Arrrggggh

[NitroNick]

On Thursday while out training, I was doing about 35-40mph down hill when a car went past.
A young guy (looked about 15-20) leaned out the back window of the car and threw a drinks can at me, hitting me on the leg and bouncing off.
I nearly fell of the bike from shock alone.
I was livid!
The car was gone before I could get the registration number.
But:Knowing the road well, I knew that about two miles down the road there was a busy cross road, so with the red mist descending I took off after the car. The first mile was all down hill, the next mile was flat with only about 200 metres of uphill before the junction. I covered those two miles faster than I have ever ridden in my life.
Just as I was coming upto the junction, I saw the car sitting at the back of a line of 4 or 5 cars.
But they also saw me, because just before I reached the car it pulled out onto the wrong side of the road, paassed all the waiting cars and took the junction on the wrong side, amidst a lot of tyre smoke and plumes of dust.
Luckily this time I got his reg number.
I have never been so angry in my life, if he had hit my front wheel I would have face planted into the road at > 30 mph.
What do assholes like this guy get out of hurting innocent bystanders, I never saw him before in my life.
If I had caught up with them I don't know what I would have done, (i probably would have been kicked senseless) but by jesus I was willing to give it a go. Really wanted to get the car keys and cycle off with them.
I reported to the local police but they didn't give a bks, patronising pricks, almost expected them to offer me a lolly pop when I was leaving.

I'm sick and tired of the abuse I get when out training, yesterday I had some wker swerve towards me on a back road. From his expression he obviously thought it was hilarious.
Thank fk I don't carry a gun or the world would be two people lighter today.

• Excuse the poor quality of this rant as I am very inexperienced in the art of internet ranting.

Edited by NitroNick on Monday 26th April 14:06

[JRM]

Good rant. It does begger belief doesn't it, I was out with a mate cycling back from Canary Wharf in the rush hour, through all the dodgy East End bit - but the designated cycle route between the City and CW. Some kids started lobbing stones at us just for kicks.

Which is what they would have got if there hadn't been about 10 of them - hardly a great way to increase cycling numbers and get people off the roads.

Round your way sounds horrendous

[NitroNick]

JRM said:

Good rant. It does begger belief doesn't it, I was out with a mate cycling back from Canary Wharf in the rush hour, through all the dodgy East End bit - but the designated cycle route between the City and CW. Some kids started lobbing stones at us just for kicks.

Which is what they would have got if there hadn't been about 10 of them - hardly a great way to increase cycling numbers and get people off the roads.

Round your way sounds horrendous

I've had the stone throwing stuff several times, I also get showered with abuse (particularly from female passengers of chavy cars)
I find most of this st happens in rural areas, the locals must be surprised to see a genuine human and don't know how to react.
Its gotten to the stage that I'm going to have to start wearing clothes when cycling.

[Mr Gear]

If it makes you feel any better, I was canoeing with my brother down a canal, enjoying some fantastic tranquillity, and some pikies we were paddling past started throwing rocks at us. For what reason, I do not know, but I was livid... we couldn't do a thing about it, as they were able to scarper when we got to the bank to kick some arse. All we could do in the end was turn back and paddle down the far bank to make their shots less accurate.

As for cycling, there is a lot familiar about this thread. This country is full of absolute criminal scum who think nothing of endangering other peoples fun and/or lives.

[Chris71]

NitroNick said:

I find most of this st happens in rural areas, the locals must be surprised to see a genuine human and don't know how to react.

Really? I never had any problems cycling when I was in the country. Indeed on the outskirts of London the level of abuse seems to correlate fairly directly with how close you get to the centre. Not that I ever go any further in than the North Circ by bike...

It did amuse me to visit Cambridge over the weekend. Nothing to do with the bikes (although there are millions of them by the way) but people. Even just an hour away from London people are far more chilled out. A shop assistant said hello to me for the first time in god knows how long. Back in suburban North London you just get a grunt and a look of simmering resentment - and that's not until you hand your hard earned cash over.

Having grown up in the arse end of nowhere I do still find the buzz that you get in London pretty novel, but the people are, on the whole, socially mal-adjusted. Take the area around my house. I live in a small fenced-off housing development that should have a really close-knit sense of community, but people won't even respond when you say good morning.

[NitroNick]

Chris71 said:

NitroNick said:

I find most of this st happens in rural areas, the locals must be surprised to see a genuine human and don't know how to react.

Really? I never had any problems cycling when I was in the country.

I'd like to point out that this was rural Ireland; about 15 miles from Dublin. I think the problem is a lot of the scum take day trips out from Dublin for fly tipping, or to bury corpses etc.

[will_]

That's nothing - last 5 November I had a firework shot at me which went between the wheels!

Seriously, not pleasant for you. I don't think there is much you can do anyway without risking a kicking or worse. Although it's fair to say that I bet they would be a lot less tough without the protection of the car - hence them running away...

[mackie1]

I must be lucky as I've only had a couple if instances of abuse and then only verbal, plenty of dozy drivers but you can work around that usually. Most recent was an old guy walking his dog along a local bridleway (technically a BOAT I think) and attempting to convey in rather colourful terms that I should stick to riding on the road. I don't think he gets the whole mountain biking thing. Never had a problem with people when I've technically been riding on a footpath (I know, I know - we're talking single track where you get the very occasional dog walker here), slowing right down seems to keep them happy.

ETA: It's actually a public restricted byway which I believe makes it a right of way on foot, on a horse or on a bike.

Edited by mackie1 on Monday 26th April 21:27

[NitroNick]

mackie1 said:

I must be lucky as I've only had a couple if instances of abuse and then only verbal, plenty of dozy drivers but you can work around that usually. Most recent was an old guy walking his dog along a local bridleway (technically a BOAT I think) and attempting to convey in rather colourful terms that I should stick to riding on the road. I don't think he gets the whole mountain biking thing. Never had a problem with people when I've technically been riding on a footpath (I know, I know - we're talking single track where you get the very occasional dog walker here), slowing right down seems to keep them happy.

Its funny how some people react, i've had abuse from walkers when out mountain biking, on several occasions even when you wouldn't be going fast, obstructng them or causing them any inconvienience.
On the other hand I once hit a walker when I was on my downhill bike, clipped him with my handlebar( didn't hit him hard luckily or I would have had a serious fall), it was totally my fault (as cyclists technically aren't allowed on this track, although in my defence its a very popular area with downhillers) so anyway... I rushed back up the track to apologise thinking that I was in for a ear full, but he was the nicest man you could meet, he apologised to me, i insisted it was my fault but he kept apologising saying that it must have given me a scare.
Its a funny ol' world.

[Chris71]

mackie1 said:

I must be lucky as I've only had a couple if instances of abuse and then only verbal, plenty of dozy drivers but you can work around that usually. Most recent was an old guy walking his dog along a local bridleway (technically a BOAT I think) and attempting to convey in rather colourful terms that I should stick to riding on the road. I don't think he gets the whole mountain biking thing. Never had a problem with people when I've technically been riding on a footpath (I know, I know - we're talking single track where you get the very occasional dog walker here), slowing right down seems to keep them happy.

That reminds me of an encounter I had with a delightful lady with pack of German Shepherds in the car park of the local woods. I grew up with big dogs and I don't get much chance to play with them these days so I was actually quite chuffed when I had four alsatians swarming round me as I unloaded bike stuff from the car, but a lot of people in this area seem to be nervous of dogs and she was visibly put out that I didn't mind them bounding up. She then proceeded to collar a complete stranger who'd just parked up and start a conversation about how she'd been 'almost run over' by a couple of cyclists and they shouldn't be allowed in the woods etc. Fair enough, everyone's entitled to their opinion, but it was clearly only done for the benefit of me and a mate unloading our bikes within earshot. It was a massively petty act that wound me up far more than her coming and having a go at us would do.

I hasten to add I hadn't been there for nearly a year and the other guy I was riding with had never visited those woods before, so it definitely wasn't us who'd buzzed her the week before. She was just trying to be obnoxious.

I do wonder if some of the perceived hazard of bikes comes from the fact that people just don't realise how well a decent disc-equipped bike can stop. I reckon, being reasonably alert, I can bring my Kona to a halt pretty much as quickly from 30mph on a dry road as the average half-asleep commuter can stop their car. Maybe people assume you're teetering around with little control and the sort of squeaky cycle brakes they had on their Raleigh Chopper back in 1973?

To be fair, we shouldn't ignore the fact that you do also see some pretty special riding on occasions, particularly in Central London. This, for example, makes very exciting viewing but is hugely irresponsible: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLzGj10fg2g Particularly the bit from about 3:10... The thing is, though, some people drive in a fairly similar style to that in London and it's no better when someone's dicking around with 1.5 tons of car, yet for some reason people are less prone to stereotyping drivers (unless they happen to own a BMW).