I have never been one to have "road rage". I have never been one to cuss at other cars or throw them the bird. It is just not a temptation that I have ever had. At least not until I started riding a bike. Why is it that people feel that people riding a bike are some how not worthy of their respect.
I have been riding for less than a year and I have been yelled at. I have been honked at, a few times for riding in a lane instead of that little 6 inch wide space next to the curb and a few times for no reason than to try to startle me. I have nearly been hit by a pick up's side mirror because he decided to share the lane with me. I have had punk high school age kids swerve their trucks at me and act like they were going to swing their door out to hit me.
I am going to be really honest here. I have had some awful words run through my head in a few of these cases. My wife will probably kill me for saying this, but I flipped-off the punks that swerved at me. I can't remember the last time I flipped someone off and I felt bad for doing it, but I have a wife and kids and your going to swerve your two ton pick up at me as a joke? I really honestly wanted them to turn around and get out of that pick up. They deserved to get the snot kicked out of them by a guy in bike shorts.
I was riding my bike Saturday. It was cold and I was riding by myself. In one 10 mile stretch I had the flipping off incident and some punks honked at me from behind to startle me. I was riding on the shoulder of the road when this happened.
I try to avoid the big busy streets, definitely if they do not have a shoulder to ride on. I used to love the fact that I didn't have to pay for gas to go get some exercise in, but the jerks on 14th have caused me to load my bike and drive 6 miles before riding. When there is a shoulder I will almost always ride on it. If there isn't much shoulder or it is a small quiet road, I will ride in the right side of the lane and move over anytime I hear a car coming. Now, by law I can hold my ground and cars can either drive behind me or pass in the other lane, but I don't count on people knowing the law so I move over.
I am not condoning cussing and the like just because someone else does something crappy to you. I would like to think I can rise above such behavior, but I can't rise above the bumper of a pick-up driven by a careless or impatient driver. I read stories on the cycling blogs of riders dieing all the time because someone was being careless.
Please, please, please, give us cyclists a break. I have a wife and kids.
I have been riding for less than a year and I have been yelled at. I have been honked at, a few times for riding in a lane instead of that little 6 inch wide space next to the curb and a few times for no reason than to try to startle me. I have nearly been hit by a pick up's side mirror because he decided to share the lane with me. I have had punk high school age kids swerve their trucks at me and act like they were going to swing their door out to hit me.
I am going to be really honest here. I have had some awful words run through my head in a few of these cases. My wife will probably kill me for saying this, but I flipped-off the punks that swerved at me. I can't remember the last time I flipped someone off and I felt bad for doing it, but I have a wife and kids and your going to swerve your two ton pick up at me as a joke? I really honestly wanted them to turn around and get out of that pick up. They deserved to get the snot kicked out of them by a guy in bike shorts.
I was riding my bike Saturday. It was cold and I was riding by myself. In one 10 mile stretch I had the flipping off incident and some punks honked at me from behind to startle me. I was riding on the shoulder of the road when this happened.
I try to avoid the big busy streets, definitely if they do not have a shoulder to ride on. I used to love the fact that I didn't have to pay for gas to go get some exercise in, but the jerks on 14th have caused me to load my bike and drive 6 miles before riding. When there is a shoulder I will almost always ride on it. If there isn't much shoulder or it is a small quiet road, I will ride in the right side of the lane and move over anytime I hear a car coming. Now, by law I can hold my ground and cars can either drive behind me or pass in the other lane, but I don't count on people knowing the law so I move over.
I am not condoning cussing and the like just because someone else does something crappy to you. I would like to think I can rise above such behavior, but I can't rise above the bumper of a pick-up driven by a careless or impatient driver. I read stories on the cycling blogs of riders dieing all the time because someone was being careless.
Please, please, please, give us cyclists a break. I have a wife and kids.
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1 comment:
I don't know where your from but I really feel for anyone not living in a bike - city. Austin is home to Lance, a college and a ton of bikes so for the most part you aren't being murdered on the roads. But yep, every once in a while you get those guys who just have no common sense. I don't think they realize a spill at 20 mph is not pleasant.
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