Truck cuts in oncoming lane towards me

Glogan said:

I'm sure as sport bike riders we piss off a lot of other people, but I guess thats ok.(doing over speed limit, passing slow moving cars in corners, lane splitting etc) ....... hypocrites.

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Bingo; you know, it's all just down to egocentrism. The truck driver who crosses the center line is thinking of his own short term interests first to the detriment of everyone else, the cyclists who are spread all over the road (not the ones doing it right like the ones in this thread's vid) are thinking of themselves and their pals over the other users of the road, and we, who are out on our 190mph superbikes scything through them all like dolphins through a pack of Manatees, are thinking of our own enjoyment. And usually, none of the actors gives too much thought to how they appear to those around them. Me first!

I recall many times just last weekend in the mountains of NC getting behind cars or long groups of Harleys or Gold Wings, and after being initially annoyed at getting held up and ruining my groove, I'd invariably check my speedo and notice THEY were doing the posted speed or thereabout. It was ME, cruising through on my Pani at 20+ over who was to blame for the conflict in speed. What felt super easy to me (and truly was, considering what the Pani can do), would have been seriously sketchy in or on any of those vehicles. Did I pass 'em? Yup, but I took my time and did it nice and easy, waving to every one of them who accommodated my doing so. Share the road, you know...

Thing is, we all could stand to remember that roads the world over are public spaces, used by a wide variety of people and types of vehicles for all sorts of reasons, and governed by laws evolved over many years to best suit the needs of all those users - only one of which is us. Encountering someone going slower than me is something that happens pretty much every time I operate a vehicle (even the pedal powered one), but I only get upset when I make the choice to be, and that's a self-inflicted pain in the ....

Not an uncommon ailment I'd say...

+10

AntiHero said:

Wow. When you see kids riding their bikes on the sidewalk, do you see a future spandex wearing '...' and have an irresistible urge to crush their skulls with your bumper and paint racing stripes on your car (or truck) with their blood?

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NO not at all, they are of course, (in your scenario) riding their bikes where they should be, ON THE SIDEWALK. As a former LEO I have seen the carnage that irresponsible Cyclists have caused with their uncaring attitude about where and how they ride their bikes. Believe me I use to write them tickets every chance I got for acting stupid. If memory serves me right, the last accident I had to go to involved a mother of 3 who got into a head on collision trying to avoid one of the ........ who didn't think they needed to stop for a red light.

The purpose of the Bike Lane and bike paths are for riding your bike. But when a line of cars has to drive 5 MPH on a 2 lane highway because one of these stupid ..... wants to ride their bike as well, they are creating a huge danger to everyone let alone their selves'.

I admit I may have been a little harsh in describing "all cyclists" sexual orientation as "gay", (since im sure that many gays wouldn't even wear that neon spandex .... to begin with), so, I do apologize to any of you who are gay for accusing you of wearing that crap and blocking my roads. Stupidity is the factor here more than anything else.

And believe me, I agree, there are "Sport Bikers" (No Ducati riders of course) who do dumb .... all the time and I make no excuses for them , however I don't recall the last time they did that stupid .... on a bike path........

Glogan said:

I'm sure as sport bike riders we piss off a lot of other people, but I guess thats ok.(doing over speed limit, passing slow moving cars in corners, lane splitting etc) ....... hypocrites.

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Lets break down your post here Cyclist Extraordinaire Glogan


- doing over speed limit - Ok, I find most auto drivers to do this as well, much better and safer than UNDER the speed limit cyclists who clog up the roads where MOTORIZED vehicles belong... so you point is Invalid.

- passing slow moving cars in corners - This is just another form of lane splitting and is perfectly legal in some states (corners can be a little touchy). IF the cars are going slow then the riders have the legal right to overtake them, agreed that they should not do it in corners, still not a good argument.

- Lane Splitting - This is perfectly legal in some states and the only reason it pisses drivers off is because they are stuck in traffic, and this does not create a safety issue most of the time other than to the rider.

Apples and Oranges. Sorry but you'll need to do better than that and your "Well he jumped off the bridge so We should jump off the bridge" stance is piss poor and serves no purpose in this discussion either.

SoutheastJay said:

NO not at all, they are of course, (in your scenario) riding their bikes where they should be, ON THE SIDEWALK.

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You know, from "a former LEO" I'd expect better. When one is entrusted with enforcing the law, one doesn't get to make his own laws up. Bikes belong on the road in every state and just about every country on earth, and are legally protected while doing so, same as other road users. Not.your.call. You don't have to like it (and obviously don't), but you don't get to make the laws. You do have to live by them however, or face the consequences of breaking them.

Glad you said former...

you are naive Steve. ask yourself why do so many LEOs get called pigs? there's great reason for it. and even the ex LEO here in the forum stated he had a distaste for writing citations -- yeah sure I believe him, but he was just doing his "job" which he had a distaste for. get it? guess that LEO couldn't find a job that he liked, so he wrote tickets and hassled people to meet his quotas all while he probably broke the law setting up "speed traps" and such when he needed to hit that end of month number.

ah well....

ever hear of the prison-industrial complex (PIS)? it too has quotas.

Steve B said:

You know, from "a former LEO" I'd expect better. When one is entrusted with enforcing the law, one doesn't get to make his own laws up. Bikes belong on the road in every state and just about every country on earth, and are legally protected while doing so, same as other road users. Not.your.call. You don't have to like it (and obviously don't), but you don't get to make the laws. You do have to live by them however, or face the consequences of breaking them.

Glad you said former...

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I must agree with some points made about cyclists on here... My main gripe is their ability to use the road and carry no form of insurance/Registration or anything... How is that fair??? They can still knock people over..damage property and ..arguably..cause accidents...

cyclists on a narrow mountainous road with blind spots aplenty tending to ride 1/3 or more into said road...i'd say only a matter of time...

Stw said:

I must agree with some points made about cyclists on here... My main gripe is their ability to use the road and carry no form of insurance/Registration or anything... How is that fair??? They can still knock people over..damage property and ..arguably..cause accidents...

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Stw said:

I must agree with some points made about cyclists on here... My main gripe is their ability to use the road and carry no form of insurance/Registration or anything... How is that fair??? They can still knock people over..damage property and ..arguably..cause accidents...

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+1 x 10

Southeastjay let me guess your from the southeast and your name is jay how original. Never said I was cyclist extraordinaire, but I do ride bicycles. My point is we all do something dangerous and if you .... up and die so be it, dont hate on other people doing something they enjoy. The law says they can be there. Also your icon has a guy in a tight suit and neon wheels what a ....

Glogan said:

Southeastjay let me guess your from the southeast and your name is jay how original. Never said I was cyclist extraordinaire, but I do ride bicycles. My point is we all do something dangerous and if you .... up and die so be it, dont hate on other people doing something they enjoy. The law says they can be there. Also your icon has a guy in a tight suit and neon wheels what a ....

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You don't want to see his other tight suit pic

trauma said:

you don't want to see his other tight suit pic

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lol!!!

I agree that bike lanes are badly needed for safer commuting. After all a cyclist has little protection against vehicles. Adding bike lanes at the expense of car lanes is extremely unpopular though. After 30 years of talking "green" they have finally started adding and converting roads for bicycle use here. Courses on riding in traffic for bicyclists would be nice instead of just throwing them to the wolves and complaining when they fail.

If Jay keeps hating on lycra/spandex we will have to expand on his generalizations to include the millions more who don't even ride bicycles. Thanks for helping the rest of us to discern sexual orientation based on fabric choice and hobby though. (sarcasm) It is somewhat ironic that a Tron Light-cycle repper (see avatar) would dis neon anything! Gay? Full leathers vs. Lycra, now that IS a difficult choice. Lol

Those who actually ride bicycles at speed (e.g. over 5mph) appreciate the need to reduce drag and increase cooling. Lycra = function over form. "Manly" leather would be better in a crash but it is heavy and sucks at keeping you cool when doing a mountain climb or riding (over 5 mph). Doi!

Where is that pic when you need it? haha

Glogan said:

Southeastjay let me guess your from the southeast and your name is jay how original. Never said I was cyclist extraordinaire, but I do ride bicycles. My point is we all do something dangerous and if you .... up and die so be it, dont hate on other people doing something they enjoy. The law says they can be there. Also your icon has a guy in a tight suit and neon wheels what a ....

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and "Glogan" means what? Your right, you have out mastered the Forum name war, your WIN the daily .........gery award!! And for the record, my avatar is wearing Ducati sanctioned race wear!

SO put that on your lovers pecker and blow it!

dont Hate on the Tron-Ducati Light-Cycle because if it were real, you would want one to...

Ok maybe not ALL cyclists are gay like Glogan - If this were all that ever got in my way on the highway, I might learn some tolerance....

Steve B said:

You know, from "a former LEO" I'd expect better. When one is entrusted with enforcing the law, one doesn't get to make his own laws up. Bikes belong on the road in every state and just about every country on earth, and are legally protected while doing so, same as other road users. Not.your.call. You don't have to like it (and obviously don't), but you don't get to make the laws. You do have to live by them however, or face the consequences of breaking them.

Glad you said former...

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Bikes "Belong" on the road in every state? Incorrect. They don't BELONG anywhere but on a bike path, or in a bike lane, they are just ALLOWED to ride the roads uninsured, un registered, all while creating unsafe conditions at times for drivers on the road. I never said I made the laws, i simply enforced them and there are believe it or not many laws on the books that address cyclists on roadways. Im not sure where you came up with the crap you just spewed but your way off course..

FrostyFire said:

Can't say I blame the truck too much, he probably couldn't see anything around that corner and was just passing the cyclists.

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That is why it is the truck drivers responsibility to wait for a safe spot to pass and yield to oncoming traffic.

Archon said:

That is why it is the truck drivers responsibility to wait for a safe spot to pass and yield to oncoming traffic.

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That is why you should read the rest of the thread first. It's also the motorcyclist's responsibility not to speed, but he was okay with doing that.

Gosh, sorry I missed this conversation earlier, was out for a 50K in the hills with some of my fellow .... in our pink spandex outfits. But yes, regardless of some people's evidenced incapacity to wrap their heads around it, bikes do very much belong on the road in every state of the union, as in having benefit of laws that allow them to use public roads just like every other vehicle, protect their rights to do so, and proscribe their behavior on them while doing it. Can't tell you how much I've enjoyed seeing the face on various cretins my bunch has had run ins with over the years when one or the other of my club mates who happen to be LEO's and DA's, stops Jethro's diatribe in a heartbeat by flipping their badges out of their spandex pockets and calmly asking if they want to STFU and go on their way or to jail. That is some hilarious .....

Obviously some folks out there don't like cyclists much, and from the sound of it our man Jay is a candidate for their poster boy. Good on ya man; something to be proud of. Rest assured those of us with the laws on our side (and our friends who make them) don't much care what you think. We write your sort off.

But to steer this back around to the OP's post, the single issue there was the dimwit in the pickup choosing to pass slower traffic (regardless of what it was) around a blind corner. Look for anything else to find the problem in that situation and you're missing the obvious.

Funny story to wrap up my contributions to this thread. Same thing happened to a group of cyclists I was in years ago. Beat up old car passes my group of 8 cyclists in a blind right hander on a country road, crossing double yellows en route, and lo, encounters an oncoming car. Yanks it hard right to avoid the head on, almost taking out half our bunch. Our guys cuss and flip him off, and he e-brakes it to a stop up ahead of us. Dude jumps out of his car yelling. He's about 6'4" and 250+, and reaches in the floorboard under the drivers seat and pulls out a tire iron (where I'm sure we all keep ours, right?). He's big but flabby, probably half lit, and there are 8 of us, all very fit and a couple ex-military. In those days we carried frame pumps, and I'm reaching for my HPX which would definitely do some damage; It was about to get nasty.

Right then, we hear someone off to our right yell "HEY!". All of us, Jethro of the moment included, swivel heads to see what's up. There's a house just off the road, and there's a guy standing on the front porch. He has an AR-15 against his shoulder, barrel leveled on Jethro's head. Says loudly but calmy to our new redneck friend, "Leave those guys alone. Get your ... back in the car and get the .... out of here. Now." Turned out Jethro could move faster than I gave him credit for, and his sketchy decision making was seemingly improved by looking down the barrel of an AR. We thanked the AR guy, he wished us a good one and went back inside. Been a gun rights supporter ever since...

Personally I think cyclists belong on sidewalks where sidewalks exist. Where I live, cyclists aren't allowed on sidewalks. This makes no sense to me. Last time I checked it's much better if a cyclist was to hit a pedestrian than a car to hit a cyclist.

Ok southeastgay I see what kind of pictures you lol to look at. You've probably got some pics of some little naked boys too. You probably get hard watching us in our tight suits as you ride by imagining your on a tron light cycle. But enough of this thread for me. If I want any more lip from you I'll scape it off my zipper.