[dhmike]

o.k. i'm backing my truck [ford f-150] up today slowly on a 2 lane residential street and all of a sudden i hear yelling .i stop , i'm thinking what the ? and some dude on a road bike starts yelling at me "why don't you watch where your f*cking going "! and so i roll down my window and pleasently respond "hey f*ck you , i'm a roadie too bro and if i see a big truck backing up i'm not going to try to ride behind it".then the roadie says" oh no problem, i just like to yell , ha ha ".then i proceed to drive down the street thinking "what a prick, thats the kind of poor judgment why motorist hate roadies ".well just had to vent .do you agree or disagree?

 

[MtnbikeMike]

Were you backing up into the street or along the curb?

Technically, you need to yeild to them just like you would if a car was coming down the street instead of guys on bikes.

 

[splat]

if you backing up , why are you looking where you are going ???

 

[LordOpie]

Let's assume that dhmike was looking, but you can't look everywhere at once, so if the roadie popped out of nowhere, then I can see why mike didn't see him.

While a car must look for and yield to the cyclist and peds, it's also the cyclist's responsibility to ride defensively.

Above all else, if mike was indeed backing up slowly, then I'm not sure what the roadie's issue was. Maybe he was grumpy?

 

[Wumpus]

An F-150 is not a big truck.

 

[Ian F]

While a car must look for and yield to the cyclist and peds, it's also the cyclist's responsibility to ride defensively.

Yep. When riding through residential areas, until I make eye-contact with the driver, I assume they have no idea I'm there... and even them I'm still cautious....

 

[reflux]

The percentage of roadie d*cks is reflective of the general population. Your story does not surprise me at all.

Let us not forget that d*cks f**k a**holes.

 

[OGRipper]

Nice employment of the "I ride too, and you are the asshat, not me" defense. I've used it a lot here in SF.

But yeah, the more people on bikes, the more it reflects the general population, and the general population is full of wankers.

 

[splat]

and Suppose that had been a Kid on a bike he didn't see ?

 

[loco-gringo]

Regardless of whether Mike was wrong or not, the dude was a douche. When I hear that he was hit by a car or got his ass kicked, I won't feel bad. I don't think it's karma. I just think if you are enough of an ass, people will ultimately call you out.

 

[Serial Midget]

On a totally unrelated note...

Last week I was cycling to Costco in a bike lane and signaled a right hand turn into the parking lot from a two lane street. As I did a nice old lady in a mini van, coming from the opposite direction, cut in front of me. I had already caught her eye and she held it as she cut me off. I was not really pissed but I still made a point of waiting for her at the entrance so I could explain to her that I not only had the right of way but I also had the same rights to the road as a motor vehicle. I also said that if I had been in a car and not an easy to maneuver bicycle - she surely would have caused an accident.

She said she was sorry and thought I was waving her through...

 

[DirtyMike]

this relates to my three golden rules, of which i follow when riding the scooter as well as the road bike

1st, two wheels means your invisible, this means that when on two wheels noone can see you. And when they look at you, they are looking past you. Best invisibility cloak ever.

2nd. If they can_____, they wil_____. IE if they can Pull in front of you, they will, or if they can cut you off, they will cut you off.

3rd. always have two ways out. If something happens make sure you dont get blocked in.


So in other words, the bigger always wins. the "Roadie" in question was in the wrong

 

[loco-gringo]

This reminds me of how a guy made a U in a semi last Friday. I was rolling about 22 and had him clear. Some douche in a pickup decided to say screw me and pulled out. If I had been on my CX bike, I would have just hit him and ruined his day. Someone flipped him off, but it wasn't me. I just thought "what a douche" and rode on. Someday he will do the same in front of a train and the joke will be on him.

The only important rule here is that people are stupid.

 

[Silver]

Last week I was cycling to Costco

What the hell did you buy at Costco that you could take back on your bike? A prescription?

 

[Serial Midget]

What the hell did you buy at Costco that you could take back on your bike? A prescription?

My Bob Yak can hold 75LBS - I do all my shopping one day a week by bike.

 

[LordOpie]

My Bob Yak can hold 75LBS - I do all my shopping one day a week by bike.

cool.

and Suppose that had been a Kid on a bike he didn't see ?

I agree. Wherever there might be children, extra care and attention should be paid.

I was in a library parking lot, ran from my car to the front door and ran in front of a car doing so. Well, the car was a good 20feet away. She leaned on the horn and yelled at me.

I said, "lady, if I can't sprint faster than your car in this parking lot, then you're going way too fast since there are always kids running around here."

She yelled at me more, I repeated...

Some other lady walked up to me, leaned in and said...

"At least your not married to her."

One of the most awesomest things ever said to me.

 

[DirtyMike]

and Suppose that had been a Kid on a bike he didn't see ?

Then i would have to wonde where Mom and Dad are, and why they are letting there child on the street without teaching them to look out. .....


Sorry but responsiblitly cannot be passed on this one, it is just like when out on the water, larger craft has the right of way, meaning smaller has to look out. What are we saying here, Its ok to ride behind a moving vehicle because they should be watching????? Never, ever, ever asume someone sees you, Ever. If you assume someone sees you, your the A%%hat that gets runover PEIOD. you are the only one responsible for your safety when on two wheels in the four wheel world, "IE Road riding"..... Seriously though, what kind of parent lets ther child ride out on the street anyways?

 

[LordOpie]

Then i would have to wonde where Mom and Dad are, and why they are letting there child on the street without teaching them to look out. .....

I agree that parents need to be responsible, but what if this was that one in a million moment when the kid just took off?

Splat's point is still valid, regardless of how or why, a driver must be aware of their surroundings all the time, especially when backing up. Wasn't it Revmonkey that was recently killed by a car backing up in a parking lot?

While drivers must be responsible, so must riders. In the end, the rider must take responsibility for themselves, but it's the driver who will take the legal responsibility for a situation like this one.

 

[Wumpus]

Seriously though, what kind of parent lets ther child ride out on the street anyways?

Ummmm, I don't know where you rode as a kid, but I definitely rode in the street, and it seems the parents around here think it is OK. It is a neighborhood -- slow down and watch out for kids playing.

 

[The Toninator]

i'm backing my truck [ford f-150] up today slowly on a 2 lane residential street

so i'm still stuck on this quote. were you backing OUT of a spot or did you miss a turn or something and think it was ok to just throw it in reverse and go the wrong way in that lane?
I'm no (real rodie but my attitude has aspirations) roady but i might have to yell at you too.

 

[sunny]

My Bob Yak can hold 75LBS - I do all my shopping one day a week by bike.

You totally rock.

I thought I was rad in college when went to the farmers market and strapped a watermelon on the back of my little Honda 250 motorcycle... ha.

 

[dhmike]

i always knew you were a pretty smart guy opie ! i was backing up slowly out of a driveway looking, with more than half of the back end of my truck in the street and like opie said i can't look everywhere at once and the is asshat sorry i stole your word ogripper keeps riding behind me and gets pissed because he did not pay attention and stop or slow down and let me continue backing up.if it was a car the car would have stopped and for that what if it was a kid ? please there are alot of what if's in life it was some prick on a road bike who gives roadies a bad name.

 

[DirtyMike]

Ummmm, I don't know where you rode as a kid, but I definitely rode in the street, and it seems the parents around here think it is OK. It is a neighborhood -- slow down and watch out for kids playing.

So, more details needed then, was this a quite neighbor hood??? or a busy street, i grew up in a small neighborhood. while yes i rode in the street, only during the day when everyone was at work. And my limits were i was allowed to go, set forth by my parents were VERY defenite.




As far as the off chance the kid just took off, well yeah that sucks and it happens, but at the same time if your working in a busy area your not expecting there to be kids about, or adults for that matter. But like DHmike said, he was slowly backing up, halfway in the street. At that point why the hell did someone try to go behind them. Thats like Saying to yourself, "They see me, they will stop.""when chances are they dont.

Sorry, but its the same when riding a motocycle, your invisible. People do not see you.

At the same time, drivers should be aware as much as they can. andfrom teh descrioption, DHmike was.

With that said, how many drivers do we see all the time that are on Cell phones, not using blinkers changing lanes at hi speed, Not looking before backing up. These are all things we know to be true, and with that you know there is more danger, so dont put yourself where you will most likely get hit, and if you decide to try and "Beat the train" so to speak, dont yell at someone when you could have simply stopped and avoided it yourself.

Moral of the story, dont let someone else be responsible for your own safety, be responsible for your own

 

[johnbryanpeters]

...when out on the water, larger craft has the right of way, meaning smaller has to look out...

Dead wrong. Learn your rules of the road. This applies only if a very large (think oil tanker) vessel is "restricted in its ability to maneuver".

 

[LordOpie]

Dead wrong. Learn your rules of the road. This applies only if a very large (think oil tanker) vessel is "restricted in its ability to maneuver".

Listen to JBP.

He was on duty when Noah's Arc launched.

 

[johnbryanpeters]

A-r-k ark.

 

[SK6]

Well...F*ck 'em if they can't take a joke.

 

[SK6]

A-r-k ark.

ROFLMAO!!!!!

 

[loco-gringo]

Dead wrong. Learn your rules of the road. This applies only if a very large (think oil tanker) vessel is "restricted in its ability to maneuver".

I don't see many "vessels" on the road around here. Where do you live???

 

[MtnbikeMike]

Some dude nearly smashed me today in his 'big truck'. He didn't even see me as he was turning left into his driveway, and I wasn't sure I was going to get stopped in time to not become his new hood ornament. Normally, I would go balistic and let him know I wasn't very happy with his attempt to off me, but for some reason I didn't say a thing. I just waved him into the driveway and continued on my way happy as could be. Strange.

If you had hit him, it would've been your fault.

 

[Wumpus]

Some dude nearly smashed me today in his 'big truck'. He didn't even see me as he was turning left into his driveway, and I wasn't sure I was going to get stopped in time to not become his new hood ornament. Normally, I would go ballistic and let him know I wasn't very happy with his attempt to off me, but for some reason I didn't say a thing. I just waved him into the driveway and continued on my way happy as could be. Strange.