Angry angry angry

yeah, but when doing any exercise your body releases endorphines too. and those make you happy.
but agression looms there too. i think its london, innit?
crowded, grey, smelly, and we re all squased in here, and always have somewhere to go very quickly.
im so much more chilled out when i ride in small and say, continental cities.

Nah, it's not just london. I used to turn into a right agressive sod on the bike in sheffield.

The adrenaline theory makes total sense to me. It's scary shit cycling in traffic so you get that whole survival edge thing going on, which in turn can make you quite agressive.

Anger is the new EPO

How long before it's banned?

dunno where else to write this but i need to write it down so it doesnt bother me all day.

-rant-
Hackney rd this morning, riding along minding my own business, huge white coach full of people flys past on my right hand side literally inches away from me. Totally shit my pants and the adrenaline starts flying so as he has stopped for traffic a few meters ahead i bang on his window and give the usual "you nearly killed me, look what you doing you cunt" barrage of abuse. Off i go, but here he comes again, in his huge, at least a few tonne coach skimming me at about 30mph, me on a bicycle him in a huge white monstrosity. So again i catch him up as hes had to slam on the breaks to stop for traffic, this time i go round to his drivers side and am practically lost for words as to what i could possibly say to this total neanderthal?? He doesnt seem bothered in the slightest that he was centimeters away from going home to his family this evening to tell them he killed a cyclist today, losing his job and his driving licence. He pulls away turning into me so i have to jump back onto the other side of the road and clips my bike almost taking it under the wheels!!

Just a few cars away i spot a police car in traffic so i roll over and tap on the window and ask if theyll go have a word with him as hes a liability on the road. All i get was "sorry we didnt see it, are you hurt, is your bike damaged?" neither of which were so basically they couldnt give a shit. Man so fucking mad, SO MAD!!

If someone in a car had been nearly forced off the road and intimidated by another car theyd have no problem stopping them for dangerous driving.

I didnt get his plates and there was no markings on the coach, i was way too angry and the red mist was flying. Need to learn to keep my head in these situaions and come away with useful info.

-rant over-

haaaaaaaaaa!

Matt did you google search "angry emo" on google image? I did yesterday and got the same picture.

Tickled my ribs somewhat...

Conan, i hate violence, but i think it's people like that that need to be physically told in some way, be it violent or passively, they need to be told properly.

Press the emergency stop/door release button? :P

Tonight I was just passing Old Street roundabout heading into Great Eastern, before the spit road there were some traffic before the lights, so I was in between two lanes, going at normal speed - Suddenly a woman just swing out in front of the car that I am about to pass without looking back at all. I slammed the break so hard I nearly flew out of my seat.

I shouted "Fucking look behind you, for fuck's sake", and all she could say was "sorrrrrry" (The word is so dragged out, it sounded like she didn't mean it). More abuse as I rode pass and she sent me off with a "fuck off"

Yeah, but shit happens all the time, I've been cycling for about 15 years in traffic, but occasionally I drive a car, it's no difference, it doesn't matter if I'm on a bike or in a car, eventually I end up in situations where the "other" driver/cyclist does something that I didn't predict and of course my gut feeling/reaction is that the other cunt is a cunt, I did nothing wrong. Thinking about it later on, many times I realise that the situation isn't all black'n'white. But it's all in the nature of being on the road, mistake number one is to expect people to follow rules or showing the least bit of respect. I always try to stay out of the way of moving objects that's larger than me, doesn't matter if I got right of way or not.. Kept me out of trouble so far..

Agreed, but you're unlikely to get killed to death if the situation happens in a car.

On a bike, you're looking at serious injury at the very least.

Sorry to hear about the Coach driving fucktard, Conan. There's a dude who drives a Terravision coach down Hackney Road like it's fucking Monza or something.

I was waiting at a junction and just in front of me was a dirty great yellow box. There was traffic queued to my left and no exit of the yellow box. Yet still some fuckwit entered the yellow box and then planted himself directly in front of me. Yes, you've guessed it: he got a loud and abusive lecture on what precisely the rules are for the yellow box, something along the lines of 'you don't enter the yellow box unless the exit is clear, or if you are waiting to turn right YOU TWAT'. Both windows were open so he got it in stereo.

Minor annoyance I know, but came at the end of a long, peaceful ride in the country and in the last sun of the summer and was just crash and stupid by the driver. He needed to learn the error of his ways, so I pointed them out with a dirty great club

when i get angry i remind myself that the oil is gonna run out soon. and then they will have to stop driving etc.

and that makes me smile.

then i think yeah but then there will be hungry people and probably anarchy.

and then i dont know what to think......

And then your chain will sieze up...

'Got it in stereo' lol.

DON'T TELL ME TO USE THE CYCLE LANE BY LEANING ON YOUR HORN AND POINTING TO THE PAVEMENT YOU HORSE-FACED BITCH. If your shame-faced chinless husband had any concept of the width of his vehicle he could have ovetaken me safely, cunts the pair of you.

(Well intentioned thoughts of witty comments/keeping my cool went out the window this morning, resulting in some ridiculous stand off for a minute of two, a bit of horn tooting, swearing and half the A3 having their journey delayed by a few minutes.)

...and breath.

we're only justified in getting angry if our lives are actually threatened by poor / agressive driving. A lot of the posts above are simply rants at drivers not obeying the rules. This (IMO) is not ok. I see literally dozens of examples of cyclists riding "badly" every day, breaking the highway code / traffic laws, and this includes most of the people I've ridden with on the forum. If we stick to the highway code, then personally I reckon cyclists (on average) are worse road users than car drivers (on average). But if you're not putting lives at risk, then a little bending of the rules is ok.

So don't get mad at drivers for bending the rules if it doesn't endanger you (or maybe, cyclists that you're riding with). Because if we go down that route, we justify the reverse, car drivers are justified at getting mad at you (and they're bigger and more dangerous). This road ends with a game of knifey-spooney, with cyclists holding the spoon. Mebbe ok for astute riders, but for every experienced cyclist on London's roads, there are half a dozen inexperienced, naive commuters who will feel the brunt of the consequences of our anger.

I'd jump lights if it's one of them junctions that stops all cars and lets peds go, if there's no peds kinda thing... But i don't think we should have to wait for every light n stuff, as we're not a 1+ ton of metal with infinite power to unleash megadeath on peds, especially around London where there's not much hillage to build up good speed that would actually hurt a ped all that much...

OK before this thread goes on I'd like to say that I AM NOT taking responsibility for turning it in to a RLJ thread.

we're only justified in getting angry if our lives are actually threatened by poor / agressive driving. A lot of the posts above are simply rants at drivers not obeying the rules. This (IMO) is not ok. I see literally dozens of examples of cyclists riding "badly" every day, breaking the highway code / traffic laws, and this includes most of the people I've ridden with on the forum. If we stick to the highway code, then personally I reckon cyclists (on average) are worse road users than car drivers (on average). But if you're not putting lives at risk, then a little bending of the rules is ok.

So don't get mad at drivers for bending the rules if it doesn't endanger you (or maybe, cyclists that you're riding with). Because if we go down that route, we justify the reverse, car drivers are justified at getting mad at you (and they're bigger and more dangerous). This road ends with a game of knifey-spooney, with cyclists holding the spoon. Mebbe ok for astute riders, but for every experienced cyclist on London's roads, there are half a dozen inexperienced, naive commuters who will feel the brunt of the consequences of our anger.

in other word, don't be a hypocrite?

I blame clarkson. He's pretty much king cunt, in as much as I've heard him on t.v and in newspapers urging people in some way or another to maim cyclists with their cars.

we're only justified in getting angry if our lives are actually threatened by poor / agressive driving...
...So don't get mad at drivers for bending the rules if it doesn't endanger you (or maybe, cyclists that you're riding with). .

Totally agree, but when the red mist decends...

At the end of my commute, riding through the jam, avoiding cars buses and motorbikes getting mad, there is this guy riding a bike, sticking to me like I'm a shit and he's a fly. He's riding one hand, on the phone with his other hand (he wears no helmet by the way). At some some point his elbow touches me. I see red and tell him "putain mais c'est bon arrête de me coller" ( = "get off me"). The guy doesn't care. A few meters later, I stop at a red light. He does not, and while passing by says proudly something like "why do you stop ? Can I go now ?". He gets very nearly smashed by a bus, and goes away. GRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

i'm not proud of this at all but i lost it in a seriously mentalist way this way this morning. i've only just stopped shaking in fact.

coming down edgeware road following a truck in the left hand lane. he indicates left to turn off and i check behind me and go to overtake him on the right. still indicating left the truck starts to drift out to the right, and i am forced to go with him, he keeps going and going and going till he's forced me into the right lane and to emergency stop. he's now blocking both lanes. a car coming up in the right hand lane starts beeping and gesticulating at me (not the truck) so i give him a slightly less than cheerfull "fuck off mate" before waiting for the truck to move and carrying on.

As i'm coming up to the next set of lights the guy pulls up along side me then tries to intimidate me/force me to the kerb by coming waaaay to close, swerving at me and leaning right across to stare me out.

i. fucking. lost it.

i think it was just that it was entirely intentional that caused me to snap. i don't really think he was trying to kill me but the fact that he was deliberately threatening to run me over with a car just caused me to totally flip. i pulled across the road on front of him and started SCREAMING at him, spitting and shaking, i got of my bike and leant right over his bonnet, screaming at him to stay the fuck away from me etc etc. if i'd had a d-clock to hand instead of a chain round my waist i have no doubt i've put it though his windscreen. absolutely no doubt. i thought about attacking him with my bike... but thought better of it. got back on and rode away. he left me alone after that but the adrenaline was flowing so hard that i was shaking like a leaf the rest of the way in. took m ethe best part of two hours to calm down enough to write this.

accept that being 10 secs later is not really a problem.

use those 10 secs to fall about laughing at the incompetance of those around you.

dooks, hope you're feeling OK.

remember that they know not what they do

Otherwise they wouldn't be driving around alone in a massive car in a totally congested city.

Also, remember that there's always some nutters out there who wouldn't think twice about actually running you over or getting out and shanking you.

Try and ignore the bad stuff and concentrate on loudly and demonstratively thanking any good behaiviour from drivers on the roads. I have major anger issues and this approach is really working for me.

At the end of my commute, riding through the jam, avoiding cars buses and motorbikes getting mad, there is this guy riding a bike, sticking to me like I'm a shit and he's a fly. He's riding one hand, on the phone with his other hand (he wears no helmet by the way). At some some point his elbow touches me. I see red and tell him "putain mais c'est bon arrête de me coller" ( = "get off me"). The guy doesn't care. A few meters later, I stop at a red light. He does not, and while passing by says proudly something like "why do you stop ? Can I go now ?". He gets very nearly smashed by a bus, and goes away. GRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Are you French Tapenade? I re-discovered the word "Ducon" recently, that made me smile :)