Letting Down Car Tyres.

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ianbarton

Veteran
Yesterday I had a very close pass from somebody in a people carrier. There was no excuse: nobody was coming in the opposite direction and there was plenty of space to pass me without almost knocking me off.

When I pulled into the supermarket car park I noticed the car parked there. It got me thinking: what if I let down all his tyres, what would e the legal position? It would be very hard to argue that I had damaged his vehicle. I hadn't stolen anything.
 

I like Skol

A Minging Manc...
Two points....

  1. How would he know it was you unless you left a note to explain your revenge.
  2. Following from point 1, start a war with the guy that has the deadliest weapon and is clearly not bothered about using it, good tactic!

You might not be the one that gets his retaliation so you would not have been doing the rest of the cycling community any favours.....
 

nickyboy

Norven Mankey
If you feel strongly about it,talk to the driver and explain that the pass was too close. For most drivers it isn't an intentional thing, it's just ignorance of how it feels as a cyclist. I would find that the most productive

Don't get into an argument and definitely don't let tyres down. What you should be seeking to achieve is a reduction in close passes and either of those will not help
 
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Globalti

Legendary Member
Not cycling but I was once hooted at aggressively by an Orthodox Jewish guy in a people carrier when indicating to change lanes in Manchester. He barged past and prevented me from changing lanes. I dismissed it as the usual big city rudeness and continued my journey to the station. When I reached the station, there he was, having taken a different route. I couldn't resist saying in the nicest possible way, something like "You ought to learn to relax, if you carry on like that you'll die of a stress-related heart attack!"

Bizarrely he looked at me, smiled and retorted: "Oh I would LOVE that!"

I'm still puzzled by that.
 

Jody

Stubborn git
Tell them face to face if its an issue. Letting someone tyres down is low level to stoop to and the driver probably won't even know it's you or why they have been punished.
 

Globalti

Legendary Member
Agreed, the driver probably wouldn't even realise why it had happened and it they did, they would feel justified in hating cyclists. Far better to have a firm and polite word explaining what the driver did to you then leave it at that.
 

I like Skol

A Minging Manc...
I figured when he said down he meant down & not just letting a bit of air out.
Do you think letting all the air out of the tyres would stop everyone from driving away without realising? I would bet good money that it wouldn't, and once they drive away they are at high risk of having a collision and the person that let down the tyres has committed an act that led to this.
 
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