Was it my fault?

PBo
PBo Posts: 2,493
edited January 2011 in Commuting chat
Right.....I was actually driving my car! ("burn him!"etc.)

Sheffield outer ring road, 40 mph. Two lanes, heads uphill to a gyratory with dual carriageway out of Sheffield, and opens out to three lanes a while before the said gyratory. At this point left lane is left turn only, middle lane is straight over, right lane is straight or right.

So, further down the hill pass a cyclist - giving him plenty of room natch - , and take up middle lane ready to go straight over. The gyratory is fairly fast, and you have to be pretty alert to catch a gap, or you wait forever.

Anyway, I'm front of the queue, neck straining to the right to anticipate a space. Finally, get my chance, look forward as I start to release clutch......and bloody cyclist has snuck up my inside, pulled away more deftly (of course), but hasn't really maintained an equivalent line and is now kind of cutting across my line. Have to stop, and now have half of car sticking out into gyratory. Fortunately still enough time to go again, with JUST enough space to allow me to alter line to miss cyclist and remove myself out of line of traffic coming around.

Thoughts?

(BTW, whilst I do cycle round it myself at times, there is a cycle underpass!!!!)

Comments

  • nation
    nation Posts: 609
    This is precisely why I take primary and don't filter at roundabouts.
  • davis
    davis Posts: 2,506
    Technically your fault I'm afraid. You're expected to look where you're going. But in this situation, pretty much nobody does. I'm pretty much certain I don't (although I hope I might have a bit more awareness that the cyclist was *somewhere*)
    Sometimes parts break. Sometimes you crash. Sometimes it’s your fault.
  • greg66_tri_v2.0
    greg66_tri_v2.0 Posts: 7,172
    In that situation as a cyclist, if you filter up to the roundabout, you filter on the roundabout (ie you ride n the dotted lines). Mixing filtering when it suits you to pass traffic and primary when you're at your slowest (pulling away) is poor form IMO.
    Swim. Bike. Run. Yeah. That's what I used to do.

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    Bike 2-A
  • Wallace1492
    Wallace1492 Posts: 3,707
    Poor cycling by the rider. See it all too often. However if you hit him it would have been your fault.... you after all are in a car! :wink:
    "Encyclopaedia is a fetish for very small bicycles"
  • Greg T
    Greg T Posts: 3,266
    Bad riding.
    Fixed gear for wet weather / hairy roadie for posing in the sun.

    What would Thora Hurd do?
  • PBo
    PBo Posts: 2,493
    Wallace1492 wrote:
    Poor cycling by the rider. See it all too often. However if you hit him it would have been your fault.... you after all are in a car! :wink:

    yeah - and to make it worse I was in a foul mood! Was on my way back from Toysrus, who wouldn't take something back, because it wasn't in its packaging.

    The packaging in question was that plastic moulded stuff that gets hermetically sealed. You need a chainsaw to get in, and then it has razor sharp edges! How could I return it? How?? grrrrrr
  • Kieran_Burns
    Kieran_Burns Posts: 9,757
    PBo wrote:
    The packaging in question was that plastic moulded stuff that gets hermetically sealed. You need a chainsaw to get in, and then it has razor sharp edges! How could I return it? How?? grrrrrr

    overarm.
    Chunky Cyclists need your love too! :-)
    2009 Specialized Tricross Sport
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    Proud CX Pervert and quiet roadie. 12 mile commuter
  • CiB
    CiB Posts: 6,098
    PBo wrote:
    Wallace1492 wrote:
    Poor cycling by the rider. See it all too often. However if you hit him it would have been your fault.... you after all are in a car! :wink:

    yeah - and to make it worse I was in a foul mood! Was on my way back from Toysrus, who wouldn't take something back, because it wasn't in its packaging.

    The packaging in question was that plastic moulded stuff that gets hermetically sealed. You need a chainsaw to get in, and then it has razor sharp edges! How could I return it? How?? grrrrrr
    If you're returning it because it's faulty they can't refuse on the basis of no packing. If i's because you just don't like it, they're in the right.

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