Car driver attitudes when you’re cycling.
Discussion
I did, and organised, a charity bike ride over the weekend – riding London to Manchester, over two days. 130 miles the first day, 80 miles yesterday, along with 15 other cyclists and two support vehicles.
The attitude to us on the road was interesting. All cyclists were wearing bright green (charity) jerseys; both vehicles had flashing lights and the charity designation in the same bright green. It was obvious we were riding for charity.
Our average speed was 17-20 miles per hour (as little at 10mph on up-hills, as high as 38/40mph down hill). We were a moving road-block, but with cyclists no more than two abreast – single file on narrower roads, we were as considerate as possible. No-one got held up for anymore that a minute, most for far far less.
Yet the reaction from some motorists was disgusting. Most were fine, several even stopped and gave us money for the charity. But several forced their way past putting us in danger; many waited until the drew alongside and sounded their horns; Four caravans came so close they caused us to lose our balance; several people cut us up as they got to traffic islands and one c*nt in a silver jeep actually tried to force some of us off the road (very close to where I live so hopefully I’ll see him again….).
London traffic-attitude was actually fine. Awful place to ride through, but driver attitude was good. Birmingham was a s
t-hole in every sense of the word. Manchester was fine but it was mostly back roads – the worst was fast, open country roads, even dual carriageways, where we were holding traffic up the least.
All I can say is if you see a bunch of cyclists riding, especially those obviously doing so for charity, don’t be a wker – give us a wide berth.
Out of interest, 210 miles, 20 hours in total (including stops) and I burnt 12,000 calories on the ride alone…..and raised close to £15,000.
The attitude to us on the road was interesting. All cyclists were wearing bright green (charity) jerseys; both vehicles had flashing lights and the charity designation in the same bright green. It was obvious we were riding for charity.
Our average speed was 17-20 miles per hour (as little at 10mph on up-hills, as high as 38/40mph down hill). We were a moving road-block, but with cyclists no more than two abreast – single file on narrower roads, we were as considerate as possible. No-one got held up for anymore that a minute, most for far far less.
Yet the reaction from some motorists was disgusting. Most were fine, several even stopped and gave us money for the charity. But several forced their way past putting us in danger; many waited until the drew alongside and sounded their horns; Four caravans came so close they caused us to lose our balance; several people cut us up as they got to traffic islands and one c*nt in a silver jeep actually tried to force some of us off the road (very close to where I live so hopefully I’ll see him again….).
London traffic-attitude was actually fine. Awful place to ride through, but driver attitude was good. Birmingham was a s
t-hole in every sense of the word. Manchester was fine but it was mostly back roads – the worst was fast, open country roads, even dual carriageways, where we were holding traffic up the least.All I can say is if you see a bunch of cyclists riding, especially those obviously doing so for charity, don’t be a w
ker – give us a wide berth.Out of interest, 210 miles, 20 hours in total (including stops) and I burnt 12,000 calories on the ride alone…..and raised close to £15,000.
kambites said:
I don't really think the fact that it was for charity makes any difference, people just generally shouldn't behave like inconsiderate morons. Sadly lots of them do.
I was trying to say this but couldn't fink of a polite way to say it. Stop talking about charity! Its really annoying when somebody gets upset whilst on an event and then the greater than thou attitude comes along
And cue 27 pages of anti and pro cycling rants 
Dont think its useful to generalise drivers vs cylists, its only down to the individual in charge of the vehicle in question at the time, if anyone uses a car as a weapon they shouldnt ever be allowed to drive one, size and weight should not confer an advantage to be used that way to bully or intimidate, and cyclists should do their best not to annoy drivers, a little bit of give an take, the odd positive gesture and it all works rather well.
Dont think its useful to generalise drivers vs cylists, its only down to the individual in charge of the vehicle in question at the time, if anyone uses a car as a weapon they shouldnt ever be allowed to drive one, size and weight should not confer an advantage to be used that way to bully or intimidate, and cyclists should do their best not to annoy drivers, a little bit of give an take, the odd positive gesture and it all works rather well.
The problem is a lot of people don't realise what they're doing when they go to overtake cyclists.
It is incredibly tempting - even when you cycle yourself - to think 'I'll just nip past that bike before the crest/blind corner/oncoming truck...' and people just don't consider the consequences.
You do get a few wantonly aggressive idiots, but the majority are ordinary, otherwise courteous drivers who just don't think. It's the same mentality you get when people are confronted with a tractor - sit and wait for a fraction of a minute or do something rash... I wouldn't mind so much, but I'm sure most of them are the same people who monospeed around on B-roads, going barely any faster than the cyclists.
It is incredibly tempting - even when you cycle yourself - to think 'I'll just nip past that bike before the crest/blind corner/oncoming truck...' and people just don't consider the consequences.
You do get a few wantonly aggressive idiots, but the majority are ordinary, otherwise courteous drivers who just don't think. It's the same mentality you get when people are confronted with a tractor - sit and wait for a fraction of a minute or do something rash... I wouldn't mind so much, but I'm sure most of them are the same people who monospeed around on B-roads, going barely any faster than the cyclists.
I give cyclists all the room they need but I do get pissed off when they're cycling on the road adjacent to a perfectly good cycle path. Look up Woodgreen Drive in Worcester on Google Earth for an example.
I sometimes point across at the cycle lane after I've overtaken them, usually get a middle finger back...if we are generalising, it doesn't put cyclists in a good light.
I sometimes point across at the cycle lane after I've overtaken them, usually get a middle finger back...if we are generalising, it doesn't put cyclists in a good light.
Chris71 said:
The problem is a lot of people don't realise what they're doing when they go to overtake cyclists.
It is incredibly tempting - even when you cycle yourself - to think 'I'll just nip past that bike before the crest/blind corner/oncoming truck...' and people just don't consider the consequences.
You do get a few wantonly aggressive idiots, but the majority are ordinary, otherwise courteous drivers who just don't think. It's the same mentality you get when people are confronted with a tractor - sit and wait for a fraction of a minute or do something rash... I wouldn't mind so much, but I'm sure most of them are the same people who monospeed around on B-roads, going barely any faster than the cyclists.
Sadly this rings so true.It is incredibly tempting - even when you cycle yourself - to think 'I'll just nip past that bike before the crest/blind corner/oncoming truck...' and people just don't consider the consequences.
You do get a few wantonly aggressive idiots, but the majority are ordinary, otherwise courteous drivers who just don't think. It's the same mentality you get when people are confronted with a tractor - sit and wait for a fraction of a minute or do something rash... I wouldn't mind so much, but I'm sure most of them are the same people who monospeed around on B-roads, going barely any faster than the cyclists.
I was in the car with a friend the other day who has only ever driven me a few times. I was genuinely worried by their driving. They didn’t drive quickly, just at the sort of speed Mr Normal does, but they seemed to have no appreciation for what other road users about them were doing. 4 or 5 times I thought “that silver car is going to turn right in a minute” or They’re catching that lorry in lane 1 up and will need to pull into our lane at about the time we will be level with them I wonder if Fred’s spotted it (no, or if he did chose to do nothing about it, ever on any occasion)
Scariest of all was when we were caught behind a cyclist though. Busy on coming and we were about 4th in the queue to pass them. Our driver notes he will not make the gap the 3 in front use and so pulls up ¼” from the back wheel. Gap appears. Driver puts foot down and realises he is in 6th and so drops a couple of gears. Now the gap has gone from ‘just on’ to ‘oh, this will be interesting’ as he pulls out, flirts with the centre line and passes the cyclist with, seriously, no more than 4” between us. I could smell the cyclist’s fear from my seat.
Utterly unnecessary, totally out of order and just left me gob smacked. I don’t usually say anything when I am a passenger as when I have done so in the past the conversation has rarely gone as intended and on one occasion caused me to cease seeing an acquaintance. Yet this time I did feel the need to say something and mentioned it to them in a nice cotton wool fluffy way. Fortunately they took it (at least as far as I can tell!) in the manor it was intended and they will think about it more the next time they have to pass a bike but bloody hell. This is a supposedly very bright guy with 10s of 1,000’s of driving miles behind him.
stoocake said:
I give cyclists all the room they need but I do get pissed off when they're cycling on the road adjacent to a perfectly good cycle path. Look up Woodgreen Drive in Worcester on Google Earth for an example.
I sometimes point across at the cycle lane after I've overtaken them, usually get a middle finger back...if we are generalising, it doesn't put cyclists in a good light.
Know the area well and was staying with an old friend in Berkley Alford on Saturday.I sometimes point across at the cycle lane after I've overtaken them, usually get a middle finger back...if we are generalising, it doesn't put cyclists in a good light.
Those cycle paths are very underused, manily I suspect because they are twinned with the footpaths and the bike riders have got fed up of being held up by slower traffic weaving in and out of the side of their route, ignoring the clearly posted traffic directions and so on...
stoocake said:
I give cyclists all the room they need but I do get pissed off when they're cycling on the road adjacent to a perfectly good cycle path. Look up Woodgreen Drive in Worcester on Google Earth for an example.
I sometimes point across at the cycle lane after I've overtaken them, usually get a middle finger back...if we are generalising, it doesn't put cyclists in a good light.
I don't understand this either. I sometimes point across at the cycle lane after I've overtaken them, usually get a middle finger back...if we are generalising, it doesn't put cyclists in a good light.
I know you do get some stupidly designed cycle lanes with give way signs every five seconds to cross a side road and things like that, but when they are useable I always take to the cyclepaths. As a cyclist, I see no reason to mix it with trucks and buses when there's a decent alternative.
I don't think you can generalise too much on the cyclists' reactions, though. Okay, you might have come across some Lycra-clad road warriors who have a problem with anyone on four wheels, but it's more likely they were just tired of being hassled endlessly by arsey van drivers and the 'you don't pay road tax' brigade and misinterpreted what you were trying to say. It's pretty easy to get paranoid when you're out on two wheels, because there is an awful lot of bad feeling directed towards cyclists - sometimes with good reason, but often not.
Popcorn at the ready for this subject (I've barely recovered from the last one).
Firstly, I couldn't give a damn whether it was for charity or not - you are a road user who deserves consideration and should conduct yourself in a considerate way to other road users. This is a list of things that aren't considerate:
1. Taking large amounts of a road up such that it causes significant disruption to other road users
2. Overtaking inappropriately or in a way in which to endanger other users
3. Wearing green
4. Wearing Lycra
5. Driving a big evil Jeep
6. Having a chase vehicle with flashing orange lights travelling at slow speed if it impedes smooth flow of traffic
7. Getting annoyed when you're being held up
8. Enjoying holding others up
9. Not using the cycle lane when one is available
10. Not maintaining the cycle lane so that it is fit for purpose
11. Not paying road tax
12. Thinking that you're superior to others because you've paid more road tax than them
Hopefully most people will agree with most of the above - however, it should be very easy to see the huge conflict inherent in that list: they are mutually exclusive.
I am / was / will be a keen cyclist, so I've been there and had to cope with morons, but I've also had to cope with some very short-sighted and foolish behaviour from packs of cyclists causing huge traffic jams.
Firstly, I couldn't give a damn whether it was for charity or not - you are a road user who deserves consideration and should conduct yourself in a considerate way to other road users. This is a list of things that aren't considerate:
1. Taking large amounts of a road up such that it causes significant disruption to other road users
2. Overtaking inappropriately or in a way in which to endanger other users
3. Wearing green
4. Wearing Lycra
5. Driving a big evil Jeep
6. Having a chase vehicle with flashing orange lights travelling at slow speed if it impedes smooth flow of traffic
7. Getting annoyed when you're being held up
8. Enjoying holding others up
9. Not using the cycle lane when one is available
10. Not maintaining the cycle lane so that it is fit for purpose
11. Not paying road tax
12. Thinking that you're superior to others because you've paid more road tax than them
Hopefully most people will agree with most of the above - however, it should be very easy to see the huge conflict inherent in that list: they are mutually exclusive.
I am / was / will be a keen cyclist, so I've been there and had to cope with morons, but I've also had to cope with some very short-sighted and foolish behaviour from packs of cyclists causing huge traffic jams.
Chris71 said:
stoocake said:
I give cyclists all the room they need but I do get pissed off when they're cycling on the road adjacent to a perfectly good cycle path. Look up Woodgreen Drive in Worcester on Google Earth for an example.
I sometimes point across at the cycle lane after I've overtaken them, usually get a middle finger back...if we are generalising, it doesn't put cyclists in a good light.
I don't understand this either. I sometimes point across at the cycle lane after I've overtaken them, usually get a middle finger back...if we are generalising, it doesn't put cyclists in a good light.
I know you do get some stupidly designed cycle lanes with give way signs every five seconds to cross a side road and things like that, but when they are useable I always take to the cyclepaths. As a cyclist, I see no reason to mix it with trucks and buses when there's a decent alternative.
I don't think you can generalise too much on the cyclists' reactions, though. Okay, you might have come across some Lycra-clad road warriors who have a problem with anyone on four wheels, but it's more likely they were just tired of being hassled endlessly by arsey van drivers and the 'you don't pay road tax' brigade and misinterpreted what you were trying to say. It's pretty easy to get paranoid when you're out on two wheels, because there is an awful lot of bad feeling directed towards cyclists - sometimes with good reason, but often not.
Cycle lanes in the UK are generally only suitable for kids, mums with their kids and Granny's, not people that properly cycle.
I'm also a keen cyclist and have seen some of the behaviour (demonstrated by car drivers) mentioned by the OP.
OP, on A and B roads you should definitely have been cycling in single file.
Not doing so is cyclist behaviour that really irks me. I see local cyclists on club rides riding 2,3, 4 abreast. You're not in the TdF peloton ffs. There's a reason they get away with that in the Tour...they CLOSE THE ROADS TO OTHER ROAD USERS.
So single file please. Well done on the money you raised.
OP, on A and B roads you should definitely have been cycling in single file.
Not doing so is cyclist behaviour that really irks me. I see local cyclists on club rides riding 2,3, 4 abreast. You're not in the TdF peloton ffs. There's a reason they get away with that in the Tour...they CLOSE THE ROADS TO OTHER ROAD USERS.
So single file please. Well done on the money you raised.
This is nothing, yesterday I was following 2 'cyclists' who were riding side-by-side and one was talking into his phone whilst the other was holding 2 cans of lager (presumably one belonged to the other cyclist)...
I'd LOVE to have gotten a picture but as I was solo, it would have caused the irony bomb to go off...
I'd LOVE to have gotten a picture but as I was solo, it would have caused the irony bomb to go off...
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