Dealing with traffic while commuting

Tanya Quinn said:

Unfortunately the answer seems to be keep pedalling. You
aren't going to be able to enlighten these types. Keep
smiling, don't let them sense they've disturbed you. And
also don't let the honker win by moving over and ceding
space. Keep where you are, in general these types don't
want to muck up their paint job by hitting you. A caveat
to this though is you'll have to make a quick decision on
how crazy they seem to be, in some cases moving over to
let them pass you easier is necessary for self-
preservation.

When the car is covered with dents from previous impacts,
it's a good clue.

Austin
--
I'm pedaling as fast as I durn well please!

On Tue, 30 Mar 2004 15:29:09 -0800, [email hidden]
(Tom Keats) wrote: ...snippage...

Quoted message said:

BTW: earlier I rode down to MEC (for brake pads & inner
cables) and noticed they have these newfangled Filzer[tm]
cyclocomputers. The price is right, if they're durable.
Even the wireless version.

Nice tip, Tom. (And Ryan C. over in .tech) Seems like MEC is
the *only* folks who got it, too.

And for those of us down under (down under Canada, that
is), the 5 buck coop membership (yay! go coops!) and c. 20
buck shipping get seriously offset by the currency
conversion. For the total wireless order, 48can=36.50us, as
of this morning.

As you said, hope they're durable.

Buttons should last longer, since you don't have to push a
button 5 times to change modes every time you want to see
something other than the default display.

Ferd

(...who re-looks at picture of device before pressing "post"
and suddenly hopes that his assumption that a Chinese-made
device sold in Canada knows about mph as well as kph holds
true. Guess I'll find out in 7 to 9 days, eh?) Ferd Berfle

"Usenet is Fun!"

".o0 0o." <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I ride to work two or three days a week. Lately it seems
that the car drivers are becoming more obnoxious.

<snip>

Two suggestions.

1. Keep a disposable camera in a pocket, and start taking
pictures (or pretend to take pictures) of them and their
car. People that are doing something like what happened
to you are basically cowards, and get very uneasy when
someone starts photographing them. In this case, the
woman would assume that you were going to turn the
photographs over to law enforcement. If you have a cell
phone with you, call (or pretend to call) 911 (or
whatever number they use where you are).

2. Honk back. This works if you have a horn that is
equivalent in volume to a car horn. I have found this to
be amazingly effective, the few times when I've used it.
It's made my commute much more enjoyable, knowing that I
can get the evil-doers that are about to cut me off, to
stop (of course I'm still prepared to stop if they
don't). The downside is that I've startled myself when I
accidentally have hit the horn button!

The website bicyclelighting.combicyclelighting.comOpen ↗ states:

"A loud horn can come in handy on a bicycle to wake up
clueless motorists chatting on their mobile phones as they
cruise through red lights, exit shopping centers without
looking for bicycles, and back out of driveways into the
bike lane without carefully looking for bicycles. Always be
prepared to stop or take evasive action if the motorist
doesn't respond to the horn, but I find a loud horn very
effective."

This web site has several suggestions for loud horns; Night-
Sun has a good commuter horn, but I opted for a less
expensive, though equally effective solution. This entire
website is a treasure trove of knowledge, I should know,
I wrote it.

Avoid yelling. Avoid gestures. These people know that what
they are doing is wrong, they are trying to get a hostile
reaction from you.

Steve

"AustinMN" <[email hidden]> wrote in news:9DBac.4656$vo5.150697
@bgtnsc05-news.ops.worldnet.att.net:

Quoted message said:

Tanya Quinn said:

Unfortunately the answer seems to be keep pedalling. You
aren't going to be able to enlighten these types. Keep
smiling, don't let them sense they've disturbed you. And
also don't let the honker win by moving over and ceding
space. Keep where you are, in general these types don't
want to muck up their paint job by hitting you. A caveat
to this though is you'll have to make a quick decision on
how crazy they seem to be, in some cases moving over to
let them pass you easier is necessary for self-
preservation.

When the car is covered with dents from previous impacts,
it's a good

clue.

Quoted message said:

Austin

Or grey primer fender.

I probably would have kicked her car. I don't take kindly to
someone cutting me off. I have no fear of death and am
willing to mix it up. I am a trained fighter (kickboxer) and
I am happy to show someone a thing or two. I have no problem
hitting a women either. I have threatened them before and
find they always run away. I just don't give a [censored] anymore
and if they have a gun, it was my time. No I am not joking.
I am 6'2" and in shape and trained. It would take a pretty
unusual person to have much of a chance. They are out there,
but not many. Most Americans are just fat and lazy anyway
and use their cars as a weapon. If I can catch them in
traffic, I will make an example.

Curt

".o0 0o." <[email hidden]> wrote in message -"]news:[email hidden]-
berlin.de...

Quoted message said:

I ride to work two or three days a week. Lately it seems
that the car drivers are becoming more obnoxious.

Yesterday I took off from a green light after waiting
patiently. I was actually the #1 vehicle at the light and
I stayed to the right side of the lane while waiting.
Apparently some people were annoyed that I was on the road
and began honking at me. One irate lady took the time to
roll down

her

Quoted message said:

window and yell something at me. I couldn't understand
what she was

saying.

Quoted message said:

Usually I just go on with my ride but yesterday I lost it.
I yelled back. She then came to nearly a full stop in the
road and turned her car to the right in an attempt to cut
me off. I held back and did not approach her.

I

Quoted message said:

figure someone who purposely is trying to impede my
progress may also purposely run me off the road. The car
behind her almost hit her.

What is the best way to handle these situations? Like I
said, I usually just keep on pedaling not yelling or
making any gestures one way or the other.

Thanks for the vent and thanks also for any comments
or advise.

--

Quoted message said:

White does NOT mean racist

Quoted message said:

To reply directly to me use DEODORANT

I've put a small US flag on the back for special events,
such as large organized rides, or riding on July 4th. While
I'm proud to display my flag, I'd hate to think that I was
doing so to pacify morons.

Eric Babula <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:<[email hidden]

(snip)

Quoted message said:

This may help you: I used to get yelled at about once a
week. Just after the 9-11 attack, I put a little American
flag on the back of my bike. I've only been yelled at
(actually, screamed at) once since then, and it was by a
couple punks in a truck, just trying to scare me, as they
raced by. It really helped me. YMMV.

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

Quoted message said:

I've put a small US flag on the back for special events,
such as large organized rides, or riding on July 4th.
While I'm proud to display my flag, I'd hate to think that
I was doing so to pacify morons.

People ofter wrap themselves in the flag to pacify morons.
It's very effective.

On Tue, 06 Apr 2004 15:03:48 GMT, "Steven M. Scharf"
<[email hidden]> wrote in message
<[email hidden]>:

Quoted message said:

People ofter wrap themselves in the flag to pacify morons.
It's very effective.

Morons often wrap themselves in the flag to incite people.
That's very effective too ;-)

--
Guy
===
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after
posting. chapmancentral.co.ukchapmancentral.co.ukOpen ↗

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at
Washington University

What I like to do,when I'm in a weird, wicked, mood, is pull
up right, and I mean, right behind a car at a light. Then
peer into the back seat of the car. Motorists sometimes find
this unnerving. They scoot their cars up, maybe, a few feet,
if there's room, and I just scoot my bike back up on their
bumpers and peer into their cars again.

Not a regular practice of mine, just when I'm feeling like
it.

--
Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky
Please replace earthlink for mouse-potato and .net for .com
Home of the meditative cyclist:
home.earthlink.netWelcome.htmOpen ↗
See the books I've set free at: bookcrossing.comCpeterskyOpen ↗

Quoted message said:

Not a regular practice of mine, just when I'm feeling like
it.

I was following too closely (stopped at a traffic light in
the lane) one day when the son of a [censored] put it in reverse
and backed over me.

No apparent motivation.

Luckily I was screaming loud enough that I could be heard
before he backed over my head, on the street with the bike
pinning my leg down and strapped into the clips that I don't
use anymore in traffic for that reason.

Of course it has never happened to me again, but once
is enough.

My advice is to leave plenty of space when following.

I got a new wheel from his insurance company but I doubt I
could have gotten a new head.

So I've made a real effort not to follow TOO closely since,
although I will admit that I like to close up the space to
prevent those darn taxis from cutting in, eight feet and
they'll take it, six feet and they won't, generally.

--

_______________________ALL AMIGA IN MY
MIND_______________________ ------------------"Buddy Holly,
the Texas Elvis"------------------ __________306.350.357.38-

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

[email hidden]__________

Eric S. Sande said:

Quoted message said:

Not a regular practice of mine, just when I'm feeling
like it.

I was following too closely (stopped at a traffic light in
the lane) one day when the son of a [censored] put it in reverse
and backed over me.

And how much jail time did sai SOB get?

--
Steven O'Neill [email hidden]

Eric S. Sande said:

Quoted message said:

And how much jail time did sai SOB get?

None. I didn't file a police report. The insurance people
took care of it. Of course if the son of a [censored] had killed
me, it might have turned out differently.

I have no idea what went on later between the SOB and his
employer, it wasn't relevant.

It was just a road incident and the insurance people were
decent about it.

My point was that following too closely can be potentially
dangerous.

Oh, I know, but it sounds like he intentionally tried to
kill you. Naturally that's not "illegal" if you're the nut
behind the wheel. I just find it frustrating, that's all.
Glad you're okay though.

--
Steven O'Neill [email hidden]

Quoted message said:

And how much jail time did sai SOB get?

None. I didn't file a police report. The insurance people
took care of it. Of course if the son of a [censored] had killed
me, it might have turned out differently.

I have no idea what went on later between the SOB and his
employer, it wasn't relevant.

It was just a road incident and the insurance people were
decent about it.

My point was that following too closely can be potentially
dangerous.

--

_______________________ALL AMIGA IN MY
MIND_______________________ ------------------"Buddy Holly,
the Texas Elvis"------------------ __________306.350.357.38-

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

[email hidden]__________

Quoted message said:

Oh, I know, but it sounds like he intentionally tried to
kill you. Naturally that's not "illegal" if you're the nut
behind the wheel. I just find it frustrating, that's all.

No, he didn't intentionally try to kill me. He just didn't
know I was back there, that's all. Why would he consider
that there might be a vehicle behind him on a city street.

It was my responsibility to assume that he was an idiot and
not place myself in a position where a random brain fart on
his part could get me killed.

OK, I'm over analyzing this. I should have been in his
mirror, let's get real. I wasn't, and the event was three
years ago.

I wasn't legally at fault but in terms of being a commuting
cyclist I was technically at fault for not reading the
situation correctly and positioning myself at the optimum
place on the road.

--

_______________________ALL AMIGA IN MY
MIND_______________________ ------------------"Buddy Holly,
the Texas Elvis"------------------ __________306.350.357.38-

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

[email hidden]__________

"Eric S. Sande" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Not a regular practice of mine, just when I'm feeling
like it.

I was following too closely (stopped at a traffic light in
the lane) one day when the son of a [censored] put it in
reverse and backed over me.

[snip]

Quoted message said:

Of course it has never happened to me again, but once
is enough.

[snip]

Well, it's certainly true that in general it's safest to
leave some room between you and the car in front. I do
confess, there's times when I'm feeling impudent, and I
decide to break that safety rule.

Recently I was pulling up to a light, and so had already
taken the center of the lane to declare my ownership. Some
twitbrain in a large white commercial van pulled around me
into the next lane, gunning it, and then pulled in front of
me, cutting me off and forcing me into a screeching halt. I
could have accepted this, *barely*, if he had then taken a
free right (the majority of the traffic at this intersection
turns right) and wanted to get around me in fear that I
would block his ability to do so. However, this was not his
intention. He was just sitting there, waiting for the light
to turn green so he could go straight.

It was a fine and dewy morning, and the back of his van was
covered in a slightly dampened dust. This was the medium,
and the van back windows were my canvas. The light's a long
one, so I pulled up right to the back of the van and leaned
forward. I wrote SMILE and RELAX with my forefinger both
forwards and in backwards mirror writing, so he could read
the words if they were in his rear-view mirror or if he
turned his head around. Then I made a half dozen little
smiley faces to decorate the blank spaces. I was in the
process of admiring my work when the light turned green. He
took off, and that was that.

Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky Please replace earthlink for mouse-potato
and .net for .com Home of the meditative cyclist:
home.earthlink.netWelcome.htmOpen ↗ See the
books I've set free at:
bookcrossing.comCpeterskyOpen ↗

Eric S. Sande said:

I was following too closely (stopped at a traffic light in
the lane) one day when the son of a [censored] put it in
reverse and backed over me.

One day I was waiting for a light behind a car, which soon
edged forward a few feet. Then its driver apparently thought
better of it and backed up a little. No problem there,
except that he forgot to shift back into drive. I responded
by moving from the center of the lane to the far left side,
next to a raised median. The car behind me then pulled up
next to me, and its driver rolled down his window and said
to me, "Smart move." (All I could think was, "So why did you
pull forward then?"😉 Luckily the driver of the car in front
caught himself before the light changed.
--
Ben Pfaff email: [email hidden] web:
benpfaff.orgbenpfaff.orgOpen ↗

Claire Petersky said:

front of me, cutting me off and forcing me into a
screeching halt. I could

It was a fine and dewy morning, and the back of his van was
covered in a slightly dampened dust. This was the medium,
and the van back windows were my canvas. The light's a long
one, so I pulled up right to the back of the van and leaned
forward. I wrote SMILE and RELAX with my forefinger both
forwards and in backwards mirror writing, so he could read
the words if they were in his rear-view mirror or if he
turned his head around. Then I made a half dozen little
smiley faces to decorate the blank spaces. I was in the

Wow. That's some strong restraint...must be that meditative
cycling. I doubt I could have written nice stuff.
--
Rick Onanian

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

Quoted message said:

On Sat, 10 Apr 2004 03:10:48 GMT, "Claire Petersky" <cpetersky@mouse-

potato.com said:

front of me, cutting me off and forcing me into a
screeching halt. I

could

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

It was a fine and dewy morning, and the back of his van
was covered in a slightly dampened dust. This was the
medium, and the van back windows

were

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

my canvas. The light's a long one, so I pulled up right
to the back of

the

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

van and leaned forward. I wrote SMILE and RELAX with my
forefinger both forwards and in backwards mirror writing,
so he could read the words if

they

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

were in his rear-view mirror or if he turned his head
around. Then I made

a

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

half dozen little smiley faces to decorate the blank
spaces. I was in the

Wow. That's some strong restraint...must be that
meditative cycling. I doubt I could have written
nice stuff.

I guess I was in a different mood this afternoon than that
morning described above. I got cut off, on the way home,
similar situation, by a bronze Tahoe. I was tempted to write
in the dust on the back of his vehicle, "I drive a large SUV
to make up for my inadequately sized penis" but the light at
that intersection was much shorter, and even if I
abbreviated my message to "...small [censored]" I knew I'd never
have time to finish it.

On a different note, though, this morning I was waiting at
the long light at Dearborn and Rainier (like here:
geocities.comcommute4.htmlOpen ↗), and
pulled up right behind someone's smaller sedan. There was a
baby, about 5 months or so, in a rear facing car seat. The
baby at first didn't see me, but I managed to catch her eye,
and then she stared at me with that baby-like intensity they
can get sometimes. I smiled and made lots of googly faces
and stuff for her, and she stared and stared, probably
trying to map my face, with the sunglasses and helmet on
top, to all the other human faces she had seen in her short
life. Finally, just before the light turned green, she spat
out her pacifier and gave me a smile.

Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky Please replace earthlink for mouse-potato
and .net for .com Home of the meditative cyclist:
home.earthlink.netWelcome.htmOpen ↗ See the
books I've set free at:
bookcrossing.comCpeterskyOpen ↗