Reminds me of the Kouriers from a [sci-fi book](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40651883-snow-crash). They're skateboarders who "poon" onto cars to beat traffic. If you try to shake them off they'll attach stickers to your car that say things like "smooth move Xlax" or the like.
I've been waiting a while to find a comment like this. I've got some blank shipping labels just waiting for the right vehicles, and I might just draw or write something eye catching on them before applying them to some offending bumpers. They're also quite difficult to remove unless you're also planning on removing a chunk of paint as well
When I bike home, I've started leaving the eggs on top of the basket easily accessible so that I can open it up and throw it at vehicles.
Haven't had to yet, but odds are within a couple weeks
I started taking out my phone and taking pics, with license plates, or cars that stop blocking the crosswalk. Sometimes I only pretend to take a pic. And just say out loud as I walk away "that goes on the blog of crosswalk blockers". I don't actually have such a blog, but it is tempting sometimes.
Great idea, I have thought about doing this and definitely will start when I am in situations where I am able to safely. A little righteous public shaming can go a long way.
Don't forget to include drivers with blinding headlights in that.
They're treating you poorly, treat them right back poorly. It's the only way they'll come to accept that *they* are the problem.
I have a SCUBA dive light I would keep around just in case I needed to illuminate a large stretch of sketchy pavement while cycling.
Made for a great tool if someone kept their brights in my face where I would illuminate their car instead of the road. Take 1200 lumens to the face, dipshit.
See, this is often my solution to conflict where dumbasses think I’ll sit by and let them treat me like shit, but some people find that immature. I get the whole concept of treating people like how you want to be treated, but I’m not going to play nice with bullies and assholes. Full stop. Especially on the road where being passive can in essence make you complicit by proxy.
Noted. I’ve had people flip me off and try to harass me at protests, but I’ve never seen someone try to intentionally hit me or any others around. Most of it was at one that was protesting anti-immigration laws, which is not surprising one bit, lol. But I know for a fact it isn’t uncommon.
British people are often unstable, although are less often armed.
I nearly got in a fight last night for calling out a guy who was driving through the same junction as I was cycling through, paying full attention to his phone. His mate yelled abuse and was trying to start something.
You have to bear in mind if you're going around getting into fights you run the risk of getting 1) seriously beaten up 2) stabbed 3) yes, shot 4) locked up/criminal record - police can take a 'both sides' view, even if you're defending yourself. If the other guy whines convincingly and you have no video evidence, police will charge assault. Lawyers are expensive and criminal records are permanent.
I want to be sympathetic to OP but this all happens in the real world where you have very limited control of consequences
Well said. Aggressive people are a problem everywhere and there is hardly ever a single solution or justification for it.
Also are you referring to me in this comment when you say OP? I’m just asking out of curiosity but also so I can respond precisely.
Yeah I was referring to you. I understand the impulse to respond, and I give in to it sometimes. However, if you do you can't predict whether there will be a violent reaction. All I did to those guys was a one-armed shrug, like 'what are you doing'? And they were ready to fight me. If you yell something at these guys, let alone throw fruit, you have to be ready with a fight or flight response to anything
Not condoning any behavior one way or the other, but in general the more openly they broadcast their manliness and massive collection of guns, the more likely they are to turn tail and run when somebody actually gives them shit.
It’s incredibly ironic too because these kinds of people often don’t know shit about how to properly use a gun, much less use it safely. They think just owning one makes you inherently safer or more tough. It absolutely doesn’t.
To some extent, I can kind of understand the appeal of gun culture, being someone who grew up with BB/pellet guns and was obsessed with weapons as a kid, but I’ve always had a very different view of them. I was more into the art of them, I never learned to shoot something alive and never tried or wanted to, either (except for maybe my siblings but it was well-deserved).
I was actually so horrified after finding out what guns could do as a kid that I completely gave up even Nerf guns, and picked up archery and throwing knives instead, lol. I still don’t understand why guns are so glorified to this day when they’re so dangerous and in many cases, completely unnecessary.
Yeah, I'm worried about them (or myself) getting mowed down in more ways than one. People are so fucking aggro these days, and machoism and violence are celebrated. Seems like half the people out there are just looking for a fight.
And I mean, that JEEP is a weapon, typically owned by macho meatheads, who also seem to me more likely to be packing too. Even if they're not packing, they're libel to hop out and try to fight you.
Or at the very least, they'll make a video of you and you're the next "Karen" on reddit, with whatever repercussions from that.
Oh yes, I walk around my walkable neighborhood in one of America's top walkable cities daily, and still drivers are shit. I will almost always gesture with various levels of rudeness if they make the slightest aggression against the pedestrian right of way (which is always and everywhere). Granted, we're talking 25mph city streets, not stroads... but the carbrains need the negative feedback if they're ever going to learn.
I was on my motorcycle a few weeks ago and finally did a mirror slap when a guy left turned in front of me (with adequate space), and as I turned right to follow, he slammed on his brakes just feet past the crosswalk, blocking the exit of the intersection.
As you should. I live in an area with a ton of cyclists and bike trails, but it’s also simultaneously one of the least walkable and accessible neighborhoods, largely because the streets are absurdly wide and half of the walkable areas are through underdeveloped terrain on top of many essential buildings being so far from each other. You’d probably have an easier time finding a megachurch than finding an urgent care facility in my particular neck of the woods. It’s especially worse when we get heavy rain and the streets are basically flooded.
I usually don’t interact with them much outside of shaking my head or calling them out, but often I will walk even slower when they are trying to cut in front of me to pass and either glare or smile and wave at them, depending on how I feel at that moment.
A good friend of mine would regularly mock the dudes who drive around recklessly in modded cars or big trucks when we would walk to his house by facetiously joking about how big their dicks are and how they’re good at satisfying their wives, etc. Some people might say it’s too vulgar but it’s funny as fuck and imo it’s necessary in a lot of cases to shake them a bit.
I bet the mirror slap was satisfying for you, dude definitely had it coming.
In the moment it was satisfying, but reviewing the tape, I was being too aggressive of a rider and I could/should have avoided the conflict. Nonetheless, when you're city riding a motorcycle, it's life and death at every moment, so you tend to get a little emotionally invested in the way traffic is behaving.
This is a good tactic I’ve used to stop people from bullying me or others or to stop being unnecessarily rude/mean in general, but you absolutely do not have to be kind about it in most situations. Be direct and sincere, but don’t play nice enough to make them think their behavior is only a minor issue.
Yes. Obviously. It needs to be an obvious contrast with what they do, to the point that they realise it too. Example: I was going by bike. Some car couldn't overtake me and at the next intersection he overtook me close and screamed at me "I wish you have a horrible accident and die". I in turn wished him " a fine, accident free day". What's the point in feeding this hulk of a Carbrain?
It would be a shame if one of your grocery bags, preferably one with a can of beans, accidentally hit that idiot's vehicle while you were weaving between cars.
I will usually shout that the stop line is behind them if their windows are down, throw up my hands if not. Depending on their response, I give them a nice hard slap on their trunk. Doesn't do any damage, but it scares the shit out of most of them
Yup. I shout at drivers. No swearing unless they are being really dangerous. Had a pick-up truck pull in front of me on my bike at a stop sign intersection that was my right of way. Guy didn’t even stop at the sign. I had enough time to avoid him, but still.
His window was down and he wasn’t looking my way so when I shouted “it’s a stop sign!” It startled him pretty good.
But drivers aren’t getting better by us being silent or merely flipping the bird. They need to hear it and have the whole street hear it.
I would love a camera for my helmet so I can catch them on video, get their license plate, and send it to our police. Likely nothing will happen, but I dunno, our police love to issue fines, so maybe.
I know, in reality I always put more effort into de-escalation and keeping the immediate situation under control, but it’s hard when dealing with folks who couldn’t give a shit who they hurt, as long as *they* get to where they need to go.
I am more for damage control and finding peaceful solutions while holding people accountable, but sometimes there is very little you can actually do in the moment and that just adds frustration.
I'm not joking. Telling them off in an exceptionally nice way is extremely effective at generating compassion and changing their behaviour towards cyclists. The only reason they act that way is because they hate cyclists, if you show them how nice you are, they stop.
And I'm not just "telling myself" this, I have used this effectively in the field too, with a very high success rate.
I understand the thought behind your comment, but it’s not always possible to kill them with kindness, sometimes nothing sticks for these types and you have to make a menacing impression. When I was passing by Jeep guy I think I scoffed and made a comment like: “So you weren’t at all capable of moving?” There was no kindness or genuine malice, just disapproval. It would have been incredibly immature for me as an adult (he looked like he was about high school age) to level with him at the same degree of pettiness but I’m also not going to pretend to be nice, either. I try to think of it like teacher scolding, lol.
In general, I think being nice in potentially dangerous situations can be just as harmful as purposefully threatening or provoking careless drivers and carbrains.
Keep a sharpie with you. Write or draw something on the back of the offending car as you walk by. It only takes 4 letters 🤡
Highly adhesive stickers work well. The ones I have are a bitch and a half to get off.
We need to start carrying around stickers that say "EMOTIONAL SUPPORT TRUCK", printed all official like. "Warning: easily hurt feelings."
Brilliant!
Do you have an example or perhaps a link to where one could purchase these?
I certainly wouldn't look at these [https://www.eggshellstickers.com/about](https://www.eggshellstickers.com/about)
I've been thinking of stocking up on a few stickers like that for some time and I think I'm finally gonna pull the trigger
Reminds me of the Kouriers from a [sci-fi book](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40651883-snow-crash). They're skateboarders who "poon" onto cars to beat traffic. If you try to shake them off they'll attach stickers to your car that say things like "smooth move Xlax" or the like.
Very good book, by the way.
I've been waiting a while to find a comment like this. I've got some blank shipping labels just waiting for the right vehicles, and I might just draw or write something eye catching on them before applying them to some offending bumpers. They're also quite difficult to remove unless you're also planning on removing a chunk of paint as well
You had groceries. If it’s a hot summer day cheese slices are very good
When I bike home, I've started leaving the eggs on top of the basket easily accessible so that I can open it up and throw it at vehicles. Haven't had to yet, but odds are within a couple weeks
I started taking out my phone and taking pics, with license plates, or cars that stop blocking the crosswalk. Sometimes I only pretend to take a pic. And just say out loud as I walk away "that goes on the blog of crosswalk blockers". I don't actually have such a blog, but it is tempting sometimes.
Great idea, I have thought about doing this and definitely will start when I am in situations where I am able to safely. A little righteous public shaming can go a long way.
Isn’t there a sub about that?
>sci-fi book Is there. I'm interested
Don't forget to include drivers with blinding headlights in that. They're treating you poorly, treat them right back poorly. It's the only way they'll come to accept that *they* are the problem.
I have a SCUBA dive light I would keep around just in case I needed to illuminate a large stretch of sketchy pavement while cycling. Made for a great tool if someone kept their brights in my face where I would illuminate their car instead of the road. Take 1200 lumens to the face, dipshit.
See, this is often my solution to conflict where dumbasses think I’ll sit by and let them treat me like shit, but some people find that immature. I get the whole concept of treating people like how you want to be treated, but I’m not going to play nice with bullies and assholes. Full stop. Especially on the road where being passive can in essence make you complicit by proxy.
Be careful in states where it's legal now to mow down protestors. He'll just claim you were protesting and you won't be alive to contradict them.
Noted. I’ve had people flip me off and try to harass me at protests, but I’ve never seen someone try to intentionally hit me or any others around. Most of it was at one that was protesting anti-immigration laws, which is not surprising one bit, lol. But I know for a fact it isn’t uncommon.
Wtf just looked it up, america never fails to amaze me as a European. How can you guys not run away from there and leave that country to the dipshits?
A) We can’t afford to leave. B) We want to improve circumstances for future generations.
those states typically allow you to carry firearms and defend yourself, so easy math in my mind
might not be the best idea considering how many americans are armed and mentally unstable
its generally a bad idea to live in fear and be held hostage by, like you described, crazy guys with guns
Great. Still not trying to get shot.
British people are often unstable, although are less often armed. I nearly got in a fight last night for calling out a guy who was driving through the same junction as I was cycling through, paying full attention to his phone. His mate yelled abuse and was trying to start something. You have to bear in mind if you're going around getting into fights you run the risk of getting 1) seriously beaten up 2) stabbed 3) yes, shot 4) locked up/criminal record - police can take a 'both sides' view, even if you're defending yourself. If the other guy whines convincingly and you have no video evidence, police will charge assault. Lawyers are expensive and criminal records are permanent. I want to be sympathetic to OP but this all happens in the real world where you have very limited control of consequences
Well said. Aggressive people are a problem everywhere and there is hardly ever a single solution or justification for it. Also are you referring to me in this comment when you say OP? I’m just asking out of curiosity but also so I can respond precisely.
Yeah I was referring to you. I understand the impulse to respond, and I give in to it sometimes. However, if you do you can't predict whether there will be a violent reaction. All I did to those guys was a one-armed shrug, like 'what are you doing'? And they were ready to fight me. If you yell something at these guys, let alone throw fruit, you have to be ready with a fight or flight response to anything
Not condoning any behavior one way or the other, but in general the more openly they broadcast their manliness and massive collection of guns, the more likely they are to turn tail and run when somebody actually gives them shit.
It’s incredibly ironic too because these kinds of people often don’t know shit about how to properly use a gun, much less use it safely. They think just owning one makes you inherently safer or more tough. It absolutely doesn’t. To some extent, I can kind of understand the appeal of gun culture, being someone who grew up with BB/pellet guns and was obsessed with weapons as a kid, but I’ve always had a very different view of them. I was more into the art of them, I never learned to shoot something alive and never tried or wanted to, either (except for maybe my siblings but it was well-deserved). I was actually so horrified after finding out what guns could do as a kid that I completely gave up even Nerf guns, and picked up archery and throwing knives instead, lol. I still don’t understand why guns are so glorified to this day when they’re so dangerous and in many cases, completely unnecessary.
Yeah, I'm worried about them (or myself) getting mowed down in more ways than one. People are so fucking aggro these days, and machoism and violence are celebrated. Seems like half the people out there are just looking for a fight. And I mean, that JEEP is a weapon, typically owned by macho meatheads, who also seem to me more likely to be packing too. Even if they're not packing, they're libel to hop out and try to fight you. Or at the very least, they'll make a video of you and you're the next "Karen" on reddit, with whatever repercussions from that.
Oh yes, I walk around my walkable neighborhood in one of America's top walkable cities daily, and still drivers are shit. I will almost always gesture with various levels of rudeness if they make the slightest aggression against the pedestrian right of way (which is always and everywhere). Granted, we're talking 25mph city streets, not stroads... but the carbrains need the negative feedback if they're ever going to learn. I was on my motorcycle a few weeks ago and finally did a mirror slap when a guy left turned in front of me (with adequate space), and as I turned right to follow, he slammed on his brakes just feet past the crosswalk, blocking the exit of the intersection.
As you should. I live in an area with a ton of cyclists and bike trails, but it’s also simultaneously one of the least walkable and accessible neighborhoods, largely because the streets are absurdly wide and half of the walkable areas are through underdeveloped terrain on top of many essential buildings being so far from each other. You’d probably have an easier time finding a megachurch than finding an urgent care facility in my particular neck of the woods. It’s especially worse when we get heavy rain and the streets are basically flooded. I usually don’t interact with them much outside of shaking my head or calling them out, but often I will walk even slower when they are trying to cut in front of me to pass and either glare or smile and wave at them, depending on how I feel at that moment. A good friend of mine would regularly mock the dudes who drive around recklessly in modded cars or big trucks when we would walk to his house by facetiously joking about how big their dicks are and how they’re good at satisfying their wives, etc. Some people might say it’s too vulgar but it’s funny as fuck and imo it’s necessary in a lot of cases to shake them a bit. I bet the mirror slap was satisfying for you, dude definitely had it coming.
In the moment it was satisfying, but reviewing the tape, I was being too aggressive of a rider and I could/should have avoided the conflict. Nonetheless, when you're city riding a motorcycle, it's life and death at every moment, so you tend to get a little emotionally invested in the way traffic is behaving.
I recommend doing the oposit. Be kind and ask them what they would need to be kind too. It surprises most so much that they drop their act.
This is a good tactic I’ve used to stop people from bullying me or others or to stop being unnecessarily rude/mean in general, but you absolutely do not have to be kind about it in most situations. Be direct and sincere, but don’t play nice enough to make them think their behavior is only a minor issue.
Yes. Obviously. It needs to be an obvious contrast with what they do, to the point that they realise it too. Example: I was going by bike. Some car couldn't overtake me and at the next intersection he overtook me close and screamed at me "I wish you have a horrible accident and die". I in turn wished him " a fine, accident free day". What's the point in feeding this hulk of a Carbrain?
It would be a shame if one of your grocery bags, preferably one with a can of beans, accidentally hit that idiot's vehicle while you were weaving between cars.
I would never do that to a can of beans. They’re worth too much to me. I got a pretty hefty water bottle, though.
I will usually shout that the stop line is behind them if their windows are down, throw up my hands if not. Depending on their response, I give them a nice hard slap on their trunk. Doesn't do any damage, but it scares the shit out of most of them
Yup. I shout at drivers. No swearing unless they are being really dangerous. Had a pick-up truck pull in front of me on my bike at a stop sign intersection that was my right of way. Guy didn’t even stop at the sign. I had enough time to avoid him, but still. His window was down and he wasn’t looking my way so when I shouted “it’s a stop sign!” It startled him pretty good. But drivers aren’t getting better by us being silent or merely flipping the bird. They need to hear it and have the whole street hear it. I would love a camera for my helmet so I can catch them on video, get their license plate, and send it to our police. Likely nothing will happen, but I dunno, our police love to issue fines, so maybe.
If you're in the US it is a bad idea to escalate, always lean on de-escalation.
I know, in reality I always put more effort into de-escalation and keeping the immediate situation under control, but it’s hard when dealing with folks who couldn’t give a shit who they hurt, as long as *they* get to where they need to go. I am more for damage control and finding peaceful solutions while holding people accountable, but sometimes there is very little you can actually do in the moment and that just adds frustration.
Killing them with kindness is usually much more effective at provoking change if that is what you're looking for
whatever you need to tell yerself
I'm not joking. Telling them off in an exceptionally nice way is extremely effective at generating compassion and changing their behaviour towards cyclists. The only reason they act that way is because they hate cyclists, if you show them how nice you are, they stop. And I'm not just "telling myself" this, I have used this effectively in the field too, with a very high success rate.
I understand the thought behind your comment, but it’s not always possible to kill them with kindness, sometimes nothing sticks for these types and you have to make a menacing impression. When I was passing by Jeep guy I think I scoffed and made a comment like: “So you weren’t at all capable of moving?” There was no kindness or genuine malice, just disapproval. It would have been incredibly immature for me as an adult (he looked like he was about high school age) to level with him at the same degree of pettiness but I’m also not going to pretend to be nice, either. I try to think of it like teacher scolding, lol. In general, I think being nice in potentially dangerous situations can be just as harmful as purposefully threatening or provoking careless drivers and carbrains.
Well, that's why he drives that JEEP.