The reason why I asked this question, is because about a week or so ago I saw a cyclist barrelling down a hill toward a 4 way stop. I was 50 yards or so behind him, and had full view of the situation. He obviously could see vehicles coming toward him, and could see to the right of the intersection, as the view wasn't obstructed. But to the left, the view was obstructed by many trees. There were no vehicles around until he got within about 30 yards from the intersection. All of a sudden, a black pick-up truck pulled up to the stop sign. The cyclist put out his left palm toward the truck, as if to direct the driver to "stay put" so he could fly right on by. Well, the driver either did not see him do that, or didn't adhere to the instructions because he pulled out right in front of the bike. Luckily, the cyclist got it stopped with only inches to spare. I didn't think he would, and just knew it was gonna be bad. The cyclist then let the truck driver know exactly what he thought about him not giving way.
The situation just got me to wondering how many others do this sort of thing, sacrificing safety just to keep their momentum up.
It's obvious to me that's what he was doing.