Why are people so stupid?

Manxman_Ste

I new to cycling and didn't realise just how many times in one hour one's own mortality could be put to the test.

Just been for a buzz round Oxford on the cycle track running parallel to the ring road. Now I see a set of teenages up a head, don't like to stereotype but they looked like trouble from about 50 m off (how right i was)...as i get closer they show no sign of getting out the way (they were spead across the track), so i move right over to the side next to the duel carridgeway running parallel at this point with no safety barrier. At the last minute they shuffle arrogantly to the side, but one of them on a bike flicks his front wheel in my direction as im about to go past, hoping i flinch and take a tumble.....but the only place i'm going to fall is straight into the duel carridgeway. Now i can deal with the odd driver who forgets to check their mirrors, as car divers we've all done it at some point, but it's left me quite worried that there are people out there who will purposely try and dismount a rider in such a dangerous location.

Then 10 mins later, on a stretch of road there's a turning coming up on my left. The car behind wants this turning but instead of waiting for me to clear the junction and turning in behind me, he half overtakes me and starts turing in as im level with his wing mirror (he knows i'm there) and im literally halfway across the junction at this point....should have ripped his wing mirror off, he wouldn't that close to a cyclist again.

Does this sort of thing happen to people on a daily basis.......if so then we are surely all most brave and courageous, if not a little daft.

Cheers, rant over!

andrewjoseph

Does this happen often? yes, and increasingly so in my experience.

chuckcork

Yes it does happen. In Kingston, right outside Kingston College, there is a on-footpath bike lane that allows a cyclists to avoid College roundabout, and to then cut through town. Going along this a few years ago a group of girl students, about 19 or so, saw me coming, one thought it would be hilarious run over and stand in the middle of the cycle lane and make me go around, when i went to go around her she moved to again be in my path. I had to make a serious avoiding action to avoid hiiting her, her expression was along the lines of "what a buzz", but if I'd slammed into her at 15mph an hour she would have ended up with I think quite serious injuries. After that I never used that path again, or the others in Kingston. Too dangerous, too many stupid people who think a dedicated cycle lane is for walking in (by preference)

I've even when driving had kids aged about 10 think its terribly fund to wait until I'm just about alongside them and then launch their bmx at the car, if they'd hit me they again would have been hospitalised.

As for the driver, I've had cars swerve into me when in a cycle lane too, I have no hesitation to using my fists on the windows. If the driver doesn't like it thats their problem.

mateotu

Yeah, it happens, but you'll get used to it! Used to live in Oxford - great city for cycling so long as you don't go more than a mile from the centre

Don't take it personally, they just don't know what to do. Take charge; consider 'taking the lane' when riding through junctions. Anticipate, look them in the eye, signal and move with confidence, and don't forget to smile! Maybe you know an experienced bike commuter who could show you the ropes?

This ends up being in half the posts I write, but I'll say it anyway: if you ride in traffic often, get a mirror. You can't rely on your ears for early warning when there's constant noise. I don't mind looking like a geek if it keeps all my limbs attached

Manxman_Ste

Cheers for the advice!

My work commute is down the Sustrans 5 route to Didcot so luckily not too many roads, and those i do encounter are relatively quiet. Its the cycliing round oxford that's a dice with death. A bit of common sense from drivers would go a long way, and I don't exclude myself from that either.

Time to practice the middle finger salute!

Bassjunkieuk

Manxman_Ste wrote:

Cheers for the advice!

My work commute is down the Sustrans 5 route to Didcot so luckily not too many roads, and those i do encounter are relatively quiet. Its the cycliing round oxford that's a dice with death. A bit of common sense from drivers would go a long way, and I don't exclude myself from that either.

Time to practice the middle finger salute!

Also worth practicing the thumbs up to, I'm all for giving the w@nkers a wave but I also think that thanking those drivers that show consideration for me goes a long way to improving the relationship between "us and them", after all what goes around comes around!

I have actually found that since taking up cycling properly a few years ago I've actually become a better driver and leave those that feel they have to race everywhere to themselves!

samtope

I agree that on the whole people are pretty blind to the consequences of thier thougtless actions. I cant resist however, airing a particular gripe of mine as a very careful hgv driver. For the love of god roadies, dont ride on dual carriage ways on the part designed for cars. keep left of the line. This is incredibly stupid, you are a sudden unexpected roadblock. When we swerve right to avoid you at short notice doing 50, someone doing 80 in the fast lane is invariably 'up our chuff ' in a hurry. If we stay where we are we 'worry' about taking your head off with our mirror. Two sides to this stupidity coin, try an mtb in the woods for size, you might like it..

Jay dubbleU

Keeping left of the line (Ipresume you mean the hard shoulder) is not designed for traffic plus you pick up all the crap left by HGVs - treat bikes as traffic the same as you would a car - we have as much right on the road as an HGV - give youself more time to take decisons

Bassjunkieuk

Jay dubbleU wrote:

Keeping left of the line (Ipresume you mean the hard shoulder) is not designed for traffic plus you pick up all the crap left by HGVs - treat bikes as traffic the same as you would a car - we have as much right on the road as an HGV - give youself more time to take decisons

+1 The fact you have to swerve to avoid someone means you obviously failed to notice them on the approach. If I see a slow moving car ahead with I'm driving on a dual carriageway I'll move right with plenty of space to spare and when it's safe to do so rather then waiting until the last minute to pull round them.

As for the suggestion to keep left of the line as JDU says that would then mean riding along the hard shoulder (I assume) which is invariably full up with all the litter and rubbish left there from the passing traffic, pretty much like a large gutter which is precisely the reason I ride about 2-3 ft from the kerb!

NGale

we can be out own worse enemies as well.

If you want a decent cycle ride than don't bother going on the Camel Trail between Bodmin and Padstow. Firstly I couldn't use my own bike and had to rent a hateful piece of junk of a steal framed mountian bike which wasn't fit for a car boot sale.

secondly the trail is full of your typical fair weather cyclists who would never set foot on a bike unless they were on holida. No sense of basic cycle path displine, I was shouted at for over taking three idiots who decided to cycle three abreast, apparently I had no rightto say excuse me (politely) or go any faster than them.

Saturday I realised that while I may be just starting out I am at least serious about my cycling and I have started to become one of the elitist snobs

Manxman_Ste

+1 Surely in a HGV, high up in your cabin, you get a much better view of the traffic and situations in front of you and therefore there should be no excuse for swerving last minute to avoid a cyclist. Granted you need more time to slow down and maneuver but you're trained for that and the extra anticipation require, hense the need for a HGV licence.

downfader

samtope wrote:

I agree that on the whole people are pretty blind to the consequences of thier thougtless actions. I cant resist however, airing a particular gripe of mine as a very careful hgv driver. For the love of god roadies, dont ride on dual carriage ways on the part designed for cars. keep left of the line. This is incredibly stupid, you are a sudden unexpected roadblock. When we swerve right to avoid you at short notice doing 50, someone doing 80 in the fast lane is invariably 'up our chuff ' in a hurry. If we stay where we are we 'worry' about taking your head off with our mirror. Two sides to this stupidity coin, try an mtb in the woods for size, you might like it..

My HGV driving friends at work would be most annoyed with you for writing that claptrap. I would suggest you have an impatience issue and arent being fully road aware.

If someone goes up your chuff then they havent been paying due care and attention and are also in the wrong (both with the highway code and in the Road Traffic Act)

downfader

Manxman_Ste wrote:

Time to practice the middle finger salute!

Seriously, dont lower yourself to that. Be polite, use thumbs up and a smile for drivers who are courteous, if someone seems as if they are about to pull out on you or get too close a loud "HEY!! Steady on mate!!" works for me.

I would also say the only time I've ever banged on a car.. well I actually tapped the window to be specific... was when a car driver tried to squeeze into the cycle lane I was using a long while back.

mateotu

+1 for the thumbs-up-and-smile technique. I stopped getting angry because of the wasted effort - if I get angry I can't think clearly about anything else for ages. So I tried to make each near miss a learning experience, and after a while I started to notice a definite lack of near misses ...

Then I found out that, statistically, the more cyclists there are, the safer it is to cycle. So now my philosophy is: every ride is an advert for the awesomeness of cycling

Manxman_Ste

Sounds like good advice people, i'll keep the middle finger firmly tucked away.

Cycling on the road is certainly a learning curve, but it's not just the physical riding itself, but also the etiquette and knowing the best way to deal with a situation. Hopefully in time it'll become second nature cause i love riding....nothing like getting somewhere on your own steam, motivation and enjoyment of the bike.

Jay dubbleU

NGale wrote:

we can be out own worse enemies as well.

If you want a decent cycle ride than don't bother going on the Camel Trail between Bodmin and Padstow. Firstly I couldn't use my own bike and had to rent a hateful piece of junk of a steal framed mountian bike which wasn't fit for a car boot sale.

secondly the trail is full of your typical fair weather cyclists who would never set foot on a bike unless they were on holida. No sense of basic cycle path displine, I was shouted at for over taking three idiots who decided to cycle three abreast, apparently I had no rightto say excuse me (politely) or go any faster than them.

Saturday I realised that while I may be just starting out I am at least serious about my cycling and I have started to become one of the elitist snobs

Welcome do the dark side young jeddiah 8)

NGale

Jay dubbleU wrote:

NGale wrote:

we can be out own worse enemies as well.

If you want a decent cycle ride than don't bother going on the Camel Trail between Bodmin and Padstow. Firstly I couldn't use my own bike and had to rent a hateful piece of junk of a steal framed mountian bike which wasn't fit for a car boot sale.

secondly the trail is full of your typical fair weather cyclists who would never set foot on a bike unless they were on holida. No sense of basic cycle path displine, I was shouted at for over taking three idiots who decided to cycle three abreast, apparently I had no rightto say excuse me (politely) or go any faster than them.

Saturday I realised that while I may be just starting out I am at least serious about my cycling and I have started to become one of the elitist snobs

Welcome do the dark side young jeddiah 8)

I think I need to have a word with myself, I am almost ashamed

It's my cycling buddies fault, I blame him, he got me into the lycra, it's been downhill every since then

Jay dubbleU

It's a slippery slope.......................

NGale

Jay dubbleU wrote:

It's a slippery slope.......................

and I felt like a complete t**t on saturday riding the Camel Trail on a trashy mountian bike wearing lycra shorts, felt like such a chav :shock:

weirdly I do quite like the lyrca even though it does make my bum look big

sarajoy

NGale wrote:

weirdly I do quite like the lyrca even though it does make my bum look big

Nothing wrong with ample arses in abundance!!

I was just in lycra on my lower half myself today, I had put normal shorts on top as usual but the new pair were a trifle tight and so I took them off half way as the seams pulled in when bent over... My mate could then see my pink-hearted knickers through the lycra :shock:

...yes yes, I wear knick-knacks underneath, no need to tell me I shouldn't, I already know!

NGale

sarajoy wrote:

NGale wrote:

weirdly I do quite like the lyrca even though it does make my bum look big

Nothing wrong with ample arses in abundance!!

I was just in lycra on my lower half myself today, I had put normal shorts on top as usual but the new pair were a trifle tight and so I took them off half way as the seams pulled in when bent over... My mate could then see my pink-hearted knickers through the lycra :shock:


yep afraid I have to wear knickers underneath, can't do the commando thing like half of the guys I go cycling with. 20 blokes one female, all very distracting :roll:

Manxman_Ste

i wear lycra under my baggies.....still not got the guts to rock up at work in skin-tights....work mates would have afield day :shock:

And as a newbie i'm still not convinced by all this no pants stuff...maybe its a psychological thing, but i'm a man who needs his pants!!

NGale

Manxman_Ste wrote:

i wear lycra under my baggies.....still not got the guts to rock up at work in skin-tights....work mates would have afield day :shock:

And as a newbie i'm still not convinced by all this no pants stuff...maybe its a psychological thing, but i'm a man who needs his pants!!

nope most of this lot I cycle with are just show offs, pants do not come into the equasion. Navy boys for you, all trying to prove something :roll:

Bassjunkieuk

Manxman_Ste wrote:

i wear lycra under my baggies.....still not got the guts to rock up at work in skin-tights....work mates would have afield day :shock:

And as a newbie i'm still not convinced by all this no pants stuff...maybe its a psychological thing, but i'm a man who needs his pants!!

As I've never tried to have anything on underneath my lycra I can't say it would be beneficial but I'm not sure if I could even fit most of my boxer shorts underneath without some unsightly bunching!! I have a few pairs of tigher boxer briefs (the wife loves them!) but even then it's adding an extra layer and potentially something else that could chaff :shock:

As for all you ladies worried about your bums in lycra........

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5V7DjWIQRxQ

I've never understood the fascination with looking like a walking skeleton, I much prefer someone with some meat on their bones :-D

NGale

Bassjunkieuk wrote:

Manxman_Ste wrote:

i wear lycra under my baggies.....still not got the guts to rock up at work in skin-tights....work mates would have afield day :shock:

And as a newbie i'm still not convinced by all this no pants stuff...maybe its a psychological thing, but i'm a man who needs his pants!!

As I've never tried to have anything on underneath my lycra I can't say it would be beneficial but I'm not sure if I could even fit most of my boxer shorts underneath without some unsightly bunching!! I have a few pairs of tigher boxer briefs (the wife loves them!) but even then it's adding an extra layer and potentially something else that could chaff :shock:

As for all you ladies worried about your bums in lycra........

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5V7DjWIQRxQ

I've never understood the fascination with looking like a walking skeleton, I much prefer someone with some meat on their bones :-D

ah but there's meat and then there flabby.

although I have to say the cycling has helped my butt over the past few weeks. Also have thighs of steel these days :shock:

sarajoy

NGale wrote:

although I have to say the cycling has helped my butt over the past few weeks. Also have thighs of steel these days :shock:

Blokey reckoned he could feel a difference in mine already

NGale

sarajoy wrote:

NGale wrote:

although I have to say the cycling has helped my butt over the past few weeks. Also have thighs of steel these days :shock:

Blokey reckoned he could feel a difference in mine already

haven't had that compliment yet from any of the guys, but most of them have noticed that I'm not breathing out of me arse after 20 miles (or at least I am, I just hide it well now)

never mind I await that compliment

sarajoy

Do any of them regularly caress your bottom?

NGale

sarajoy wrote:

Do any of them regularly caress your bottom?

only one and that was for professional reasons because I had saddle sore :shock:

sarajoy

That's what /he/ told you...

NGale

sarajoy wrote:

That's what /he/ told you...

Mind you I did have to return the favour when he came off his bike during a race and ended up with road rash on his backside and thighs. he was not chuffed when I had to cut his shorts off him.

I was there in a first aid capacity, but strangely enough I was the only one who was allowed anywhere near him