Originally Posted by
mjac
This is a serious discussion for the men on Bike Forums. Not the little boys.
There are are three basic questions.
1) Have you ever been assaulted while riding? What happened and what did you do?
Not assaulted, but accosted on several occasions. In all of those cases I stood my ground and let the bullies talk his tough talk and eventually move on.
2) What measures have you taken to defend yourself and how far are you willing to go?
A) Being aware of my surroundings, and B) within legal guidelines, match force with equal force. That is, if I'm slapped I'll return the slap. I wouldn't pick up a pipe and bash someone's head in. That's not justified.
3) This one is personally important to me. If you primarily ride on one particular Bike Path at specific times, sunrise and sunset, and were assaulted one evening on that Bike Path, would you just avoid that section of the Bike Path in the evening, which is the only time they would be there, or would you ride anytime and anywhere you wanted even though it might mean defending yourself using very drastic measures?
I have, and would continue to avoid it at all costs. I'd have to ask myself is that the only way for me to get from A to B? So far, that has never been the case.
If I can avoid an altercation by selecting an alternate route, I will. Same as I would not ride through a dangerous neighborhood.