Cyclist: Bad ... Driver: Good

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Location
Edinburgh
Saw a situation today that would have seen the cyclists dead if it hadn't been for the attention of the lorry driver involved.

At a set of lights (at the junction of the Bridges & Princess St). A cement mixer was in the left turn filter lane that has railing on the pavement side. 2 cyclists were on his nearside. It is possible that the first got to the lights before him, but the second was just in front of his rear wheels when the lights turned green. Rather than set off, the driver waited until both cyclists had cleared the corner befor setting off himself.
 

ianrauk

Tattooed Beat Messiah
Location
Rides Ti2
Unfortunately I see this all far too often on my commute through SE London. What part of "That is how cyclists die" don't these people understand or comprehend.

And if BentMike don't mind. This video illustrates the point perfectly.

[media]
]View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12fMTAQyXTI&feature=channel_video_title[/media]
 

XmisterIS

Purveyor of fine nonsense
And then he does it again ... I hope they have the Darwin Award polished and ready!

The most common mistake that some cyclists (thankfully, the minority) appear to make in Portsmouth in particular is launching themselves out of side roads and off the pavement without looking. I've nearly collided with another cyclist more than once because they just swerve off the pavement and into the cycle lane. They seem to have absolutely no idea what they've done wrong either.
 

upsidedown

Waiting for the great leap forward
Location
The middle bit
The one in BM's video was bad enough, but to do it with railings there, i shudder to think.
I don't claim to be an expert, but i'd like to think that if i was the first cyclist and i had got to the lights first i would be in prmary until around the left turn and well clear of any pinning danger.
 

BentMikey

Rider of Seolferwulf
Location
South London
I find it somewhat embarrassing when another cyclist unfairly berates a motorist around me. Not so long ago one told off a driver for going in the ASL, and then did an illegal right turn after having gone across the stop line on red.
 

Bicycle

Guest
I'm a frequent city cyclist and I just saw the video by BM.

I shudder when cyclists go inside big stuff approaching junctions, but they do.

It's not unlike cars overtaking dangerously in the country lanes where i spend most of the week: Every time they get away with it they seem to see it as proof that they were born lucky, brilliant or both.

However, the video left me feeling a little uncomfortable.

The MTB crazyboy seemed to have thought better of his lunge up the inside and stopped where the kerb came in towards the road and 'pinched'.

He may have done so because BM yelled, but it appeared that he thought better of his move and decided to wait.

He was asking for trouble by having another pop, but seemed to have been lucky or to have judged it well - otherwise the video might be a little longer and sadder.

What troubled me was the tone of voice taken by the recording artist. There is a tone that seems to say "I own the truth and will talk down to anyone who offends that truth".

The MTB crazyboy was clearly winging it and was taking huge risks, but speaking to him like that sounds like little more than 'this will sound good on YouTube'.

People don't respond well to that sort of hectoring. I thought the language as crazyboy rode off was a little unnecessary, too.

It all reminded me of dads watching junior play football. Six different voices shout "Shoot!" "Pass!" "Take it forward!" and "Kick it!" in unison.

The eight-year-old on the pitch ignores them all and gets on with the game. Crazyboy on the MTB looked round at recumbant lectureman, wondered what all the yelling was and rode off in a fashion quite contrary to the express wishes of the lecturer...

Who can blame him? A good proportion of people who yell at me in urban traffic are not well intentioned....

Well done the driver mentioned by the OP.
 

d87heaven

New Member
Location
Suffolk
Yeah.....who would want to be lectured to eh?

I can't see much wrong in Mikeys tone. He's just offering his view and as on most of his videos he comes across as calm and reasoned and experiencenced.
 

Bicycle

Guest
Yeah.....who would want to be lectured to eh?

I can't see much wrong in Mikeys tone. He's just offering his view and as on most of his videos he comes across as calm and reasoned and experiencenced.


Ouch!

But you're quite right to say that.

I've just re-read my piece and it has pompous arse written all over it.

This is the sound of me getting back into my box....
 

BentMikey

Rider of Seolferwulf
Location
South London
You can perceive it any way you like. From my own POV, I was initially shitting myself, expecting to see meat chunks and hoping like anything I wouldn't. The next bit about cyclists die down there was half relief on my part and half trying to educate him for the future. I imagine he already knew what he'd done wrong, so I hoped only to add a bit more force to the lesson. No playing up to the camera at all there.
 

edindave

Über Member
Location
Auld Reeker
I think drivers in Edinburgh on the whole are pretty good when it comes to cyclists and pedestrians. Perhaps we are acclimatised in a city which is full of tourists in the summer with their random behaviours e.g. walking out into the street into oncoming traffic.

These cyclists were lucky and should have known better. I think a lot more of the money which is spent encouraging people out of their cars on to bikes should be spent educating the same target audience about these sort of dangers.
 

Ian 74

Active Member
Location
Wigton
You can perceive it any way you like. From my own POV, I was initially shitting myself, expecting to see meat chunks and hoping like anything I wouldn't. The next bit about cyclists die down there was half relief on my part and half trying to educate him for the future. I imagine he already knew what he'd done wrong, so I hoped only to add a bit more force to the lesson. No playing up to the camera at all there.

Nowt wrong with tone or content BM, his dangerous maneuver as you said "put the shoots up you". I bet when he got home he had a good think and reassessed his life. He was a lucky boy that day.

P.S. Dig the wheels!
 
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