HGV troubles

Giraffoto

So there I was, yesterday evening at about nine, cycling along Wendover High Street after a couple of fun hours up in the woods, when this pillock of a lorry driver (in an articulated lorry with Londis written all over it, no less) decided he's going to overtake me. Of course, the built-in and very well founded inferiority complex means that all other road users have to be overtaken or intimidated, so he embarks on this manoeuvre without looking up the road - that's Due Care and Attention, in the legal phrase - and fails to spot a traffic island decorated with a couple of sign posts and a Keep Left bollard about 100m along. He did notice it when he was right alongside, so he cut in sharply - his front end onto the pavement sharply -and came to a shuddering halt with a wheel or two on the traffic island and one on the pavement. I hopped onto the pavement, crossed in front of him, and told him what a d!ckhead he was.

I'm kind of kicking myself now because if I'd kept him in that situation for another thirty seconds, a police car would have come past in the other direction, but anyway - HGV drivers, eh? It's not like there's even a Londis anywhere around there.

mrmonkfinger

shame you don't have the reg plate

still, at least you're ok

cooldad

Absolutely right, every HGV driver is a dickhead and every cyclist is awesome.

Giraffoto

mrmonkfinger wrote:

shame you don't have the reg plate

still, at least you're ok

And there's nothing wrong with my memory either - YT61 FML

cooldad wrote:

Absolutely right, every HGV driver is a dickhead and every cyclist is awesome.

I realize you're being ironic, and will readilly admit that the true figure is closer to 99.999% in both cases

Abra

Yeah I’d be grateful for my health if I was you! 20-30 meters further up and that story could have been a lot worse! :shock: :roll:

rockmonkeysc

Thats way I insist that downhill & freeride are far safer than road riding even though my road riding friends think all mountain biking is dangerous.
I did break a couple ribs when I hit a badger which run out in front of me once, I guess thats as close as I have come to a RTA.

bails87

The reg is useless in a 'justice' sense, the police/CPS won't do anything unless you were killed or seriously injured...even then I doubt they'd do a great deal.

Re the difference between MTBing and road biking, I tend to push quite hard on the MTB but know where my limits are so generally stay on the bike, and if I don't I tend not to be injured beyond a graze or bruise. Whereas I've been hit twice by dopey drivers, at fairly low speeds in both cases, but it's kept me off the bike for around a month each time. Tarmac hurts. And it's frustrating because it's someone else's idiocy that's caused it, not me being super gnar.

Abra

bails87 wrote:

The reg is useless in a 'justice' sense, the police/CPS won't do anything unless you were killed or seriously injured...even then I doubt they'd do a great deal.

Correct, but if it really p*ssed you off I'm sure Londis would be happy to hear about the incident. Its there business plastered down the side of the lorry at the end of the day!

cooldad

If I was the driver I'd just say this idiot hoody came bouncing off the kerb without looking, all cyclists are dickheads.

Giraffoto

Abra wrote:

I'm sure Londis would be happy to hear about the incident

I've contacted them and will be interested to see what comes back . . .

and RockmonkeySC wrote:

That's why I insist that downhill & freeride are far safer than road riding

Certainly in terms of deaths or serious injuries - although if you came up with a personal figure of "accidents per km covered" I can see off-road getting the higher number. Funnily enough, I thought I was overdoing it a bit on the steep path out of the woods about ten minutes before this all happened - 30-40km/h in a gravelly rut, that sort of thing

Giraffoto

cooldad wrote:

If I was the driver I'd just say this idiot hoody came bouncing off the kerb without looking, all cyclists are dickheads.

He'd be hard pressed to explain the cutting-in manoeuvre in those terms. All cyclists are still awesome

YeehaaMcgee

So, you had a lucky escape and all that, but...

Giraffoto wrote:

Of course, the built-in and very well founded inferiority complex means that all other road users have to be overtaken or intimidated

Would suggest you're basically as much of a prat as the HGV driver.

Giraffoto

YeehaaMcgee wrote:

So, you had a lucky escape and all that, but...

Giraffoto wrote:

Of course, the built-in and very well founded inferiority complex means that all other road users have to be overtaken or intimidated

Would suggest you're basically as much of a prat as the HGV driver.

I've found myself in the driver's situation - narrow village high street, cyclist tootling along it in front of me - plenty of times while driving. I wait. To do what this pillock did suggests something beyond basic incompetence, which he also amply demonstrated. "Inferiority complex" may not be a medical diagnosis, but it's got the flavour of what was going on here.

What he did could have killed me - thinking he's got an inferiority complex, or thinking that he drives like that to make himself feel less mediocre, is unlikely to hurt anyone much

jayson

In my personal experience truck drivers are quite patient and will wait for me to go by/whatever it is im doin, buses and taxis on the other hand..... :evil: :evil:

fyldesmurf

Otherside of the story today a HGV driver waited patiently behind me round a twisty country lane today until a pavement appeared which i was able to hop on to allow him to pass. he gave two hoots of thanks and everyone's safe and happy. tarring and brush and all that

bennett_346

^^^^

this happened to us the other day. HGV driver was behind us on a steep climb and couldnt squeeze past so we jumped on the path when we could and he tooted and gave the thumbs up. when we got to the shop he'd stopped at a mile up the hill he said something about how fast we got up there and had a bit of banter.

as we went up the next mile of hill he was behind us again so we moved onto the grass and kept riding up so he tooted a few times again to say thanks.

YeehaaMcgee

in a peculiar twist, I was followed patiently up a hill by a BMW today. When we got to the road junction at the top where I was turning right, and he was headed left, the driver looked as if he was struggling to see past me to see if the road was clear.
So I gave him a thumbs up and a wavey gesture which was meant to suggest "Go, it's clear for you, no traffic on this side".
But he just cheerfully waved back and gave a thumbs up in return
Anyway, I'm guessing it wasn't Surfmatt.

bennett_346

See, us BMW owners aren't all that bad as people make out!

:oops:

Sesquepidilian

I find HGV and Bus drivers are much more likely to appreciate my getting out of their way.

YeehaaMcgee

bennett_346 wrote:

See, us BMW owners aren't all that bad as people make out!

:oops:

Friendly, but a little dim

bennett_346

YeehaaMcgee wrote:

bennett_346 wrote:

See, us BMW owners aren't all that bad as people make out!

:oops:

Friendly, but a little dim

I did once have an Audi driver overtake me and sound the horn several times just to then pull into his driveway 10 yards later. I think people in Norway heard the swearing...

cooldad

Audi drivers are unfriendly and very dim. All of them, without exception. They are probably HGV drivers.

bails87

cooldad: you've got an A4 then?

I've also had the 'thanks' toot from HGV drivers, most of them are better than most car drivers, but on my first ever bike commute a foreign HGV overtook at 60ish with a few inches between me and the side of the truck. F***ing terrifying! :shock:

And one of the best passes I've had recently was from a lady in an M5, she hung back for ages, passed widely and calmly and returned my thumbs up before unleashing the V8!

cooldad

bails87 wrote:

cooldad: you've got an A4 then?

A TT, to get me in touch with my feminine side.

Just a Skoda unfortunately, but I am thinking of getting Audi badges and FU LED headlight thingies. Dickness here we come.

.blitz

would like to know why HGVs try to overtake one another on the motorway

diy

I've always found HGVs to be pretty courteous, particularly given the number of dick head cyclists who try to pass them on the inside when they are making turns.

To the OP.

Nothing stops you making a complaint to the police about the drive of said Mercedes wagon. They may have other complaints and will usually follow up with a letter to the RK saying they have had an allegation of driving without due care.

bails87

diy wrote:

I've always found HGVs to be pretty courteous, particularly given the number of dick head cyclists who try to pass them on the inside when they are making turns.

To the OP.

Nothing stops you making a complaint to the police about the drive of said Mercedes wagon. They may have other complaints and will usually follow up with a letter to the RK saying they have had an allegation of driving without due care.

I went to the police with video footage of a driver hitting me (changed lanes without looking or signalling) and was told that the driver had done nothing wrong because I wasn't injured!

milko9000

.blitz wrote:

would like to know why HGVs try to overtake one another on the motorway

I asked someone who knew, recently. Apparently because of the restrictions on how long a driver can be driving it is well worth their time to do it. I forget the exact maths, but it did make sense, annoyingly.

YeehaaMcgee

milko9000 wrote:

.blitz wrote:

would like to know why HGVs try to overtake one another on the motorway

I asked someone who knew, recently. Apparently because of the restrictions on how long a driver can be driving it is well worth their time to do it. I forget the exact maths, but it did make sense, annoyingly.

But they're restricted. To the same speed. So the only chance they have of overtaking is if the motorway curves right, making the middle or fast lane ever so slightly shorter.

milko9000

They're restricted to approx 56mph or whatever, but as you'll have seen by the fact they do eventually get around one another, in practice they can be 1-2mph faster than one another. Hills and such also make a difference it seems. Plus getting back up to speed after being forced to slow down by a slower truck takes ages, so they'll try everything to avoid it.

I'm not saying it's not annoying, it pisses me off being stuck around them. Just that purely selfishly for them, it makes sense.

Here we go, I dug out the maths I was given.

Under VOSA goods vehicle driving rules a driver can only drive 11 hours in one day

a 600 mile delivery at an average speed of 56mph will get you there in 10hrs 43minutes.

The same journey at an average speed of 53mph means you would have to stop and rest when you were 20minutes from your destination. If schedule was important the truck averaging the slower speed is going to deliver 12 hours later.

So 3 mph can make a a difference to haulers.
...
Trucks can do 56 regardless of load. A fully laden HGV is circa 44 tons and would do significantly more than 56mph sans limiter. They have immense torque. The problem is thst you have vehicles limited to less than 56 by the manufacturer because there is effectively a permissible range up to the 56mph maximum (much like your speedo being legally allowed to over read by 10% but never under), leading to 1/2moh increment overtakes. To compound this, some limiters are set lower than 56 in a bid to save fuel, again it's only a slow overtake; depends on the haulier.

cooldad

I have a lot of respect for truck drivers in general. I drive quite a bit, and it's painful enough driving a car around a big city. Driving a monster truck without committing genocide must be quite difficult.