Swerve out of the way or stay in primary?

[snailracer]

... I just keep them just in case I come across the driver again and I need them for evidence (to show how they have behaved previously)...

Ingenious.

 

[Dan_h]

I agree that some of the incidents arent bad at all, just not what I would prefer, but people need to take into account that I am the only cyclist around who actually gets out and about on a daily basis. Yes there is a local cycling club with about 20 riders, but I have never seen any of them around town (apart from one on his commute home from the post office).

If this is true and you really are the only cyclist around who is out there on a daily basis then I would stop shouting at every driver who you think has done something wrong for 2 reasons...

1) They will certainly remember you next time they see you and you are unlikely to get any respect from them. In my experience pointing out to someone that they have done something wrong rarely does anything other than antagonise them and is unlikely to change their behaviour.

2) If someone else does decide to buy a bike they are likely to be treated with the same lack of respect as you, if the drivers do not see a lot of cyclists then the behaviour they expect will be based on those they have seen... in this case that would be you!

Just as a thought there is an interesting bit in Rob Penn's book saying about when he first moved to Wales and everyone there thought the only reason for riding a bike was because you lost your driving license, so these places that are unaware of cycling perhaps do exist

 

[jig-sore]

The fact is that there is no limit to what power you can put down on the road, but it is illegal to skid your tires in an agressive mannor.

If you watch the video carefully, the van clearly is impatient and in a hurry to get out of the junction just to go to the shops (he pulled into a DIY store after he turned without a signal).

fair do's, but i wouldn't call that aggressive, I'd call that impatient or childish.

the point is, if your gonna start judging people then you need to be whiter than white if you want to avoid negative comments.

leaving out the more trivial clips will help to strengthen the really bad ones. i've only ever posted one bad driving clip and some people on here thought even that was a bit picky

 

[Bicycle]

The 'aggressively-driven' transit was displaying something many Transit drivers are familiar with.

It's RWD and if driven smartly away from a standstill with some lock on, there is a fair chance the inside rear wheel will spin a little. As the driver turns left shortly after joining the road, I dare say he or she may have been trying to join and leave the road before the van approaching from the left reached him. That he appeared not to indicate left as he left the main road doesn't do much to polish his reputation, but I challenge anyone getting an unladen Transit away with some lock on not to chirrup the tyres just a little.

It isn't the sort of driving we give House Points for, but it wasn't very naughty.

The car on the 'wrong side of the road' looked to be trying to get into a parking space to the OP's left. He was indicating and the traffic behind him appeared to 'get the picture'.

I do understand that the OP is young, but I think there is a case for just throttling back a little and letting the traffic get on with what it's getting on with. Drivers in High Streets do need occasionally to get into parking spaces and they are often dependent on the good will of other road users to allow them to do so.

I imagine the OP has read some of this feedback and had a think. Top marks for effort and enthusiasm, but it's only in the Dictionary that Leap is before Look.

 

[Matthew_T]

Well the van was front wheel drive, but I enderstand where you are coming from.

And with the incident with the BMW trying to park, I did have a car behind me so he was just trying to barge through everyone to get to the space. He came onto my side of the road unecessarily as he could have just waited for the traffic to go and then pull in. Waiting 3 seconds wont kill ya.

 

[PK99]

Well the van was front wheel drive, but I enderstand where you are coming from.

.

If you regard that as aggressive driving, i suggest you give up cycling now - your stress levels will be to high for a healthy life.

Plus, looking at a good few of your videos you seem to stop very close to the rear end of the vehicle in front in traffic queues in including this van one, AND you were in his blind spot if he had been less sharp with his clutch and rolled back a little, you would have been in trouble.

 

[Dan_h]

Well the van was front wheel drive, but I enderstand where you are coming from.

And with the incident with the BMW trying to park, I did have a car behind me so he was just trying to barge through everyone to get to the space. He came onto my side of the road unecessarily as he could have just waited for the traffic to go and then pull in. Waiting 3 seconds wont kill ya.

This is true, but it applies to cyclists as well as drivers!

 

[Matthew_T]

Plus, looking at a good few of your videos you seem to stop very close to the rear end of the vehicle in front in traffic queues in including this van one, AND you were in his blind spot if he had been less sharp with his clutch and rolled back a little, you would have been in trouble.

I will keep that in mind for the future then.

 

[Xiorell]

Personally i use primary very very sparingly, i dont seem to suffer from doing so, traffic still moves, everyones happy. I prefer a strong secondary, it doesnt seem to inflame drivers, it still gives me room to move if i need to. Thats just one aspect, its not all about primary, more an overall style/positioning/ reaction etc etc.

As said, please take it as constructive (whether i'm right or wrong i dont know, i dont ride in your shoes)

Sounds like how I position myself. I only move to a definate primary at RABs, door zones where I can't see if the car is occupied or not, stuff like that. The rest of the time it's clear secondary or a stronger secondary and no problems at all. One peanut pulled off a silly overtake one morning and that's about it, never been upset by anyone else.
The time I got knocked off WAS in primary but, nowt I coulda done about it really, someone basically came out of nowhere behind me and drove up my rear end.

 

[PK99]

Sounds like how I position myself. I only move to a definate primary at RABs, door zones where I can't see if the car is occupied or not, stuff like that.

I've thought for a long time that the terminology Franklin adopted is more than a tad unhelpful.

In normal parlance:

Primary = the usual or normal

Secondary = Other times.

In cycling:

In practice the normal road position is around midway between centre line and kerb, and the centre of lane position is only used in unusual circumstances eg narrow roads or pinch points

 

[Slaav]

There is nobody as blind as those that cannot see.....

Or something like that


Interestingly, every repost has an answer on this thread. I gues swe will not always agree on everything - Thank God - but when there is overwhelming opinion saying that the sun does go down in the evening, even I (with my very large head) have to start believeing that it might be night coming in!








And if you ride in London - or did as a kid - or ride a motorbike at all, you have a very defensive approach to everyone and everything. It really doesnt matter whose fault it is! It keep me alive (touch wood)