Road Rage! Note, avoid in future.

[koolaid_kid]

Yeah, we have the Stupid Cars here too. Expensive, poor fuel economy, but trendy. Never saw the point unless you live in the inner city where parking is at a premium.

[1_v8_merc]

Careful with those Prius owners. You might catch smug from them.

[Mad Mark]

road rage and motorcycles dont mix, bikes are going to lose no matter what. although i would want to do some max max sh*t and smash someones window in with my elbow or kick a mirror off if someone almost just killed me. but thats a real bad idea lol.

[pmong]

road rage and motorcycles dont mix, bikes are going to lose no matter what. although i would want to do some max max sh*t and smash someones window in with my elbow or kick a mirror off if someone almost just killed me. but thats a real bad idea lol.

Mad Mark??? Interesting juxtaposition between moniker and comment!

Learning that the laws of physics trump the laws of man. Most times, less mass and lighter armor dictate fast escape, not frontal engagement.

[pmong]

So, I think I have learned both to not get angry with the bird and better anticipate. Today, I got run out of my lane by a BMW car on the right. I suspected he was going to do that, so was ready. Could not move forward but had enough room to move left without getting into on coming traffic. At the light, my son rode up and mentioned the dumb driver. Asked if I was angry. Said somewhat but not enough to do anything stupid. Another one of those riding experiences that I now expect, unfortunately. Does not make the BMW actions acceptable, but learning hard and soft skills to better survive the traffic.

Hi,

Last Sunday was shaping up to be a fine day of riding here in sunny, warm Southern California. Went out early in the morning to get some practice without traffic -- handling curves, hard braking, etc. A few hours later, went out with my son so he could get use to a new used bike -- bigger, heavier and more powerful. Nice ride with moderate curves, he set the pace, faster than my preference, but handled the bike well. Early evening while the sun was out, went out again with my son to his work site so he can get use to the parking. Normally a pleasant ride, and again son setting his own pace and me following.

On one stretch with a sweeping curve, took off from a stop light, with a Prius on our right. Prius, must be a good guy. Son goes pass safely and quickly, me next on the sweeping curve. Just when I get to the hindquarter, car drifts into my lane quickly, forcing me to brake then swerve out of my lane into the area marked by two double yellow-line. Luckily not into on-coming traffic. Damn guy was on his cell phone not paying attention. Honked at him, tried speeding pass, gave the gesture. Rather than feeling guilty, he goes into a road rage, speed up to next to me, then purposely forcing me out of my lane again! Was p***ed, but by then we had to turn left to my son's work place. Cooled enough to let the sucker go, and being there for my son was more important than continuing a confrontation.

Happened so fast, probably 3 to 4 seconds. Son did not even notice.

So, what is the take away? One, idiots are out there, too distracted to realize the danger they impose on others. It is our unfortunate burden to be extra careful and watchful. Two, while it is nature to express one's displeasure, the risk seems to be to incite road rage in some situations. Some cagers are so entitled, so don't cross them. Three, be the better person, accept the sad reality that there are idiots, thus avoiding road rage. Bottom line. Honk but no flipping, despite nature instinct to do so.

[shwaz]

I don't get too upset. Around here it never seems intentional. Any close calls result in an embarrassed driver once they do see you or hear your horn. They give a sheepish wave and hope you aren't the one with road rage. I know we are virtually invisible and I give them a wave back or a nod. Don't get me wrong, I'm pi$$ed I almost got hit, but I'm not about to start a fight over it. I can only picture it escalating to me getting run over.

gee it must be nice to live in vermont

[gsgeezer]

If I flipped off every cager that tried to kill me, I might as well learn to ride one handed.

That is one of the best quotes that describes life in "Prius Land".

[bruin]

gee it must be nice to live in vermont

Okay, so they're not all like that but it seems like we have a lot less f*#^tards than you guys from big cities. In my neck of the woods, life is a little slower and most people are still neighborly.

[2wheels]

use a GoPro

I have been active in the bicycling world for a long time, and with the advent of the GoPro cameras (and similar) it has become a very effective tool in the event of a car/bike confrontation.
Lots of cyclists say that simply having a camera, esp. a visible one can deter much negative action from drivers. But mainly, if someone pulls a bonehead move, and causes an accident, if you live.... you have proof of who was at fault. and camera footage is hard to dispute. The gopro has a nearly 180 degree angle as well so it can usually capture most of whats going on.

So, if someone pulls some road ragey crap on you, drives aggressively, hits and runs... you've got their plate on camera, and proof of the incident. the finger, head shakes, and the like might communicate your displeasure, but giving video evidence of intent to harm, or hit and run accidents is something they can actually go and arrest/deliver a summons over, and you can actually cause them to have to deal with the legal ramifications of their actions. get 'em on camera, and let them be. then send johnny law with a video tape their way and have them deal with their crime, which, depending on local laws, and just how aggressively they have become with their car, can be as bad as aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

Ultimately we are trying to get people like this off the road, not punish them for being jerks, however it is nice to know that they would have to deal with the consequences of their actions. But, most people who make a mistake are guilty of nothing more than a mistake, not actual malice towards the rider they nearly hit.

so, get a GoPro, slap it on there, record your rides, and delete them if nothing of interest happens... otherwise, you'll have footage of anything eventful, be it cool and worth sharing, or, scary and now able to hold people accountable.

I plan to set my bike up with a couple mounts.

[oldpara]

Yesterday on the way home from work I drive down thru the college area.
Kids crossing the street all over, I stopped to let a group cross on a cross walk. While I'm waiting I see a car wanting to pull out of a side street there at the cross walk so I figure I'd let him go because I'm already stopped.
Well all of a sudden the guy behind me starts blowing his horn, I look in the rear view mirror and it's some old buck at least 85 years old just a holloring and sticking a boney little middle finger up waving it around like some type of pointing device.
I had to smile to myself because when the old ones do stuff like that it's almost cute.
Anyway I returned the favor and to make sure he calmed down and didn't have a stroke I drove 10 to 15mph all the way to the next light.
He seemed to calm down because he passed at the light, honked his horn some more and gestured vigorously I guess as a sign of thanks.

[1_v8_merc]

If you don't have a GoPro camera, you HAVE to buy one.
They are absolutely worth every penny, I promise.

The wideangle lens and video quality are outstanding.
When you play it back...it's like reliving the moment, down to the millisecond.
It's perfect for insurance...and they are almost unbreakable.

But it's also great for capturing those little moments where you're like "damn...I wish I had that on film to show!"

[Notz]

Some states are making it illegal to mount cameras on your helmet, while riding on the streets.

The Mrs and I have been shopping for another vehicle, we looked at the Prius and several other models that claim to have excellent MPG (40+) . Still have not found the 'right' one. Open to any suggestions anyone wishes to offer.

As far as road rage goes, I usually just try to create as much distance between myself and the enraged. Increasing or decreasing speed, changing lanes or direction and continuing with my travel. Sometimes the anti-confrontation gives them an opportunity to reflect on their own actions rather my gestures, and occasionally some will respond with the 'sorry I didn't see you wave' or a sheepish expression.

When I lived and rode in LA where lane splitting is the norm, I was a passenger in a truck where the driver all of the sudden jerked into a bikers path, yelling " I hate when they do that", I seized the moment to verbally climb up one side of him and down the other and spend the rest of the trip trying to get him to rationally explain why he would get so teed-off to the point of injuring another person for something that is mostly insignificant AND allowed by law. I'd like to think that he changed some of his driving practices that day. It takes some time & effort to control ones emotions,I usually regard the ragers as still learning that process.

[1_v8_merc]

I mount mine to the gas tank.

[earlfor]

I avoid the road rage idiots in the first place. I can usually tell by how someone is driving to know if they are someone I need to watch and stay away from. Every two or three minutes, there is always someone in the traffic I need to distance myself from.