Is it just me/my area? Lately I've noticed more and more of this. You're on a main road, a cage (or yesterday a bulldozer) stops and then starts rolling in your path and you're supposed to predict that they see you and aren't gonna pull out in front of you? You give 'em a look and they look back with the Vinnie Barbarino "Whuh?" One of the local towns put up some smaller stop signs under the actual ones that read "stop means stop"! The same town also put up a red light camera that's not for running through the intersection but to zap you if you enter the crosswalk making a right turn on red without actually stopping. Is law enforcement that lax that this is necessary? Traffic court can't reach deep enough into your pocket for a failure to stop ticket?

 

Just came back from getting a quick sandwich. Less than a mile, one car coming out of a fast food franchise and a PEDESTRIAN crossing the street can't seem to wait until I pass! Can't wear a referee uniform and call encroachment!

 

It's the normal way folks drive around here. They put up so many stop signs (Literally there is one spot I know that has 3 in less than 100 feet for no reason) that most people ignore them. I watch peoples heads, hands and if they're "Creepin", they get a toot from the horn and the clutch and brake is covered. A couple of days ago I got a finger gesture for that but I couldn't care less. The cager ended up seeing me and I went home to my family.

~Chaos

 

Ya know.......... I give up on trying to predict what the cages are gonna do. I just assume they will hit me if they can or if I let them. Since they know I will be hard to hit, they have to be pretty sneeky about it. So far I'm winning this little contest. I just make sure I always have an "out" whenever a cage is close enough to try and nail me.

 

I just start heading straight towards them. That usually gets their attention. The bonus is, if they do pull out, they'll miss me, because I'm heading towards where they were!

 

Dad told us that, about deer. "Aim for them, by the time you get where they're at, they won't be there." Haven't ever tried it on deer, maybe it is the answer for cages. Friggin' id-g-uts.

I'm not sure if it is the 'creepers' or the 'slammers' that scare me the most. You know, ppl that come up to the intersection doing 35 AT the stop sign, and then SLAM on the brakes. The stop sign is even with the back bumper, or behind 'em, when they finally git 'er done shut down.

 

How about the morons who see the light change for opposing traffic, so they start creeping out into the intersection? The light still hasn't changed, and they're half way across the intersection, trying to decide what they should do now. When the light finally turns green, they somehow forget they were in a hurry and damn near idle up to 10 MPH below the speed limit. Then, when you go to pass them, they suddenly remember they were in a hurry, so they floor it. After you successfully pass, they ride an inch off your ***.

... and, if you slow down to let them pass, once they get on front of you, they go back to 10 MPH below the limit.

 

Agree with all of that and more. My pet peeve is illegal lane changes during a turn. You know, left turn smack into the right hand lane when turning onto a 4 lane street, and vice versa. Supposed to be a $20 fine around here, have yet to see anyone get stopped for it. Hell even the cops do it. That and people who begin a turn halfway down the block in a HUGE radius, give you a dirty look while they're almost taking your front wheel off while you're stopped where you're supposed to be while they're turning in front of you, and then cut someone else off with their illegal turn into the outside lane. Yeah that and the 20 mph stop. Don't even get me started on cell phones. Never once been cut off or almost run over by anyone eating a cheeseburger, but cell phone users have almost killed me 4 times, and I'm talkin take to the ditch or die, and all 4 were when I was also driving a car.

 

For what ever it's worth ,I always consider myself invisible when riding!

 

I'm also blown away by the number of pedestrians that will walk into the lane I'm in. Its almost like they don't think it will hurt as much getting hit by a bike.