al-fresco
Growing older but not up...
- Location
- Shropshire
I'm a driver and a cyclist, sometimes I hate myself...
cyclist aren't the only one who get it in the neck, i drive a traction engine and we get so much abuse
+1Go to just about any European country, France, Italy, Spain or Holland etc and its a completely different attitude, is it because they emphasise with cyclist more, as they are more likely to know somebody who cycles or cycle themself. Contrast that to the the not so good ol USA the hatred seems worse the UK, Portland exempted.
Its weird though from the impression I get from older cyclists, i.e. those 60+ that attitudes towards cyclists were much more continental in the past.
Are French drivers really so well behaved around cyclists or is this a myth?
I have never been to France personally but the reason I ask is because I have a French friend who is perfectly happy to cycle in Ireland when she's here but says she refuses to cycle on the roads at home in France (Reims area) because French drivers are total maniacs. It's a very different opinion to the one I read here and elsewhere.
They are all total maniacs, but they don't hate cyclists.
This.To be honest I still meet with many more examples of unexpectedly courteous and patient drivers than I do with dickheads.
That is unfortunately an inevitable consequence of modern life and trying to (or being forced to) squeeze more and more things into the day. Time is valuable and so when someone gets held up, it can feel to them like a theft of their limited time.