LosingFocus
Lost it, got it again.
This is gold. Just because he is a bit stressed by work, he should be allowed to intimidate other people?
Assaulted on Finchley Rd...
- Thread starter eml1909
- Start date
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This is gold. Just because he is a bit stressed by work, he should be allowed to intimidate other people?
Mushroomgodmat
Über Member
- Location
- Norwich
The OP did exactly what I would have done.
Yes he could have moved into the other lane of traffic - but why should he - hes approaching traffic lights, the other lane is full, moving out of his way in such a built up area might encourage a dangerous overtake ect? And if some numpty ever did that to me I would also stop to see why that driver seems to think its okay to use a ton of metal to bully someone.
And I couldn't give a flying fark what he does for a living, or how stressful (estate agent! Ha!) his job is..And I don't know what the OP job is so its a null point.
Yes he could have moved into the other lane of traffic - but why should he - hes approaching traffic lights, the other lane is full, moving out of his way in such a built up area might encourage a dangerous overtake ect? And if some numpty ever did that to me I would also stop to see why that driver seems to think its okay to use a ton of metal to bully someone.
And I couldn't give a flying fark what he does for a living, or how stressful (estate agent! Ha!) his job is..And I don't know what the OP job is so its a null point.
Globalti
Legendary Member
I fully agree that what the bloke did was wrong. What I'm saying is that one of the cycle commuter's survival skills needs to be the ability to recognise a stressed-up driver and concede that (s)he is likely to come off worst if that driver becomes aggressive.
Pulling aside to let him race through then slipping past him at the next traffic light would have been less confrontational but equally satisfying for the OP.
Pulling aside to let him race through then slipping past him at the next traffic light would have been less confrontational but equally satisfying for the OP.
CopperBrompton
Bicycle: a means of transport between cake-stops
- Location
- London
The driver was a prat, and there is absolutely no justification for the assault, but to be honest stopping in the road to block him was inviting trouble. There are some total nutters out there, and you were fortunate he was one of the lesser ones. I get that you wanted to make a point, but sooner or later doing that is going to end badly.
gaz
Cycle Camera TV
- Location
- South Croydon
Boris Bajic
Guest
I cycle frequently in London.
The motorist was silly, impatient and several other things. Not good road behaviour at all.
The rider appeared to be making something of the type of incident that many move past and forget about. There are bigger wrongs out there.
I do not condone the actions of the driver, but stopping in front of him was not going to achieve any of the outcomes any sane person might have sought.
I filter up the offside a lot when in heavy London traffic, but I always make sure I clear off as soon as I have the room and do not allow my riding to give the impression that I might be 'holding anyone up'. The OP appears to have filtered, got back into traffic and then sauntered. There's no law against that, but you will get honked for doing it.
I am by no means a saintly cyclist in traffic, so I do not type this from the saddle of a moral high horse. I weave, I filter, I ride with 'verve' and I have sharper elbows than Abdu-thingummy. But I would not filter, push back in and then dawdle. To the motorist, the impending wait at the next traffic signal is not an issue here. Rightly or wrongly, he may simply see a bicycle push in front and then fail to keep up.
It may be that the driver will be prosecuted, but once triggered by the beeping, this whole situation was nurtured and fed by the OP.
The motorist was silly, impatient and several other things. Not good road behaviour at all.
The rider appeared to be making something of the type of incident that many move past and forget about. There are bigger wrongs out there.
I do not condone the actions of the driver, but stopping in front of him was not going to achieve any of the outcomes any sane person might have sought.
I filter up the offside a lot when in heavy London traffic, but I always make sure I clear off as soon as I have the room and do not allow my riding to give the impression that I might be 'holding anyone up'. The OP appears to have filtered, got back into traffic and then sauntered. There's no law against that, but you will get honked for doing it.
I am by no means a saintly cyclist in traffic, so I do not type this from the saddle of a moral high horse. I weave, I filter, I ride with 'verve' and I have sharper elbows than Abdu-thingummy. But I would not filter, push back in and then dawdle. To the motorist, the impending wait at the next traffic signal is not an issue here. Rightly or wrongly, he may simply see a bicycle push in front and then fail to keep up.
It may be that the driver will be prosecuted, but once triggered by the beeping, this whole situation was nurtured and fed by the OP.
Glow worm
Legendary Member
- Location
- Near Newmarket
Why are so many motons so dumb? It's bleedin' obvious the car is just going to get stuck at the next light (and the one after that etc etc) and that the bike is going to be much faster in that situation. To anyone with an ounce of sense you can see it's the cars holding up the bikes not the other way round. But no, the knuckledraggers just have to get past the cyclist no matter what. Total idiots. No anticipation, no road awareness (as per bloody usual). Probably too busy picking his nose, making calls or texting or lobbing rubbish out the window to have a clue whats going on ayway. I hope they throw the book at him.
moon_monkey
Senior Member
- Location
- Woking
Doesn't look like the OP is sauntering to me - the van in front doesn't exactly leave him for dead, and neither does the flatbed in the next lane.
It also doesn't appear that the OP, initially, stops to confront the angry motorist but is forced to come to a stop due to the traffic (van in front isn't moving).
It also doesn't appear that the OP, initially, stops to confront the angry motorist but is forced to come to a stop due to the traffic (van in front isn't moving).
Peowpeowpeowlasers
Well-Known Member
A car's horn is there to warn other road users of its vehicle's presence. It isn't a tool to enable the driver to intimidate others, and legislation exists to punish drivers who do so.
mr_hippo
Living Legend & Old Fart
The best place for an impatient motorist is not behind you but in front and moving away. Move over and let him pass - it is not rocket surgery, is it? Of course, you won''t do that - there will be no youtube footage
Peowpeowpeowlasers
Well-Known Member
The best place for an impatient motorist is in front of a judge, with the threat of the loss of his licence looming over his head.
I do not allow bullies like the one pictured in the OP's video to get away with what they do, and those who apologise on their behalf can get to fark.
I do not allow bullies like the one pictured in the OP's video to get away with what they do, and those who apologise on their behalf can get to fark.
OP
OP
eml1909
Active Member
Just to be clear, I did not stop in the middle of stationary traffic. I kept on cycling until the next time that the traffic slowed down and only then did I stop to speak to him. As you can see, I was actually cycling more quickly than the cars to my left.
The traffic is horrendous all the way down Finchley Road - it stops and starts from where the incident happened for about another mile (until you reach Swiss Cottage), so there was NOTHING to be gained by him overtaking me. In fact, shortly after the incident I overtook him (once I was "safely" back in the Bus / Cycle Lane. And before you ask, I hadn't been in the Bus Lane prior to the incident because it was blocked off due to road works).
OP
OP
eml1909
Active Member
1. Rocket surgery?! Interesting concept.
2. My intention had been to move over to the left hand side, and indeed that is what I did after the incident. But given all of the traffic immediately to my left as the guy was tailgating me and beeping, I felt threatened and did not feel safe to move over at that point.
OP
OP
eml1909
Active Member
Precisely. I only stopped to confront him once the traffic was coming to a standstill.
What you can't tell from the video is that when I stopped, he slowly but deliberately edged his car up to me until his bumber was pushing against my rear wheel.
CopperCyclist
Veteran
Go report it to your local police sooner rather than later! Plus I'd be interested to hear if you get any feedback from the company.
