Taking off the door mirror...

[Accy cyclist]

Not a cycling incident but the other month some lazy motorist blocked the whole pavement with their car forcing anyone wanting to use the pavement into the busy road. I gave it some thought as i approached then decided that i had to make a stand,so i pushed the wing mirror forward as i passed the car to let Mr or Mrs lazy know i wasn't too pleased about their inconsiderate parking. As i got up the road i decided that this wasn't enough, so i went back to push the other mirror back. As i pushed it the damn thing fell off the car leaving me with it in my hand! I dropped it and ran!!

 

[slowmotion]

Come on Martin, sit in your car, look at the mirror - you know, the shiny bit - that's the front of the unit.

I don't have a driver's mirror in my van but I'm pretty sure that both wing mirrors face backwards and the mirror is closer to the back of the van than the casing. There exist a couple of other possibilities

1) early dementia has set in as Chateau Slomo (entirely possible,alas)
2) we are talking at cross-purposes

 

[glenn forger]

 

[slowmotion]

A long time ago I served on a jury dealing with a case involving handling stolen goods. A few hours was spent by the prosecuting barrister picking holes in the defendants location when the police raid happened. It turned out that the barrister had no idea that The Front Room need not actually be at the front of the house.

We acquitted.

 

[slowmotion]

It is just a simple matter of perception. Like those city centre maps that have sprung up everywhere that aren't orientated north but the direction you are facing.

Adrian, please don't get me on the subject of maps without a North point. It isn't good for my health.

 

[Pat "5mph"]

But this is utter bolshoi - I posted this in t'other thread. As Greg alluded to, I see more aggressive actions by car drivers (seen them get out and fight, punch windows etc). I don't think all car drivers are lunatics. The reason (if you are correct) must be because what we do isn't seen as normal.

Really? What happened to the British "aplomb-iness"? In all my 30 years in the UK have never seen a street fight between drivers, plenty abroad of course.
Seen lots of street fights between drunken pedestrians, but then I do live in Glasgow.
Cycling here in the sticks is not normal yet, we are getting there slowly but surely.

 

[Andrew_P]

Honestly sitting here behind my warm and cosy desk supping my morning coffee on a wet Friday morning, no bloody way should you be doing that. Now out on the bike after the third or fourth close pass of the day without being able to catch up with them then finally the last one and this one is stopped just up there smug in his warm protective metal shield having scared the shoot out of me, who knows how I will deal with it. It does seem to vary a lot lately, from full on wanting to batter them to a cheery smile and wtf were you doing.

Not many, if any things in my life replicate that rush of chemicals from having something nearly wipe me out just because they want to get somewhere a bit quicker.

 

[sheddy]

I wish the plod round here had a similar scheme to op crackdown . It looks as if one report gets the driver a warning letter. Two reports and it gets serious.Should be nationwide.

There is the Road Justice site. Email your County Police Chief and ask him to take the reports on board http://www.roadjustice.org.uk/report

 

[MarkF]

I can't see anything positive from doing it.

When I started again at 40 I was inhibited by traffic, not scared, but wary. When I became aware of good cycling road craft and started to commute and tour I turned into a right assertive bugger, once after being scared witless by stupidity I did indeed catch up a car and remove a mirror but that was only because the driver wouldn't get out! Another time I took a drivers car keys out of the ignition.

It all washes over me now, it's got to be something r.e.a.l.l.y bad for me to do or say anything, I enjoy cycling so much more.

The London ASL/Audi guy, he reminded me of me in the past, I am glad I changed and from that silly video and the subsequent comments, I realised I am still a bit of a twat with ASL's and too often take umbrage at a car 2' into one, filtering down and parking right in front for "revenge". I'll stop doing that too.

 

[Mugshot]

Yup. That's what I did.
I honestly didn't mean to break off the wing mirror, I just bashed my closed fist down on to it and it just came off....surprised myself at how easy it broke..

Ditto, I didn't mean to hit the mirror, in fact I'm not quite sure what I meant to hit. It was on a country road with just enough room for a bike and a car to pass but it's super tight so it's a definite case of taking primary. I was on the single track section they were travelling towards me and came from the wider two lane section and barely slowed, it was night time so with their lights on I really couldn't see the offside of the car very well. I slowed, they kept coming, I slowed again they kept coming etc, eventually had to swerve for what I hoped was the gap and swung my arm at the same time hoping to hit the bonnet or something but ended up hitting the wing mirror. The noise it made when it hit the side window was terrific and I'll bet the driver absolutely shat themselves when it happened. They certainly stopped then.
Just where the car is in the PICTURE is where the excitement happened, although they were travelling in the opposite direction.
It was a bit daft because I couldn't see and I could easily have hurt my arm/hand quite badly, but I'll guarantee that driver will think long and hard before they do the same again.

 

[coffeejo]

Violence breeds violence. You can't banish the dark with more darkness - you need light to do that. Do unto others... Etc.

 

[nickyboy]

There have been very few threads on CC that both make me angry and sad. Unfortunately this is one of the few.

Whilst motorists should be more respectful of cyclists, criminal damage is not the answer. You may feel better at the time but when you are convicted of criminal damage I suspect that feeling may disappear. The motorist will not be more considerate of cyclists in the future. He will now hate all cyclists.

If it were me and I was the subject of a close pass I would talk to the driver. In my experience, getting people on my side is achieved through persuasion, not violence

 

[400bhp]

There have been very few threads on CC that both make me angry and sad. Unfortunately this is one of the few.

Whilst motorists should be more respectful of cyclists, criminal damage is not the answer. You may feel better at the time but when you are convicted of criminal damage I suspect that feeling may disappear. The motorist will not be more considerate of cyclists in the future. He will now hate all cyclists.

If it were me and I was the subject of a close pass I would talk to the driver. In my experience, getting people on my side is achieved through persuasion, not violence

I'd hope that we are all being reflective and honest here.

Criminal damage is not the answer but I can see why it happens.

 

[ianrauk]

I'd hope that we are all being reflective and honest here.

Criminal damage is not the answer but I can see why it happens.

Indeed.. and we are not talking about close passes here. We are talking aggressive, bullying, peanut drivers, who will have no time or inclination to 'have a chat' about their wrong doings.

 

[Mugshot]

Violence breeds violence. You can't banish the dark with more darkness - you need light to do that. Do unto others... Etc.

This works both ways though. Why should you accept something on the road which you wouldn't accept in any other walk of life? If I'm in a supermarket and somebody starts to ram their trolley into the back of my legs or push infront of me in the queue because they think they have a right to get to the checkout before me I wouldn't find that acceptable. I wouldn't start rolling around the aisles fighting with them but I'd certainly say something and dependant on the proximity I may well push their trolley. I don't think they'd hate every other shopper because I did that and they may think twice before they decided to be so rude in the future.