Confronting distracted driver
 

A few weeks ago on my commute I was buzzed by a car who was going too fast (we were getting to an intersection) and didn’t give me enough space. It wasn’t a close call, but very unnecessary from the car, they just weren’t paying attention. I pull up on the driver, and it’s a young woman holding her phone out in front of her like she’s FaceTiming.

today, a Tesla brake checked me, and as I went around I saw the woman on her phone.

Maybe 6 months ago, I actually confronted one of the teslas who blew by me. I caught up to them at a red light, and banged on their window. The woman in the car got freaked out, and didn’t know what I was doing, and later I felt kind of bad because I’m a huge guy and wasn’t wearing a shirt, so she was afraid and thought I was crazy.

Have any of you confronted distracted drivers? Drivers on their phones are such a hazard. Is there a way to do it right?

Physical confrontations can get you shot.

I was passed in an intersection on the right by a pickup, and managed to chase him down. I explained that my wife would like me to come home on the bike, and not in a box. He actually was very appologetic, as he was driving a company truck, and things worked well. Ya, you might get shot - he might have been carrying a gun...but so was I.

Just remember that if you upset the wrong person, (edit: even if you are in the right) they are driving a lethal weapon.

No matter how irritating or dangerous a driver’s behavior, I never engage - even wearing a shirt.

If you're not going to wear a shirt, you should write "I'm not dangerous" on your chest with lipstick. That will put women at ease when you approach them.

i try to avoid all verbal confrontations, except for friendly ones.

I do feel that I can shame certain drivers just by looking over at them a little extra. Obviously, this doesn't really work for drivers that are coming up from behind.

i have knocked on a few windows of drivers who did really dangerous things. typically i try and be very polite, like “hey, please be more careful. me and my kids are out here on bikes, and you just totally blew that red light / stop sign / didn’t yield / swerved into the bike lane / etc.”

i would not do this without an exit strategy, and certainly not someone who was aggressively dangerous, more like inattentively dangerous.

I wouldn't confront, or engage in conversation, a driver of a motor vehicle. I would mutter to myself my personal opinion and continue riding.

I'm gonna guess and presume the NV in your user name is Nevada? Las Vegas/Henderson here.
Just an FYI...I believe carrying is frowned on by many here. I approve as I do also :thumb:

I Once put Gatoraide all over a drivers Pickup Truck Windshield as they were stopped at a Red Light.

:foo:​​​​​​​

life is too short to be worried about things like this, imo, not that you are wrong

Everyone is on their phones.
On one of my morning rides (rush hour) as I pull up or slow down for a red light I'd say that about 80% of the people I glide by are using their phones. It's inevitable.

But to answer your question... yes, I have confronted a driver before. I'm usually not too happy with myself after it's over but it is what it is.

Take care of yourself Larry.
Skin cancer is no joke going shirtless.
I'm getting a half-dollar sized growth removed next week from my left leg.

I’m not going to change anyone’s thinking in 1 minute on the road. I just tell them to have a nice day.

However, as I was stopped at a traffic light in the right lane a motorist pulled up next to me and interrupted her phone call to tell me she had a friend get hurt riding. I yielded to temptation and mentioned rthat she should not drive distracted.

I’m sure my comment had no effect whatsoever.

Gross.

Hell, I would be afraid too.

I used to yell, give the finger, bang on hoods, etc. but gave all that stuff up years ago. Now, I just expect that a very small minority of drivers won't be perfect- some inadvertently, some maliciously. So what, I'm not perfect either. I just drive predictably and defensively. If some jerk yells or honks just because they don't like bicyclists on the road, I try to make a very friendly wave to mess with them - or maybe if I'm stationary, hold my hand cupped to my ear as if I want them to yell louder because I can't hear them.

If you catch up to them at a stoplight, here are two pretty good options IMO:
~Whip out your phone and take a picture of them. People tend to get self-conscious being filmed while breaking the law.
~If you have sunblock on your arms, rub your left elbow on their rearview mirror. (I've done this twice and it was most satisfying; that paste sunscreen is a complete PITA to clean off.)

As for all this concern about getting shot, if they've got their phone in their hand, you'll probably have time enough to evade. (Texas, Saharizona, and Floriduh excluded, as they're probably driving with their gun in their non-phone hand.)

Edit: Also, as long as we're fantasizing about worst-case scenarios, their sentence for shooting an unarmed cyclist will be a lot harsher than if they run you down while texting. (Whoopsie. Accidents will happen.. Please don't do that again.)

unfortunately, I never let my prefrontal cortex develop, so I’m literally unable to conceptualize future concepts. I can’t think about future.

Yeah I don't think so.

In a normal country if you get into a confrontation, the worst that could happen is someone gets knocked out. In the sh*thole that is America, where every nut job can legally buy a gun in 10 minutes, getting into a confrontation can get you instantly killed.

Didn't you read the news about the Kansas City football parade shooting, where the guys got into a shootout because one of them was "looking at" the other?

This is the sh*thole society that we live in.

I find that poking people in the eyeballs sends the best message.

I have to wonder if this the idea for this story came from a current thread in A&S.

In any event, that’s where it belongs.

x2
butttt... i haven't tried wearing chaps without a shirt...

"life is too short to be worried about things like this, imo, not that you are wrong"
'

It might be far shorter than you expected if you don't at least take the possibility of being hurt during a confrontation into consideration.

If I spot someone texting at a light, I'll give them a reminder to not hold up the people behind them.