Linford
Guest
Once again someone comes up with 'you are liable to come up with an irate driver'.
People spout that mantra as if cyclists should just put their head down and run/ride away and that they shouldn't confront motor thuggery. Well whoop de bloody doo.. I tell you what, a car driver purposely endangers this cyclists life then you can be sure that this cyclist will be more irate and angry then any car driver will ever be. I will not be bullied, I will not be forced off the road. Car drivers have absolutely no right to intimidate, act aggressive or bully cyclists off the road. I am not talking about some crappy close pass I am talking about pure aggression by a car driver, aggression that can kill.
The scariest pass I've had was nothing to do with aggression, and everything to do with not thinking and not considering that I don't like a car overtaking me at 120+mph (BMW M3)...he wasn't that close (as in brushing my elbow), but the differential was intimidating...I'm just convinced that all he was looking at was the position of the needle on the speedo.
The majority of close passes I would put down to people not appreciating precisely how close their nearside is to a cyclist, or that we may have to change our road position for a pothole or drain.
Sure there are people on the road who have a sense of entitlement to be there and to always have priority, but I would wager that they feel this irrespective of what mode they use.