Road Rage

sejackans

Since i have started cycling to work for about the last 2 years, i found my anger towards car drivers attempting to either maim or kill me getting worse and worse, culminating in me trying to smash a drivers side window while driving along side him at 20 mph swearing a rabidly foaming at the mouth, forcing him and his passenger to lock themselves in their van, despite being 2 hairy arsed builders. Mind you they had just cut me up whist driving in traffic brushing me almost into a parked bus in order to gain a space in the jam that was not there.

I'm not normally aggressive and especially at the time i had one ear piece in listening to Nick Drake who is not exactly death thrash satanist metal. How do i remain calm when idiots put my health at risk, because this is not the first time i have attacked a car, anything that passes me that is close say 12 inches i feel inclined to punch .I have a list of makes of cars and am gradually making my way through them. BMW's are currently topping the "hit" parade.

Is there a therapist specifically for bike riders because i need their number, unless i'm normal in that case i'll keep on swinging

peanut

hey Jack if you're listening to Nick Drake you're ok man...

chill.... peace and love peace and love

Climber_Andy

Is this tongue in cheek or actually serious?

Either way, suffice to say, their shit driving does not condone that kind of reaction.

2Fast4Love

normal

unless it's every car/van/person you come across, in which case...

...nah still normal!

You know that look Armstrong gave Ulrich? THAT look? I've perfected it, and deliver it 2-3 times a day on my journey to work.

sicknote

2Fast4Love wrote:

You know that look Armstrong gave Ulrich? THAT look? I've perfected it, and deliver it 2-3 times a day on my journey to work.

THAT look is the look I got from my mum and it could stop a child in its tracks at a 100 paces ( she is now 82 )
I have to say I think you are normal as I am a lot worse when on my bike than in the car.

There are a lot of morons on the road that could take a little more time to do what they do put, will save that whole second to cut someone up or change lanes on a duel carriage road :roll:

It is the same people that will drive to close and when you get up to them, they say sorry mate.
Like that is ok for them to have done it in the first place but they would not have done the same thing if it was a car.

little wiser

totally normal i feel been commuting for around a year now and the abuse i get is some times unreal. if you take out the being cut up forced to move abuse off kids blokes or any boby else, some of the things that stick in my mind are 1 being pelted with eggs. 2 having water thrown over me 3 being drove at and 4 myfavourite having some body drive up the side off me throw pop over me but have to stop at lights just down road where i caught up and lost my rag with three kids in the car wanted to hurt all three but after wards think what if ,what with the present way things are. oh yeah and having kid step off pavement in front of me straight into bar end at 25 mile an hour and tried to blame me :shock: i give up some times i want to stop riding cus i dont wanna get hurt for my familys sake

sejackans

Climber_Andy wrote:

Is this tongue in cheek or actually serious?

Either way, suffice to say, their shoot driving does not condone that kind of reaction.

Sorry to disappoint you, but alas it is true. But maybe Nick Drake mellow tones are not the answer. Tomorrow i shall head out listening to Miles Davies' "Kind of Blue"

P.S Whilst cycling today(sunday) out of an out of town car park someone again failed to see me in my Metal Gear Solid stealth bright yellow top and tried to park his car on my head. My alertness prevented that situation arising and i only stopped, stared and gave him the raised eyebrows/nodding head/ttcchh (its hard to spell sounds) routine and carried on my merry way. So you see i am not all bad

sicknote

I have a bright pink top that I will wear sometimes and get the same thing :roll:
Sorry I did not see but before they say any more I tell them if they cant see me in this they should be be on the road driving.
they tend to shut up after that :twisted:

fuzzynavel

Climber_Andy wrote:

Is this tongue in cheek or actually serious?

Either way, suffice to say, their shoot driving does not condone that kind of reaction.

Ok the reaction is maybe a little extreme but how about if you were walking on the street and someone came running past you and pushed you into a situation where you could potentially be very badly hurt or killed...you have a right to be slightly pissed at their stupidity. Just because we are on bikes doesn't give people the right to potentially kill or maim us every time we leave the house.
How about if you were in a car and some idiot cut you up and forced you to crash into the back of a bus....does that warrant being pissed off?
Violence is not the answer but how else can you get through to these people that hurting cyclists due to lack of care and attention is not OK?

Taking registrations and making an official complaint to the police is one way but it is not really a deterent as the driver may only find out about it after he has done the same thing a few times and been reported.

I can't think of any other "reasonable" ways to do this.

BigLee1

Theres a lot to say about working shifts and not having to cycle through the rush hour :shock: although the thing that bugs me most is when drivers pull up at a roundabout and block you from going past on the inside, I`m sure they have no idea how fast you`re travelling :?
The other day one of my work colleagues passed me 1/2 a mile or so from his house going into work and was convinced I was going to be late in and told the other lads that when he got there. He was quite shocked when I walked in with 5 mins to spare and that was after getting changed and having a shower

unclemalc

I have said before on this forum that I have given up cycle-commuting because of this potential for constant 'accidents'/danger/confrontation EVERY day, and for a 15minute run, it simply wasn't worth it. Fitness-wise, stress-wise, walking was/is better: especially in the winter months.

I am 100% certain some car drivers in rush-hour traffic streams pass you, then DELIBERATELY close off the distance between them and kerb, forcing you to take avoiding action.
I used to take enormous pleasure in re-passing and slowing down in front of them - after all - the bloody traffic stream was only doing 15 or so mph anyway. I would stay there until I turned off, knowing that even tho' I was doing the same speed as them, I was a BIKE and therefore shouldn't be in front of them 'holding them up'!
Not a thing they can do about it if you're in the middle of the road, where you are perfectly entitled to be if 'keeping up with the flow'...
Oh - and DEFINITELY give them your best 'Don't f*** with me again' look. :twisted:

Chip \'oyler

sejackans wrote:

Since i have started cycling to work for about the last 2 years, i found my anger towards car drivers attempting to either maim or kill me getting worse and worse, culminating in me trying to smash a drivers side window while driving along side him at 20 mph swearing a rabidly foaming at the mouth, forcing him and his passenger to lock themselves in their van, despite being 2 hairy arsed builders. Mind you they had just cut me up whist driving in traffic brushing me almost into a parked bus in order to gain a space in the jam that was not there.

I'm not normally aggressive and especially at the time i had one ear piece in listening to Nick Drake who is not exactly death thrash satanist metal. How do i remain calm when idiots put my health at risk, because this is not the first time i have attacked a car, anything that passes me that is close say 12 inches i feel inclined to punch .I have a list of makes of cars and am gradually making my way through them. BMW's are currently topping the "hit" parade.

Is there a therapist specifically for bike riders because i need their number, unless i'm normal in that case i'll keep on swinging

You're not really helping yourself though are you. :roll: Listening to music while commuting means you're not really concentrating are you? But yet you're aggresive to another road user who aint concentrating.

Ditch the music!

STEFANOS4784

That's opinion, do all car drivers drive in silence? They have music blaring along with being enclosed and having engine noise to deal with, ditch the talking rubbish..................


IMHO :oops:

sicknote

STEFANOS4784 wrote:

That's opinion, do all car drivers drive in silence? They have music blaring along with being enclosed and having engine noise to deal with, ditch the talking rubbish..................


IMHO :oops:

I have to agree as I drive as well and have music on, also when I am on my bike too. IMHO

So what you are saying is all the drivers that have music on when they are driving and hit someone its because of the music and not because they are not looking at what they are doing.
Come on now, you cant be saying that.

fuzzynavel

Sicknote wrote:

STEFANOS4784 wrote:

That's opinion, do all car drivers drive in silence? They have music blaring along with being enclosed and having engine noise to deal with, ditch the talking rubbish..................


IMHO :oops:

I have to agree as I drive as well and have music on, also when I am on my bike too. IMHO

So what you are saying is all the drivers that have music on when they are driving and hit someone its because of the music and not because they are not looking at what they are doing.
Come on now, you cant be saying that.

I ride with music too. I have it pretty quiet though so that I am aware of all things going on around me. I can even hear changes in the noise my tyres make on different road surfaces. The music is only really useful to me on hill climbs where I try to match my cadence to the beat of the current bit of music.....Happy hardcore is very challenging but makes a good interval!

cougie

I would ditch the music too - cyclists are more vulnerable than motorists - and its totally different. We get overtaken by cars all of the time. Cars never get surprised by another car passing do they - they need the lane to be there - and they have wing mirrors.

You really need to try and calm down - cos if you go off on one, and get angry - chances are the driver will freak too - and then its car v bike - and the bike loses every time.

edhornby

I'd say go without headphones also - if you need to yell at an idiot then you need no flies on you as it were, otherwise the idiot will think 'huh he's listening to his ipod, what does he know...'

chriskempton

+1 on the headphones - I think your hearing is an important asset in traffic in knowing what's going on around you. It's your choice, but if your safety is really a priority, you need every bit of help you can give yourself.

On the anger thing, I think it's worth knowing that when you're riding, your head is in an altered state. The endorphins in your brain are suppressing your sense of fear, which means that you might end up doing something that you end up regretting e.g. getting into a ruck with 2 hairy ar*ed builders. Even if you're in the right and they're in the wrong, don't end up making things even worse.

Easier said than done, I know - I've got into some heated confrontations myself but I try not to go overboard for my own safety's sake.

giant_man

I have never - and will never - ride with headphones due to the safety aspect. How can you hear the road around you?

cougie

I have tried the headphone thing - after years of not having even thought of them - but figured - long lonely training ride - keep it low.

Nope - still surprised by a car sneaking up on me - then again - I've had the same thing with a bus creeping up on me - when i had no music on. You're just better off with as many senses as you can get.

dombo6

STEFANOS4784 wrote:

That's opinion, do all car drivers drive in silence? They have music blaring along with being enclosed and having engine noise to deal with, ditch the talking rubbish..................


IMHO :oops:

Yes but they are safe in a metal box. On a bike, without earphones, you can hear what's behind you, what it is, bus, cab, lorry, car whatever, if it's to the left or right or about to slam into the back of you.

rally200

Headphones - music is a v. bad distraction, but I like a listen to good old radio 4 on my commute. You know that whatever hi-vis you wear, and however many watts of LEDs you're flashing - every 2nd tw*t in a van/car will cut you up from your carefully chosen road position. all you can do is look out for them, and laugh as in their haste to overtake they scare themselves stupid screeching up to the boot of the car in front that usually was already slowing.

sejackans

It was only Nick Drake (Northern Sky, google it and have a listen), and in one ear. Listen to it and see if it makes you turn green, its hardly Metallica.

2Fast4Love

I listen to trance. Helps me fling myself along the road.

If a car driver is gonna take me down, my choice of music sadly has no effect on the outcome. If I get hit, radio 2 or classical is not gonna help me.

That said, I do seem to have developed a sense of when is a fkwit - sorry, driver - behind me. Although I do live in Guernsey so in theory at least the traffic should be less lethal, despite the ridiculous car:person ratio.

The biggest risk I take is probably holding my Lance stare for too long when I visually reprimand drivers for their perceived wrongs. One day I will end up slamming into the idiot in front because I'm too busy berating someone with a look - but what a look - for the heinous crime of not stopping until they are half a car length over a stop line, thus causing to swerve (note that is swerve, not stop).

:x

Elganesh

All I can say is, these things happen and you have to take the moral high ground. Of course it's hard for me to give out "The Look" at night when I've just been blinded by an oncoming car for the tenth time that night. I end up having to pantomime being blind until they realise I can't see

antfly

I can`t understand anyone riding with music,Nick Drake or not.You also need to control your temper,road rage on a bike is still just road rage.

STEFANOS4784

Dombo6 wrote:

STEFANOS4784 wrote:

That's opinion, do all car drivers drive in silence? They have music blaring along with being enclosed and having engine noise to deal with, ditch the talking rubbish..................


IMHO :oops:

Yes but they are safe in a metal box. On a bike, without earphones, you can hear what's behind you, what it is, bus, cab, lorry, car whatever, if it's to the left or right or about to slam into the back of you.

Hearing something which is about to slam into you isn't going to stop it happeninh, anyway i ride with earphones and can hear anything coming up behind me, fair enough if your hearing isn't good enough to do this but i have no problems with this :!:

sicknote

STEFANOS4784 wrote:

Dombo6 wrote:

STEFANOS4784 wrote:

That's opinion, do all car drivers drive in silence? They have music blaring along with being enclosed and having engine noise to deal with, ditch the talking rubbish..................


IMHO :oops:

Yes but they are safe in a metal box. On a bike, without earphones, you can hear what's behind you, what it is, bus, cab, lorry, car whatever, if it's to the left or right or about to slam into the back of you.

Hearing something which is about to slam into you isn't going to stop it happeninh, anyway i ride with earphones and can hear anything coming up behind me, fair enough if your hearing isn't good enough to do this but i have no problems with this :!:

I am the same as I can hear what is a round me and with this, it is one of them things that is better for some and not for others.
I use to ride without music and found I was more nervous without it.
Does not make it right or wrong, just right or wrong for some.

Anonymous

I do the same thing, thump cars,buses, vans etc The LOOK is good, but so is a good roar/shout/swear/insult at them. I think that, to a driver, if you have a lycra clad cyclist behaving dementedly at them it tends to put the driver on the backfoot, and maybe next time he will be more wary/considerate of the space a bike needs.

Attacking 1.5tons of metal on 18lb of roadbike is the stuff of madness and should be embraced. :twisted:

Soni

I never listen to music whilst out on the road, you need all of your senses running at 100% in my opinion.

Regarding he rage, i cycled into Maidstone today, and was wearing a really bright flourescent yellow coat and was approaching a set of lights in a 3 lane carriageway and needed to get right over to the far right lane from the far left.

I allowed my self enough time/distance from the lights, looked over my right shoulder, let about 6 cars go past me whilst i was holding my right arm out to signal right, there was a massive space probably about nearly 1/4 mile befoe the next car was coming past me, rode over to the right and by the time i got to the second lane, this twat of a boy racer sped up at such a high speed and overtook me in the far right lane at the lights to go straight, even though the far right lane was for right turns only, i was just crossing the line from the middle lane to the far right lane when he did it, it was so so so close to him killing me, he must have been doing 50-60 easily, i would never have survived if he had hit me.

I'm 36 and don't take lightly to that type of thing, and rose off my bike giving him the fist in the air treatment whilst pedestrians where standing at the lights waiting to cross.

So, no, i don't think your reactions are out of order, if somebody almost takes your life through complete stupidity and inpatience....

Its a shame because cyling keeps you fit, is greener for the environment, the government are trying to push it so why don't they push out stricter penalties and monitor/follow up on near misses like they do in the construction industry?

But i would honestly ditch that music mate whilst out on the road, for your own safety....

2Fast4Love

dmclite wrote:

I do the same thing, thump cars,buses, vans etc The LOOK is good, but so is a good roar/shout/swear/insult at them. I think that, to a driver, if you have a lycra clad cyclist behaving dementedly at them it tends to put the driver on the backfoot, and maybe next time he will be more wary/considerate of the space a bike needs.

Attacking 1.5tons of metal on 18lb of roadbike is the stuff of madness and should be embraced. :twisted:

Amen, brother.