GeezerGeek

Has this happened to you? You are riding along dreaming about how you are going to save the world when all of a sudden you hear a # # i c e C h o # # # # !

Waaa? You look up to see a car in the distance speeding away with a window rolled down. What did they say?

Any hints on understanding what people say?

midgie

No hints here, I just immediately flip them off. There have been times, that they were people I knew yelling to me. OOPS. They got over it.

twahl

Nice chopper?

forum*rider

lol, people do that all the time to me.

I generally just ignore them, unless I look up and I see someone I know, then I wave.

Sprocket Man

I've been riding for many years, and never once has a motorist told me anything of importance. My point: if you can't understand them, you're not missing anything.

DieselDan

Half the time you hear a snippet of a conversation being yelled over the radio/music or over wind noise in a convertable. I usually just ignore it. They'll get their's....

HaagenDas

.. get a car?

Chris L

Best advice in the thread yet. Personally I just ignore it too. The way I look at it, if they really had something remotely interesting or important to say, they'd choose a better medium of communication than trying to shout over an engine at 120km/h.

Rowan

What I find entertaining is thinking about the premeditation.

Oh and the idea that these people play golf -- for the futility of it all.

Allister

One of the advantages of wearing headphones is that I don't get to hear these little pearls of wisdom. Sometimes, ignorance is bliss.

EventServices

I just make a note that the doppler effect is still fully operational.

Actually, the best response is to wave like you know them.
If you DO know them, then you won't appear to be a hot head by flipping them off.
If you don't know them, then they'll be pissed because you misunderstood their anger.

GeezerGeek

It is more than the doppler effect. It is a combination of that and sound levels decaying as the cube of distance between the observer and the source which in this case is in constant motion.

Scurvy

Hehe. This happened to me on Sunday. It wasn't so much a word or sentence but more like a simian yell of "aaahhhaaaaaaayyy" which I assume was meant to mock my uphill endeavours. It gave me little satisfaction as I started catching up with them again on an immediate downhill section as they were stuck behind a nervous Sunday driver. I could tell they wanted to get away because their brake lights were coming on and off constantly as they tried to nudge the aforementioned Sunday driver on a bit faster. I hope they could read my lips in their rear view mirror because they eventually got away. I don't know what I would have done if I had pulled level with them anyway but it took my mind off my sore legs for a little while anyway (first time out this year after the winter).

djbrod

I got "pulled over" by a motorcycle cop for this years ago. He followed me (way too close) for 6 miles before following me into a parking lot where I figured we should have it out in a public place.

He started the conversation with "I thought you said something to me back there and thought you might want to say it to my face." Clearly a bad example of the Men in blue.

In conclusion, I agree that snipets of conversations can be taken out of context.

powers2b

I just blow kisses....
Works wonders on homophobes.

Enjoy

midgie

That is a really good idea. And your right it will probably piss them off. Thanks!

closetbiker

So do I.

If they want to pull over up ahead, then we can talk. That's only happened once in 20 years, and he apologized.

Someone who yells as they go by shows just how much their input should be valued. What dummies.

twahl

I take it you were not on a bike? What I found interesting is this part:

From the sounds of it, you started out with a chip on your shoulder, so I'm not sure you should be pointing out that he was "clearly a bad example". Maybe I read it wrong.

EventServices

You know, GeezerGeek, I knew I was wrong when I wrote it, but I also knew that I didn't know how to correct it. But rather than pass up the opportunity to make the joke, I went with it. And I don't mind that you corrected me on it, either!

djbrod

You read it wrong. I was in my car (pre-biking life) I went through an intersection where the cop was turning left. I had James Brown on the radio and was enjoying myself. As I passed the cop (on a motor cycle) I noticed his head follow my car through the intersection and rather than making his left turn he made a U-turn and got on my bumper for six miles. His driving was clearly aggressive and I was wondering why he would follow me in such a manner as I was driving under speed limit and had a green light. I was calm and collected though out the interaction, after all, I had done nothing wrong. If I had done anything wrong he would have pulled me over, I suspect that's why he followed me; he was just looking for an excuse to give me a hard time. He followed me into the parking lot and parked next to me where he initiated the conversation as stated above.

Hope this clarifies things and thanks a ton for doubting me in the first place.

HaagenDas

I can't figure it. I had to go for a ride this morning to get some stuff out of my system (read my post in foo and you'll get an inkling). Anyway, I got yelled at twice on a ten minute ride. Why the need to yell anyway? Are they customers of mine, trying to drive me just that little bit further? Dead set, I'm beginning to think most motorists are morons which fit in with my theory that 80% of people can't or won't think.

GeezerGeek

EventServices, I wasn't correcting you. You are right about the doppler effect. I was just adding to it the other contributor to the problem. I didn't even see that typo until you mentioned it.

Chris L

That's not a misunderstading, that's harrassment.

HaagenDas

I remember when I was having a few beers with a mate. We were sitting in a car overlooking the ocean in the middle of the night. Next second the cops pull up and my mate says "friggin coppers". The copper says "What did you say"? my mate says "friggin coppers" no malice or anything. The copper says "that's what I thought you said" laughed and trundled off.

Doctor Morbius

Here in the States that would earn you a beatin'. We're not allowed to have open containers in cars either so that would be instant jail time. We've adopted such rediculously low percentages for intoxication that rinsing one's mouth with mouthwash would put you over the limit. If I ever win the big lotto I'm moving to a place where I can have a drink or two without it being criminalized.