Driving straight at me...

Totalnewbie

Sorry, just need to have a vent.

I cycled to see my mum & nan after work yesterday. They live on a Victorian housing estate in NW London with narrow streets that are not big enough for two vehicles (inc a bike in some parts) to go past each other where there are parked cars (even in the opposite direction) and the general thing is for the first vehicle to reach a space to pull in and let the other go. At least it was when I used to drive around there. On a bike it seems it's different.

Three times, I had drivers drive straight at me in some bizarrely unequal game of chicken, ignoring the fact that they had space to pull into and I didn't. I ended up stopped pressed against the parked cars to be out of their way. And yes they could see me just fine, plenty of drivers had seen me and waited before pulling out of junctions etc on the way there.

This doesn't happen on my Sarf London estate, where the road I live on is similar. I've had people pull in for me despite my lowly cyclist status. I can only conclude many of the drivers on that estate are idiots.

redddraggon

Totalnewbie wrote:

I can only conclude many of the drivers on that estate are idiots.

Bloody Southerners

mrchrispy

stop in the middle of the road and make them stop. then squeeze down the side ot the stationary car battering it with you handle bars. thats what I do.

Totalnewbie

Technically I'm not a Southerner, I was born and brought up in that NW London estate, I learned to ride my little red bike there. I decamped to South four years ago so I could afford to move out of home.

MrChrispy, I think that would have been a dangerous move, there are some right chavs/gangsta wannabes there who would probably have let me hit their bonnet.

redddraggon

Totalnewbie wrote:

Technically I'm not a Southerner, I was born and brought up in that NW London estate,

London's nearly France - it's definitely Southern!

orv

mrchrispy wrote:

stop in the middle of the road and make them stop. then squeeze down the side ot the stationary car battering it with you handle bars. thats what I do.

Hmm, well I had someone drive straight at me along the wrong side of the road near tower bridge once (there was a queue of traffic). I simply stopped and screamed so loudly at him most of the drivers turned to look. I only did it because there were so many people about AND there was a police car in the queue. He squeezed through and I just sighed and went on my way.
However.... with hindsight.... I think it was extremely foolish of me. You never know who might be in the car or why they're driving like that. Especially in a city like london. Perhaps he'd just stolen the car. or had just carried out an armed robbery and was escaping? in which case.... he'd just flatten me.
There are just too many dangerous people out there to take any risks when you're so vulnerable.

dav1

on my summer route I had some idiot come right at me on the wrong side of the road in a 4x4 a few times. The spent a good 200M on the reong side over a blind hill just so they can get into their on-road parking space without waiting.

Flycatcher

Totalnewbie wrote:

Technically I'm not a Southerner, I was born and brought up in that NW London estate, I learned to ride my little red bike there. I decamped to South four years ago so I could afford to move out of home.

MrChrispy, I think that would have been a dangerous move, there are some right chavs/gangsta wannabes there who would probably have let me hit their bonnet.

LOL. You are a Southerner to most of the UK!!

Totalnewbie

Haha, me displaying some typical London-centricness there. It's because I have a friend who takes the whole North/South London divide very seriously and likes to argue with me about it from time to time!

BentMikey

Horrible, TN, poor you! I must admit I ride right in the middle in this sort of situation, and I wait out there until the last moment before going left to pass a car. Whilst the car is approaching I'm also busy making sure that I have an exit route available. That causes nearly all drivers to slow right down instead of speeding past me, and it also lets me get out of the way if they are a nutter.

Do anything else, such as show even the slightest, tiniest sign of weakness by going a little left, and some drivers won't slow at all IME.

PrettyBoyTim

I had a driver come very close to me the other day when I had my little boy in the child seat on the back. It tend to do as Mikey does but as he hardly slowed down at all I barely made it over. The van was within inches of the childseat as he passed and I was *furious*.

I bellowed at him to stop and told him what I thought of him playing fast and loose with my son's life like that, and then continued on my way.

That and a very fast, very close overtake that had happened a couple of days earlier got me thinking. I'd quite like to get one of those little folding orange arms with a circular paddle at the end and a reflector on it and attach it to the child seat. I remember them being popular when I was a kid (I think I may have had one on my bike at one point), but you don't seem to be able to get them any more.

I had thought of putting one on the right hand end of my handlebars, but that might be going over the top.

daniel_b

PrettyBoyTim wrote:

I'd quite like to get one of those little folding orange arms with a circular paddle at the end and a reflector on it and attach it to the child seat. I remember them being popular when I was a kid (I think I may have had one on my bike at one point), but you don't seem to be able to get them any more.

One here, but from Aus: http://abbotsfordcycles.com.au/public/content/view/22/38/

PrettyBoyTim

Daniel B wrote:

One here, but from Aus: http://abbotsfordcycles.com.au/public/content/view/22/38/

Thank you! I'd not managed to find the correct words to find one with google, but now I see that SJS Cycles do them.

grace72

get one woman in a renault clio who drives from west hampstead up to hampstead heath up the back streets (west end lane, frognal lane) who will not wait for anyone and will wear out her horn if she leans on it any harder. she has nearly had me off twice by over taking too close then pulling in to the left before she has passed me, all the while screaming abuse at me through the open passenger window, these roads are steep so i am quite slow going up them. have seen her over take 6 cars sat waiting at lights just to get to the front of the que. impatient or just plain mental

Drfabulous0

A few years ago I was out walking and as I waited to cross a bridge which was only one lane wide I saw a driver in a saloon car do this to a BMXer. The lad on the bike jumped onto the car's bonnet, rode over it, droppeed off and rode away. The driver was fuming but I thought it was hilarious, I never did learn to hop that high though.

BentMikey

Drfabulous0 wrote:

A few years ago I was out walking and as I waited to cross a bridge which was only one lane wide I saw a driver in a saloon car do this to a BMXer. The lad on the bike jumped onto the car's bonnet, rode over it, droppeed off and rode away. The driver was fuming but I thought it was hilarious, I never did learn to hop that high though.

That's FAB!!!

Fantasia

Hi

I've had a couple of run ins with car drivers during bike rides, as I'm small (5 ft) female, and ride on my own, it can be frightening.

One called me a mad cow and advised that I should be on the pavement - this was because I had right of way on a narrow road and was not allowing the driver to intimidate me as he came towards me.

The other was on a hilly country road and the young male driver came screeming down a hill at me in the middle of the road - you can imagine the comments he got from me as he passed as this forced me onto the grass verge.. He then stopped the top of the next hill, got out the car, and started shouting abuse at me - so I gave as good as I was getting. I knew there was a farm just further up the road and that I could get to it before he could turn the car if necessary.

I've also had a car come out from a T junction and catch my back wheel, shunting me across the road.

My husband was also hit at a T junction by a double decker bus, as the bus came out from the junciton. The bike ended up under the front wheels of the bus and my husband was flung across the road. Luckily there was no traffic was coming from the outher direction and the only permanent damage was to the bike - my husband was shaken, but ok. However, it put my husband off cycling on roads for a long time.

I now always carry a mobile phone in case I need to phone the police.

Random Vince

Drfabulous0 wrote:

A few years ago I was out walking and as I waited to cross a bridge which was only one lane wide I saw a driver in a saloon car do this to a BMXer. The lad on the bike jumped onto the car's bonnet, rode over it, droppeed off and rode away. The driver was fuming but I thought it was hilarious, I never did learn to hop that high though.

friend of mine couldn't be bothered to walk round a car that had parked itself in the cycle lane, couldn't take the road as it was a one way street full of busses (trinity st, coventry)

so rode over the car - turned out to be an un marked police car,

he spent the night in the cells on his bike (wouldn't let go of it)

he was a trials rider, hence getting over the car

Panasonic

I have had water thrown in my face while out riding (was a very hot day so it was quite refreshing, if a bit suprising) had some daft chav lass gob at me while I was taking a rest a the top of a hill while mtbing, I proceeded to chase her vehicle while she screamed obscenities at me with me doing likewise. I have always been singled out for bizarre behaviour, I have had many drivers run me off the road, wolf whistle me, pedestrians jump out at me screaming "boo", and many idiotic fellow cyclists get in my way then have a go at me for almost crashing into them! Most are not indicating or for example pulling out into middle of road to seemingly turn right then inexplicably turning left! Can't count the number of times drivers have neglected to give way to me or have almost knocked me off, not to mention the maniacs that seem to inhabit central London who seem to think cyclists should be cycling at 30mph at all times and if they don't they have to tailgate me and beep their silly horns. (last one was in a skip lorry - pretty terrifying seeing as I was riding a SS mtb at the time with a max speed of about 23mph!)

miffed

You need some car scratcher bar ends, http://www.cycles-for-heroes.com/2008/pdf/Specials.pdf, would make the drivers think twice about squeezing through if they knew theyd get some new racing stripes

Gambatte

Fantasia wrote:

I now always carry a mobile phone in case I need to phone the police.

Ditto

Panasonic wrote:

I have had water thrown in my face while out riding !

I had an egg. I was doing 30, car in opposite direction was doing 40 (combined impact speed 70mph+?) bruising took 2 weeks to disappear.
I was hunkered down over the bars and the egg hit my left shoulder, so they were aiming for my head. daft sods turned round and came past to gloat.....at the same time I was on the phone to a 999 operator!!

Got a call from plod a couple of weeks later to say he plead guilty to dangerous driving

Docsavage

Generally I go with Bent Mikeys tactic. My road in Bristol is very long,dead straight and with parking on both sides means only one vehicle can get through.
Its increasingly used as a commuter rat run which leads to very aggresive behaviour and crazy speeding. I usually hold my space (whilst looking for my bail out option) but even this doesn't work so well anymore. I have had countless close encounters when they zip by at such speed all it takes is a nudge or a wing mirror to put me on the deck.
I've had drivers zoom up behind me and start beeping, I've been threatened and sworn at had doors opened on me - the list goes on!!!
It's difficult not to end up getting a mindset that you have to 'take 'em all on'
I do make a point of acknowledging/thanking any motorist who lets me through.

Totalnewbie

I had a cyclist do it this morning, on the Hyde Park path! I don't know what he was playing at, maybe the sun was in his eyes as it was behind me. Usually the commuters at that time of the morning are quite good at keeping to the left.