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February 19th, 2005
01:15 am - I'm not sure I want to ride my bicycle
Day like this I think, why cycle? Ever since I got my my orange fluorescent jacket I seem to have become a more visible target for neds, buses and dogs. I was cycling back from a late showing of The Yes Men and had first a charming encounter with a carful of neds on a very dark quiet road and then with a tenacious bulldog whose owner was too busy in a telephone box to notice me trying to kick her mutt off my leg as we both sailed past.
To give them credit the neds confined themselves to remarks which seemed to be along the lines of: "4 wheels good, 2 wheels bad" - it was the fact I answered them back that gave me the collywobbles as I kept expecting them to pull up behind me and do something nasty. And the bulldog didn't actually sink its teeth deep into my ankle. But whatever happened to the happy image of the cyclist, pedalling along with a ring of the bell, happy motorists giving you a smile? Oh that was the famous five. In a montage sequence.
Indulge me. My top hate list as a cyclist.
1. Cars behind you speeding up to crash orange lights just as you are slowing down to stop. Scary.
2. Motorists who do something inconsiderate and then refuse to make eye contact with you like a cat that's just been sick.
3. Car doors opening suddenly, obviously.
4. Subset of 3. Busy parents dropping their children off to school whilst still in traffic lanes - right in your path. And then they look at you like you are the major threat to their little darlings!
5. Bus drivers who seem to be locked in a territorial battle for the kerbside.
And not to forget drunken pedestrians who utter the immortal phrase 'give us a backie love'. Actually I don't hate them, they are just tedious.
The thing is, up till a few weeks ago I would have told anyone I have felt very lucky so far as a cyclist, and that the majority of motorists are very considerate. But these last few weeks....I wonder if the jacket makes me look less vulnerable, and more 'other'. I really think it makes people more aggressive. Not to mention bulldogs.
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![[User Picture]](http://l-userpic.livejournal.com/114856739/370440) | | From: | ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif?v=92.2) cleanskies |
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| Date: | February 19th, 2005 11:17 am (UTC) |
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| | there's a long rant in a book | (Link) |
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called Zodiac (Neal Stevenson) where the protagonist (a cyclist) explains why he wears no reflective clothing, doesn't run lights and has a black bicycle. I summarise:
1. Nobody else on the road cares about cyclists, you think being visible is going to make people take care of you? It doesn't.
2. A good cycle is a fast run where no-one notices you. Being seen does not make you safe, it makes you a target.
3. Big lights and jackets and stuff startles people, and startled people act unpredicably and aggressively.
Me, I wore a jacket for a few days, but I didn't like it. I'm a fast-rolling traffic-speed matcher, and if you're doing that I find it's safer not to stand out or surprise people. Hence I try to keep lights, reflectors and everything as generic as possible.
![[User Picture]](http://l-userpic.livejournal.com/7041606/1314278) | | From: | honeypears |
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| Date: | February 24th, 2005 12:10 pm (UTC) |
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| | Re: there's a long rant in a book | (Link) |
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Hi there J, thanks for your comment. Am back wearing just my reflector band across my back and feeling much happier. H situation with orange jacket sounds dire. maybe stick with the lights? here in london they got these things that look real cool. how do i describe it. like a belt with an over the shoulder stripe and connects over to your belt in the back. it is very le tigre! maybe good for you? keep biking!!! i am fighting the buses in a zenlike way here - it is good. daydreaming now not bothering where i am. do i see a new comic here? dancing with neds II?
xcoral | | From: | honeypears |
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| Date: | February 24th, 2005 12:11 pm (UTC) |
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| | Yeah I got one | (Link) |
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..but I never realised how it made me look like a Le Tigre Cub...cool!
xx | From: | (Anonymous) |
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| Date: | February 21st, 2008 07:45 pm (UTC) |
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| | Re: Yeah I got one | (Link) |
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I totally disagree with the writers' conclusions. I recently rode my bicycle from Chicago, Illinois to Three Lakes, Wisconsin. I was as inconspicuous as could be. I mean I wore overalls, a tee shirt, a helmet and a pair Ace Hardware gloves. I had idiots: 1)Cross the yellow line and head straight for me...just for the laughs. 2)Speed up behind me only to stop at the last minute, then take off. 3) Spit at me. 4) Curse at me. 5) Give me the middle finger. 6) Pass me on my left, as
close as they could without hitting me. And last, but not least 7) Throw a bag of human waste at me.
I concluded that these idiots were chicken liver-ed, scum-bags who took great pleasure in their acts and felt confident doing them because they knew I couldn't catch them.... I now carry a pencil in my ear and a pad in my bike bag so I can attempt to get their plate numbers and report them.
Sign me the Scarper from Illinois |
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