"Back off" sign - counter productive?

[domd1979]

Driving (sorry) to a meeting earlier on today, I came up behind a bloke on an MTB towing a trailer. On the back of the trailer was "BACK OFF" in fairly big red letters. Did strike me as potentially counter-productive. People who are going to be careful around cyclists anyway don't need telling to "back off" and those who are knobs at the wheel are likely to take a sign like that as an invitation to be more knobby. Personally, I couldn't see the point in having a sign - it comes over agressive and probably isn't going to achieve much... As an aside, he demonstrated his courtesy on the road by cycling through a zebra crossing where an OAP was waiting on the near side to cross.

 

[Arch]

Driving (sorry) to a meeting earlier on today, I came up behind a bloke on an MTB towing a trailer. On the back of the trailer was "BACK OFF" in fairly big red letters. Did strike me as potentially counter-productive. People who are going to be careful around cyclists anyway don't need telling to "back off" and those who are knobs at the wheel are likely to take a sign like that as an invitation to be more knobby. Personally, I couldn't see the point in having a sign - it comes over agressive and probably isn't going to achieve much... As an aside, he demonstrated his courtesy on the road by cycling through a zebra crossing where an OAP was waiting on the near side to cross.

Ah, then he is proof that not all knobs are in cars...


I can see your point re: the value of the sign. Something polite might have more effect, and be less likely to be counter productive, I guess.

 

[Cking]

It's like those "Baby on board" signs. I love cute babies so I drive up REAL close to have a look!!!!


Rgds Cking

 

[hackbike 666]

I wouldn't mind so much about the baby on board signs if they didn't drive like pricks.

 

[ComedyPilot]

Driving (sorry) to a meeting earlier on today, I came up behind a bloke on an MTB towing a trailer. On the back of the trailer was "BACK OFF" in fairly big red letters. Did strike me as potentially counter-productive. People who are going to be careful around cyclists anyway don't need telling to "back off" and those who are knobs at the wheel are likely to take a sign like that as an invitation to be more knobby. Personally, I couldn't see the point in having a sign - it comes over agressive and probably isn't going to achieve much... As an aside, he demonstrated his courtesy on the road by cycling through a zebra crossing where an OAP was waiting on the near side to cross.

I was in my local town on Saturday, and a woman stepped onto a zebra crossing as I approached. as I slowed for the crossing a 3 series beemer overtook me and just missed her!!!

 

[Joe24]

Ah, then he is proof that not all knobs are in cars...


I can see your point re: the value of the sign. Something polite might have more effect, and be less likely to be counter productive, I guess.

"PLEASE BACK OFF"
How is that?

Although, i have "**** off" wrote on a big board that dangles off my saddle, its pretty wide with nails on either end to scratch cars in case they come too close.

 

[upsidedown]

Sounds a bit confrontational to me, think it would invite a few punishment passes.

 

[Perry]

Those, "Baby On Board" stickers are a nightmare for emergency services when that attend the scene of a Road Traffic Accident. They see the sticker but there's no baby - that's because the numb-nut driver didn't have the baby that day. Time is wasted looking for something that's not there.

 

[john4703]

Those, "Baby On Board" stickers are a nightmare for emergency services when that attend the scene of a Road Traffic Accident. They see the sticker but there's no baby - that's because the numb-nut driver didn't have the baby that day. Time is wasted looking for something that's not there.

not only baby on board signs. A while ago I was driving in Wales and came across a car smashed into a stone wall, the driver was knocked out and the windscreen was smashed. We called the various emergency services. The driver recovered a bit and started moaning about his girlfriend going through the windscreen and down into a deep ravine. I then spent over 2 hours with the fire brigade clambering around in the snow on ropes, (mainly my climbing ropes) looking for a badly injured girlfriend then the police discovered that she was at home and the very drunk driver had dropped her off at home well before smashing up his car. It makes me think that all car drivers are p***ks.

 

[ComedyPilot]

Those, "Baby On Board" stickers are a nightmare for emergency services when that attend the scene of a Road Traffic Accident. They see the sticker but there's no baby - that's because the numb-nut driver didn't have the baby that day. Time is wasted looking for something that's not there.

+1

 

[ComedyPilot]

not only baby on board signs. A while ago I was driving in Wales and came across a car smashed into a stone wall, the driver was knocked out and the windscreen was smashed. We called the various emergency services. The driver recovered a bit and started moaning about his girlfriend going through the windscreen and down into a deep ravine. I then spent over 2 hours with the fire brigade clambering around in the snow on ropes, (mainly my climbing ropes) looking for a badly injured girlfriend then the police discovered that she was at home and the very drunk driver had dropped her off at home well before smashing up his car. It makes me think that all drunk car drivers are p***ks.

Edited to help ya.

No, it's my pleasure.

BTW, welcome on board, enjoy the ride.

 

[GrasB]

What do people think these signs achieve? Most people who don't give you enough road space think they're driving in a perfectly acceptable way so the sign doesn't apply to them.

 

[danphoto]

Bloke's a dickhead. Got the wrong sign. This works for us ...

 

[XmisterIS]

This thread reminds me of a talking-car-alarm craze that started (and quickly stopped) in the mid-1990's.

You could get a proximity-alarm fitted which would instruct close-passing pedestrians, in a loud American voice, to "STEP AWAY FROM THE VE-HICLE" (you know how Americans pronounce the "H" in "vehicle").

Apparently people stopped buying them because the owners found that their cars were being vandalised. Funny thing that!

 

[jonny jeez]

Driving (sorry) to a meeting earlier on today, I came up behind a bloke on an MTB towing a trailer. On the back of the trailer was "BACK OFF" in fairly big red letters. Did strike me as potentially counter-productive. People who are going to be careful around cyclists anyway don't need telling to "back off" and those who are knobs at the wheel are likely to take a sign like that as an invitation to be more knobby. Personally, I couldn't see the point in having a sign - it comes over agressive and probably isn't going to achieve much... As an aside, he demonstrated his courtesy on the road by cycling through a zebra crossing where an OAP was waiting on the near side to cross.

Strikes me that you would probably have to get CLOSER, just to read the sign...clever