What is it with bike riders that makes them think they own the driving lane? Don't they realize that the vehicle you're driving is several tons heavier than the vehicle they're riding? That said vehicle could squash them like a bug? I have never seen such an arrogant
I was on my way home from town this morning, driving along the 6 mile section of newly resurfaced highway that runs between my little town and The Big City. Mind you, when they resurfaced this highway they put a nice wide shoulder on it, almost as wide as the driving lane itself, and surfaced it with blacktop also. I had oncoming traffic which consisted of a big semi with a full load of gravel. Now I'm smart enough to know that I'm going to lose a battle with a fully loaded semi, so believe me, I ain't gonna start nothin' with him.
So as I round the curve I see the semi coming at me in his lane and I also spot a bicycle rider going the same direction as I am but is he off on the hard surfaced shoulder of the road? Not on your GD life. He's riding in the driving lane about six inches inside the white line. So I have my choice here - either tangle with the semi or take out the biker. I blew my horn and slammed on my brakes which of course threw everything around inside my car. As I came within three feet of the biker's back wheel the semi passed me in the oncoming lane and the biker gave me the finger!!
I just about blew a head gasket. That character with his little pointy helmet and empty space for brains had better be damn grateful that I didn't hit him and send him flying. I just about stopped in front of him and got out of my car to give him a piece of my mind.
This isn't the first time we/I've had this happen. We have a lot of bicyclists that train in our area - so frequently we come across them in droves spanning the entire driving lane and you either follow behind at their top speed of 30 mph or go around them.
Last summer when we were coming home from Wyoming in the RV we were traveling on some pretty narrow roads that didn't have shoulders - it was off the pavement and down in the ditch. And of course if you've traveled in Wyoming on the secondary roads in the mountains you know they're pretty curvy and windy. Here we are in this big 40' RV, coming around a curve, not going more than 35 or 40 because of the curves and the narrow road. What's in front of us? You got it - a group of about 6 bikers. What's oncoming? Another big RV. Now if any of you have ever traveled in a big RV you know they're a bit on the wide side, and even if you don't have anything else to be concerned about - like a group of bikers, you know you have to be careful because side mirrors have been known to hit and break off.
Ole saw the situation arising and laid on the airhorn and slammed on the air brakes but those bikers made no move to get out of the way. They just kept on at their bicycle pace as we screeched to a stop in back of them. All the dishes were falling out of my cupboards, closet doors opening and shoes falling out, etc. Even my ironing board came undone. Damn.
And those pointy little helmets. If you're going to wear a helmet get a REAL helmet.
Some days you're the bug and some days you're the windshield!
And in the words of Forrest Gump, "And that's all I have to say about that."
5 comments:
I'm a biker (both bicycle and motorcycle) and I bike with a group of women every Saturday during the summer. I take NO offense with your comments, because we have a few in our group who NEVER get over. I keep telling them, "Why piss people off, in a battle, the cars are going to win".
I've had this problem also. Back in Washington, I lived in the boonies, and did a lot of my driving on back country roads. The bicyclists wouldn't even move closer to the white line; they'd just ride down the middle of the lane like they owned it. When one of them got hurt, they got all up in arms about how vehicles aren't careful enough around bikes. Frustrated the hell out of me.
what you need to do is call the cops the bicyclist is breaking the law by creating a traffic hazard and impeding the flow of traffic.
bicyclists have to follow the same rules of the road as car drivers do. all else fails hit the bastard next time. that'll lern em!! ((((HUGS)))
Don't you wish they were all like me? When I was a kid, we were taught that bikes go like pedestrians, on the left, against traffic. Even though I understand the reason for the changes, I ride so slowly that I continue to think as if I were walking, and if there are too many cars, I get back on the sidewalk :-)
Boy I sure get you there!!! Except here it's with cars. I had to go east with my daughter a few weeks back and I didn't even realize I was back home till someone cut me off and made me slam on the breaks.
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