This morning's commute and other commuting stories

Well, last nights ride home would have been infinitely better had I fitted mudgaurds - silly me for trusting the Met Office.

Got in happy I'd managed to avoid the worst of the rain but thinking 'where the hell did that wind come from?!' Then checked my weather app and it clearly said '40mph' for most of this morning. Oh.

loving my newly fitted 'guards this morning! riding through puddles is fun!

Hard core headwind and a bit of sideways rain.

Saw a crushed scooter and the wheels out of an artic lorry outside Stockwell tube. dont think the rider was srsly injured tho

Rainpocalypse never appeared. Mostly cross-tail wind.

drywind/10

almost got hit by a car this morning because the fella decided indicating was optional and turned across my path. It was all very slow speed as he was heading around a sharp corner but had to move out the way as I was in his path. There was no crash and no one touched anything, but I went to speak to him as he stopped. With a straight face, and genuinely seriously, he said that I had "nearly killed him" which literally made me laugh out loud (and the nice lady with a pushchair who backed me up). What was worse was the cars waiting shaking their heads at me, as if it was my fault. I pointed out that the other car didn't indicate and therefore to direct their scorn to him but got a: "you shouldn't be on the roads without insurance/tax or a helmet, no one indicates off this part of the road, if you were a driver you'd know that". You can't reason with knuckle draggers like that so I went my own way without replying only to get a punish pass from the prick. WAFC.

Wow, blood boiling. I actually think it's not worth bothering to talk to people in these situations unless there's been an accident and you need to get details.

The initial guy I was ok with, he seemed very young and I think he was worried his taxi company boss would be angry with him etc. The second fella was a total arse - I am a driver and I do use that section of the road so know most people don't indicate. Doesn't make it right though.

so I went my own way without replying only to get a punish pass from the prick

Right. If I caught him again after that, I'd get my keys out and leave a nice expensive present all around his car. That's the point where I tend to lose all patience with those assholes.

Luckily I leave my D lock at the station otherwise that would have been hurled at his back window. The whole delay way probably about 30 seconds so to get that angry angry is insane.

r/iamverybadass

Also this:

he said that I had "nearly killed him"

is almost Trump-level bullshit. Makes me mad just to think about it.

nah it would be r/iamastupidass if I'd done that.

...and then he drives at you at speed ...and then you pull his wing mirror off ...and then you both end up wrestling to death in the gutter.

I think riding away with a sense of moral superiority is a better move. No of the times that I've lost it and called bad driver a prick have resulted in them apologising and amending their behaviour. I have had someone drive at me though after I (justifiably) shouted abuse...

Assholes don't become less assholey when their assholiness is pointed out to them, usually the opposite is true.

Or get a camera, record the next incident, submit to police and then relax in the smug knowledge that (s)he'll hopefully get a NIP/fine/points for shit driving.

...and then he drives at you at speed

That's avoidable.

I think riding away with a sense of moral superiority is a better move.

Nope, completely disagree. I think people behaving in an assholish way (like, actual assholes, not minor mistakes or whatever) should encounter a stiff headwind to at least make them aware that other people will not just roll over and take it. I'm done with being nice and morally superior, if I have a problem with people on the road, they will notice it.

Again, this is for actually bad cases, otherwise I'd spend my entire commute seething with rage - and actually, 99% of the time I'm quite happy and just enjoying the cycling.

@Greenbank

Or get a camera

Yeah I'm considering this, especially now that there are cheaper GoPro knock-offs that actually work pretty well.

...and then he drives at you at speed

That's avoidable.

Not always: https://road.cc/content/news/252415-jail-driver-who-made-u-turn-rammed-cyclist-then-sped

What are you advocating? Vigilantism?

Uh... where are you getting that idea from?

Here possibly?

Right. If I caught him again after that, I'd get my keys out and leave a nice expensive present all around his car. That's the point where I tend to lose all patience with those assholes.

That's not vigilantism, that's plain old revenge.

He’s banned from driving for 3 whole years. What more do you want?

Poor sod

He’s banned from driving for 3 whole years. What more do you want?

The post I replied to said that being driven at at speed was avoidable. I was simply giving an example of how it isn't always avoidable.

(And in this case a custodial sentence was inevitable. The driver in question had already lost his license for previous driving offences, so taking it away for longer was unlikely to act as a deterrent.)

Yeah it seems like almost every time someone actually goes to jail for injuring or killing a cyclist, it turns out it's mostly due to other charges. It's a fucking joke.

The overall message is pretty clear: the 'system' does not have your back. You cycle at your own risk. All the stuff about wanting to promote cycling is empty talk, and 'the government' / powers that be / whatever you want to call 'the man' as a whole has absolutely no intention of really changing anything in the way traffic works. Not only here, but in 95% of all countries in the world.

"When you seek revenge, you must first dig two graves and fill them
with cold dishes".

Lee White Van Cleef.