Running argument with another cyclist

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Cab

New Member
Location
Cambridge
Had a good run with nothing really going amiss lately. Had the occasional horn sounded at me for being outside of cycle lanes that aren't safe to use, and for being in primary position where there are parked cars to the left that I don't particularly want to be doored by, but thats just normal.

Then this morning I encountered what I thought was just another ordinary bad cyclist. Got as far as turning off to go along in front of the Colleges, so along past Johns, Trinity, Kings, a picturesque but narrow one way street. Just before the turn off theres a cyclist more or less level with me, on the inside, and I could overtake him but theres no point, as there is a bus parked in front indicating right to pull out, has been doing so for a good few seconds now. I slow down to let the bus go and make sure the other cyclist has plenty of room to pull out for a good view of the road, he ignores the signal from the bus and oncoming vans (who are technically turning off onto our road, even though it goes straight on, but our road gives way to theirs), snarls traffic for a few moments and turns right, regrettably the way I'm also going.

Shortly after I follow him (after letting bus move out and the vans pass, doesn't get very far 'cos of those vans the cyclist has stopped). Shortly I'm stuck behind/alongside that cyclist, who is stuck behind a bus, which in turn is stuck behind one of those backwards tricycles with child seats on the front (1/2 to 3/4 behind the guy, the road is one way, plenty of room for two cyclists). He darts on to the path on the left to see if he can get past the van, but the pavement is blocked; after 10 yards or so he hops back on to the road, now rather behind me. Slows down a little to be fully behind me, comes out on my right and hops on to the right hand pavement to see if he can get past the van that way. Can't, so hops back on to the road. At that moment, van indicates to pull in to the left parking spot, I had anticipated this (that van always pulls in to that spot) and was heading for the right hand side of the lane, I maintain rate and direction and go past; the guy who was in the process of hopping back on to the road didn't have a great deal of room to do so and couldn't clearly accelerate past me into the space becase he didn't have sufficient control of his bike after coming off the pavement, and I saw no reason to give him any special consideration. So he yelled at me, that I was undertaking him and that its illegal.

You can imagine the row we had continuing along the road :smile: In his opinion I undertook him, which is wrong. In my opinion he's a low down scum who should read both the highway code and roadcraft before being allowed back out on to the road, he neither knows nor understands the rules of the road with regard to overtaking, pavement cycling, keeping traffic moving safely and freely, etc., and I made my opinions entirely clear on that.

Okay, I could have moved over to the left, slowed down, allowed him on to the road from the pavement. My bad. I accept that. But I'm glad I didn't; I'm just not being bullied into changing a sensible road position to make it easier for an idiot to cycle illegally. Undertaking someone on a road and pulling out in front of them, or even weaving inside and outside cyclist traffic, is a pretty awful thing to do. But to be lectured on that by someone who didn't like that I went past him such that hopping off the pavement was more difficult... Well, no, sorry, POBs (meant here as an insult) like him can just f*** right off.
 

BentMikey

Rider of Seolferwulf
Location
South London
Don't take it so personally is all I can say. Sympathies for you, let's have a virtual hot cuppa.
 

Arch

Married to Night Train
Location
Salford, UK
Can I have a hot chocolate please?

Yeah, Cab, I understand completely your bile at being told off by someone with that level of roadcraft... And your determination just at that moment, not to give way to his illegal moves. Anyway, given his previous riding style, how could you anticipate what he was going to do?:smile:

Now, deep breath, and would you like a virtual mince pie? I'm just starting to fancy mince pies, it's that time of year...
 

Wobbles

Senior Member
Just another frustrated idiot with neither understanding of the HC or common courteousy.
Easy to say but difficult to do, but just forget about it. He was wrong and you were right.
Don't let a moron ruin your inner peace:biggrin:
 

Arch

Married to Night Train
Location
Salford, UK
I have, on my trike (must get it out for a ride sometime, poor neglected thing) a Sogreni bell, bought at great expense in Copenhagen. It's a disc of brass with a sprung pinger, and makes a lovely sonerous 'ping' (more a 'dong' really). Not very loud, just a lovely sound. Very Buddhist. I think we should all have one, and at times like this, ping it and inwardly chant something soothing...:smile:
 
Ok, I've got ask haven't I....... did you get it on camera?

Seriously though I probably would have said something earlier than you did. As soon as I saw him hop on and off the pavement I would have felt compelled to pint out the increased risks of such behaviour and the illegality of it.

I would then have informed him that he was about have his 15 seconds of fame on youtube and to search for a video with the title 'TOB (Twat on a Bike)'
 
OP
OP
Cab

Cab

New Member
Location
Cambridge
It isn't just the single bad incident that bothers me here. What gets on my nerves is that more cyclists are terrible here than are in any way good, and it seems like because the modal form of cycling is irresponsible and stupid, those cyclists who aren't like that get aggro.

Its very like motoring really; when you see a car right on the bumper of another car on the motorway, the driver in front having the audacity to do 65mph gets aggro for obeying the law and being in the way. Its like the cyclist who yelled out at me because he'd ridden straight in to my left hand when I was signalling to turn left at a red light, said cyclist undertaking to turn right through the red light without indicating. Like the cyclist who berated me for stopping too quickly (at a light that had been red for seconds) after she had run in to me. Like the woman who came off after veering something like three meters across the lane to turn right without indicating, she had wanted to cycle on to the pavement on that side but instead ran straight in to me. Apparently that was my fault too.

I don't mind people making mistakes on the road, we all do it. What bothers me is the complete lack of acceptance that we've got a simple set of rules that we should obey, because not to do so will increase risk for all of us. It isn't likely to be the fault of the person obeying the law and cycling 'safely' when you hit them doing something stupid and illegal.

Seems to happen all the time here. Most irritating.
 

Timeo Danaos

New Member
Location
trollheim
Darwin will sort them out.
 

Maz

Guru
For the sake of your blood pressure, Cab, is it possible to leave Cambridge?
That's not meant to be a sarky comment. Just thinking out loud.
 
OP
OP
Cab

Cab

New Member
Location
Cambridge
magnatom said:
Ok, I've got ask haven't I....... did you get it on camera?

Its mostly crap the footage. I was looking over my shoulder when he went out to go past the bus, he isn't visible when on either pavement, and every time I turned to say anything to him I got a nasty 'wind rush' sound, so I can't hear much of the conversation. The rest of the commute looks beautiful though.

Seriously though I probably would have said something earlier than you did. As soon as I saw him hop on and off the pavement I would have felt compelled to pint out the increased risks of such behaviour and the illegality of it.

I would then have informed him that he was about have his 15 seconds of fame on youtube and to search for a video with the title 'TOB (Twat on a Bike)'

Heck, pavement cycling is so common here I could soon fill youtube with footage. Barely seems worth it :smile:

Some mornings in Summer and Autum (when our roads are covered with bikes) I'm on that road, the traffic slows down, and there'll be ten or fifteen cyclists go past on the pavement. Other times I'll be in the cycle stop box at the end of Magdelene street and half a dozen to a dozen cyclists will go straight through the red light. In Cambridge you have to let this stuff wash over you or you'd go completely insane.
 
OP
OP
Cab

Cab

New Member
Location
Cambridge
Maz said:
For the sake of your blood pressure, Cab, is it possible to leave Cambridge?
That's not meant to be a sarky comment. Just thinking out loud.

I guess it must sound like I'm fuming mad in that first post :smile:

I assure you, I'm not, I was just temporarily rather irritated.
 

Arch

Married to Night Train
Location
Salford, UK
Cab, I think you have to get a cape, and a mask, and start cleaning up your town....

"Oi! You stopped at that red light, you made me fall off!"

"YES! For I am Safe Cycle Man, and I will now proceed to tie your bicycle frame in a knot with my bare hands! Go on your way on foot, you Shameful Lawbreaker, and trouble me not again until you have read Cyclecraft!"

<deflated POB> "Oh, Safe Cycle man, you have shown me the error of my ways..."
 
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