banerjek

This is almost the idea. While you don't want to be completely unresponsive to honks, you want to be desensitized to the point that your head works clearly.

Even if you get too desensitized, in the vast majority of cases, jumping is much worse than not responding at all.

AlmostTrick

There is one road (high speed, narrow four lane) on my commute were I can count on most of my honks. Average once every other trip. As the drivers sometimes even honk (long honks) while going in the opposite direction, I'm convinced most are trying to tell me that I'm doing something dangerous and shouldn't be out there. I'm too busy sprinting and monitoring traffic to respond in any way. Funny thing is now that it's cold I get less honks. My guess is they feel sorry for me, and cut me some slack.

I recently had a motorist who was stuck behind me for a short while give me a "shave and a hair cut, two bits" beep once they had a safe chance to pass. I waved back.

SingingSabre 

I've gotten two "Eff off, buddy" honks and one "Hey, I'm passing" honk over the past year. Not a bad ratio, if you ask me.

GTcommuter

Cars should come equipped with two horns: one for friendly waves and one for angry rants.

banerjek

Nahh. It's better not to know. That way the adrenaline doesn't go nuts when you encounter a jacka$$.

SpiderMike

I had a bike lunch today. Just as I was pulling into the parking lot, I got honked at. I thought nothing of it at first. As I was cooling off in front of my office a coworker who had just pulled in came up to me. She explained it was her that honked, and the whole time thinking "why the heck are you in my way". She went on with how she then realized it was me, and then was all ok with herself. Glad I didn't tell someone they were number one.

GiantDave

The little "toots" I get alot from cars going around me. I just assume it a friendly warning. The blasts that the semi's put out right behind me are answered with a harsh look and a "your number 1" gesture if needed--the trucks always manage to scare the bejeezus out of me. Those are the ones I hate with a passion!

CBBaron

Actually I believe in some areas it is the law that one should give audible warning when passing another vehicle going the same direction. So perhaps they were just following the law.
However also get the occasional honk and a thumbs up so there is another positive honk possibility.
Craig

timmhaan

i had a dump truck driver force me off the road. he wasn't going to budge an inch and clearly wasn't thinking about slowing down. i had to get off the road otherwise there was a 100% chance i'd get hit.

it's something that boils my blood when i think about it, and it happened last year. i just can't stop it from bothering me. that guy would have easily killed me and kept on going without a second thought. that's kinda frightening.

ghettocruiser

On thought on the the "honk for your safety" discussion.

I think some minority of the people pointing me to the sidewalk/gutter/imaginary bike lane aren't really THAT pissed off that I am on the road. They just think that "it's not safe for a bike to be on this road, I better tell him before one of these lunatics hits him".

It's an interesting notion, but to me it ends up being yet another "get off the road" regardless of inner motive.

And again. Its a minority of them.

AlmostTrick

I agree, but think it's more than a minority who think they are saving me from danger. When I'm not even in their way and they honk hard (not a toot) from another lane, I don't see what else it could be. These drivers never try to buzz me when they do this, so it's not aggression.

Mr_H

I just wave to folks who do this. A nice, friendly wave, with a big smile (if it's not hidden behind a baclava mask). Always trying to be friendly.

If they're being nice, it's a good response.
If they're being mean, it pisses them off more

Although I don't get the people who wait until they pass me, THEN honk. You're a heavy metal object right smack dab that just passed me and they think I don't see them?

mattm

i've always wished that cars had two horns - one for "f you!" and one for "here i come! thanks and have a nice day."

instead they only seem to have the f-you horn, so it's hard to differentiate..

chephy

One suggestion I have is get an AirZound. You can then honk back - and you honk louder. Can be very satisfying.

genec

That desensitized thing however is hard to do if you really do depend on your hearing to alert you when you cycle.

My hearing is very sensitive and I am one of those people who hears the rattle in a car first, or when the engine noise changes... that sort of thing. I depend highly on hearing car tires on the road, and engine noises to tell me about where a vehicle is.

Funny thing is about 3 years ago I was quite startled to not hear an approaching hybrid vehicle... it was so quiet (and moving quite slow as it approached the intersection) that I almost pulled out right in front of it. (I heard the tires at the last second and turned and saw the thing right there)

At any rate, I would have a difficult time becoming desensitized.

noisebeam

I too am very sensitive to and use sound to suppliment, but not replace, all the other senses.

However sensitive to sound does not mean startled by sound such as honks. I have yet to hear a sound while cycling that has made me jump (including squealing tires, loud honks, hard reving engines, vehicle crash noise, yelling, etc.)

Al

sbhikes

I was in India last month and after riding around in cars I started understanding their rules of the road. First of all, you are supposed to honk all the time at everybody you pass and everybody who comes toward you. You honk at buses, trucks, other cars, rickshaws, bikes, pedestrians, cows, goats, dogs, kittens, anybody and everybody who is in the road.

Seemed silly at first, then it started to make sense, and soon I could tell the difference between the normal honk and the "get the hell out of my way, you jerk" honk. People are the same everywhere, the only difference is we don't have a normal honk here in the US.

squeakywheel

You have too much life insurance.

chephy

+1. I am very sensitive to sound (and suffer greatly from noise pollution) but when I'm on the road, I'm prepared for anything. I expect honks and all that other noise by default. I can't remember the last time I was startled or surprised by any road situation, since I'm always prepared for the worst.

chephy

And that's kinda nice that you don't (and we in Canada don't either)... It must be awfully noisy there in India...

banerjek

I use my mirror as my primary method for monitoring what's going on behind. My commute is mostly busy highways, so distinguishing and tracking individual vehicles by sound is difficult unless they are very close by. If you've been tracking vehicles with your mirror and know they won't hit you, ignoring loud noises they make is much easier.

When I am on fairly empty roads, I use the mirror less and my ears more since you can hear vehicles when they are still far away.

G. Bucci

I had the same thing happen yesterday. It wasn't a long annoying honk. Just a simple beeep, beeep, beeep,. I thought the same thing. Does this person think I'm annoying or does this person support me?
Unfortunately there's no way to find out.

I've posted earlier where the weather has been amazing up here. The last two weeks though, we've got a real blast of Winnipeg weather. 30cm snow, 60km wind. Before the new year we had no snow on the ground.

Meltdown is only 4 weeks away!

Stay upright

Winnipeg, Canada

BikeManDan

Hmm, I've always interpreted them as hostile but I suppose they coould very well not be as well

I definitely know some are hostile though since a vehicle going the opposite direction honking doesn't really have much reason besides being an ass

chephy

So don't let it get to you. Unless you communicate further with the driver, you'll never know. I've had people lay on the horn for several seconds and didn't mean it to be hostile and I had an aggressive half-second tap (followed by a raving rant from a crazy driver who had plenty of time to let it all out because she was stuck behind a long line of cars at a stop sign and was going nowhere... yet it was my presence that she objected to... I guess I was the one who slowed her down...

RomSpaceKnight

I hate being honked at, scares the crap out of me. A friendly honk is given after they pass you not before.