The driver is correct. The law says you should stop. The law also says you should never exceed the speed limit, drive impaired, and lot of other things that self-righteous drivers who like to lecture cyclists ignore. Rolling through a stop sign when its crystal clear that no one is around is illegal, but perfectly safe. The point of stopping is to pause and take time to survey the situation. Since, on a bike, you are rolling comparatively slow and have really good visibility, you can usually read the situation without stopping. It may be 100% safe, but its not legal. Idaho got 1 thing right

I've never clipped out at a stop sign while I was driving my car. I think the car equivalent would be killing the ignition at a stop sign. In a car, you're supposed to stop moving forward; the bike equivalent is to stop moving forward.

Drivers sometimes get confused by trackstands. If you stop, and wave them forward, they figure it out pretty quickly.

The best thing to do when a driver questions you like that is ask them if they question other drivers who roll stop signs or exceed the speed limit.

Which states? Anyone able to cite requirements in the vehicle code?

Well, you don't have to agree with me. You could go start a campaign encouraging cyclists to blow through red lights if you wanted...

Or, you could come over to the dark side. Next thing you know you'll be dressing like a retrogrouch Fred and riding your bike up Mount Rainier.

I used to be like the OP and ride through stop signs in the same manner, even though the laws say I have to obey the traffic laws same as cars. The reason I don't do it anymore is because of feedback I've received from drivers when I complain about rude motorists. The snap answer is: you guys (read: cyclists) don't follow the rules of the road" and then I get a diatribe about how if only cyclists obeyed the laws, then more drivers might not be so angry at all cyclists. Of course, it's stupid. We may be subject to motor vehicle codes, but when it comes down to it, it's not we who are "sharing" anything -- it's their road -- it's up to them to allow us to co-exist there with them.

I know it's baloney. For every bad cyclist I see riding on the sidewalk (not permitted here) or riding three across on a narrow road, I see dozens of drivers running stop signs, making illegal turns and of course speeding.

I've come to believe that the problem is drivers often have no idea that bicycles are -- in most areas -- required to be on the road. They see the signs "share the road" but they think it's an option, like giving to charity on Christmas. They see that white line on the side of the road and that foot-wide shoulder and think "that's their lane -- they should be in it!" They don't understand it's not a bike lane, it's a freaking shoulder and more often than not, it's not even safe to ride on (gravel, debris, sharp shards of glass from that bottle some guy through out of his car last week).

Last weekend, a friend and I were crossing a busy intersection. We were stopped at the light - ready to go straight across and, in less than a 1/4 of a block, make a left turn. It can be tricky but the speed limit there is 25 and we're in a very bicycle friendly area (near a bicycle shop where cycles are present all the time). When the light changed, we set off down the road road (which is one block long and doesn't have a shoulder or sidewalk) in single-file. It's a narrow road -- it's almost impossible to ride along the side and not practically be in the center of the road. So, we we immediately signalled a left turn and began to move to the left. (By law in California, cyclists are required to go over to the left to make a left turn.) The car behind us suddenly leaned on his horn -- scared the sh*t out of us -- and started screaming for us to get out of the road. He was so sure we were breaking the law and so angry, there was nothing we could say to change his mind.

He gunned his engine and pulled up to us, trying to crowd us off to the right -- on a road that had no shoulder. It was scary and dangerous. And it could have been prevented if the guy in the car was informed about the law. I know there's a section on bicycle safety in the California driver's license manual, and one or two questions on the test, but I don't think that's enough. The education is lagging way behind the number of cyclists out there. I really believe that motorists would be a lot more understanding if they knew the law. Maybe I'm naive, but I was a driver long before I was a serious ride-on-the-road cyclist and knowing the laws changed the way I interact with cyclists. There was a time when I wondered why they weren't riding on the sidewalks too.

So I obey all the laws. I'm as polite as I can be and -- if it's safe and a good time -- I'm certainly not above telling any driver who tells me to "get off the road" that I have as much right to the road as he does.

I find it amusing that cyclists who run stop signs use the same excuse drivers who hate all cyclists use. Some cars don't follow traffic laws, so no one should.

For the people who say everybody should stop at every stop sign:
I have 5 stop signs every mile in my neighborhood. Multiply that times your rides mileage, and you get in the 100's for stops pretty quick. I bet you wouldn't stop at every one either. I don't have time to drive 25 minutes away for an area with few stop signs everyday.

I'm reporting you, you bad boy!
Seriously though ... stopping at stop signs is silly when one can clearly tell that it mostly isn't needed for safety.
I'm sure that if tickets would actually be given to people not stopping for stop signs ... those people would rise up and change that silly law.

Glad to see you have a sense of humor, and I already wear cycling caps and wool shirts most of the time but Mt Rainier is a no go, a little to far to ride right now