CARS VS BIKES - How to deal with angry drivers!

I like cars. I like talking about the new car models coming out, I like the sound of a powerful engine and I get excited when I see a Ferrari parked on the street. After all, I am a motorist.  I like bicycles. I like talking about the new bike models coming out, I like the sound of a chain being shifted through the derailleur and I get excited when I see a Colnago being ridden on the street. After all, I am a cyclist. And I am convinced that both motorists and cyclists can happily co-exist in this world!

I am writing this blog as a cyclist and as such, I've found that the key to a happy co-existence with cars is to just leave them alone. Try to interact with them as little as possible and let them go on their happy way! Before we go any further though, I want to thank Hop Cycling for the use of the images in today's blog. If you are curious about what it's like to ride a bicycle in Poland and nearby areas, check out Hop Cycling blog!

Believe it or not, all the images featured today come from one single group ride!

As I wrote previously on Where To Ride Your Bike!, a big part of the "battle" with cars is finding the right quiet roads with little traffic to ride on. But no matter how hard you may try, chances are that you will have to interact with cars. And to be honest, by far, the great majority of the interaction cyclists have with cars is positive (in other words, people drive and people ride!) But inevitably, there are negative interactions, typically in the form of an angry driver using their vehicle as a lethal weapon or in the form of an inattentive driver with potential lethal consequences. It may sound overly dramatic to use the word lethal, but when you are riding a 8kg bicycle, any encounter you have with a multi-ton vehicle could end very badly - trust me, if anything, I am not being dramatic enough!

The best way to deal with distracted drivers is to ride defensively. Driving today invites many forms of distractions. From the radio station, telephone, coffee, big-mac, computer, doing make-up or shaving your beard while driving, chances are that some drivers are not focusing solely on the road ahead. I always ride my bike assuming that cars are not going to be able to see me, but doing as much as I can to be visible. This usually translates to me riding as far to the right of the road as it is safe, and having a rear flashing tail light, even during day time hours. When approaching any intersection in which I have the right of way, if there are any vehicles waiting, I will still try to establish eye-contact with the driver to make sure they see me. With time, you develop a sixth-sense for potential situations when someone is not paying attention.

Unlike the previous image, here the adjacent lane is wide open for the car!

Then there are angry drivers. These are otherwise rational human beings who are suddenly overcome with unsurmountable rage from having to change lanes or losing 8.2 seconds of their day to deal with those evil bicycles. Angry drivers usually tend to try teach cyclists a lesson, showing how dangerous riding a bicycle on a road can be, by shifting the car as closely as possible to the cyclist and passing them at a high rate of speed (and in turn, making riding a bicycle in the road dangerous to begin with - it's like taking someone's wallet to show them they are in a dangerous neighborhood). Some other angry drivers take a more direct approach and just blast their horn, lower their window and scream for you to get out their damn road! I do think that most angry drivers would be far more accepting to cyclists being on the road if they knew that it is legal for cyclists to be on the road.

So what is a cyclist to do? When I first started riding, I used to chase down angry drivers whenever possible so I could tell them of the law and that not only I had the right to be on the road, but in many instances, it would be illegal for me to ride on the sidewalk. But very quickly I found out that if a driver is willing to use their multi-ton vehicle to express their rage, they are not in the right frame of mind to discuss the law, or learn about cyclists rights. It's just not the right platform for those conversations. I then changed my approach to just express my displeasure by nodding my head from side to side to display my disapproval from being nearly killed. But very quickly I found out that angry drivers like to have negative interactions escalated even further and I would often see the driver slams on the brakes, try to force me off the road, obscene gestures...more rage. Which takes me back to the key to a happy co-existence with cars: just leave them alone! This can be very hard to do when you feel all the adrenaline from having a car travel within inches of your life and you feel that desire to fight back somehow, but the quicker they are out of your life, the happier you'll be. So I try to completely ignore angry drivers. Not a hand gesture, not a disapproving nod, not even a sigh. Cars are bigger, heavier and faster than cyclists, and picking a fight with them is just not worth it. So I just ignore them, not giving them the satisfaction of escalating the situation and instead just take a deep breath and get back to enjoying my ride - which should always be your goal on the bike anyways!

Angry Drivers - The quicker they are out of your life, the happier you'll be!

Lastly, it is important not to instigate a negative situation to begin with. "Share the Road" goes both ways and cyclists should be diligent in sharing the road with vehicles as much as possible. Avoiding busy roads goes a long way, but riding predictively, not taking the lane when you don't have to, signaling your intentions to vehicles around you, and riding single file on busier roads when you are riding with one or two other mates are also good ways to nurture more positive interaction with car drivers.

Always be an ambassador to our sport. It's right there on Rule #13! Being a friendly, courteous and thoughtful cyclists should be as standard as taking an extra tire tube with you on your ride. "Cars and Bikes" sure sounds a lot better than "Cars vs Bikes"!