chas58

Obviously, the proper response is to de-escalate when possible. However, there is nothing like being attacked with a 4,000+lb vehicle to give the “fight or flight” system a good dose of adrenaline. Either way, there are days when I need to see this video:

deephate

delbiker1 

Sure cannot fault the bicyclist. The aggressive approach by the guy from the truck, in my opinion, justifies the reaction.

Kedosto

noglider 

I don't think I've been in a fist fight since I was a little kid. I'm not sure I would survive. I tend to avoid those situations. If I had been the cyclist here and the truck driver were rushing me like that, I do not know what I would do. But I don't blame him, and I'm glad he was able to do what needed to be done.

rhm

I've never seen that, but I've heard of similar encounters. Paging @gazer!

chas58

Its one thing to watch a video, another one to experience it. I had an SUV hit me square on when I was walking across a crosswalk. He just rolled through a red light and never noticed me until I hit his hood. Fortunately I wasn't hurt, but I never in my life have had a shot of adrenaline, saw red, and wanted blood like I did in that instance. There is nothing quite like having someone aggressively attack me with a 4000lb vehicle to change me out of my mild mannered self.

So yeah, sitting in my chair watching the video I will have one reaction, but I know that when I feel my life is threatened I may react differently...

rumrunn6

a threat causing fear is assault. if he touches you, that's assault & battery. I'd be tempted to defend myself from assault before it turns to battery. at which point it might be too late to defend yourself. that guy charging out of his vehicle with something in his hand is pretty darn inflammatory, especially since the cyclist made an obvious effort to deescalate & leave the scene. the 2 handed shove to the face reminds me of Jason Varitek vs A-Rod, 2004, Red Sox vs Yankees

acidfast7

I remember that 2 handed shove.

I also remember being at G4WS2004 in STL and watching the Sox win in person!

mcours2006

Nice!

basketbro

i love how the truck driver is just on the ground in disbelief.
like "what? my cage doesn't protect me anymore?!?"

Notso_fastLane

I have only had one driver actually get out of his car and charge me like that.

I think my total lack of reaction stymied him because he just stopped about 8 feet away, called me some names and got back in his car.

I haven't actually been in a fight since I got my black belt.

madpogue 

Which means your training has served you well.

Shimagnolo

Oh, that made my day!!!

u235

Self control is why you haven't been in that situation. Anyone... Don't take this the wrong way but... There was probably something that rapidly escalated to the driver getting out of the truck. Right or wrong, justified or not.. that is not the point. People that don't want things to escalate can usually avoid it escalating. Even simple eye contact and a mumble in the general direction after a miscue is escalation. Do as you see fit.

robertorolfo

A lot of people don't realize that when you are on a bike (or a motorcycle), their little "mistake" or bit of distraction could literally kill you, and they most certainly don't know what it's like to have a close call like that. It arouses (at least for me) a very basic survival instinct that can indeed make you feel irate and potentially aggressive, which is only exacerbated by the common attitude of the driver that it wasn't a big deal. It's enough to drive you mad...

noglider 

Thank you, @u235. Being in a situation like that, even avoiding escalation doesn't feel good, because just being in a dangerous situation is alarming. I once drove my car past a guy who was trying to flag me down. He may have wanted to ask for help, but my spidy sense told me that he might be trying something bad. I felt bad for judging him badly, and my heart raced for half the day afterwards. But hey, I didn't get hurt.

Once I did something stupid. In my old town, drivers were horrible at stopping for pedestrians in crosswalks. I was trying to cross on foot, and a driver zoomed past my body, going at least 40 mph. I threw my magazine at his car. He pulled over and got out of his car and started yelling at me. He wanted me to hit him, and he drew his body really close to mine. I had my wife and daughter there with me, and my daughter freaked out, shrieking and running away. Nothing happened, and I'm sure he didn't think he did anything wrong. My wife made me promise never to do that again.

RubeRad

This thread merits a replay of this gem:

kingston 

According to this, both guys are facing potential jail time.

madpogue 

^^^^^ So using your fist in a manner that might have caused the other person an owie jaw and a sore bum gets you possibly two years. Using a commercial 3+ ton vehicle that could have killed the other person gets you possibly six months.

no motor?

Thanks, I was wondering what happened.

u235

So... endless repetitions of "I know you are but what am I" must happen a lot?

madpogue 

But threatening to kill someone with three tons of steel is, by comparison, a slap-on-the-wrist offense? And if the "first punch" is really a factor here, the lorry driver's intentional and potentially deadly act constitutes the "first punch" (and by far, the more potentially harmful).

bigbenaugust 

I was going to say... this is Singapore law we're in here.

madpogue 

Block him from doing what? And whatever the driver thinks the cyclist might do, does that really give him the impunity to use a three-ton vehicle to "block" it? If the driver were really in any fear of anything, his option, which he clearly chose NOT to take, would have been to drive AWAY from the situation.

All the more ironic. You look at someone the wrong way, you can get caned. But threaten to kill someone -- if it happens to be using a motor vehicle, meh!