"Dan Cosley" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...
Quoted message said:I was riding home on my normal commute last night just after sunset.
This is normally a pretty low-key commute through a fairly industrial
area with only the occasional hassle from motorists, etc.This time, though, I got a low-grade attempt to steal my bike.
Up ahead I saw a small group of guys near the railroad tracks and
one started crossing the street in front of me. It looked like
he'd be across well before I got there, but he slowed down mid-
street and turned around to talk to the other guys. My radar
said "drunks -- trouble" and so I wasn't terribly surprised
when, as I approached, he took a step back in the opposite
direction to be right in my path and said "give me your bike".Using the tracks was clever because a lot of people would probably
slow way down, but I normally cross at speed, coasting; and my
trouble radar went off, so I was able to just ride around the guy
with a friendly expletive. Clearly they didn't try hard to take
the bike -- they could have spread out across the street and
attempted to knock me off the bike -- but it was still pretty scary.I called the police when I got back to let them know (in case other,
less prepared cyclists encountered the same people) and they said they'd
send someone to check it out. Probably I did the right thing
(rather than being confrontational, etc.), but it left an
unsatisfying taste in my mouth.Funnily, I had read about this exact situation in a book from the
library, something like the Urban Commuter's Handbook (not the
exact title, I don't remember it), but I didn't expect it to
actually happen to me. Anyone else have similar incidents and/or
better ideas for responses?-- Dan
--
Dan Cosley ([email hidden] * http://www.cs.umn.edu/~cosley/)
GroupLens Research Lab, Univ of MN (http://movielens.umn.edu/ *
612.624.8372)
Quoted message said:*** Just a foot soldier in the Army of Truth ***
When I was 20 years old I complained to my doctor that certain foods caused
problems for me. He mildly suggested that I avoid those foods.
You might be more careful where you ride in the future. Some people are
dangerous and the best policy is to avoid places you might reasonably expect
such folks to be.
I don't see adequate reason why this thread became a discussion of second
amendment rights.
There are other forums for that.
Wouldn't it be nice if cyclists had a place where they could go to discuss
_only_ cycling?