Cyclist Road Rage

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I am not a cyclist so would like to know if I did the right thing. I
drove home at 5:30 which is rush hour on a 45MPH speed limit road. I
briefly honked the horn at a cyclist because it was not possible to
pass him while staying in the same lane ( this is a 4-lane road ). Why
would somoene chose to hold up traffic and risk getting himself hit
just so he can bike home after work? In this age of cell-phone yapping
drivers, I could easily see him getting hit.

So he pulls up to me at the light and was quite mad. I tried to
explain it was very easy to hit him and he should be more careful for
his own safety, but he would have nothing of it? Are these people just
suicidal or it perfectly normal to hold up traffic at rush hour and
just wait for a convenient time to pass?

You need to understand that cyclists _are_ traffic, and that whatever risk
exists is being created by you. The law gives the cyclist the right to the
lane, and *requires* you to pass safely and legally, or not at all.

If you're In that much of a hurry, a little self-examination might be in
order.

R

Quoted message said:

I am not a cyclist so would like to know if I did the right thing. I
drove home at 5:30 which is rush hour on a 45MPH speed limit road. I
briefly honked the horn at a cyclist because it was not possible to
pass him while staying in the same lane ( this is a 4-lane road ).

Which helped you how? Did another lane magically appear so that he
could get out of your way?

--
Home page: http://members.westnet.com.au/mvw

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I am not a cyclist so would like to know if I did the right thing. I
drove home at 5:30 which is rush hour on a 45MPH speed limit road. I
briefly honked the horn at a cyclist because it was not possible to
pass him while staying in the same lane ( this is a 4-lane road ). Why
would somoene chose to hold up traffic and risk getting himself hit
just so he can bike home after work? In this age of cell-phone yapping
drivers, I could easily see him getting hit.

So he pulls up to me at the light and was quite mad. I tried to
explain it was very easy to hit him and he should be more careful for
his own safety, but he would have nothing of it? Are these people just
suicidal or it perfectly normal to hold up traffic at rush hour and
just wait for a convenient time to pass?

In MOST jurisdictions the cyclist had EVERY RIGHT to "take" a lane when a
reasonable legal alternate pathway is not available. Taking the lane, and
thereby forcing drivers to change lanes to go around is in most cases far
safer than leaving it up to the discretion of the driver to judge whether
there is sufficient room for 2 lanes of traffic AND a cyclist. Get used to
it, and be patient.

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I drove home at 5:30 which is rush hour on a 45MPH speed limit road. I
briefly honked the horn at a cyclist because it was not possible to
pass him while staying in the same lane ( this is a 4-lane road ).

My question to you, dear Veg All, is, what was your purpose in honking at
the cyclist?

Quoted message said:

Why
would somoene chose to hold up traffic and risk getting himself hit
just so he can bike home after work?

I suggest that you ride a bike to and from work every day for the next
month, and find out why.

Quoted message said:

I tried to
explain it was very easy to hit him

I believe this cyclist is aware that stupid and impatient drivers are
dangerous, yes.

Quoted message said:

it perfectly normal to hold up traffic at rush hour and
just wait for a convenient time to pass?

Different vehicles hold up traffic at rush hour, depending on circumstances.
When I'm heading north out of downtown, motor vehicles form a critical mass,
preventing me from bicycling at the speeds to which I am accustomed. If all
the motorists were instead on bicycles, then we all would be able to move at
15 - 20 mph. Instead we are forced to creep and crawl a few feet at a time.
Is it perfectly normal for them to hold up non-motorized traffic at rush
hour? Yes. Do I have a temper tantrum, ring my little bell, and then
condescendingly lecture them at the error of their ways? I admit it
occasionally crosses my mind, but I don't think that they would appreciate
it.

So, Veg All, what happens when other vehicles hold you up? You do some deep
breathing exercises. You do what is safe. You getting home is not more
important than the lives of other people. You do not have a greater right to
the road than other people, no matter if you are in a car or a on bicycle.
That you have chosen to drive gives you no more greater rights to anything
than if you choose to bicycle, and vice versa. We're all getting home from
work. I enjoy riding. You might enjoy driving (probably because you don't
know any better, but it isn't right for me to assume -- maybe you're
disabled or something).

Quoted message said:

I am not a cyclist so would like to know if I did the right thing.

You did not. But thank you for asking. Since it looks like you need a little
remedial review:

WHEN TO HONK AT A BICYCLIST

1. When someone is facing imminent death, and you think that honking might
somehow avert a fatal accident.

2. When you're my good friend, and you want to catch my attention so we can
wave at each other. (Hi Kathy!)

3. When you want me and probably everyone in the immediate vicinity to know
that you are a complete, brain-dead, total, doofus.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

--
Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky
http://www.bicyclemeditations.org/
See the books I've set free at: http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky

Pat said:

I would like to ask why you honked your horn at him. What did you expect him
to do upon hearing the blaring of the horn?

I didnt blare the horn, just very briefly used it.

Quoted message said:

Please explain why you think a cyclist does not belong on the road.

because they can get hit very easily and get injured far more easily
then any other mode of transportation on the road.

Michael Warner said:

Which helped you how? Did another lane magically appear so that he
could get out of your way?

there was shoulder he could have ridden on.

On May 2, 6:25 pm, "Claire Petersky" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I suggest that you ride a bike to and from work every day for the next
month, and find out why.

So I can get killed in 30 days?

Rich Clark said:

<[email hidden]> wrote in message

t wait for a convenient time to pass?

Quoted message said:

You need to understand that cyclists _are_ traffic, and that whatever risk
exists is being created by you. The law gives the cyclist the right to the
lane, and *requires* you to pass safely and legally, or not at all.

well i guess not at all is the solution in this case.

Quoted message said:

If you're In that much of a hurry, a little self-examination might be in
order.

i was in no hurry.

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On May 2, 6:25 pm, "Claire Petersky" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I suggest that you ride a bike to and from work every day for the next
month, and find out why.

So I can get killed in 30 days?

Yeah, if you are that unskilled.
That would be a proper lesson for U.

Quoted message said:

Interesting how no one has addressed the issue of the cyclists safety?
So maybe I am just being paranoid about hitting him?

nash said:

Yeah, if you are that unskilled.
That would be a proper lesson for U.

what skills are needed to occupy a lane during rush hour traffic on a
45 mph lane that would save my life? Do experienced cyclists know when
some cell phone yapping distracted driver is approaching? Please share
your wisdom!

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On May 2, 6:25 pm, "Claire Petersky" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I suggest that you ride a bike to and from work every day for the next
month, and find out why.

So I can get killed in 30 days?

I have managed to ride to/from work for the last eight years without serious
injury.

You appear to have made up your mind that it is too dangerous. It *is*
frightening at first, just as it is frightening when you first learn how to
drive. It takes a while to learn how to handle yourself in traffic. The more
you do it, though, the better you get at it.

You're too afraid, though, to try. From my viewpoint, it's sort of sad. It's
like when you have a friend who is in an abusive relationship, but she
doesn't have the courage to leave her husband. But hey, it's up to you.

--
Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky
http://www.bicyclemeditations.org/
See the books I've set free at: http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky

....

Quoted message said:

I am not a cyclist so would like to know if I did the right thing. I
drove home at 5:30 which is rush hour on a 45MPH speed limit road. I
briefly honked the horn at a cyclist because it was not possible to
pass him while staying in the same lane ( this is a 4-lane road ). Why
would somoene chose to hold up traffic and risk getting himself hit
just so he can bike home after work? In this age of cell-phone yapping
drivers, I could easily see him getting hit.

So he pulls up to me at the light and was quite mad. I tried to
explain it was very easy to hit him and he should be more careful for
his own safety, but he would have nothing of it? Are these people just
suicidal or it perfectly normal to hold up traffic at rush hour and
just wait for a convenient time to pass?

I would like to ask why you honked your horn at him. What did you expect him
to do upon hearing the blaring of the horn?

It seems to me that you wanted him off of "Your" road and you are hiding
behind "his safety." All he was doing--at the most--was causing you to slow
down a bit. It is important for you to get out of the lane when passing
because your right-side rear view mirror could hit the cyclist in the head.

Please explain why you think a cyclist does not belong on the road.

Pat in TX

[email hidden said:

"]Interesting how no one has addressed the issue of the cyclists safety?
So maybe I am just being paranoid about hitting him?

Is the cyclist at risk? Yes they are, especially with certain types of drivers, but it is a risk we accept and must live with as best we can. However if drivers were more educated about the rules of the road and were made aware of the cyclists right to use the road it would make it much safer for everyone.

Statistics have shown that cyclist who ride close to the curb or on the shoulder are far more likely to be hit. Most often because the driver thinks he can squeeze past when in fact the can't.

I tend to take up about 1/3 of the lane.

In article <[email hidden]>,

Quoted message said:

I am not a cyclist so would like to know if I did the right thing. I
drove home at 5:30 which is rush hour on a 45MPH speed limit road. I
briefly honked the horn at a cyclist because it was not possible to

Car horns are pretty loud and startling, especially when
you're not in a car.

Quoted message said:

pass him while staying in the same lane ( this is a 4-lane road ).

Where does it say you have to pass in the same lane?
Use the other lane, just as you would to pass any
other vehicle. You typically don't even have to go
all the way over the line to allow sufficient clearance.

--
Nothing is safe from me.
Above address is just a spam midden.
I'm really at: tkeats curlicue vcn dot bc dot ca

Quoted message said:

I am .......
just wait for a convenient time to pass?

I have read the other responses as well as your replies. I, for one,
appreciate the fact you are asking. I'll try to be civil in my reply.

In all honest, without actually seeing the situation it's hard to
know. I don't know if there was adequate room on the right side of
the road for him to safely ride in. You say there was but he probably
felt there wasn't, since he took the lane. Please keep in mind that
your perspective is not the same as his. Yes, there are jackass
cyclist, just like there are jackass drivers. I would have had to
have been there to really know if he was one.

I can tell you that the first thought that goes through a cyclist's
mind when a motorist honks at him, even a quick tap of the horn as you
say you did, is that the motorist is an impatient creep who wants the
cyclist to disappear. Most of the time it's true. In your case,
giving you the benefit of the doubt, it wasn't. But please understand
that the cyclist was probably expecting a confrontation when he caught
up with you.

Your attitude that cycling is suicidal is flat wrong. I regularly
commute across the city of San Diego at rush hour and have been doing
so since 1982. Right now my commute is 25 miles each way. I stay
alive by being more alert than motorists. There are skills to be
built up, just like driving in traffic. You are being very close
minded about accepting that.

Tom

Quoted message said:

I am not a cyclist so would like to know if I did the right thing. I
drove home at 5:30 which is rush hour on a 45MPH speed limit road. I
briefly honked the horn at a cyclist because it was not possible to
pass him while staying in the same lane ( this is a 4-lane road ). Why
would somoene chose to hold up traffic and risk getting himself hit
just so he can bike home after work? In this age of cell-phone yapping
drivers, I could easily see him getting hit.

So he pulls up to me at the light and was quite mad. I tried to
explain it was very easy to hit him and he should be more careful for
his own safety, but he would have nothing of it? Are these people just
suicidal or it perfectly normal to hold up traffic at rush hour and
just wait for a convenient time to pass?

There's a big (HUGE) difference between a "courtesy beep" to let a cyclist
know you're behind him or her, and HONKING TO GET THE HELL OUT YOUR WAY.

Think about it.

Quoted message said:

I am not a cyclist so would like to know if I did the right thing. I
drove home at 5:30 which is rush hour on a 45MPH speed limit road. I
briefly honked the horn at a cyclist because it was not possible to
pass him while staying in the same lane ( this is a 4-lane road ). Why
would somoene chose to hold up traffic and risk getting himself hit
just so he can bike home after work? In this age of cell-phone yapping
drivers, I could easily see him getting hit.

So he pulls up to me at the light and was quite mad. I tried to
explain it was very easy to hit him and he should be more careful for
his own safety, but he would have nothing of it? Are these people just
suicidal or it perfectly normal to hold up traffic at rush hour and
just wait for a convenient time to pass?

I'm a 66 year old retiree and have been 'car-free' for 3 years.
During this time I have encountered many people like you. People who
'just don't get it'.

Rather than trying to write you a long explanation, I'd like to give
you a quote from Khalil Gibran:-
"For those who understand, no explanation is necessary. For those who
don't, none is possible".

Lewis.

*****

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
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Quoted message said:

Pat said:

I would like to ask why you honked your horn at him. What did you expect
him
to do upon hearing the blaring of the horn?

I didnt blare the horn, just very briefly used it.

Quoted message said:

Please explain why you think a cyclist does not belong on the road.

because they can get hit very easily and get injured far more easily
then any other mode of transportation on the road.

Let's say, instead of a bicyclist it was a slow moving garbage truck. What
would you have done? It is moving slow, is it dangerous for the truck? For
you? Do you have trouble slowing for the truck? Do you think people might
run into the truck? This is why brightly lit and garbed bicyclist feel
safe in the lane, they are pretty sure the drivers will see them. Drivers
won't run into either a bicyclist or a garbage truck. So no, they don't get
hit easily because drivers don't hit them.