| Topic: | Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Cyclist on Thames Road | |
| Posted by: | Adam Beamish | |
| Date/Time: | 24/07/14 14:55:00 |
| I don't think any of us are whiter than white, and believe me traffic frustrates me when I'm out on my bike, although perhaps less so than when I'm in a car. The biggest thing to me in respect of cyclists or indeed any other road users isn't anything about their (or my) ability, it's about their awareness, their adaptability to different circumstances and how comfortable they are on the road. I don't really think there is such a thing as a good cyclist, but there is definitely such a thing as a bad cyclist, a bad driver etc. A cyclist who is overly scared of traffic is a danger to themselves and other road users, and is more likely to use the pavement, which doesn't help anyone and only increases their fear of cycling in traffic. Cyclists should respect traffic, but no need to be scared of it. An over-confident cyclist will, just like the TdF riders do sometimes (because every cyclist gets overconfident in some way), come down to earth with a bump, like when I was descending a hill I've been down hundreds of times when I was 17, lost my front wheel on some loose gravel on a bend and ended up sliding down the road on my side (and still have a scar now). But that's not quite the same as the teenager I passed in the car around 21.10 last night who had no lights on his bike and pulled a wheelie for approximately 100 yards as traffic overtook him - no doubt he thought he was so cool but I pity the poor sod who ends up running him over when he loses his balance and goes straight under a car. Interesting what you say about females being easier to yell at, I'm totally the opposite, although I'm not aggressive or offensive when I speak to a cyclist about riding through a red light or such like, I'd be more wary of doing so to a female on the basis that they might get upset or scared - my other half would be distraught if someone yelled at her and that's not the intention behind me speaking to a cyclist. Whereas guys tend to either look at you blankly or tell you where to go, although just occasionally they take what you've said in the spirit it's meant. And I have to say I find that the majority of bad cyclists are males. |