tbonez

I was out for my nightly ride and I notice a gray mustang pulling around me..He slows down and paces in my blind spot for about 50 foot. I think he is just being courteous and waiting for a good spot to go around me. He then steps on it, pulls in front of me and cuts me off. There is no way I can avoid him or even unclip. I jam on the brakes and hit the dirt. While I am wallowing around to unclip my pedals he rolls down the window and ask where the pool is. He doesnt ask how I am or if I need help he just asks where the pool is. I figure out he is a pizza delivery man and start walking towards his car to feed him the pizza. He takes off so I cant beat him to a pulp or get his license..


The M.Fer had been pacing me in my blind spot with his windows up (not saying a word) expecting that I would magically know that he needs directions...Instead of rolling down his window and asking for directions he just speeds up and cuts me off to make SURE he had my attention. This guy felt that directions were important enough to risk my life..Brand new bike now has two decent scratches on the frame and on the pedals and I now own a jacked up helmet. This idiot cost me a minimum of $100. Im surprised I dont read about more shootings from road raging cyclist..

Dr. Banzai

I hate to say it but you got played.

The whole point to staying alive on a bike and rubber side down is to never have a static blind spot.

tbonez

I am new to road cycling how do I avoid this? Obviously I was stupid but I figured he was being nice waiting for a good spot to go around me...

BengeBoy 

What is a blind spot on a bicycle?


Sounds to me like the Mustang passed the cyclist - you said you noticed him pulling around you, then he hung back in your "blind spot"? How are you not noticing a car that is pulling around you? Was he behind you, or in front of you?

If he's behind you, and you think he's back there, you're supposed to keep track of what asshats like this are doing. That's why your neck swivels, and / or why Freds wear mirrors.

I am sorry about the accident, I just don't understand the concept of a blind spot when you are riding a bike on the road.

enjoi07

the doc is full of ****. someone cuts you off like that not much you can do...how fast were you going? sounds like you could have avoided falling?

enjoi07

anything outside your peripherals would essentially be a blind spot. and it is impossible not to have one.

tbonez

He was on my back left corner...maybe blind spot isnt the right terminology. I turned around and spotted him coming up on me I just assumed that he was pacing me to find a good spot to go around. (like the other 50 cars on that same ride that did the same thing)....Am I supposed to assume every car that waits to find a good spot to pass me is going to gun it and cut me off? I fail to see how this is my problem as I was simply riding along minding my own business...

tbonez

I was cruising along maybe 15-18mph or so...Nothing fast but he cut me off really close. Maybe if I had a few more months/years in the saddle I might have been able to avoid it. With my current experience I had a split second to hit the brakes and then it was either hit the car or ditch. The thing that did tick me of is that I didnt even think about unclipping I just went down....

tagaproject6

Do you own a pistol?

tbonez

I do and I regularly conceal carry in the car and on my person (Ruger LCP)....Im actually afraid to carry on the bike, however. Its this very type of instance that scares me. I probably would have done something stupid and ended up in jail tonight....

cyclinfool

Cycling road rage is when a pack of cyclist charge after a red neck in a pickup that brushes them and yells out the window that they should get off the road. When they catch the A-Hole they pull him out of the truck and beat him to a pulp. Can't say I have ever seen it happen - but I have witnessed one incident where all but the very last part happened. Can't say I approved, I was part of the pack and choose not to make chase with the 1/2 dozen riders who did. I was expecting a gun but they were lucky and the driver ran a red light and pulled away from the then dismounted cyclists as they were going for the door on the truck. It could have gotten real ugly.

BengeBoy 

Hi, thanks for clarifying. I didn't mean to jump on your use of the term blind spot. And of course I wasn't there so I don't know the traffic, the road, the lighting, the noise, etc. And it's great you are here to tell the story, and not lying in a ditch.

But - just to be devil's advocate here - the unfortunate truth is that you do have to be hyper aware of drivers who are attempting to pass you. Some are going to hang back and be super polite; so polite that they can't ever figure out how to get around you so a string of cars back up behind them. Others are going to be super aggressive about getting around you, and potentially come too close.

The point is that once you detected he was trying to get around you, you gotta be super tuned into what he is doing. Sometimes cars will get around you right in front of a corner -- they pass you, then cut right back into their lane so they don't get hit by oncoming traffic. It sounds like your Mustang dude was a special brand of jerk, but there are other jerks out there, too.

You gotta grow swivels in your neck and watch these guys.

You wrote:

"Am I supposed to assume every car that waits to find a good spot to pass me is going to gun it and cut me off?"

Answer: Yes

You wrote:

" I fail to see how this is my problem as I was simply riding along minding my own business..."

Answer: it's your problem because if he hits you, he has a bad day, but you're dead.

ahsposo 

How loud wuz yer iPod?

umd

wut

Velo Vol 

The vehicle pulls in front of you and slams on its brakes, just to ask you directions?

OK

colombo357

He was going to **** the suspect using his "pizza", wutever that is. I don't know why he calls it that, maybe it's triangular and flappy.

By the way, anyone else amused by the OP's screen name?

Silvercivic27

Has anyone actually fought in road shoes? I would imagine you'd be at a big disadvantage, kinda like a hockey fight or something. Just curious.

znomit

He ordered a pizza and had it delivered during the ride. He got angry because they forgot the olives.
I might start doing this, save carrying water and food on the bike.

Velo Vol 

Maybe the OP is a high-profile celebrity or spy, and wanted to use the delivery guy as a taster to make sure that it wasn't poisoned.

ahsposo 

Ooh you are sharp!

Dr. Banzai

Sorry, he let it happen. The guy was pacing him trying to get his attention somehow. I think it's wrong to tell him he couldn't do anything. People that think like that end up dead.

Defensive cycling is not a bad thing to practice. You are the one with a surplus of excrement.

LDB

If he was pizza delivery it shouldn't be too difficult to track him down. If he won't stand up for the expense of his stupidity then talk to the manager of the pizza joint. I'm sure they have insurance for things like this, or should anyway.

Keep SA Lame

I don't let people follow or tail me.

If I have to, I'll just stop in the street and yell at them.

wrr1020

You always have to assume the driver is an idiot, regardless of whether your on the saddle or driving your own car, always take the person in the other car for a moron. Biking in the Los Angeles area you fear for your life while riding pretty much on a daily basis with all the craptastic drivers we have here. I've almost been sandwiched twice between a car making a right turn into a lot or side street and a parked car, people are completely oblivious to bikers sometimes.

sstorkel

Hit the car, he pays (assuming he really did cut you off). Hit the ditch, you pay. Sounds like you made the wrong choice...