Why do cyclists seem to come off worse in confrontations ?
Discussion
Following on from the Angry Jag man thread, have seen loads of videos where car drivers get irate with a cylist for some reason, get out and either mouth off or lay into the cyclist,
That one with the Cockey fella with bad teeth and a cap, the white van driver, Jag man and loads of others.
Has anyone got one where a a driver gets out and gets more than they bargained for from a double hard, ninja cyclist ? or are we a load of gobby but ultimately, soft as s
te big girls blouses ?
All the Rhetoric on here with people saying that the cyclist "Deserved a slap" liek the outcome was guaranteed, seems to suggest that cyclists are viewed as easy targets, and when its a car versus a bike then we are, of that there is no doubt but when a driver gets out it should even the odds, but based on Youtube evidence it doesnt seem to be the case ?
Is it more the case that the kind of bloke that gets out of his car or van is up for a ruck, the cyclist is already out, are cyclists smarter and less neanderthal than the average angry van driver ?
Are the cyclists with cameras that record this footage the kind that feel the need to protect their interests with footage, is there footage recorded of a motorists getting battered by cyclists but it just doesnt get uploaded ?
That one with the Cockey fella with bad teeth and a cap, the white van driver, Jag man and loads of others.
Has anyone got one where a a driver gets out and gets more than they bargained for from a double hard, ninja cyclist ? or are we a load of gobby but ultimately, soft as s
te big girls blouses ?All the Rhetoric on here with people saying that the cyclist "Deserved a slap" liek the outcome was guaranteed, seems to suggest that cyclists are viewed as easy targets, and when its a car versus a bike then we are, of that there is no doubt but when a driver gets out it should even the odds, but based on Youtube evidence it doesnt seem to be the case ?
Is it more the case that the kind of bloke that gets out of his car or van is up for a ruck, the cyclist is already out, are cyclists smarter and less neanderthal than the average angry van driver ?
Are the cyclists with cameras that record this footage the kind that feel the need to protect their interests with footage, is there footage recorded of a motorists getting battered by cyclists but it just doesnt get uploaded ?
Theres a video of a russian cyclist decking someone on youtube, different rules out there I guess. You would have to be deranged to cycle on their roads.
I guess its mostly bullies that jump out their cars, cant see bullies putting themselves at the disadvantage of being on a bike. Driving big jags, yes
ETA: Doesnt really answer your question, tho.
I guess its mostly bullies that jump out their cars, cant see bullies putting themselves at the disadvantage of being on a bike. Driving big jags, yes
ETA: Doesnt really answer your question, tho.
Edited by mrbicyclet on Tuesday 18th March 16:16
My theory is that the sort of people who’ll happily get out of a car to get in someone’s face are not the sort to have a dash camera. Also the sort of people that would quite happily punch that sort of person in the face in retaliation are not the sort of people who have an active youtube channel full of footage taken from a helmet mounted go-pro.
My gut instinct on the types of people who do record every trip, reading out number plates and lecturing people on their road manners at the next junction is that they quite possibly get into more of these situations than the average cyclist. I was near CyclingMikey at one point on the Dynamo last year and in real life he’s every bit as irritating as he comes across on Youtube.
My gut instinct on the types of people who do record every trip, reading out number plates and lecturing people on their road manners at the next junction is that they quite possibly get into more of these situations than the average cyclist. I was near CyclingMikey at one point on the Dynamo last year and in real life he’s every bit as irritating as he comes across on Youtube.
el stovey said:
Perhaps it's incriminating to post a video of you assaulting someone else? Perhaps it says something about the kind of people wearing cameras?
Thats the way I've always seen it. A bunch of us cycle to work, yet only one of us has a camera. Guess which one of us has altercations on a regular basis. I think he pops into the police station from time to time to drop off his evidence. I've also seen cyclists which are obviously in the "red mist" of a cycle, which seems to preclude aggressive behaviour, especially if they are in a cycle club.
Russians like hanging off cranes for fun, probably not a good country to choose.
Think its a case of drivers think they are "Harder" than a mere cyclist and get out full of red mist and testosterone, kind of like a power up, it only lasts a few seconds but its long enough, when a cyclist gets sent into the red mist, the driver can usually scuttle off or lock the doors.
Think its a case of drivers think they are "Harder" than a mere cyclist and get out full of red mist and testosterone, kind of like a power up, it only lasts a few seconds but its long enough, when a cyclist gets sent into the red mist, the driver can usually scuttle off or lock the doors.
J4CKO said:
Is it more the case that the kind of bloke that gets out of his car or van is up for a ruck, the cyclist is already out, are cyclists smarter and less neanderthal than the average angry van driver ?
This probably plays quite a big part in it, as you then have quite a skewed sample. In the type of situation you mention the vehicle driver has chosen the confrontation, rather than the cyclist, and so is already the aggressor.mini1380cc said:
Thats the way I've always seen it. A bunch of us cycle to work, yet only one of us has a camera. Guess which one of us has altercations on a regular basis. I think he pops into the police station from time to time to drop off his evidence.
I cycle all the time and seem to avoid all these angry incidents. It's the same when I'm driving. If I see something remotely dangerous I brake or avoid the accident then get on with my life, happy I wasn't hit or squashed. People aren't driving around trying to run me over, we all make mistakes. I am convinced having a camera would make someone want to find something to film. The one time a year something happens they can't believe their luck and chase after the car and the incident escalates.
99% of drivers and cyclists are going around an existing without filming or punching each other.
el stovey said:
mini1380cc said:
Thats the way I've always seen it. A bunch of us cycle to work, yet only one of us has a camera. Guess which one of us has altercations on a regular basis. I think he pops into the police station from time to time to drop off his evidence.
I cycle all the time and seem to avoid all these angry incidents. It's the same when I'm driving. If I see something remotely dangerous I brake or avoid the accident then get on with my life, happy I wasn't hit or squashed. People aren't driving around trying to run me over, we all make mistakes. I am convinced having a camera would make someone want to find something to film. The one time a year something happens they can't believe their luck and chase after the car and the incident escalates.
99% of drivers and cyclists are going around an existing without filming or punching each other.
donfisher said:
My gut instinct on the types of people who do record every trip, reading out number plates and lecturing people on their road manners at the next junction is that they quite possibly get into more of these situations than the average cyclist. I was near CyclingMikey at one point on the Dynamo last year and in real life he’s every bit as irritating as he comes across on Youtube.
As I said on the 'other' thread, if you go looking for trouble, you will find it. And an evangelical, holier than thou' cyclist will find it quicker than most; especially when he's quite obviously in the wrong.
el stovey said:
I cycle all the time and seem to avoid all these angry incidents. It's the same when I'm driving. If I see something remotely dangerous I brake or avoid the accident then get on with my life, happy I wasn't hit or squashed. People aren't driving around trying to run me over, we all make mistakes.
I am convinced having a camera would make someone want to find something to film. The one time a year something happens they can't believe their luck and chase after the car and the incident escalates.
99% of drivers and cyclists are going around an existing without filming or punching each other.
I'm sure some drivers deliberately put themselves into dodgy situations so that they'll have a chance to blast their horns and act pissed off - presumably the headcam group are just the cycling equivalent of this. I've driven cars, rode bicycles and motorbikes yet I've never felt the need to hurl abuse at anybody else, what's the point?I am convinced having a camera would make someone want to find something to film. The one time a year something happens they can't believe their luck and chase after the car and the incident escalates.
99% of drivers and cyclists are going around an existing without filming or punching each other.
As a cyclist I must admit that I often watch the videos from the camera wearing cyclists, & I find that in a lot of the incidents the cyclist involved is a self righteous prick that thinks they can abuse other road users safely because they are filming everything. Then they pick on the wrong person & go crying to YouTube.
I agree that many of the videos on youtube are a bit over the top, and could have been avoided....but I doubt that many of the cam wearing cyclists bought a cam and then went looking for trouble.
Most would have been involved in a what they think is a recentsignificant incident before going out and buying said cam. That said, what some people think is significant, really isn't, evident by the "near misses" on YouTube which really aren't.
I really don't have a problem with cyclists with cameras, but the ones that post any preventable and tiny incident on Youtube are not doing cyclists any favours.
PHmember said:
Most people struggle to walk in cycling shoes, let alone win a fight in them. Also I think most cyclists are probably reluctant to leave very expensive bikes lying around whilst tap dancing with mouthy Jag drivers.
ThisI wouldnt fancy my chances with my Gran in a fist fight outside a kebab shop at last orders if I was wearing carbon road shoes and cleats
If I met Jag man, I think I would be tempted to come to a halt, take off my overshoes, shoes, rest my bike carefully up against a wall or curb, remove my jersey (wouldn't want it ripped), have a quick swig of drink and a handful of jelly babies, I would then be "ready" for him.
Hopefully he would be bored by the time I got to taking the second overshoe off and walk off
Like many I never do the coffee beans signal, I wouldn't want someone chasing me down in a car, with me on a bike
I also do the same set route everyday, so even if I had it out with someone one day I would probably have them driving past me everyday as well.
Hopefully he would be bored by the time I got to taking the second overshoe off and walk off
Like many I never do the coffee beans signal, I wouldn't want someone chasing me down in a car, with me on a bike
I also do the same set route everyday, so even if I had it out with someone one day I would probably have them driving past me everyday as well.
Edited by TwistingMyMelon on Wednesday 19th March 09:51
PHmember said:
As a cyclist I must admit that I often watch the videos from the camera wearing cyclists, & I find that in a lot of the incidents the cyclist involved is a self righteous prick that thinks they can abuse other road users safely because they are filming everything. Then they pick on the wrong person & go crying to YouTube.
^^ That. These types are generally terrible riders - the cycling equivalent of the flat cap-wearing motorist, but with a bit more attitude.
I've never sought out confrontation with a driver, but a few have happened.
One I remember was in the wilds of Essex. Me and a friend were cycling along a quiet road that was barely single track, minding our own business and enjoying the summer sun. Then, out of the blue, at some incredible velocity (given the blind bend it came around) arrived a red 911 Targa, replete with whale-tail. Both of us were forced off the road onto the margins of a field. The driver continued, apparently ignorant of why we were (justifiably) angry.
He must have spotted my palms forward, arms out "WTF?" gesture in his mirror, because he then came to a tyre smoking halt, and reversed some considerable distance to enquire of me "have you got a problem? do you want some? do you?". Now he was at least in his mid 50s, with silver hair and a certain 'look' about him. I politely replied that I had no problem with being run off the road, that it was fine. I'd just decided to stop for a rest anyway. I went on to suggest that it was he who actually had a problem, in that he'd reversed all that way to threaten us after nearly colliding with us due to his own poor driving. He was making moves to get out of the car, but when he failed to get a 'bite' out of me, he closed his door and started liberally filling the air with expletives and abuse.
I was happy to just walk (ride
) away from this, right up until the point where he warned me to "watch out if I ever see you on the road again, you'd be wise to stay out of my way". At that point my inner peace shattered, and I just might have described his house to him in detail, and wondered aloud about the increased risk of fire in a home with a thatched roof. You see, I'd regularly ridden past his house on my longer, later rides, seen his very distinctive car parked outside, and even recognised the man himself who I'd seen sitting out in the garden of an evening. He drove off at speed, muttering stuff that I couldn't hear over the bark of the flat six. On several subsequent occasions I made extra effort to ride past his house when I otherwise wouldn't have, and a couple of times managed to catch him out in the garden, whereupon I'd wave to him over the top of the hedge, and wish him a cheery "nice day!", always delivered with a big cheesy grin.
One I remember was in the wilds of Essex. Me and a friend were cycling along a quiet road that was barely single track, minding our own business and enjoying the summer sun. Then, out of the blue, at some incredible velocity (given the blind bend it came around) arrived a red 911 Targa, replete with whale-tail. Both of us were forced off the road onto the margins of a field. The driver continued, apparently ignorant of why we were (justifiably) angry.
He must have spotted my palms forward, arms out "WTF?" gesture in his mirror, because he then came to a tyre smoking halt, and reversed some considerable distance to enquire of me "have you got a problem? do you want some? do you?". Now he was at least in his mid 50s, with silver hair and a certain 'look' about him. I politely replied that I had no problem with being run off the road, that it was fine. I'd just decided to stop for a rest anyway. I went on to suggest that it was he who actually had a problem, in that he'd reversed all that way to threaten us after nearly colliding with us due to his own poor driving. He was making moves to get out of the car, but when he failed to get a 'bite' out of me, he closed his door and started liberally filling the air with expletives and abuse.
I was happy to just walk (ride
) away from this, right up until the point where he warned me to "watch out if I ever see you on the road again, you'd be wise to stay out of my way". At that point my inner peace shattered, and I just might have described his house to him in detail, and wondered aloud about the increased risk of fire in a home with a thatched roof. You see, I'd regularly ridden past his house on my longer, later rides, seen his very distinctive car parked outside, and even recognised the man himself who I'd seen sitting out in the garden of an evening. He drove off at speed, muttering stuff that I couldn't hear over the bark of the flat six. On several subsequent occasions I made extra effort to ride past his house when I otherwise wouldn't have, and a couple of times managed to catch him out in the garden, whereupon I'd wave to him over the top of the hedge, and wish him a cheery "nice day!", always delivered with a big cheesy grin.Gassing Station | Pedal Powered | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff