Is it time to start calling out bad cyclists?

mao, can you just clarify, what type of bike was the guy riding was it titanium? Was he wearing Rapha? Did he have a cravat?

About as funny as genital warts.

So you must always try to get as close to 20-30mph at all times to minimise problems with cars, whilst keeping it sub-5mph so that you never hit a moronic ped.

Alternatively you could ride out in the middle of the lane to give yourself time and space to react...

I hit a ped once, about 3 or 4 months ago, was coming up the inside of stationary traffic at about 10mph and he bounded from his front gate and right into the road less than a foot in front of me. My face took most of the impact as it went right into his shoulder. Now I preferentially filter on the right but if I do find myself on the left for whatever reason I move very slowly and try to find a gap between cars so I can get into lane. Basically, fuck the left hand side of the road. Srsly. It's a menace. It's full of obstacles and hazards. The classic hazard emerging from the left for car drivers is the little kid running out into the street from between two parked cars after their ball. I've never actually seen that happen IRL but it's the classic hazard anyway as it helps to train drivers to keep a safe distance from the left hand side of the road. Cyclists need to do the same thing or they're going to get every man and his dog jumping out on them.

People don't look, that's just life, and it's something that we've all got to just sack up and deal with. Sometimes people do look, but don't see, especially if the thing that's coming is a motorcycle or a bicycle, because they're small and they blend in more than you'd think. Every road user has to take responsibility for what they're doing, and there's no point in getting angry about it. When I hit my ped, he shouldn't have leapt out into the road without checking, but I shouldn't have been coming up a tiny gap in double digit speeds two inches from the curb. You can use your accidents to analyse what you could change to make them less likely to happen again.

Yeah I smashed into a ped on while in that fucking awful narrow cemented-in cycle lane going east to west crossing over Tottenham CtR. Was mid green when I was going through (to account for my relative speed) and my yell beforehand cleared the crossing except for one chap who had his headphones in. He feighted backwards, then forwards so and then right into me.

I had right of way so feel fine about continuing through and so am techincally not at fault (I'd say) - but I also know it's a notorious crossing for people ignoring the signal. So although I was really fucked off for wrecking in the first place and secondly at his inattentive walking, there is still a part of me realises the collision occured in part because of my lack of care for zombie peds.

tl;dr

I had right of way, but I could have maybe prevented the collision by knowing peds better than they know themselves.

You can use your accidents to analyse what you could change to make them less likely to happen again.

That's fighting talk round these parts.

The measured responses in this thread are really heartening. Good to see respect for peds, even if they/we (important to remember we are all pedestrians) do stupid things sometimes.

It's taken me two years or so but I'm quickly losing my ugly sanctimonious-cyclist streak. I've seen so many cyclists – myself included – getting needlessly furious at pedestrians without questioning their own actions and holding comparing their behaviour against the wankers in cars who can sometimes make life miserable for us in turn.

Hounding pedestrians is for cowards and bullies, almost without exception.

Bunch of planks flying through the reds on Theobalds street outside the police station, if I hadn't been looking out for such idiot behavior i'd have been t-boned all to hell.

Its just too early in my journey to be dealing with so many knobs.

Having said that rest of my journey in was pretty good, I put it down to lack of ped-lemmings.

to quote a famous internet comic - what's important is that you've found a way to feel superior to both.

Its just too early in my journey to be dealing with so many knobs.

Which makes me wonder where your journey ends

My entire working day is spent facing a continual succession of knobs.

Sometimes I question my decision to become a kitchen cabinet door fitter.

You should use a monitor like the rest of us, not a mirror.

god, i was terrible cycling today, apologies to anyone who saw me

Perhaps the young man with a rapha pack & sidis on a condor with green tyres should consider a better front light than that little blinker before shouting at then loudly swearing at the pedestrian who dared to cross Earl's Court Rd between stationary cars last night. Bit aggro for 6pm.

Perhaps the pedestrian should have looked? It sounds from your description that he was pretty easy top spot...

(I wasn't there, he may have been shouting all manner of cunty unnecessary things but sometimes you have to be loud and sharp to get the warning across.)

Maybe. I was following and it wasn't that close. Also it was at a point where lots of people cross / traffic changes lanes / busses stop so it's a place for caution not hard charging. Guess I have a pretty easy commute if that's all I have to complain about. Usually it's nodders putting their own lives at risk not journeyman commuters venting.

I remember when I first started riding it was so easy to scream abuse at peds for the SMALLEST thing. It took a pretty hefty crash to make me realise that MY road behavior didn't do me any favours.

Sometimes they do need woken up but it sounds like an area where the cyclist should be anticipating that kind of behaviour (predictable unpredicatability?) and moderate his speed accordingly.

People don't look, that's just life, and it's something that we've all got to just sack up and deal with. Sometimes people do look, but don't see, especially if the thing that's coming is a motorcycle or a bicycle, because they're small and they blend in more than you'd think. Every road user has to take responsibility for what they're doing, and there's no point in getting angry about it. When I hit my ped, he shouldn't have leapt out into the road without checking, but I shouldn't have been coming up a tiny gap in double digit speeds two inches from the curb. You can use your accidents to analyse what you could change to make them less likely to happen again.

^This.

We're cycling in a city. Sometimes you have to go a bit slower than you'd like. Especially in the dark & wet.

If anyone knows the tit who commutes south/north via Russell Square dressed head to toe in Rapha on a fucking Moulton space frame could you tell him he looks and rides like a smug cunt.

Love adt

Horrible mental image of a scoble/dancing James hybrid personality.

I don't get this thread. Is it time to start calling out bad riders? You lot call me out and call me a shit rider all the time!

Think more selfish and unaware of how to cycle on the road than slow and not so good at winning.

Think more selfish and unaware of how to cycle on the road than slow and not so good at winning.

You calling me slow and not so good at winning? Howl!

runs to the toilet in floods of tears

People don't look, that's just life, and it's something that we've all got to just sack up and deal with. Sometimes people do look, but don't see, especially if the thing that's coming is a motorcycle or a bicycle, because they're small and they blend in more than you'd think. Every road user has to take responsibility for what they're doing, and there's no point in getting angry about it. When I hit my ped, he shouldn't have leapt out into the road without checking, but I shouldn't have been coming up a tiny gap in double digit speeds two inches from the curb. You can use your accidents to analyse what you could change to make them less likely to happen again.

1+ could not have been written better.

2+ completely agree

some cocky douchebag on a grey brakless fixeh undercutting me just now on the okr, accompanied with lame skids. you ride slowly and very badly indeed.