Tales from today's commute....

[GrumpyGregry]

So this morning on the way in here

some dullard passes me (wide overtake on the other side of the white line) whilst I am in primary just as I'm passing the gravelled area on the left and then slams her brakes on for the give way line as there is a car on the 'main' route going from right to left (good job it wasn't turning left) so I have to stand the bike on its nose. Not locked the front wheel before. Makes for an interesting stop.

Then, whilst moving at a lick in primary, note the hazard lines, here

I'm overtaken by chummy in a black Audi A3 S3 sounding his horn and gesticulating wildly at the left hand kerb. (Just beyond the roundabout sign on the right hand side is the exit to a petrol forecourt, hence the primary). Nothing is coming the other way and his overtake was executed well if badly misjudged; he can't know/see if something is coming around that bend/exiting the filling station.

I give him a shrug and hand wave open palmed nothing obscene and a "what" and he executes an emergency stop in front of me, jumps out of car, leaving the door wide open and steams back up the road on foot to confront me "yafarkingcantgetovertotheleft" et cetera. I execute a nifty track stand, wait until he's nearly up to me and then say "Go away!" (thank you CC) whilst riding off to a volley of red-faced spittle flecked obscenities. I think he tried to kick me. He missed. I resist the temptation to aim a kick at his open door as I pass his car followed by a mini convoy of other vehicles none of whom try to overtake me for several hundred metres.

When I got to the office, I got my credit card out and ordered a camera. I've had enough of these idiots.

Finally coming home tonight as I approached this junction

the driver of the people carrier following me through the village decides she must overtake and guns past me exactly where this picture was taken. Presumably she has some sort of radar to deal with cars coming off the southbound A281 into Manning Heath via that road with the no entry signs. She then drives up to the T junction, positions the car to turn left, before, just as I arrive behind her, her right hand indicator comes on and she laboriously executes a right turn instead.

I wish I knew what it is about me that seems to attract these people...

 

[gambatte]

Had a numpty motorcyclist who pointed to the blue strip in the bus lane as he passed me, asked him what was up when I caught up at the lights. "You should be cycling here" ....

Pootling sweetly when some noddy pulls along side, bibs and gestures at the nearby painted path..

Not commuting, not cycling, but road related and to show you don't have to be on wheels to be a numpty. Out 4 a run tonight, running lhs of a country lane, when a car behind passes eye wateringly close, to avoid an oncoming car.
Runner coming towards me shouts "should be on the other side, running into traffic"
Yeah..
On a narrow country lane. High sided with dense hedging and a sharp, fast right hand bend.... theres a reason I was on the left.

 

[I like Skol]

When I got to the office, I got my credit card out and ordered a camera. I've had enough of these idiots....

And how is this going to change your experiences?

 

[Archeress]

Nice morning for a ride. Actually saw another cyclist heading my way on highwood lane. They were about 200yds ahead of me. I had caught them about 1/2mile later but couldn't pass as we were on a 200yd stretch of shared path. They went straight on at the rab and I went right. Don't think they even knew I was there.

Hugs
Archeress x

 

[GrumpyGregry]

And how is this going to change your experiences?

It's not. But it will enable me to report the egregious numptyness to Operation Crackdown armed with evidence rather than just my 'word'.

EDIT: And when the inevitable happens and I either get hurt or worse, have my property damaged again, or am blamed for the damage to the property of others, a record of the actual events will exist.

 

[MisterStan]

Hot and sunny! Loads of LELers spotted this morning as they came back through St Ives.

No numpties to report, barring on MGIF and even she couldn't spoil my mood today.

 

[Supersuperleeds]

Friday legs made for a hard ride, but the bike was silent, so I was happy. Couple of roadies left me standing today, but did scalp one chap, Froomed him, sat behind him and then half way up a small climb I kept in the same gear, kept in the saddle and really upped my cadence to go by him, TDF next year, NOT!

 

[MisterStan]

Froomed him

I like that phrase!

 

[kipster]

I've encountered the same numpty (Blue VW Passat estate RV54 ???) on three days in the last two weeks, all on the same road.

First time, when on the bike, he overtakes me approaching a pinch point, I was in a strong primary and had to brake heavily to stop him hitting me as he swerved left to avoid the kerb of the pinch point.

The second encounter with him was when I was in the car, he came storming up behind me (30 limit) and was swerving in and out to see if he could overtake me.

This morning, on the bike again, he has to wait behind me as I go round a parked van, when I'm moving back in all I can hear is his front tyres scrabbling for grip as he wheel spins and overtakes me, only to stop 50 meters further on at traffic lights. I stayed behind him as he then tried to overtake the car in front of him.

If I see him again i'll have to try and remember the last letters of his registration number and report him to Hampshire police who will do nothing as I won't have any witnesses or video evidence.

 

[MickL]

Broken tooth with slight infection so no cycling for a few days, hopefully dentist takes the bugger out this week.

 

[fossyant]

In the car today - straight off to N. Wales tonight after work.

 

[HLaB]

Met a colleague on site, did a quick site inspection and cycled to the office. As with most of my recent commutes in the school holidays, the traffic has been very light making it very enjoyable. The only thing of note when out on site it really started to warm up and after cycling back to the office my back was drenched.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

Glorious day so came in the 50km route rather than the 20km version. Was an hour 'late'. Someone made a smart remark. I asked them to "Step into my office..."

 

[DWiggy]

Really nice ride in today, thought id had a good time on a segment up Princes Road but had to stop 6-8 cars back from the lights where the segment ends which duffed my time, still was a glorious ride in, couldn't imaging driving in on a day like this

 

[Fubar]

It's not. But it will enable me to report the egregious numptyness to Operation Crackdown armed with evidence rather than just my 'word'.

EDIT: And when the inevitable happens and I either get hurt or worse, have my property damaged again, or am blamed for the damage to the property of others, a record of the actual events will exist.

It's not just you - I'm fairly new to this commuting malarky but I was having a really enjoyable ride home the other night with no dramas, there is an uphill through Inverkeithing (about 3 miles from home) with a cycle lane and traffic islands (signs specifically say do not overtake cyclists at traffic islands) - I instinctively move out at the islands to "not encourage" vehicles to overtake me, I hear car coming fairly rapidly up behind me just as I approach the first island to I wave with my right hand just to warn him of the danger - so he sits revving his engine then as he overtakes the passenger in the rear seats leans out of the window screaming that I am "all over the place", should be "in the f*g cycle lane" and I am a "complete t*t" before roaring off up the hill - in a Nissan Almera for christ sake! I'm afraid to say I was a bit dumbstruck, mainly because I was taken aback at the close proximity of the shouting from the rear window, I thought he might try and push me off as he went past and as it was uphill I was concentrating on not falling off! I would never have considered a camera but a few more experiences like that and you never know...