hooCycles

I believe that my riding skills and situational awareness are good enough to get me out of any situation that a car may place me in. It keeps me alert to think that my skill is the only thing keeping me alive. I have to take responsibility for what happens because I should have seen the danger coming. To rely on the actions of drivers would mean that I'm not good enough.

We cyclists like to think that our skills acquired from years of riding alongside cars is enough to keep us alive, that if we do everything right then everything will be OK. Obviously, this is not true, but my thought process is such. I think that by convincing myself that I can control all factors, I become more invested --with my ego-- in my own safety, and therefore a safer rider.

Does anyone else think like this when riding, or am I just a delusional, arrogant bastard?

Hokiedad4

Of course, no cyclist can control all factors that impact his/her safety. But statistically speaking, you can put yourself in a position to avoid the majority of dangerous situations.

hooCycles

With a name like Hokiedad4, we couldn't agree on the color of the sky . The idea of this post, though, was not that "you can put yourself in a position to avoid the majority of dangerous situations", which is of course true, but rather that I use my ego to make sure I'm alert and not relying on the decision-making ability of drivers to stay safe. I would take any crash I was involved in as a knock on my cycling ability.

slimyfrog

I switched to biking/walking/train for my commute, but I have driven to work and back for several years in a heavy traffic area. I had many close calls, but never an accident. I do drive very defensively. I don't mean slow at all. I mean I always assume the people around me are going to do something outside of the expected normal.
This self centered attitude has worked really well so far for me even in the cycling world. Anything that makes you more aware of your surrounding will make you safer and I rather be delusional, but alive.

howsteepisit

Their are things that may happen beyond your skills, to think otherwise is foolish.

AlmostTrick

I agree with your thoughts but would like to point out that every time we head out (on foot, bikes or in cars) we ARE absolutely relying on the decision making ability of drivers.

That's not to say that we have no control, or that we can't lessen this reliance.

Oh, and welcome aboard. It's always nice to have more confident, almost arrogant cyclists join us here. <<< I am 100% serious with this comment. Ride Large and Take Charge.

vol

Until an accident.

^^^(from another forum thread)

hooCycles

Of course. A car could run me down from behind at 60mph before I knew it was coming. That has been discussed ad nauseam on this forum. What I'm trying do here is present a mental game that I play with myself that I believe causes me to ride more alertly and hence more safely. I was curious to see if others played a similar mental game with themselves.

hooCycles

Please note the part of my OP that says "Obviously, this is not true..."

hooCycles

Thanks for the welcome!

Yes, you are absolutely right about cyclist relying on drivers' decision making, perhaps I meant to say "make sure I'm alert and doing everything I can to minimize my reliance on the decision-making ability of drivers to stay safe."

Dave Cutter

I think that is a method of self-hypnosis. Probably harmless enough. Should I assume that secretly... you worry about a collision with a car?

Chris516

I agree 100%

kickstart

One can only take full responsibility, its impossible to take full control.

There's a difference between being judiciously confident, and being brashly overconfident.








Originally Posted by fietsbob
Overthinkers post their thoughts often, then want peer support, ... it happens ..

StanSeven

Fatigue, lack of sleep, stress, worries, diversions, bad weather, and so many other things can affect concentration and reactions. When someone talks about their bike handling skills and aren't Peter Sagan, I have doubts on their abilities.

yooperbiker

I think the feeling is required in order to be able to ride, otherwise would be overcome with fear. Everyone who drives a car has developed this same confidence/arrogance all the while driving head-on at like 140 MPH closing speed at cars heading the opposite direction with a few feet separation. Over 35,000 car fatalities per year in USA be damned, my skills protect me.

People cope with risks all the time. Situational awareness and skills reduce risks. The remainder of risks are still there, just need to be accepted and lived with.

AlmostTrick

Of course, and of course.

WAY more common, in my experience, is fear well out of proportion to the actual risks. This fear limits many cyclists... and keeps many folks from taking up cycling (especially on roads) at all.

Yet so many of us "confident" cyclists (like you, KS) have ridden for thousands of miles, and many years, with very few issues.

wphamilton

Analysis is usually more objective, and decisions are faster, when we do not become more invested with our ego. So I am skeptical that it makes one a better rider.

kickstart

I think its probably more fear of the unknown than any potential risks that intimidates most people. Unless one is burdened by phobias, experience will give one adequate coping skills. I say "coping skills" because only a fool has no fear in the rational sense of the word.
That said, "confidence" can become a manifestation of fear also, such as cyclists who say "I always take the lane", the auto racer who says "when in doubt, throttle out", or the cop who says "shoot first, ask questions later".

I suppose I'm comparatively "confident", but I'm more inclined to call myself pragmatic.

hooCycles

That is a very thought-provoking post, and it ties back to Dave Cutter's earlier reply:

I do worry to some extent about a collision with a car, but I think that my level of worry is not (read: not very high), and obviously not high enough to keep me from riding.

Very good posts everyone.

hooCycles

Do you mind if I use your quote "I'd rather be delusional, but alive"-slimyfrog in my signature?

slimyfrog

Lol. No I don't mind at all, and you don't need to stick my name in there. it's your signature. hehe.

canklecat

I regard cycling in traffic as I did boxing. Both are exhilarating, with the same catastrophic consequences for failures to respect the risks. And both require confidence based on experience and good technique to do well and safely in most situations.

Arrogance isn't the natural extension of extreme confidence. They may even be mutually exclusive. Confidence is based on training, experience, conditioning, and the ability to learn, adapt and rebound from adversity. Arrogance is a bully's courage, based on delusions an unwarranted sense of superiority, and reckless disregard for the opposition. Arrogance crumbles under pressure and doesn't imbue the holder with the ability to adapt and recover from adversity.

Evander Holyfield, like Muhammad Ali, possessed supreme confidence and resilience. He was an overachiever, never as good at heavyweight as he was at cruiserweight (he was arguably the best cruiserweight in history), but able to overcome his limitations with technique and tenacity, and with the resilience to rebound from losses and knockouts with no discernible loss of confidence.

Mike Tyson was arrogant, with a bully's courage. He had ability, explosive speed and power, but lacked tenacity and genuine confidence. He crumbled under pressure and never rebounded from adversity, continuously diminishing in performance mentally with each loss.

The difference is that we are never equally matched in traffic. There are few referees and we depend on a trust system based on a few mutually agreeable rules of civilization. Neither confidence nor arrogance will make the slightest dent in tons of steel. But true confidence based on experience, technique and conditioning will help us avoid some foreseeable catastrophes because our attention won't be consumed with fear and panting for breath with trembling muscles.

Decades ago I rode confidently in traffic for years, even after several minor accidents. But I was younger, quicker, and in much better condition. If I rode in traffic now - only seven weeks after resuming cycling - when I'm distracted by neck and back pain, and feeling less than full strength, I wouldn't be confident. I'd be arrogant, and foolish. I ride in traffic now only when I'm feeling my best, and even then I take frequent breaks to catch my breath, stretch my neck and back, and wait for the thighs to quit burning. And on some tricky high traffic sections, especially uphills, I'll scoot over to the sidewalk (virtually unused by pedestrians in my area), or quieter side streets, rather than plod along blindly and exhausted.

I'd like to believe that motorists recognize and respect a genuinely confident cyclist who rides with respect for his or her surroundings. But I'm not fooling myself into believing that I'm surrounded by some magical protective aura. I'm trusting in others to show mutual respect for the basic rules of polite society.

Leebo

Situational awareness and skills are great. I use them on every ride. But not everything is in your control. That's why it's called an accident. Wet leaves, acorns, hidden ice and crazy animals as well as nature can reek havoc. The inattentive driver( cell phones anyone?) is the greatest danger to us all.

Jim from Boston

I got my comeupppance about my riding delusions two years ago, when I invited another BF subscriber to come to Boston for an organized ride.

hohum

IMHO this was your most glaring error:

Don't ride on the sidewalks! It's downright unsafe; and even illegal in an ever growing number of municipalities.

Sidewalks are for pedestrians, homie.