Give em grief or water off a ducks back

petemadoc

It happens to us all

You're coming up to a junction and some daft ar5e doesn't see you and pulls right out into your path.

A white van overtakes with cm to spare then brakes hard and turns left in front of you.

Some to55er beeps because you're "in their way", ie on the road.

So do you shout something, "watch where you''re going love" or $%$££ or pedal up to them and have a polite word.

or

Do you just accept that's the way it is and it's better left alone, not worth the trouble and a possible confrontation with a plank.

rick_chasey

PeteMadoc wrote:

It happens to us all

You're coming up to a junction and some daft ar5e doesn't see you and pulls right out into your path.

A white van overtakes with cm to spare then brakes hard and turns left in front of you.

Some to55er beeps because you're "in their way", ie on the road.

So do you shout something, "watch where you''re going love" or $%$££ or pedal up to them and have a polite word.

or

Do you just accept that's the way it is and it's better left alone, not worth the trouble and a possible confrontation with a plank.

Used to be the first one.

Now it's the second.

You live and learn eh?

SimonAH

As much as it should be the latter I'm afraid I now and then lapse into the yell of invective. I'm trying though, I really am.

Initialised

Depends on the mood, mostly just shrug it off these days.

UndercoverElephant

Like most people, I suspect, it's a combination of the two. I do try to make sure I praise motorists for being nice much more than I tell off the rubbish ones.

Flyingbogey

I usually give an instinctive reaction if I'm genuinely surprised but I don't often go hunting them down for 'afters'. One exception recently when I was nearly left hooked at the BP at Tooting Bec. I went onto the forecourt with red mist descending. The guy held his hand up and said he was sorry. Totally took the wind from my sails. Apology accepted and move on.

mudcow007

i try an shrug it off....but i sometimes find my inner man-imal is released and i'm foaming at the mouth

im trying to be stronger though

notsoblue

UndercoverElephant wrote:

I do try to make sure I praise motorists for being nice much more than I tell off the rubbish ones.

Thats a good attitude to have.

petemadoc

I used to get annoyed and shout stuff but rarely do now. Some dopey guy pulled right into my path this morning and I heard gasps from some people stood at a bus stop. I did shout at the guy to look where he was going but he just drove on and still didn't see or hear me :roll:

rick_chasey

Having said that - just because I don't give a reaction doesn't mean it's always 'water off a duck's back'....

Kieran_Burns

You have to remember the adage that you should not attribute to malicious intent what can be adequately explained by incompetence.

Koncordski

Walk away. It doesn't matter who is right or wrong, you are far more vulnerable and you will come off much worse if it gets out of hand.

Didn't there used to be a phrase along the lines of, "Any landing you walk away from is a good landing."

I take a similar view with my commuting.

Tricycleboy

If i am parped at for being 'in the way' i will almost always give the offender the finger. Thats not incompetance- its ignorance and aggression. The rest of the time i will usually just give a disappointed shake of the head and keep going, unless i've been genuinely endangered and had to make evasive manouvers rather than just slowing down for example.

People on mobiles driving like c0cks on the other hand.... :evil:

rick_chasey

Koncordski wrote:

Walk away. It doesn't matter who is right or wrong, you are far more vulnerable and you will come off much worse if it gets out of hand.

Didn't there used to be a phrase along the lines of, "Any landing you walk away from is a good landing."

I take a similar view with my commuting.

'A miss is as good as a mile' is the turn of phrase I was told was appropriate.

UndercoverElephant

notsoblue wrote:

UndercoverElephant wrote:

I do try to make sure I praise motorists for being nice much more than I tell off the rubbish ones.

Thats a good attitude to have.

Learned it from watching Supernanny. Really bad drivers have to go and sit on a step to think about what they've done.

MonkeyMonster

UndercoverElephant wrote:

notsoblue wrote:

UndercoverElephant wrote:

I do try to make sure I praise motorists for being nice much more than I tell off the rubbish ones.

Thats a good attitude to have.

Learned it from watching Supernanny. Really bad drivers have to go and sit on a step to think about what they've done.

Indeed, I always try to hands up (red indian "how" gesture of thumbs up for good. patient or considerate drivers. That and a face mask makes for looking nonchalant while calling them anything.

flimflam_machine

Kieran_Burns wrote:

You have to remember the adage that you should not attribute to malicious intent what can be adequately explained by incompetence.

Hanlon's Razor. It's also worth bearing in mind that a car horn (or indeed bike bell) is simply to draw other people's attention to the presence of the car (or bike). It isn't necessarily used to berate other road users and it can be used simply to alert you to a car's presence. It would be nice if motorists kept this in mind too.

Thanking the good drivers and ignoring the bad is a good general principle since more calm on the road is a good thing. However, if somebody genuinely hasn't seen you then they're often quite shocked to know that they've done something dangerous, so a helpful "Take a look" doesn't usually offend. Conversely, if someone is a sufficient bell-end to be driving properly badly (as in the OP's white van scenario) then their behaviour isn't going to be miraculously changed by a dressing down from a complete stranger.

daviesee

I have three thoughts on this.

1. Taking the karma route is by far the best option. There are no "afters" and you are not wound up for the rest of the day.

2. Giving praise (even if it only for doing what should be expected) might result in future goodwill from surrounding drivers.

3. Sometimes I can't help myself and the red mist descends. Relieves intial stress but leaves me in a bad mood all day :evil:

DonDaddyD

I have descended into a such a rage that I dribbled.

I have just quietly sighed and carried on riding.

Depends on my mood and circumstances.

rick_chasey

DonDaddyD wrote:

I have descended into a such a rage that I dribbled.

.

That sounds a lot less angry than I think you intended.

msmancunia

I try to let it drop, mainly because the the traffic near me is usually fast moving, and they're gone before I can do anything. But if I seriously think I'm going to wind up dead because of someone else's stupidity then I will give them grief.

reformedfatty

Maliciousness gets a reaction. Stupidity doesn't.

Although I may be underestimating how stupid people are.

CiB

So standing on the car bonnet with bike raised above your head as if it's about to come crashing through the twunt's windscreen isn't a valid option then? Ooops.

I'd like to say karma & move on, but on the rare occasions I do get hassle I'll usually let the referee know I've been fouled, as Martin O'Neill used to say.

redvee

I tend to wave my arm, with an open hand, in disgust as it's rare I catch up with the culprit, except for the time with SuperMario

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YmK6Z52tcY

rick_chasey

CiB wrote:

So standing on the car bonnet with bike raised above your head as if it's about to come crashing through the twunt's windscreen isn't a valid option then? Ooops.

I saw something similar.

Across the road from me, as I was stationary, a car gently bumped into a stationary cyclist in front.

Cyclist turns around, gets off bike and throws it onto the windscreen of the car, before exploding in a shower of verbal rage.

SteppenHerring

Sometimes all you'll do is turn an idiot into an angry idiot. This is not a good outcome.

CiB

Rick Chasey wrote:

CiB wrote:

So standing on the car bonnet with bike raised above your head as if it's about to come crashing through the twunt's windscreen isn't a valid option then? Ooops.

I saw something similar.

Across the road from me, as I was stationary, a car gently bumped into a stationary cyclist in front.

Cyclist turns around, gets off bike and throws it onto the windscreen of the car, before exploding in a shower of verbal rage.

I've never done, just fancy the idea. I did have a chap nearly wipe me out when I was cycling home from school once past the end of the motorway slip road, and had my bike over my head ready to lob it at him before I decided that it wasn't worth ruining a bike over. Got a full-blooded apology off him though.

Anonymous

I always give a wave to a car who lets me pull out.

Sometimes, it is my fault, so I give a wave of apology.

Sometimes I am hooted at by irate (inconsiderate) drivers, so I give a wave for not running me down.

Kieran_Burns

I was just thinking - you could always throw a duck at them. Kind of an ironic retaliation.

rick_chasey

I remember I got knocked off by a bus, who carried on.

I caught up with said bus 100m later (you wonder why he was in such a hurry) and was, as calmy as I could (not very) explained to him what he did.

All he could say was "water off a duck's back".

In fairness, he didn't say that when the police turned up to his place, nor did he say that in court, nor did he when he lost his job.

nameinuse

I find I'm much more placid now I've got the camera. It mostly removes the (fairly useless, sometimes dangerous) urge to go and explain to a driver exactly what aspect of their behaviour renders them a failure as a person... I just wave a hand or shout if I think I might actually get hit (not usually voluntarily) then upload to YouTube later.