Personally, I would appreciate leaving the gun comments in P&R. But that is just me. No need to ruin a perfectly good thread with that BS.

Probably for the best. Very contentious issue.

To the OP: I hope the police look into this seriously. A car is considered a deadly weapon in a road rage incident, and I would pursue prosecution. I'm glad you were ok and had a way to defend yourself.

OP:

I think I probably wouldn't have pointed the taser unless they got out of the truck.

But that's a judgment call, and I wasn't there.

Thank you

There's no one size fits all and guns are a very personal thing. There will always be pro and con but what matter most is what will be satisfactory for an individual security needs. I'll just leave it at that.

Ack... But what if the dip$hit in the pickup had a weapon and I was just riding along minding my business... I don't want to have a taser vs shotgun fight, at least not in real life...

This happens on a regular basis with me, and most of the time, the motorist doesn't care. I had an incident a couple of months ago with a motorist a block from his home, just a couple of weeks ago, the same motorist yelled "**** you" at me while he was standing out in front of his home as I passed by it.

There must be something with motorists driving red pickups, I had a serious incident a year ago with motorist driving one, he unloaded a long barrage of insults, profanity, and horn blowing while I was waiting at an intersection.

Normally I would not have either until the guy was already walking up to me. However, last night that driver and passenger were very determine. Right away when the truck passed us, I felt something was wrong. The truck didn't just passed closely like most driver will do, but he actually drifted into us with the back end almost hitting us. Then he swung back to his left straighten out and then a slight right when he locked his brakes with the back end of the truck swinging slightly left where I cannot get a good view of his plate.

I swear that guy was on a mission from the devil.

Who knows, maybe those red pickups were not red to begin with

Wow, Colleen, that was pretty intense. Luckily, those guys were probably cowards and not very bright either. I also realized that having a powerful helmet mounted light could have defensive use, to some degree, of course.

I wonder if tazers are legal in NY, I bet they're not.

unfortunately they are illegal in NY.

Quote from Taser page

I would have your friend report the incident also Colleen. You had another person their who witnessed the incident and can attest to what happened. Fortunately these things are rare. Just keep riding and people will get used to your presence (even if they don't like it).

When I had someone throw something at me (hitting me), the police told me their was nothing they can do since it was my word against the three in the car. This after it took 2 phone calls and a little over an hour to respond. My jacket was still a little wet and the cup was left in the street since the dispatcher told me to leave it where it was. It was like being victimized twice when the police officer who finally did respond told me nothing was going to happen even though I had the license plate, cup in the road, and wet jacket and took an angry tone with me for being bothered. I guess he was miffed because the Dunkin Donuts I worked next to had already closed for the evening.

Nah, I'm sure it had to do with their race, education, party affiliation, nationality, income, immigration status, sex and choice of breakfast cereal.

I tend to come up to those when they park, and tell them in a very calm note that I drive an 18 wheeler the some of the time for work (which I do), and that I will have in mind their kindness to me when I was on a bike. They seem to start apologizing pretty quickly. No threats or anything, but they seem not to like the idea that the cyclist they shouted at is a truck driver, trucks which are about ten times larger and heavier then their puny pick ups, it's actually funny to watch. Maybe they remember that they will have to share the same road with my truck when I'm working. Maybe it gets them worried a bit more then I worry about their pick ups when I'm on a bike.

Your "neighbor" sounds like a good candidate for writing something obscene in his lawn with a can of gas. He will be able to read it a day or two later when his grass dies.

I don't think I'd rely on the Taser website for whether or not it's legal in this area. I'd check with the local District Attorney. A guy in Vallejo was not charged after he shot and killed an unarmed fleeing felon in Vallejo, but I'm sure he would have been in another county.

Just remember, the reason you forgot to take your finger off the button is because you were so scared. You really didn't mean to just keep tasing him until the police got there, with an average 20 minute response time.

I know you mean this in jest, but if you use a taser then you can't hang around for the police to show up if the attacker is determined to do you harm. A tazer causes a great deal of pain and disorientation while it is actively sending juice into the attacker. As soon as you let off on the trigger or the probes fall out, the attacker can quickly recover, come after you again and will likely be very angry at you. Because of this aspect of it, I am not a fan of tasers at all.

Pepper spray stays on the attacker, paints them red so they are easy to identify, and blinds them for up to 15 minutes. There is no perfect defense but pepper spray is one of the better ones IMO.

That makes 2 of us.

Until you run into an assailant that wears glasses. Or has a high tolerance for pain. Or is high on PCP or other stimulants. Or on a windy day.

Don't get me wrong; OC spray has it's uses, which is why it's part of my EDC kit. But like anything else, it has it's limitations.

Glasses won't protect you. The stuff gets everywhere and one drop or even a slight mist will be enough to blind a person. You would have to be wearing sealed swimming goggles or a gas mask not to get it in your eyes.

Being high on drugs does not prevent being blinded, coughing, choking, and the general disorientation of having pepper spray on you. High tolerance to pain also does not protect the eyes, nose, mouth or lungs.

There would have to be 50 mph winds to prevent pepper spray from being useful. Even in high winds, all you have to do is position yourself upwind. If you are smart, then you won't tip your hand to let your attacker know you have pepper spray. You position yourself upwind. If you are trying to pepper spray someone in a tornado, maybe it is better to just run for cover?


I was a mailman for 10 years in the bad part of town. Trust me, no human is more angry, has a higher tolerance for pain or is more intent on doing you harm than the pit bulls that I had to evade. Pepper spray worked in high winds, rain or any other condition. At the very least, it blinded the dogs and let me walk away. I used it regularly so I know what it can and can't do.

If you're using a fog, maybe. But a stream? I've seen those work very well on people without glasses, and not so good on people with them.

Yeah. I always have time to check the direction of the wind, and reposition while I'm in the middle of defending myself. Happens all the time.

You really can't have it both ways. If you use a fog, it'll be more susceptible to wind conditions; if you use a stream, it's harder to aim and will be much be less likely to get into their eyes if they're wearing glasses. If your OC is strong enough to have 'just a few drops' incapacitate anybody, it's likely to incapacitate EVERYBODY nearby, including you.

I've used OC... it works, but it doesn't ALWAYS work. I recommend carrying it, but I don't recommend relying on it as your only method of self-defense.

I would rather get this guy on my terms, which would be on legal standings, but I heard that vinegar also works really well on discoloring lawns. .

Fog? What kind of pepper spray are you using? Every bottle that I have ever used fires a stream. I would like to know what brand of pepper spray comes out in a fog. I will make sure never to buy it and I will tell everyone I know not to buy it. I have never seen a bottle that fires a fog.

I would suggest you buy a bottle and spray it. I think it is obvious from your posts that you have never used the stuff. It does not come out in a fog. It comes out in a stream. When it hits something, it splatters everywhere and creates a small mist where it splatters. That is the same with any liquid. That is why glasses do not protect against pepper spray. Don't believe me? Put on some glasses and spray yourself dead center on one of the lenses. Video tape it and put it on Youtube so you can link it here. I guarantee that it will still get in your eyes and you will be blinded until it washes out.

Living in an unrestricted-carry zone with no distinction between concealed and unconcealed, I can attest to this.

This is why on the top of my wish list is one of those small cameras.

https://tinyurl.com/239bwcg

I think it's obvious from your posts that you know less about OC spray than you think you do.