of the car with the oncoming traffic. Traffic is backed up behind him and they are ALL honking furiously.

So light turns red, I quickly jump off my bike and run to the opposite sidewalk and proceed to walk my bike along the sidewalk. Of course, next time the light turned green he drove past, shouting something incomprehensible (and some other drivers did as well.)

I waited until he was long gone to hop back out in the street.

I'm normally not this way. I follow traffic laws and I'm courteous. But after having stuff shouted at me, thrown at me, and lectured on stuff that *I* am sure I'm right about finally caused me to blow a fuse.

I kinda feel sorry for American cyclists. I'm constantly reading posts on forums about motorist hurling objects/abuse at you.

Dont think it really happens so much over here in the UK

Blowing a fuse never ends well and this is no exception IMHO. The Johnny Cochran statement was pretty funny and I think you had already won the battle at that point.

Blocking him and blocking traffic accomplished nothing and just pissed off a bunch of drivers that had nothing to do with the verbal transaction.

See! This is exactly the kind of thing that happens when one talks to strangers. Didn't your parents warn you about this? Yes they did. And you thought because you have grown older that it somehow doesn't apply anymore. Sigh.

Think about it. What kind of freak tells other people what the law is? Can you cite one instance during an armed bank robbery where a person in the bank says, "You can't rob a bank... it's against the law. Wait in line and use a check or withdrawal slip. That's what they are there for."? You can't. Normal people simply don't do that sort of thing. So obviously that lady was a freak.

And the only thing you really can do with freaks is to jot down on a small note pad a brief description of the vehicle, occupants and license plate number. And be sure to let them see you doing that. And put the pen and pad back in your pocket and proceed as nothing has happened. If they ask what you are doing, only tell them that "the authorities usually find this kind of information very helpful" and leave it at that.

I have snapped pics of them, it works even better. Casually take out your camera/cell phone and snap a photo and put it back in your pocket, don't have to say a word. If they ask, (and you feel like giving an explanation) you can tell them it'll go on the local municipal forum identifying uninformed individuals who could use a refresher on traffic law or some such. You could make it a point to get the license number too if you can, then if there is an escalation, hopefully there is proof.

That's because the average American motorist is, apparently, an idiot.

(BTW, my brother got honked at by a fire engine last night)

Duh! You do need to get out of the way of a fire engine.

Yesterday I got a green light, and there were no cars in my lane, so the cars in the opposite lane started making lefts. I proceed forward, and the drivers look at me like Im crazy. I even got cutoff by a cop making a left, when I had a green light! The funny thing is I glared at the cop, and he at me. I guess we both thought the other was screwing up. Sad that I was the one that knows the law!

Sorry about the crazy lady, but you are better off shrugging or laughing these things off.

As a Brit living in the Boston, MA, here's my take on the issues:

1. Trivial driving tests, especially in the past. Most people just don't have an idea what the driving laws are. Just ask someone who has the right of way on an unmarked intersection... About 20% know, yet I encounter them on a regular basis. There are many other examples.

2. Ill-thought out rules and road layouts. A lot of driving laws are pointless exercises in following rules, and are therefore broken as a matter of course. There are endless stop signs where no stop is needed (there's about a 95:5 ratio of stop to yield signs, which should be inverted). Stop signs 15ft before the junction, so you are expected to stop twice. Traffic lights typically operate simply on a timer, so you are supposed to sit there on red watching an empty intersection (when was the last time you saw one of those in the UK? early '80s I think)... Everywhere there are road layouts and practices which are just ill thought out. I have a hard time believing there is a US equivalent to the old UK Roads Research Laboratory, coming up with best practices for road structure.

Bad laws, bad road layouts and ignorance lead to disrespect for the law. Nobody expects to fully obey the laws because the laws are stupid. Thugs claim the right of way when they don't have it, and come to expect it, and timid people give up their right of way when they do have it. It's all because nobody expects the law to really matter, and they aren't really sure what it is anyway.

I'm talking Boston here - I have also lived in Seattle, where there is just as much incompetence and ignorance, but people are much more polite and less aggressive. There it's a little infuriating, but much more tolerable. I'm sure the situation varies all over the US.

what city\state did this fun happen?

I feel bad for the next cyclist they run into (or over). Good job, and how old are you?

Only if they are on their way to a fire. But then you wouldn't be able to hear their horn over the whale of their sirens .

I hate people who do this crap to cyclists, but I think the Johnny Cochran statement made your point. Holding up everyone else just creates a bunch of new people who hate cyclists, instead of the 2 you started with.

And I thought a car horn scared the crap out of me!

My sentiments exactly.

That's great. You know a lot of us are going to use this line.

Anybody that's human blows a fuse now and again.

Would you excuse anyone else's road rage with that statement?

Last week I was riding along and I could hear a vehicle approaching me from behind. I was to the right and there was ample room for the vehicle to pass. It turns out that it was an ambulance, and as it overtook me, it put its sirens on. Startled the heck out of me. After it passed they turned the sirens off again.

I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt and say they might not have been just trying to shake me up a bit. They might have honestly been in a hurry and just wanted to let me know of their presence. But still... poor execution on their part. There was really no need for the siren.

What is it with you people and getting harassed at drivers? I live in one of the most dangerous cities in the nation, and I have been only honked at like 3 times in the past 3 months. And just a passing honk, never anyone shouting or throwing anything. Except this one time that one guy just shouted something really random as he drove by (more like squawked).

Maybe you guys just need to take off the flashing jerseys and stuff a watergun in your shorts.

I love my headphones.

No...because it apples and oranges.

Like he said.

(emphasis mine).

Can't say I blame those other drivers for shouting at you, since you decided to punish them, along with the offending driver, by making them wait through a green light.

+1

When I first started commuting, I fell victim to a couple of factors:

• Drivers along my route were not used to seeing a cyclist during their morning commute... so they were a tad aggressive towards me.
• I was new to rush hour commuting, so the least little run-in with a motorist made me nervous and angry.

I now find that my fellow commuters (the cager kind) give me a lot more room... I'm more confident when I take the lane... I know WHEN to take the lane... and most importantly, most of the small insults or honks roll off my back.

I've been finding that there are some really nice motorists out there if you give them a chance. One of my favorite things is to freak people out by striking up conversations at long stop lights!

I've just take the option of smiling and waving at every driver that yells something at me (whether I can make sense of of it or not). For those drivers that yell something positive, it's a nice gesture; for those who yell obscenities, it confuses the hell out of them.