Comments on a video

[mr_cellophane]

One of SonOfTheWinds videos that he has disabled comments on.
What do others think of this ? My opinion is that the road narrows on the outside and the bus just holds a straight line. SotW should have seen this coming from when they pass the crossing and he should either have sped up to get in front or preferably eased off and dropped behind.
To threaten the driver with loosing his licence is too extreme by far, but then there are times when I think SotW does go out to be confrontational.

 

[caimg]

SotW had plenty of comments on this vid and then chose to disable them. A fair few criticized his position (including me, though tbh I was just advising as this is my area and come up this road often). I've noticed that on another vid he uploaded today he's disabled comments so maybe he's getting sick of them. I'd argue that if he didn't enjoy being a showman that'd make sense...he's built a good little following, seems silly to discourage it.

On the whole I like the vibe of his videos but now and then he's out of line...his reaction to the driver is way OTT. As I say, this is my neck of the woods and I know that you have to cycle defensively if buses are around as the road narrows ahead. No harm in riding behind the bus and overtaking what would only be 10 seconds later...not sure I see the point in encouraging this kind of confrontation.

 

[Boris Bajic]

I know this road well and have ridden it often for over three decades. This was an incident made out of a non-incident.

Bicycles can out-run cars and buses over almost any distance for almost the whole day. There's no need to get into those situations.

I am an 'assertive' cyclist when in London, but there are limits to decent behaviour.

This sort of thing undoes much of the good done by sensible helmetcammers.

One wonders how this individual might behave on the roads if let out in a motor vehicle.

This is one step shy of road rage and if I'd done it, I wouldn't be advertising my own slightly disturbing behaviour.

 

[Silver Fox]

I'm all for motorists being educated in the error of their ways but there's a fine line to be drawn between having a friendly word and coming across as confrontational and condscending. Too much of the latter and you'll end up with a slap.

 

[MrHappyCyclist]

It looked as though the bus may have moved left to cut the bend, squeezing the cyclist, as the bus finished up some distance from the centre line. However, the cyclist came up the inside of the bus from behind and at no point had he got in front of it, so he was quite foolish to hold that position into the narrower part of the road.

I do wonder whether those bicycle symbols painted on the tarmac as the road narrows are perhaps a bad idea, as they could encourage a cyclist to do exactly what SOTW did.

 

[ianrauk]

SOTW is a poor cyclist.

 

[Leedsbusdriver]

Sorry but SOTW should have seen that coming.Don't undertake buses at pinch points, you are relying on the bus driver spotting you,remember pride comes before a fall.

 

[BSRU]

Many of SotW's videos are enjoyabe to watch but some show poor cycling which puts the rider in bad situations.
The linked video shows poor anticipation and in my opinion is not the bus drivers fault, as seeing the road narrow the rider must decide to get in front or behind the bus not ride along side it. Finally his attitude in the video is very bad when talking to the driver, would be better not talking to drivers at all.

 

[BentMikey]

I also criticised that one. I thought that the bus was in the offside lane, and was always ahead of SOTW, and it was SOTW's lane that ended and merged with the bus's lane. Tough luck, but SOTW is in the wrong on this one, he should have and could have braked slightly and slotted in perfectly behind the bus.

 

[MrHappyCyclist]

SOTW is a poor cyclist.

I do think he tends to hug the kerb too much, and often rides along the line between lanes rather than taking the lane properly at busy junctions. It is surprising that such an assertive, extrovert person isn't more assertive in his riding.

 

[BentMikey]

I see he's been taking strain and has disabled comments on quite a few other videos. It's a hard call isn't it? Differentiating between the trolls and those who are rightly taking the clue bat to a particular video. Shame, I hope he's man enough to learn from it and improve, but that's a big ask of any of us, it takes a lot to admit when we're wrong.

 

[tt123]

Whose horn was it? Was it the cyclist's?

 

[BentMikey]

Yes, pretty loud eh? I do think it's a bit of a hammer issue: when you have a hammer, every problem starts to look a bit like a nail.

 

[caimg]

I see he's been taking strain and has disabled comments on quite a few other videos. It's a hard call isn't it? Differentiating between the trolls and those who are rightly taking the clue bat to a particular video. Shame, I hope he's man enough to learn from it and improve, but that's a big ask of any of us, it takes a lot to admit when we're wrong.

I'm sure it's only temporary (disabling comments). As I say, he seems to enjoy being a showman ('after burner cams', 'traffic droid', 'review cards') and it makes for an enjoyable persona, but those of us that post vids on YouTube need to realise it's best to come from an angle of education - we all know trolls when we see them but constructive criticism helps viewers see what not to do and the vid poster what not to repeat.

 

[BentMikey]

Did you guys see the bus driver's comments on this video, btw? At least I assume he was the bus driver...