Just keep an eye on the mirror. Most drivers will slow down when you take the lane, but some are hostile and aggressive and others aren't looking at the road and don't see you at all.

Personally, I think the best tactic is to take the lane and then move toward the side of the road when the car/truck is close to passing you. That way you force them to move outward, but you give yourself some extra insurance in case they don't see you or pass too closely. This approach doesn't work as well in heavier traffic, however, when car after car keeps passing you. I don't believe in taking the lane and staying there all the time. All this does is p*ss off drivers. But I will take the lane under certain circumstances, such as crossing intersections, riding on roads with lots of potholes near the shoulder, passing lines of cars parked on the roadside, etc.

Not "all the time", but often enough.

Taking more of the lane makes you more visible and cars tend to react sooner to either avoid or aim at you, depending on their whim that day.
I've actually been hit twice, never from a car passing. Both accidents were low speed at intersections. In both cases the driver was just paying no attention when they were turning. I wasn't injured in either case.

Marc

Weird; I thought I deleted that. It was something I was playing around with. Well, it's gone now. You can find the same post on my real blog though.

http://doohickie.blogspot.com/2009/03/taking-lane.html

Sorry to have to tell you this, but it's going to happen no matter what you do. Be considerate of drivers and most will be considerate of you. Some just don't care and will pinch you as close as possible and others will yell obscenities at you while honking their horn and brushing you all at the same time.

How about a jersey that on the back says;

"I support Conceal-Carry"

;-)

marc

A little bit from column a and a little bit from columns b and c. There is no one perfect tactic.

LOL! I looked at a bunch of vids and I thought that one was the best of the ones I could find. I was disappointed I couldn't find another one that I've seen before that showed very well how cars react in more crowded conditions. It left no doubt that when you move into the lane, you become something the drivers know how to deal with. Along the fog line, they're not sure how to react and some always react incorrectly.

I think this is true. The only thing that can be said with any certainty is that predictability is the one and only thing that makes traffic work smoothly, safely and successfully. Be as predictable as you can and hope others do the same.

It's time for some " it's my road too dammit " thinking on all our parts. As so many others have said it establishes your place on the road to not ride to the fog line at all until a car does approach and then only move over enough to show some awareness of the over taking car without creating a dangerous situation for the cyclist. If you see a situation as you describe, an oncoming car plus an over taking car plus you intersecting at the same place and time your going to come out the loser by definition if you let the drivers dictate from their 'windshield world view' what constitutes a safe distance. Force the safe outcome by keeping your lane until the over taking driver has a safe place to pass.

I am a carbon copy of you!! :thumb: At first I was hugging the shoulder on roads with no shoulder. However, as we both QUICKLY found out, that ain't working. They will pass you super close. When there is no shoulder, I am taking the FULL LANE, and when there is a double lane and no shoulder, I am taking the full lane. Also, I take the middle lane too, that is the turning lane..

Again, big props to the both of us for CATCHING ON QUICKLY. Not only that, I don't take to kindly to them honking the horn either. Been know to give them the finger, and some six letter words...;)

Big props to you...:beer:

Some days I can adopt the Zen approach and not be bothered by the buzzers and hookers. Other days, not so much. Last commute trip home on my longer, street based route, I'm afraid I reacted strongly twice. The first was just after I left the office. I had signalled my intent and was moving to the left to make a turn (really wide street but with no marked turn lane), and a car that was speeding from a long way back insisted on squeezing by me to the left, straddling the center line to do so. I flipped the finger, even though it was likely a co-worker. A bit later in the ride, on a fast downhill, a car sped past right at an intersection and turned right. Had I not anticipated it and already been slowing and moving to my left to go around, it could have been a real problem. I gave a "WTF" gesture, but without the finger, as I went past, inches from the rear of the car.

When feeling more Zen, I smile and wave, like a try to do when people honk or yell.

How does that Bob Roll Road I.D. commercial go... "Helmet, Road ID and bazooka..."

I rarely have problems, but last night I had a dude in his midlife crisis porshe try to pull out in front of me, buzz me and then pull over in front of me so I couldn't get around. Typically, I ride in the right wheel depression if the lane's not wide enough to share, but I like to modulate my speed to dictate when people are going to try squeezing by me so I have an out if needed.

Hi,

Here is what the League of American Bicyclists say on the subject via their web site:

http://www.bikeleague.org/resources/.../roadrules.php

I took one of their classes a couple of years ago after 30+ years of serious cycling and the point that I took away was: If you give a driver enough room where it looks like they can squeeze by you, they will try to do so.

I used to do the stay as far to the right as reasonable and then took the lane when needed. I now understand and have experienced, take the lane and then give them room to pass when it is safe for both of you.

If you are moving from the far right to taking the lane as a driver approaches, at a minimum they won't have any confidence in what you're going to do next. At worst, as others have suggested, the driver will think that you are purposefully trying to block them.

I highly recommend that ALL cyclists take a local LAB class taught by a certified instructor. Most of what I did was what they taught but there were a few things that they taught that have helped me and that I've added to how I ride.

Vain hope, I know, but I wish we could come to some consensus on this. Honestly though, in 5 years of commuting and recreational cycling (after a 25 year lay-off) I haven't seen a single "lane taker" in real life. It seems to be a style of riding that is espoused in print but when we get out there among the F150's and Droop Snout Kenilworth's the bravado goes out the.. tailpipe. Mirrors are useless unless you look in them and if you are doing it right that isn't going to be often enough to keep from having a half dozen of Detroits finest piled up behind you. In my state in the semi-rural part that I do most of my riding in they will not honk or become aggressive until you realize you've been holding them up. Then when you release the road they will rush by you. I avoid that by not keeping the road when I don't need it. If I don't like the look of the shoulder I will ride to the left of it but only as much as I need. It doesn't really matter what the zealot's think, its the law here. Cyclists must ride as far to the right as possible on our roads. So far I haven't found it that hard to comply and to remain safe at the same time.

H

Hi Leisesturm,

California Vehicle Code (CVC) for operation of a bicycle on a roadway:

http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d11/vc21202.htm

The key sentence is:

"Any person operating a bicycle upon a roadway at a speed less than the normal speed of traffic moving in the same direction at that time shall ride as close as practicable to the right-hand curb or edge of the roadway except under any of the following situations..."

The key word is 'practicable.' The legal reading of the word leaves a lot of latitude especially when safety is considered. Of course, 99.999% of drivers and riders don't know the CVC or know the interpretation of 'practicable.' Also, the listed exceptions give the cyclist a lot of latitude -- as should be the case.

Of course, the law in your state may vary.

BTW, one of the standard commands for our group rides is "take the lane." We use this command when the lead rider(s) determine that the road conditions (width, debris, road surface, etc) warrant taking the lane.

Here is the key Arizona statute:

A. A person riding a bicycle on a roadway at less than the normal speed of traffic at the time and place and under the conditions then existing shall ride as close as practicable to the right-hand curb or edge of the roadway, except under any of the following situations:
1. If overtaking and passing another bicycle or vehicle proceeding in the same direction.
2. If preparing for a left turn at an intersection or into a private road or driveway.
3. If reasonably necessary to avoid conditions, including fixed or moving objects, parked or moving vehicles, bicycles, pedestrians, animals or surface hazards.
4. If the lane in which the person is operating the bicycle is too narrow for a bicycle and a vehicle to travel safely side by side within the lane.

The judges frequently get it wrong here, as they no doubt due elsewhere, but appeals by riders are general successfull. As for Item 4, cars are required to give 3' of clearance, so if they can't give you 3' without shifting out of their lane, you are free to, and in most cases should, take the lane.

Do I do it every time I should? No. There is one particular 'squeeze', a bit after an intersection, where I generally don't, because for some reason I place not disrupting traffic ahead of my safety. I take the lane through the intersection, which is followed by a wider area, where I politely give it back. But then comes the squeeze over a bridge, and I typically take my chances. I'm on the side, but in the road enough to give the message that they should change lanes. Doesn't make sense, but it's what I do. Some cars wait, some change lanes, and some squeeze by.

Actually when a cyclist rides on the fog line, he is pretty much saying it is perfectly okay for a driver to pass without changing lanes. The cyclist sends a pretty clear signal to the driver to go for it.

Saw this the other day. Some people are out of control... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mrzbg...ature=youtu.be
What if someone was coming the other way?

The good news is, most drivers are aware of you (I know it only takes one....if it bothers you that much, stop riding) and give you adequate space. Has anyone started using a good rear view mirror and noticed the addl amount of psychological comfort it offers! Sort of like, "if the guy's going to run me over, at least I'll see him coming".
I ride a lot and make an effort to minimize the cruddiest/narrowest roads in my area.....sometimes we just have to ride hard/fast and get through em though. What I hate is the stupid bikelane path that the road dept painter chose, he obviously doesn't ride a bicycle! Raydog

Don't count the close ones . . . just the hits!
Been hit by pickups twice and car twice.
Each time I survived and the drivers got the ticket.
Got in over 300,000 miles of cycling and at age 78 am still riding 100 miles a week.
Pedal on!

I ride defensively with my concern for my safety first and foremost. If the road does not give me enough shouilder to let a car pass safely, I take the lane to force the driver to have to slow down and go into the oncoming lane to safely pass me. If not you end up with the 50 mile and hour, 6 inches, distracted drive by. And yes, I've been hit by a mirror before.