circumstances alter cases. You take in to account the width of the road, forward visibility, speeds, and, critically, on a group ride, the length of the group (the longer the group, the less certain the overtake.)
Some people have pointed to training, and that's not a bad thing, but I reckon this thread has probably achieved something - you'll look at the good practice of other cyclists and appreciate the merits of it.
We all come to this from different perspectives. I'm probably as confident, assertive and patient a cyclist as you'll meet. That's down to fifty years of practice, and close on forty years of assertive riding (it's fair to say I used to crash a lot, but that was mostly about going too fast, which was foolish, and, in any case, is now beyond me).
The love of my life has been cycling for, perhaps, ten years, and has only taken to commuting in the last five or so. She is not at all assertive, and that puts her at greater risk - although that risk is diminished by the huge number of cyclists that use the same roads. When she cycles to work I usually accompany her, and act as a kind of shield - moving right when need be, signalling for two, giving car drivers the hard stare, rapping on doors when they start moving in (a commonplace on Farringdon Road) and that kind of thing. When she cycles on her own I'm like a cat on hot bricks waiting for her.....so I wish she were more like me. I wish, and I mean this sincerely, that you were more like me. You'd be better off.
And that's the thing with this thread. It isn't about us. It's about you. Right now you don't get it. You ascribe 'militancy' to people who are simply doing the sensible thing. If you put that failure of perception aside and read what's written you'll become a better, safer cyclist.
