But he had places to be! He can't take precious time out if his day to have human emotions!

I know, right? Damn pedestrians almays try to make me late when I take that short cut down the pavement.

I hate to play the devil's advocate, but... I was going down a busy two-lane street one morning on the way to work, like most everyone else on the road at this time. A bicyclist (judging by the gear he was wearing, and his lack of a backpack, it was obvious that he was just getting his morning ride in, and not on his way anywhere important) was taking up one lane, and I happened to be in that particular lane, two cars back. As I mentioned before that this was a busy street, especially this time of day, we just couldn't find the opportunity to cross over into the other lane to pass him, and when the car in front of me honked at him, the bicyclist, without looking back, simply stretched his arm out and flipped the driver a birdy. What I haven't mentioned before is that the entire time he was on the road, there was a sidewalk right alongside it, the same sidewalk he refused to ride on as a power play of his, to show us that he had the right to be on the road as much as any of us. Was he wrong? No, not in the sense that he had the right to be on the road. He wasn't wrong; he was just an asshole. And I feel like in this ongoing battle between bicyclists and motorists, most often (not all the time, but most often) it is the bicyclist that pushes and incites the motorist past a boiling point, and when the motorist does respond, obviously it is the bicyclist that is going to get hurt, so naturally the motorist gets the blame. And thus, we end up with one-sided FML posts from the bicyclist, seemingly faultless and oppressed.

I thumbed you down for making me read the whole thing.

It doesn't matter! The driver is surrounded by a box of metal about a thousand pounds. The cyclist has next to nothing. Same with pedestrians. A car hits a cyclist or a pedestrian and guess who's in trouble? They could be paying no attention and it's always going to be the driver's fault! It's part of the responsibility that comes with getting your license. OP, I hope while you were writhing around on the ground in front of his car you snapped a picture of his license plate to report him.

#29: First off, in many places bicycles are legally allowed to take up a lane (it's actually often recommended that they do so, for safety and visibility reasons), and in many they are NOT allowed to ride on the sidewalk. Second, there's no bicyclists-vs-motorists battle. Bicyclists are not in league any more than drivers are, and even if they were, the only way to win is for everyone to stay safe. (And see above, or do a web search for data; taking up a whole lane is considered safe.) Following the rules of the road is not an attempt to push motorists past the boiling point -- because what would be the point? Third, making assumptions about whether others have anywhere important to be is a good way to be wrong. No backpack? Lots of people who bike-commute keep extra clothes at work, and many workplaces (including mine) have no dress code. Or perhaps he was on his way to be on a conference call, or to do childcare, or to get to a store or a doctor or you name it.

Thumbed you down too. That essay wasn't even interesting, bro

#43, what #29 is trying to say is that it often is the cyclist's fault. As a cyclist myself, I would consider taking up an entire lane obnoxious - give yourself space to move in and stay visible by all means, but at least be considerate enough to let cars past. I would understand if the cyclist was turning, that makes sense. I would argue that there is a battle between cyclists and motorists, but the cyclists are more like an untrained militia group who think they are doing the right thing, compared to the strict army that is motorists. I would hope that OP was riding fairly safely and sensibly.

I'd be sympathetic if there is no bike lane, as riding on the sidewalks here is illegal. Too often though I see bicyclers here with a 5 foot wide bicycle lane blocking traffic by riding in the middle of the road. There are a lot of self-righteous jackasses on bikes that want to just screw with motorists. I don't have enough info to pass judgement in the case of this FML but I can at least understand somewhat the frustration that drivers can feel toward cyclists.

Can we just stop writing essays? This is too much reading lol

Such as hell

As a bicyclist myself, the law in the US specifically spells out the law of bicycles being riden on streets. You can get ticketed for using a sidewalk. Second, usually cyclist (including me) hug the outside (edge) of the lane and wave people past. It’s still dangerous for cars to pass as many cars don’t even give the necessary room between their car and the biker to the point i’ve had to kick cars that were close enough to hit me, despite riding the outside line. Lastly, car drivers have become worse assholes since covid. It’s like all sanity is lost. I rode on the shoulder area of a rode (not in lane) and an asshat in a sports car didn’t even find that agreeable and tried to chase me and beat me with a tire iron, causing me to have to kick in my 2-cycle engine to get away from the freak. Even while driving i’ve had many near misses where people abruptly change lanes and try to merge without looking. It’s deadly to a cyclist if this happens to them. In short tl;dr I drive and bike. With your excuse, you can go eff yourself.

No. Don't say that. Say ANYTHING but that.

If you said that he'd probably drive right over you

Yeah. And then back up again.

@2 Yeah, that outta show him. I know it'd make me think twice about doing it again.

, it would be hilarious if the driver instead of the biker sued instead for property damage ( his bumper took quite the beating when that biker bounced off it at 40 miles per hour )and emotional disturbance. And won. God bless 'Murica and her lawsuits

Sadly, 24, I can see that happening.

...I believe you typed something incorrectly, dah'ling. And if you meant "Why WEREN'T you driving"--some people like to exercise when they go places. That should go without saying.

if he had said WHY instead of WHERE you would be correct. however he was asking an entirely different question

Sounds like NY to me..

And then a few days after you would get a letter in the mail saying that you're being sued.

A few days later they can try an prove it. And then I'd countersue for being hit in the first place, if I was an American anyway. Fortunately I'm not. That seems to be the American way; sue, sue, gimme that money I'm too lazy or stupid to earn for myself.

Um, stereotyping much? Not every single American is like that. My best friend could've sued all the countless drivers who have hit her cars over the years and become a millionaire. But she didn't because she's a decent caring person and she wasn't grievously injured. If you were to clarify your comment by adding that some Americans think this way, your comment would be fine. But don't stereotype people like that on the Internet. That's like saying all black people commit street crimes or all white people are racist against nonwhite people. They're just not true for everyone -_-

Funny how the guy who says "i'm not American" tells me what Americans do. Please tell me more stereotypes.