Comments on: Both Sides of the Windshield

By: Jeff

Jeff — Sun, 27 Aug 2006 13:15:50 +0000

I’m a roadie who lives in Madison, WI and over the years I have had all sorts of encounters with drivers. Some of my favorites are the swerve towards me (intentional) followed by the finger. Nowadays this move has largely been replaced by the swerve (unintentional) while the driver talks away on his/her cell. Few drivers have mastered the needed dexterity to pull off the swerve (intentional) with finger, while on the cell, for this we can be grateful.I have also had all sorts of derogatory comments yelled at me. Often it is something like "Get off the *%@&* road you &*%#! or simply @$$+0!* which translated I think means "Nice pants". By far the most curious comment I had directed my way while riding my bike was during an extended out of the saddle climb in the hilly roads to the SW of our city. Two young bucks in a pickup yelled "Get a horse!" In a larger context with the lyrics from the country song "Save a horse, ride a cowboy", given the choice of the three, I would rather ride my bike, YMMV. I have contemplated all sorts of revenge scenarios or other expression of my "rights" but come back to a passive attitude based on kindness. This comes mostly from the conclusion that it is the actions of a few @$$&0*$ on both sides of the windshield that make the situation worse for all of us.I think the problem, here in the States, is largely compounded by the relative emminent domain on the roads that the automobile has enjoyed. I will assert that the problem of road rage will only get worse if we don’t all strive hard to get along as we have more cars on the roads with drivers who have longer commutes (housing prices, Baby) and more individuals chosing cycling as an excellent form of recreation. These country roads we enjoy here now in Madison won’t be in the middle of nowhere forever.We travelled in Europe last year and I remember one situation (amongst many) in Italy where remarkable cycling tolerance was demonstrated. We were on the road to visit Sienna and a cyclist was in front of two or three cars waiting patiently to pass. The road was only two lanes and quite winding as we travrsed the Tuscan countryside. I took us a a good 10 minutes or so to finally get our turn to pass. No one yelled nasty insults adressing the riders choice of clothing or possible questionable sexual preference. It was a pleasant surprise. But boy, do those Italian drivers know exactly how wide their cars are from years of driving on narrow roads. Two feet clearance max!I have an idea to improve cycling relations in our area, but it has met lackluster approval amongst my cycling friends. I suggest that we coerce a peloton of coeds on mopeds (we have lots and lots here in Madison) to cruise en mass on the well travelled country roads that the cyclists use as their main routes. Imagine, a group fifty or so strong, no helmets, cell phone in one hand, cruising and gabbing at 25mph all the while leaving a nasty cloud of exhaust behind from their inefficient two stoke engines. Kinda like a "Critical Mass" for mopeds. Perhaps we should entice them all to perform this activity with an Ann Taylor Loft gift certificate? I think the effect would be dramatic. "Well, we used to hate the cyclists who would ride in a group 3 or 4 wide and not let us pass. But compared to these damn mopeds!"I think the main point of my coffee fueled diatribe is we have to all work hard to get along, share the road, and try extra hard to ameliorate the actions of the few who make things worse on both sides.jw

By: Unknown

Unknown — Fri, 10 Mar 2006 21:48:00 +0000

http://www.wall32.comYOUR WEB PAGE**!!Yellow Text Click For Open The Pictures!!**(nice spaces and pics!!!)
´´´´´´´´¶¶¶¶´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´¶¶´´´´¶¶¶¶¶´´¶¶¶¶´¶¶¶¶´´´´´´´´¶´´´´´´´´´´¶¶¶¶´¶¶´´´´¶´´´´´´´¶´´´´´´´´´´¶´¶¶¶¶¶¶´´´¶´´´´´´¶´´´´´´´´´´¶¶¶¶¶´´´¶¶¶¶¶´´´´´¶´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶´´´´¶´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´¶¶¶¶¶´´´¶¶¶´´´´´¶´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´¶´´´´´¶´´´´¶¶´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´¶´´´´´¶¶´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´¶¶´´´´¶´´´´¶¶¶´´´´´´´´´¶¶¶´´´´¶¶´´´¶¶´´´´´´´¶¶´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´´¶¶¶´´´´´´´´´¶¶¶´´´´´´´´´´´´´¶¶¶´´´´´´´¶¶¶¶¶´¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶´´´´´´´´´¶´´´´¶¶¶¶¶´´´´¶¶¶¶´´´¶´´´´´´´´¶´´´´¶¶¶´¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶´´´¶¶¶´´´´´´´¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶´´¶¶¶¶¶´´´¶¶´´´´¶´´´´´´¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶´´´´´´´¶´´´¶´´´´´´´´´¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶´´´´´´´´¶´´´´¶´´´´´´´´¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶´´´´´´´´¶´´´´¶¶´´´´´´´¶¶´´´´¶¶´´´´´´¶¶´´´´´´´¶¶¶¶¶¶¶´´´´´´´´¶¶¶¶¶¶´´´´´

By: Unknown

Unknown — Wed, 28 Sep 2005 19:39:22 +0000

I don’t hate cyclists, I hate people. Well, not all people. I was driving in Ft. Collins the other day and had a run in with a cyclist. We were both in cars. I was in my Honda and he in his Range Rover. A bright yellow Range Rover with a bright yellow bike on a rack. I turned into traffic and had one block in heavy traffic to take the left that I wanted to take, I saw a big enough space in front of the range rover and went for it. Fort Collins has become a bit over populated in the past couple years and driving has changed a bit. People are starting to accept the fact that sometimes you have to let people in front of your car from time to time. If you are in a hurry and someone cuts in front of you, you can except it or loose your mind. This guy waited for a solid 30 seconds before making a big deal about where I had positioned my car. He passed and gave me the evil eye. I think he brought his cyclist attitude to the car. That’s okay. I just wish that all drivers remembered the last mistake they made behind the wheel (unless the make no mistakes behind the wheel) the next time they loose it when someone else makes a mistake or a lane change in front of them. I don’t think that all cyclists are idiots. I imagine that those cyclists that drive crazy on bikes probably drive crazy in cars too. A truck once hit me when I was on a motorcycle; it wrecked my summer, and the bike. I try to be nice to people when I’m driving or not, some people can’t be nice in either situation.

By: Unknown

Unknown — Tue, 30 Aug 2005 04:38:08 +0000

I have heard that it is illegal in GA (my home state) for cyclists to ride more than two wide on any road. I haven’t actually looked it up, but it seems like a pretty common sense idea to me. Unless you’re trying to avoid debris or potholes, why give motorists a reason to get mad. Being a relatively new cyclist, I have yet to encounter much of the nightmarish aggressive behavior that others have. I do make it a habit to stay on lightly traveled rural roads, though. Of course the last person to buzz me on a group ride got quite a surprise. What the absurdly fat woman in the minivan didn’t realize was that we had an honest to goodness pro cyclist in the group that could chase her down. I’m guessing that she was pretty surprised to learn that she couldn’t drop him even when she was topping 45 mph!

By: Unknown

Unknown — Tue, 30 Aug 2005 01:24:15 +0000

Very interesting discussion. Timely, too. Look what showed up in today’s (8/29) Seattle P-I: http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/transportation/238184_bikecarinto.htmlSomeone over there reading your blog?

By: Zed

Zed — Mon, 29 Aug 2005 19:05:01 +0000

The comments on here might just frighten me away from riding on the roads again … or not. I have a hard time with any motorist who thinks he or she has a monopoly on the road. I’ve been yelled at by a motorist for riding on the sidewalk (because he almost killed me when didn’t even blink, let alone stop, at my crosswalk) and I’ve been flipped off by motorists on open farm roads (the roads where you see one car every half hour), though I think my neighborhood is better than most.I think that kind of treatment is ridiculous, and I’d like motorists to know how talented we cyclists are at memorizing license plate numbers. It isn’t optional for cyclists to ride on the road, IT’S REQUIRED!!! We don’t have a choice (at least not in the great state of Idaho). I get ticked off when I have to drive at sub-speed limit speeds as well, so I really do understand, but unless there’s some huge emergency, get over it!!! One motorist particularly cheezed me off after yelling at me for riding down the street beside my apartment. If you don’t like it, take a different route–it’s MY residence you’re driving past. Believe me, we’d be riding faster if we could. I, for one, would love to be able to pedal my bike at 50 mph just to keep up with traffic. Sorry, but I’m trying my best.Municipal governments need to allot greater funding to striping bike lanes (IT’S JUST PAINT!!!!) and drivers need to get more in the habit of obeying traffic laws (because they really do exist for good reason!!!). Kudos to my municipality, the group who striped their first two bike lanes this past year.You know the situation’s dire when the most well-known cyclist in the world (Mr. Armstrong) still has to deal with being swerved at and cussed out. I have a hard time siding with any motorist who points a finger at people for staying fit and having harmless fun. I hope my children enjoy more bike freedom and safety than I do.

By: Fat Cyclist

Fat Cyclist — Mon, 29 Aug 2005 16:47:20 +0000

wow, lots of thinking has gone into the responses here. seems like we have consensus around a couple of things: – cyclists who ride 2- and especially 3-abreast in traffic need to cut it out. right now. – cyclists and anti-cyclists aren’t going to see this issue eye-to-eye, ever. which means cyclists have to watch out, because bikes always lose in a physical confrontation. unless the car is a yugo (remember those?), in which case all bets are off.

By: Bill

Bill — Mon, 29 Aug 2005 16:33:47 +0000

I thought this was an extremely good POV for both sides of the argument. I’m fairly new to cycling, but I see both sides of this coin all the time…I’ve had drivers pull out in front (and across my path) of me while they were looking me in the eye, as well as the numbskull cyclists who shimmy around traffic and cross intersections without stopping.I forwarded this entry to my local bike coalition…thought it was very good reading for the cycling community.THANKS! :)

By: Karen

Karen — Mon, 29 Aug 2005 16:29:13 +0000

I have seen and experienced the bikers that Becky is complaining of. We all have. The ones who ride against the center line, the ones who ride three across, the ones who flip off every car that goes by. I’ve seen them, but I am not one of them and do not deserve the kind of pigeon-holing that drivers like her tend to do. And although I would rather just tie these drivers behind my mountain bike and drag them through the trails of Vermont by their necks, only after shoving a porcupine down their pants for good measure, I applaud your attempt at mapping out a rational respsonse. Too bad that it is probably wasted on people who are socially stunted, with long prison records.Too many people have died on the roads at the hands of these morons.

By: BikerMom36

BikerMom36 — Mon, 29 Aug 2005 14:21:56 +0000

I feel your pain! This also happens to those of us who travel by motorbike. It never fails, I get some moron right on my back tire at a stop sign, or tailgating me as I’m driving (and 9 times out of 10 I am doing more than the speed limit, so why tailgate?). As soon as people see you on two wheels, motorized or not, they treat you as though you are infringing on their space. I suggest a big piece of cardboard attached to your back seat with neon letters – BACK OFF – CRAZY PERSON DRIVING! Personally, I tend to drop my gears quickly, which causes my bike to backfire – scares the snot out of the tailgaters every time!!