An unpleasant experience this evening

[al78]

Cycling home from Horsham station earlier this evening (about 18:45) and just as I reached this point I had an unpleasant encounter. I have to go more than 180 degrees around the roundabout so check over my shoulder to move into the right lane in order to take the inside route around the roundabout (same as you would in a car). I saw a green car coming up behind and decided to hold off moving over until it had overtaken. Nonetheless the driver decided upon approach to blast his horn at me BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP then overtook me (about an arms length away) still blasting his horn. This startled me enough that I forgot to then move right and ended up having to move right when I was on the roundabout.

Given that there was a whole lane to the right of me at the time he passed and thus I was not in his way in the slightest what could I have done to deserve this? It pisses me off that one is totally powerless to do anything about behaviour like this .

 

[ianrauk]

Just one of life's tossers. There are a few of them out there. Try not to get too upset or bothered about it. One day they will get theirs one way or another.

 

[Tynan]

I imagine they thought you might be about to move over, many road users interpret a cyclist looking over their shoulder as that, so few do that properly

if so they were may well have been right to alert you to their presence

 

[Red Light]

Someone probably bought him a horn for his birthday and its still a novelty for him.

 

[HLaB]

I was a good bit off the front of a group on Sunday when a numpty in a 4x4 behaved similarly BEEEEEEEEEEP. A few minutes later I let the group catch up a somebody was asking what was that for, it wasn't like you were in a position to force them to slow down. It could be the group had wound the driver up and they were taking out the aggression on me or it could just be they were a numpty.
Another time I got overtaken by a car that swerved into me on a wide & quiet residential road. I managed however to duck in front of a parked car and it would have taken any impact, he then gave me threats, 'try that again ******* etc' tried to make me rear end him by repeatedly slamming on his brakes; he then disappeared only to reappear a few minutes later and do the same; and didn't lay off until I went straight by the front of the police college. I still have no idea what wound him up but perhaps it was a case of mistaken identity, I was paying for some altercation the driver had had with another cyclist or again he was just a numpty.

 

[addictfreak]

Must have been a night for tossers in green cars.

I did a 35 mile commute to work earlier tonight while climbing out of Fatfield up to Shiney Row I was hit by a flying can of Fosters! Some muppet in a green micra, anyway it hit me on the leg and then landed on the road in front of me. By the time in steered round it and regained my composure the car was too far ahead to make out his reg.

Have had a few incidents in the past but nothing as potentially serious as this.

 

[Origamist]

I imagine they thought you might be about to move over, many road users interpret a cyclist looking over their shoulder as that, so few do that properly

if so they were may well have been right to alert you to their presence

As the cyclist had seen the driver and was ready for the overtake (i.e he was aware of the motorist and his intentions), the horn happy, Mr Toad was just being a dick - particularly as he continued to blast his horn as he came past (too close by the sounds of it) and chose not to use the available lane to his right.

Just ignore idiots like that. This morning a pedestrain shouted "dick-head" me - presumably because he thought I had just jumped a red light. I smiled to myself and thought of a beautiful pastoral scenes.

 

[Angelfishsolo]

Someone probably bought him a horn for his birthday and its still a novelty for him.

That is one of my pet sayings as in "What else did you get for your Birthday?"

 

[Allirog]

That roundabout is hellish to get around on a bike.When I take that route to visit tesco or Halfords I approach on the footpath on the right and dash across the A281 to the path that runs across the roundabout,cycle to the other side and make another mad dash across the A281 opposite the garage.No way would I attempt to cycle around it at rush hour,unless I was in a suicidal frame of mind.

 

[Red Light]

Another time I got overtaken by a car that swerved into me on a wide & quiet residential road. I managed however to duck in front of a parked car and it would have taken any impact, he then gave me threats, 'try that again ******* etc' tried to make me rear end him by repeatedly slamming on his brakes; he then disappeared only to reappear a few minutes later and do the same; and didn't lay off until I went straight by the front of the police college. I still have no idea what wound him up but perhaps it was a case of mistaken identity, I was paying for some altercation the driver had had with another cyclist or again he was just a numpty.

Karma does work. Read and enjoy. Further details here - perhaps a bit of LA style policing might not go amiss over here after all.

 

[Red Light]

if so they were may well have been right to alert you to their presence

You alert someone to your presence with a short toot on your horn. A long blast typically means get out of my f***ing way.

 

[Angelfishsolo]

Karma does work. Read and enjoy. Further details here - perhaps a bit of LA style policing might not go amiss over here after all.

Great news

 

[Angelfishsolo]

You alert someone to your presence with a short toot on your horn. A long blast typically means get out of my f***ing way.

Agreed.

 

[HLaB]

Karma does work. Read and enjoy. Further details here - perhaps a bit of LA style policing might not go amiss over here after all.

 

[Tynan]

Agreed.

yes of course but that's not to say that the driver wasn't initially alarmed and onto the horn in a genuine way

the short toot is largely a hypothetical thing in London at least, one it goes on, it stay on unless it's done repeatedly