Cyclist undertaking on country road
Discussion
I’ve posted here as I’m not anti-cyclist so thought this might be a better place rather than GG.
A lot of cyclists out today - overtook two safely and then about 100m ahead slowed behind 2 others as I awaited an opportunity to overtake. Kept a decent space so that I wasn’t breathing down the neck of the cyclists.
Next thing I notice is one of the cyclists I’ve overtaken is standing on the pedals and getting close to my car- anticipating an overtake I held position only for him to squeeze down the inside on a single carriageway country road. Seemed a highly dangerous move given my focus was, initially, on the cyclists ahead. Is this a new “thing” - is it meant to be safer or did I just encounter “one of those” people
A lot of cyclists out today - overtook two safely and then about 100m ahead slowed behind 2 others as I awaited an opportunity to overtake. Kept a decent space so that I wasn’t breathing down the neck of the cyclists.
Next thing I notice is one of the cyclists I’ve overtaken is standing on the pedals and getting close to my car- anticipating an overtake I held position only for him to squeeze down the inside on a single carriageway country road. Seemed a highly dangerous move given my focus was, initially, on the cyclists ahead. Is this a new “thing” - is it meant to be safer or did I just encounter “one of those” people
I wouldn't dream of undertaking a car on a country lane. The chances you'll have to tuck in the the left if a car/lorry/tractor came round the corner on the other side of the road are pretty high depending on size of road.
I'd probably maintain my speed and if i caught up I'd wait. And knowing cars can stop a lot quicker than o can on a bike!
I'd undertake if I had a marked cycle lane or if you were in traffic (perhaps, depends on situation z usually like to overtake in this scenario)
I'd probably maintain my speed and if i caught up I'd wait. And knowing cars can stop a lot quicker than o can on a bike!
I'd undertake if I had a marked cycle lane or if you were in traffic (perhaps, depends on situation z usually like to overtake in this scenario)
I've overtaken in a somewhat similar situation. In fact, I did a double overtake, where the lead vehicle was sitting behind a group of cyclists on the same event as me (but I was gaining on them rapidly). The fact that I had the visibility and space to pull a double overtake on a bicycle tells you all you need to know 
. It wasn't a massive group or anything. I was able to pass the cyclists in the same lane, where a car wouldn't be able to... but two cars was most assuredly longer.
I was also trying to make a cut-off to do the longer route (which I did), so I wasn't going to turn up a safe opportunity to make progress. Squeezing up the inside of a car following some other cyclists wouldn't strike me as that.
. It wasn't a massive group or anything. I was able to pass the cyclists in the same lane, where a car wouldn't be able to... but two cars was most assuredly longer.I was also trying to make a cut-off to do the longer route (which I did), so I wasn't going to turn up a safe opportunity to make progress. Squeezing up the inside of a car following some other cyclists wouldn't strike me as that.
Miserablegit said:
I’ve posted here as I’m not anti-cyclist so thought this might be a better place rather than GG.
A lot of cyclists out today - overtook two safely and then about 100m ahead slowed behind 2 others as I awaited an opportunity to overtake. Kept a decent space so that I wasn’t breathing down the neck of the cyclists.
Next thing I notice is one of the cyclists I’ve overtaken is standing on the pedals and getting close to my car- anticipating an overtake I held position only for him to squeeze down the inside on a single carriageway country road. Seemed a highly dangerous move given my focus was, initially, on the cyclists ahead. Is this a new “thing” - is it meant to be safer or did I just encounter “one of those” people
It was a terrible idea, and personally I would never do it (and it would annoy me whether I was on my bike or in my car if someone did it to me).A lot of cyclists out today - overtook two safely and then about 100m ahead slowed behind 2 others as I awaited an opportunity to overtake. Kept a decent space so that I wasn’t breathing down the neck of the cyclists.
Next thing I notice is one of the cyclists I’ve overtaken is standing on the pedals and getting close to my car- anticipating an overtake I held position only for him to squeeze down the inside on a single carriageway country road. Seemed a highly dangerous move given my focus was, initially, on the cyclists ahead. Is this a new “thing” - is it meant to be safer or did I just encounter “one of those” people
Cyclists, like every other group, are subsets of the wider population and therefore some of them are a
holes (as for every other subset).A slightly different perspective (who knows if its relevant, I wasn't there) it's also really annoying when a car overtakes you and then holds you up 100 yards later when they hit traffic, maybe he wasn't anything to do with the other cyclists and was therefore just maintaining his pace.
Of course in that case I'd try to overtake not undertake, but I don't know what the situation was
Of course in that case I'd try to overtake not undertake, but I don't know what the situation was
As we seem to be staying away from a them/us, cyclists/motorists view (yay), It depends.. and my take on a how/why:
I'm catching a group, (quite often they're riding like a shambles). Car appears. Car doesn't know I'm catching/planning to pass (and probably wouldn't matter if they did), they quite reasonably overtake me, but are now stuck behind the omnishambles. Normally I'll wait until the car passes them, but let's say I know the road and the car is going to be stuck there for a while. If I have an opportunity, I'm gone, and past the omnishambles and out of the brewing frustration. Less keen on the undertake, but it depends.. I suspect it often looks a lot more dodgy from the car than from the saddle.
But.. as others have said, there are plenty of plonkers out there, whatever their choice of transport.
I'm catching a group, (quite often they're riding like a shambles). Car appears. Car doesn't know I'm catching/planning to pass (and probably wouldn't matter if they did), they quite reasonably overtake me, but are now stuck behind the omnishambles. Normally I'll wait until the car passes them, but let's say I know the road and the car is going to be stuck there for a while. If I have an opportunity, I'm gone, and past the omnishambles and out of the brewing frustration. Less keen on the undertake, but it depends.. I suspect it often looks a lot more dodgy from the car than from the saddle.
But.. as others have said, there are plenty of plonkers out there, whatever their choice of transport.
I’ve had motorists overtake me, then almost immediately have to stop, for a red light, or another motorist approaching from the front, which both they and I must have been able to predict was going to happen. In which case I will quite happily re pass them, I might even ‘educate’ them as I do so. I won’t undertake them if they are still moving though, that’s asking for trouble.
Daveyraveygravey said:
Seems a risky action on the cyclist's part, without knowing the full situation. I have re-passed a car or two sometimes when they have passed me and been forced to slow down, but only on the outside and only when it was safe and it's a road I know well.
Similar here. Often on narrow rural roads a car/van driver will just have to overtake. Many times though, the vehicle that just went past me will meet oncoming traffic further up the road, and I'll catch them. If either/both the drivers meeting head-on is inept or stubborn, this can result in one of those "no, YOU reverse" stand-offs. So in stopped traffic I'll happily resort to nipping up the nearside if that's where the space is. I've even liftesd my bike up and walked on the grass verge to get past an obstruction. But I can't fathom why the cyclist the OP referred to looked for the nearside "undertake"? Unless they've surmised that the OP's most likely move will be to go offside for his overtake, and the cyclist genuinely fely that moving left was the last thing on the driver's mind?
It's hard to get into another peson's head, even when you're there, so second guessing why the OP's cyclist did what they did is pointless. Maybe they were late for something, or just in a bad mood that day. Maybe they were 'head down, tail up' and caught the OP's car when they weren't expecting it, and rather than rear-end him they dived for the nearest road space? Hard to tell really without asking the cyclist there and then.
I think we'd all admit to making some pretty foolish decisions though. Driving or cycling. Mostly we breathe a sigh of relief when we get away with doing something daft. Occasionally we get bitten on the bum by our impatience of foolhardiness. It could be that the cyclist in the OP's scenario is, even now, thinking "that was silly - could have been caught out there, best not do that again" and will have learned from it. Alternatively, they've pulled it off before, and each time it doesn't bite them on the arse it emboldens them to carry on doing it?
yellowjack said:
Daveyraveygravey said:
Seems a risky action on the cyclist's part, without knowing the full situation. I have re-passed a car or two sometimes when they have passed me and been forced to slow down, but only on the outside and only when it was safe and it's a road I know well.
Similar here. Often on narrow rural roads a car/van driver will just have to overtake. Many times though, the vehicle that just went past me will meet oncoming traffic further up the road, and I'll catch them. If either/both the drivers meeting head-on is inept or stubborn, this can result in one of those "no, YOU reverse" stand-offs. So in stopped traffic I'll happily resort to nipping up the nearside if that's where the space is. I've even liftesd my bike up and walked on the grass verge to get past an obstruction. But I can't fathom why the cyclist the OP referred to looked for the nearside "undertake"? Unless they've surmised that the OP's most likely move will be to go offside for his overtake, and the cyclist genuinely fely that moving left was the last thing on the driver's mind?
It's hard to get into another peson's head, even when you're there, so second guessing why the OP's cyclist did what they did is pointless. Maybe they were late for something, or just in a bad mood that day. Maybe they were 'head down, tail up' and caught the OP's car when they weren't expecting it, and rather than rear-end him they dived for the nearest road space? Hard to tell really without asking the cyclist there and then.
I think we'd all admit to making some pretty foolish decisions though. Driving or cycling. Mostly we breathe a sigh of relief when we get away with doing something daft. Occasionally we get bitten on the bum by our impatience of foolhardiness. It could be that the cyclist in the OP's scenario is, even now, thinking "that was silly - could have been caught out there, best not do that again" and will have learned from it. Alternatively, they've pulled it off before, and each time it doesn't bite them on the arse it emboldens them to carry on doing it?
BrundanBianchi said:
I’ve had motorists overtake me, then almost immediately have to stop, for a red light, or another motorist approaching from the front, which both they and I must have been able to predict was going to happen. In which case I will quite happily re pass them, I might even ‘educate’ them as I do so.
Daveyraveygravey said:
if some ahole overtakes me and then has to slow or stop, forcing me to slow or stop, they will be hearing all about it.
Perhaps the motorist made a human error. When driving a car, who hasn't made a mistake?hole overtakes me and then has to slow or stop, forcing me to slow or stop, they will be hearing all about it.WJNB said:
BrundanBianchi said:
, I might even ‘educate’ them
Typical attitude & one day you'll get 'educated' & come off worse.As a motorist and a "roadie" I find this abhorrent. Far too many road cyclists behaviour is absolutely awful. No common sense and no courtesy to other road users etc Often riding three or four abreast on busy roads, ignoring cycle lanes, jumping red lights, taking up the complete road in town centres etc
I try and avoid Sunday morning rides as there are too many plonkers out there thinking they're wearing a yellow jersey. Dare I say it but a good 75% of the people in our local club are idiots and endanger other road users. Rant over
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