To the ass I almost ran over today

Ah yes ... unfortunately, we're our own worst enemies at times. Aren't we?

Bob C.

"2WheelR" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

ass1 ( P ) Pronunciation Key (s)
n. pl. ass·es (sz)

1. Any of several hoofed mammals of the genus Equus, resembling and
closely related to the horses but having a smaller build and longer
ears, and including the domesticated donkey.
2. A vain, self-important, silly, or aggressively stupid person.

I'm referring to #2

I passed you on my way home from work today. with 1/4 mile to the
corner, I pulled into the next lane to pass you safely. When I got to
the corner, I pulled back into the right line to make a right turn and
stopped for oncoming traffic.

You thought it would be cool to pass me again on the right as I was
pulling out, and I almost crushed you to death. If you were a little
kid, I would have felt awful, as I'd assume you didn't know better.
Instead you were an ass. A grown man, on an expensive bike, and a jerky
attitude.

Half into the intersection, I avoided you while avoiding crossing
traffic as well, and as thanks for saving your life, you called me
names. As we waited side by side at the next light, you derided me, my
driving, my attitude, my weight (my weight?) my car. You leaned your
sweaty ass-face into my open window as spittle flew from your assinine
lips, you were going on about some other insult I give humanity by my
very presence when I rolled up my window and shut you out.

You make every cyclist look bad by your behavior. It would be a service
to cyclists everywhere, I think, if you stopped being such an ass.

In article <[email hidden]>, 2WheelR

Quoted message said:

ass1 ( P ) Pronunciation Key (s)
n. pl. ass·es (sz)

1. Any of several hoofed mammals of the genus Equus, resembling and
closely related to the horses but having a smaller build and longer
ears, and including the domesticated donkey.
2. A vain, self-important, silly, or aggressively stupid person.

I'm referring to #2

I passed you on my way home from work today. with 1/4 mile to the
corner, I pulled into the next lane to pass you safely. When I got to
the corner, I pulled back into the right line to make a right turn and
stopped for oncoming traffic.

I once stopped at a blinking red four-way traffic light ahead of you,
preparing to make a left turn.

Quoted message said:

You thought it would be cool to pass me again on the right as I was
pulling out, and I almost crushed you to death. If you were a little
kid, I would have felt awful, as I'd assume you didn't know better.
Instead you were an ass. A grown man, on an expensive bike, and a jerky
attitude.

You thought it would be cool to yell and scream at me, and you almost
scared me to death. If you were a little kid, I would have expected as
much, as I'd assume you didn't know better. Instead you were an ass. A
grown man, driving an expensive car, and a jerky attitude.

Quoted message said:

Half into the intersection, I avoided you while avoiding crossing
traffic as well, and as thanks for saving your life, you called me
names. As we waited side by side at the next light, you derided me, my
driving, my attitude, my weight (my weight?) my car. You leaned your
sweaty ass-face into my open window as spittle flew from your assinine
lips, you were going on about some other insult I give humanity by my
very presence when I rolled up my window and shut you out.

I had signaled both the fact that I intended to stop at the light (as
required by traffic laws) and my intention to turn left. However, in doing
so ahead of you, it seems I had delayed you by a second or two. As I made
my left turn, you derided me and yelled at me to "get off the f'in road."
Because I was on a bike instead of in a car, I could not roll up my window
and shut you out.

Quoted message said:

You make every cyclist look bad by your behavior. It would be a service
to cyclists everywhere, I think, if you stopped being such an ass.

You make every motorist look bad by your behavior. It would be a service
to motorists everywhere, I think, if you stopped being such an ass.

The point of this post? Merely that discourtesy cuts both ways.
--
Trudi

"Boy, there sure is a lot of tension around here tonight. It's like a Joan Crawford movie."

Trudi Marrapodi wrote:
<all substance snipped>

Quoted message said:

The point of this post? Merely that discourtesy cuts both ways.

A well written post, but I bet there's less than a 10% chance of him coming
back and seeing it.

Austin

AustinMN said:

Trudi Marrapodi wrote:
<all substance snipped>

Quoted message said:

The point of this post? Merely that discourtesy cuts both ways.

A well written post, but I bet there's less than a 10% chance of him coming
back and seeing it.

Austin

me(the original poster) or the guy that yelled at Trudi? 😉I am very
interested in reading peoples' response to my experience.

R

2WheelR:

Quoted message said:

AustinMN said:

A well written post, but I bet there's less than a 10% chance of him

coming

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

back and seeing it.

Austin

me(the original poster) or the guy that yelled at Trudi? 😉I am very
interested in reading peoples' response to my experience.

I was thinking of you. We get this kind of post (usually from people with
much more venom and much less substance) many times a year. I can only
remember hearing back from two. You make three.

Austin

Quoted message said:

I was thinking of you. We get this kind of post (usually from people with
much more venom and much less substance) many times a year. I can only
remember hearing back from two. You make three.

Austin

Austin-

I am not, and wasn't interested in picking a fight with you, or anyone
else, for that matter. I did want to vent, and I appreciate the
opportunity to do so in a forum where people might care about how
cyclists (and drivers) act and are perceived by the other. Maybe it's a
peeve of mine.... I dunno.

R

R,

Do you ride a bike, either a bicycle or a motorcycle?

We all get to be morons once in a while, it's just that some people insist
on having more turns that others. My daughter's boyfriend comes to mind.
I'll gladly swap him for a rusty Sears Free spirit bike with no brakes and
rotted tires. Any takers?

--

alan

Anyone who believes in a liberal media has never read the "Daily Oklahoman."

Quoted message said:

I am not, and wasn't interested in picking a fight with you, or anyone
else, for that matter. I did want to vent, and I appreciate the
opportunity to do so in a forum where people might care about how
cyclists (and drivers) act and are perceived by the other. Maybe it's a
peeve of mine.... I dunno.

R

"2WheelR" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

ass1 ( P ) Pronunciation Key (s)
n. pl. ass·es (sz)

1. Any of several hoofed mammals of the genus Equus, resembling and
closely related to the horses but having a smaller build and longer
ears, and including the domesticated donkey.
2. A vain, self-important, silly, or aggressively stupid person.

I'm referring to #2

I passed you on my way home from work today. with 1/4 mile to the
corner, I pulled into the next lane to pass you safely. When I got to
the corner, I pulled back into the right line to make a right turn and
stopped for oncoming traffic.

You thought it would be cool to pass me again on the right as I was
pulling out, and I almost crushed you to death. If you were a little
kid, I would have felt awful, as I'd assume you didn't know better.
Instead you were an ass. A grown man, on an expensive bike, and a jerky
attitude.

Was the light green? Was it a stop sign? If it was a green light did you
forget that the cyclist was overtaking you? Did you signal that you were
turning right?
The reason I ask this is because in my personal experience I have noticed
that drivers forget that "serious" (for lack of a better word) cyclists
travel at significant speed. The most common accident I have been in is a
car passing and then turning right without signaling. Cyclists learn to
watch the front right wheel of cars to predict their turn in this situation
but that is not always enough, again from personal experience.

Quoted message said:

Half into the intersection, I avoided you while avoiding crossing
traffic as well, and as thanks for saving your life, you called me
names. As we waited side by side at the next light, you derided me, my
driving, my attitude, my weight (my weight?) my car. You leaned your
sweaty ass-face into my open window as spittle flew from your assinine
lips, you were going on about some other insult I give humanity by my
very presence when I rolled up my window and shut you out.

Not acceptable. Understandable though if the light was green. After all,
if the light was green the cyclist did nothing wrong and you could have
killed the guy.

Quoted message said:

You make every cyclist look bad by your behavior. It would be a service
to cyclists everywhere, I think, if you stopped being such an ass.

Someone made a mistake here. If the light was green and the cyclist was
overtaking you on the right (In California, simplistically, cyclists are
required to ride as far to the right as is safe) it is your responsibility
to make sure the cyclist is clear.

Bartow W. Riggs wrote:

<snip>

Quoted message said:

Was the light green? Was it a stop sign? If it was a green light did you
forget that the cyclist was overtaking you? Did you signal that you were
turning right?

Stop sign, one way street into traffic circle, nowhere to go but right.

Quoted message said:

The reason I ask this is because in my personal experience I have noticed
that drivers forget that "serious" (for lack of a better word) cyclists
travel at significant speed. The most common accident I have been in is a
car passing and then turning right without signaling. Cyclists learn to
watch the front right wheel of cars to predict their turn in this situation
but that is not always enough, again from personal experience.

He was making good speed, I'd say. which is why I passed him well (1/4
mile) before I was going to be stopping and turning.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Half into the intersection, I avoided you while avoiding crossing
traffic as well, and as thanks for saving your life, you called me
names. As we waited side by side at the next light, you derided me, my
driving, my attitude, my weight (my weight?) my car. You leaned your
sweaty ass-face into my open window as spittle flew from your assinine
lips, you were going on about some other insult I give humanity by my
very presence when I rolled up my window and shut you out.

Not acceptable. Understandable though if the light was green. After all,
if the light was green the cyclist did nothing wrong and you could have
killed the guy.

Quoted message said:

You make every cyclist look bad by your behavior. It would be a service
to cyclists everywhere, I think, if you stopped being such an ass.

Someone made a mistake here. If the light was green and the cyclist was
overtaking you on the right (In California, simplistically, cyclists are
required to ride as far to the right as is safe) it is your responsibility
to make sure the cyclist is clear.

Hmmmm that is an intersting take on vehicle regualtions (no irony
meant). I can't say that I considered that I'd be at fault if someone
zips by me on the right at at stopsign/intersection of 2 one way
streets. There is no traffic coming from the right, why would I be
looking right, especially when no-one was there as I drove up (1 second
ago), and I was in the far-right lane? I suppose I could be on the
lookout for the people who think it's smart to ride bikes against
traffic (about as bad as what this guy pulled, IMO)

R

On Tue, 27 Apr 2004 02:09:44 GMT, 2WheelR <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I am very interested in reading peoples' response to my experience.

Sounds like a run-of-the-mill "knothead A meets knothead B"
situation to me. Of course, from reading only your side, I can't
tell if you were or weren't a knothead*, but regardless of chosen
transportation device, most knotheads don't flare up so strongly
except in the presence of other knotheads...

*OTOH, venting this in a bicycle newsfroup (cross-posted to two,
actually) smells kind of trollish, even under the "To the cyclist
who did it: blah blah blah" pretense; this effect does paint you at
an elevated risk of being a knothead. I guess it's not as bad as the
one who recently cross-posted something similar (but more
ignorant-sounding) to bicycle and car newsfroups in one fell swoop.
--
Rick Onanian

Rick Onanian said:

On Tue, 27 Apr 2004 02:09:44 GMT, 2WheelR <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I am very interested in reading peoples' response to my experience.

Sounds like a run-of-the-mill "knothead A meets knothead B"
situation to me. Of course, from reading only your side, I can't
tell if you were or weren't a knothead*, but regardless of chosen
transportation device, most knotheads don't flare up so strongly
except in the presence of other knotheads...

*OTOH, venting this in a bicycle newsfroup (cross-posted to two,
actually) smells kind of trollish, even under the "To the cyclist
who did it: blah blah blah" pretense; this effect does paint you at
an elevated risk of being a knothead. I guess it's not as bad as the
one who recently cross-posted something similar (but more
ignorant-sounding) to bicycle and car newsfroups in one fell swoop.
--
Rick Onanian

Rick-

Point well taken,I may well be a knothead, but there is nothing wrong,
that I can tell with posting to these two groups (the topic seems to fit
within their purview).

I was venting, as I was honestly infuriated, (does honest emotion
preclude trolling?) Maybe it made me feel better to post a message in a
bottle to the guy rather that treat him as badly as he treated me.

If it torques you off to know that other folks are making you look bad,
and lowering *your* chances of being treated like an equal on the road.
I can't say I blame you. I'd feel the same way.

BTW, this is the first time I've ever anonymously posted to _any_
group(s), as a long-time usenet user, I thought long and hard before
posting anonymously.

R

alan said:

We all get to be morons once in a while, it's just that some people insist
on having more turns that others. My daughter's boyfriend comes to mind.
I'll gladly swap him for a rusty Sears Free spirit bike with no brakes and
rotted tires. Any takers?

Would he take my all-expenses, no-income daughter off my hands (the one with
all the school loans that I co-signed for and not a single passed course)?
That would be worth a brand new Trek of any exotic material you want with a
custom paint job and...

Yes, everyone gets at least 15 minutes as an idiot. Most of us, even those
who might be considered more intelligent, get a lot more than 15 minutes.
I'd like to say it's there to counteract the 15 minutes of fame we're all
entitled to, but sometimes it's the stupid things we do that get us that 15
minutes of fame.

Austin

Bartow W. Riggs said:

Not acceptable. Understandable though if the light was green. After all,
if the light was green the cyclist did nothing wrong and you could have
killed the guy.

The cyclist passed on the right. Nothing wrong?

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

You make every cyclist look bad by your behavior. It would be a service
to cyclists everywhere, I think, if you stopped being such an ass.

Someone made a mistake here. If the light was green and the cyclist was
overtaking you on the right (In California, simplistically, cyclists are
required to ride as far to the right as is safe) it is your responsibility
to make sure the cyclist is clear.

He passed 1/4 mile before the intersection. Unless his vehicle is turning
left, the cyclist belongs behind him (if he's going straight) or on his left
(assuming the cyclist is going straight or left, and his vehicle is in a
right turn lane), even in California.

Austin

2WheelR said:

I suppose I could be on the
lookout for the people who think it's smart to ride bikes against
traffic (about as bad as what this guy pulled, IMO)

There certainly are plenty of wrong-way riders. The sad thing is, they
think they are doing what is safe (or they are indestructible teenage boys
who just don't care).

Austin

If the light wasn't green. (There was no light) The cyclist was in the
wrong.

Yes, nothing illegal with a cyclist passing on the right, at least in my
state. Cyclists are are required to do so. Unless they are turning.

The 1/4 mile thing is a red herring. He said there was not a light. Based
on the facts I see the cyclist is wrong.

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

Quoted message said:

Bartow W. Riggs said:

Not acceptable. Understandable though if the light was green. After

all,

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

if the light was green the cyclist did nothing wrong and you could have
killed the guy.

The cyclist passed on the right. Nothing wrong?

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

You make every cyclist look bad by your behavior. It would be a

service

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

to cyclists everywhere, I think, if you stopped being such an ass.

Someone made a mistake here. If the light was green and the cyclist was
overtaking you on the right (In California, simplistically, cyclists are
required to ride as far to the right as is safe) it is your

responsibility

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

to make sure the cyclist is clear.

He passed 1/4 mile before the intersection. Unless his vehicle is turning
left, the cyclist belongs behind him (if he's going straight) or on his

left

Quoted message said:

(assuming the cyclist is going straight or left, and his vehicle is in a
right turn lane), even in California.

Austin

2WheelR wrote:
:: Rick Onanian wrote:
::
::: On Tue, 27 Apr 2004 02:09:44 GMT, 2WheelR <[email hidden]>
::: wrote:
:::
:::: I am very interested in reading peoples' response to my experience.
:::
:::
::: Sounds like a run-of-the-mill "knothead A meets knothead B"
::: situation to me. Of course, from reading only your side, I can't
::: tell if you were or weren't a knothead*, but regardless of chosen
::: transportation device, most knotheads don't flare up so strongly
::: except in the presence of other knotheads...
:::
::: *OTOH, venting this in a bicycle newsfroup (cross-posted to two,
::: actually) smells kind of trollish, even under the "To the cyclist
::: who did it: blah blah blah" pretense; this effect does paint you at
::: an elevated risk of being a knothead. I guess it's not as bad as the
::: one who recently cross-posted something similar (but more
::: ignorant-sounding) to bicycle and car newsfroups in one fell swoop.
::: --
::: Rick Onanian
::
:: Rick-
::
:: Point well taken,I may well be a knothead, but there is nothing
:: wrong, that I can tell with posting to these two groups (the topic
:: seems to fit within their purview).
::
:: I was venting, as I was honestly infuriated, (does honest emotion
:: preclude trolling?) Maybe it made me feel better to post a message
:: in a bottle to the guy rather that treat him as badly as he treated
:: me.
::
:: If it torques you off to know that other folks are making you look
:: bad, and lowering *your* chances of being treated like an equal on
:: the road. I can't say I blame you. I'd feel the same way.

But listen up....there are idiot drivers and idiot bicyclists....don't
assume that because you run into one moron on a bike that they all are they
way....just realize that people are different and leave it at that...

In article <[email hidden]>, 2WheelR

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I was thinking of you. We get this kind of post (usually from people with
much more venom and much less substance) many times a year. I can only
remember hearing back from two. You make three.

Austin

Austin-

I am not, and wasn't interested in picking a fight with you, or anyone
else, for that matter. I did want to vent, and I appreciate the
opportunity to do so in a forum where people might care about how
cyclists (and drivers) act and are perceived by the other. Maybe it's a
peeve of mine.... I dunno.

R

Understood...both drivers and cyclists can do bad things. Oh, and I know
you weren't yelling at me specifically, but venting at an idiot.
--
Trudi

"Boy, there sure is a lot of tension around here tonight. It's like a Joan Crawford movie."

On Tue, 27 Apr 2004 03:37:00 GMT, 2WheelR <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

Point well taken,I may well be a knothead, but there is nothing wrong,
that I can tell with posting to these two groups (the topic seems to fit
within their purview).

Nothing technically wrong with it, but why do it at all? You can get
a reasonable amount of discussion from one group without getting
troll-points (new system? 😉 for posting to two, especially two
groups with [some] different users, each group prone to endless
political flame wars.

Quoted message said:

I was venting, as I was honestly infuriated, (does honest emotion
preclude trolling?) Maybe it made me feel better to post a message in a
bottle to the guy rather that treat him as badly as he treated me.

It's certainly better to post that message than to end up in a
personal confrontation.

Quoted message said:

If it torques you off to know that other folks are making you look bad,
and lowering *your* chances of being treated like an equal on the road.
I can't say I blame you. I'd feel the same way.

I know those knotheads are out there, and there's little I can do
about it, so I don't let it bother me. Anyway, I find that the
reality is that I'm treated mostly very well when on a bicycle --
certainly better than when driving.
--
Rick Onanian

Bartow W. Riggs said:

"2WheelR" <[email hidden]> wrote in message

Quoted message said:

You thought it would be cool to pass me again on the right as I was

Was the light green? Was it a stop sign? If it was a green light did you
forget that the cyclist was overtaking you? Did you signal that you were
turning right?
The reason I ask this is because in my personal experience I have noticed
that drivers forget that "serious" (for lack of a better word) cyclists
travel at significant speed.

When traveling at "significant speed", one should NOT overtake on
the right. Damn the law and do what's safe.

Note: After writing the rest of the message, but before sending, I
looked at the rest of the thread; apparently the cyclist intended to
fly right through the stop sign...there should be NO overtaking of a
vehicle that's stopping at a stop sign, regardless of transportation
device. You wait in line like everybody else, even if on a bicycle.

Quoted message said:

The most common accident I have been in is a
car passing and then turning right without signaling.

Are you in lots of accidents?

Quoted message said:

Not acceptable. Understandable though if the light was green. After all,
if the light was green the cyclist did nothing wrong and you could have
killed the guy.

Quoted message said:

Someone made a mistake here. If the light was green and the cyclist was
overtaking you on the right (In California, simplistically, cyclists are
required to ride as far to the right as is safe) it is your responsibility
to make sure the cyclist is clear.

I'm not entirely familiar with CA law, but I doubt that cyclists are
REQUIRED to ride to the right unless they are holding up traffic. If
I can take the lane here in boring old Rhode Island, I'm sure that
progressive, environmentally friendly California would allow even
more for bicyclists.

I really, really doubt that cyclists are required, or even allowed,
to _pass_ on the right. Further, "as far to the right as is safe",
in the situation where you're passing a car, quite obviously lands
somewhere to the left of said car, since it's not safe to pass
somebody where they don't expect you to pass them, especially if
that somebody is in a vehicle weighing 200x as much as your vehicle
weighs.
--
Rick Onanian