I am an avid triathlete, and cut cyclists some slack when I drive, but yesterday I had the urge to run down two a-hole cyclists. They are riding two abreast in the main road, speeding through traffic lights and stop signs. And all the while there is a good bike line where they should be riding single file. I was stuck behind these dudes for
2 miles and they didn’t give a shit. I can totally understand why drivers hate cyclists. It precisely because of these dicks.
I assume we should still ride in the bike lane, but alot of shoulders/bike lanes I’ve seen are filled with dirt/glass/rocks and just a pain the butt to ride in. Granted, that doesnt excuse cyclists for riding 2 abreast, but in those situations, I ride on the white line as best I can without intefering with traffic.
In your scenario, yes they were d-bags and are exactly why cyclists have a bad name!
i don’t believe in bike lanes, i ride out openly on the road, in a lane. they don’t call 'em bike lane bikes, they call 'em road bikes. too stuffy and demeaning to ride shoulders and I want to be IN traffic.
my two cents.
your user name fits your post though…
That’s why people get hurt. No respect for themseves or other vehicles on the road. Even if they are riding in the main road, these guys should have either ridden single file or needed to keep up with the pace if traffic.
That’s why people get hurt. No respect for themseves or other vehicles on the road. Even if they are riding in the main road, these guys should have either ridden single file or needed to keep up with the pace if traffic.
i said long ago when i got my bike, helping me kick drugs and alcohol, that I’d much rather die on my bike bettering myself than any other way.
and i’m not your average bear, i get things quick and I’m pretty nifty on a bike.
I’m not going to defend these cyclist but look at it this way. If they were going 20 mph for 2 miles it took you 6 minutes to get by them. Best case it would have taken you 2 minutes to cover that 2 miles anyway. So we are talking about 4 minutes of your day here. For that 4 minutes you get angry enough to have violent thoughts on a way to teach these guys a lesson. That’s the problem. So many people get behind the wheel of a car and have to get where they’re going RIGHT NOW! If something gets in their way, the reaction is rage. Sounds like you. We would all be safer if you could just relax and get there when you get there.
The cyclists were wrong, but the much more rational reaction would be to just allow them to be wrong and go on with your day 4 minutes later than you would have otherwise. If you really want to do something, take up rider education advocacy with the local bike clubs. People like you scare the hell out of me. Next time you have the urge to run somebody down, maybe you should turn in your driver’s license.
Thom
No offense Thom, but when I’m driving, I’m generally on my way to something, not just out dicking around. If I’m late to work by 4 minutes because some dipstick decided he was too good to ride on the shoulder, I’m going to be pissed, as I should be. Like it or not, we have to follow the rules of the road as much as the motorists do. I know that generally the motorists are the problem, but if we can avoid being a nuisance, why wouldn’t we?
Well said!
And I gather that you’re on your way to something so grand and important to mankind that, regardless of how dumb these 2 guys would be, were you in the same situation, you’d actually do something that would endanger their lives, and possibly hurt them rather badly?
It’s funny how most folks completely lose any perspective when behind the wheel.
I know that generally the motorists are the problem, but if we can avoid being a nuisance, why wouldn’t we?
Exactly! It’s almost as much common sense as people telling others to be more calm. Car beats bike every time, yet at times cyclists act as if they have not a care in the world (at times). Simply follow the rules of the road. If people still get raged over that, that totally sucks. But lets not put ourselves in situations where we basically bring unwanted stress into the situation.
IMHO the only thing they did absolutely wrong was to be riding 2 abreast. Common courtesy says they should be riding single file. Whether or not they should have been on the designated cycling part of the road is another matter.
In the town in which I live, and the neighbouring one, the local council has painted white lines and bikes alongside some of the wider roads around the town. These are seen by many as now being cycle lanes. They are not a cycle lane. A cycle lane to me, indicates something that has been designed and built to cater specifically for cyclists. What the council has done is provide a means of separating motor vehicles and bicycles. A good move yes, but nothing more than that.
Along many of these areas are raised grids to allow cars to enter driveways, sunken manholes and lots of loose gravel and any number of other obstacles from time to time. Despite the width, there are many areas where, riding a bike at 40kph (25mph) in these areas is just not safe or sensible. The only option is to ride in the main carriageway (pavement) or slow down.
Accepting they should not have been riding side by side, they might have had good reasons not to be riding in the cycle lane.
As for 4 minutes causing anybody to be late, the I would suggest leaving earlier. After all, you never know what might delay you getting to work! You can’t plan for everything, but you can allow some lee way.
i will say this, when I’m on the road i try and keep up with traffic and i’m very aware of my surroundings. if someone is speeding up behind me and/or driving erratically then i’ll move away to be safe, obviously. i’m not out to get killed but keeping up with traffic IN traffic is great speed and interval training and I enjoy the edge it gives me, the sense of being really alive. when i’m going slow i’m always to the furthest right side of the lane and if there is a shoulder i’ll use it but there is nothing like riding in that smooth vehicle tire groove on an asphalt road, like butter!
I too don’t like cyclists who break the road rules but did you use your horn to let them know you wanted to get by them?I have always found it interesting that westerners don’t really use their horns for their intended purpose.Maybe if you gave them a little toot they would have moved over.
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your story isn’t entirely coherent. you saw them multiple times run stop signs AND lights yet you were stuck behind them for two miles?
were you ALSO running the stop signs and lights?
=)
I am an avid triathlete, and cut cyclists some slack when I drive, but yesterday I had the urge to run down two a-hole cyclists. They are riding two abreast in the main road, speeding through traffic lights and stop signs. And all the while there is a good bike line where they should be riding single file. I was stuck behind these dudes for
2 miles and they didn’t give a shit. I can totally understand why drivers hate cyclists. It precisely because of these dicks.
After all the deaths in my area, I have little sympathy for motorists. Last month, a high school kid speed racing wiped out a pro cyclist (Bahati-Ouch) on one of my routes. No one seems to give a two shits about the cyclist and everyone seems to be ‘rallying’ around the high school kid. Prior to that on another one of my routes, a kid was creamed by a motorist.
You don’t piss off drivers and put them in a position to do something stupid, such as trying to overtake you when there’s no room. I don’t think the cyclists were in the right; I’d kill for a bike lane in these parts. They’ll plentiful in Orange and LA counties, but out here in San Bernardino County there are no shoulders.
I am an avid triathlete, and cut cyclists some slack when I drive, but yesterday I had the urge to run down two a-hole cyclists. They are riding two abreast in the main road, speeding through traffic lights and stop signs. And all the while there is a good bike line where they should be riding single file. I was stuck behind these dudes for 2 miles and they didn’t give a shit. I can totally understand why drivers hate cyclists. It precisely because of these dicks.
I agree.
There are many times when I won’t ride in the bike lane. If I’m moving the speed of traffic, I’ll join traffic. And, if there are any dangers such as potholes, debris, gravel, or the possibility of a car door opening, I’ll move as far out as I need to feel safe.
But there is simply no excuse to enter traffic, go slowly, and then run red lights. That is a dick move.
My attitude when I’m behind the wheel of a car is that I am never in a hurry to get anywhere. Especially work!!
If I am a few minutes late, is it really the end of the world? Actually, I cannot think of one single place that I go
frequently that is worth being in a “I’ll kill anyone in my way” hurry.
If I’m late to work by 4 minutes because some dipstick decided he was too good to ride on the shoulder, I’m going to be pissed,
That’s just sad.
If I’m late to work by 4 minutes because some dipstick decided he was too good to ride on the shoulder, I’m going to be pissed,
That’s just sad.
Sad? Maybe, but certainly not wrong. Do you get irritated when you get stuck behind an 80 year old woman going 20mph under the speed limit? I know I do, and I know most other people do too. I don’t want to waste my time because someone else doesn’t have to common courtesy to not impede traffic.
What is really sad are stupid drivers who get so angry that they nail cyclists like those described above. As many others have said, it is cyclists like these that lead drivers to doing crazy and irrational things. Bottom line, don’t be that guy. That guy is a jerk and everyone knows it.