Since the road rage thread has devolved I'll tell my story...

....in a separate thread. So I was heading to the bike shop from my wife's
tri bike shop (about a mile apart) on Saturday to look for that bike I
mentioned in another thread. The trick is, that on this particular day we
were cruising around by car, so I went to the bike shop via my skateboard
(also ride a longboard when it's sunny - good exercise). I was in a
stretch of Beaverton where the road was particularly wide and the traffic
not particularly heavy or fast, but the sidewalk was being worked on. So I
rode for a few blocks in the bike lane (looking to make sure no one was
behind me) before hopping back on the sidewalk. Before I got a chance to
do that, though, a cyclist pulled up beside me. Fully geared up in the
team gear, etc. (I'm a t-shirt guy myself) this guy proceeded to unleash a
tirade of invective against me that was unbelievable.

Him: I hate you f***ing people. I hate you f***ing people.

Me: Actually, I ride my bike 6 out 7 days, I just happen to be on my
skateboard today.

Him: Why are you in the bike lane, get out of the bike lane, I hate you
f***ing people (he liked that phrase a lot).

Me: I'm a cyclist too, dude, I'm not "you f***ing people". And I have a
right to be here too. The cops will kick me off the sidewalk before they
kick me off the bike lane, You have plenty of room anyway.

Him: I hate you f***ing people (not making this up, this is what he kept
saying).

Me: Dude, I bike in the middle of downtown Portland traffic. I take the
lane when I have to. Are you telling me you can't pass me in the bike
lane?

Him: **Riding away and flipping me off with one hand extended backwards**
F*** you!

So that was it. I was road raged on by a fellow cyclist. I thought I'd
seen it all.

Preston

Preston Crawford wrote:
:: ...in a separate thread. So I was heading to the bike shop from my
:: wife's tri bike shop (about a mile apart) on Saturday to look for
:: that bike I mentioned in another thread. The trick is, that on this
:: particular day we were cruising around by car, so I went to the bike
:: shop via my skateboard (also ride a longboard when it's sunny - good
:: exercise). I was in a stretch of Beaverton where the road was
:: particularly wide and the traffic not particularly heavy or fast,
:: but the sidewalk was being worked on. So I rode for a few blocks in
:: the bike lane (looking to make sure no one was behind me) before
:: hopping back on the sidewalk. Before I got a chance to do that,
:: though, a cyclist pulled up beside me. Fully geared up in the team
:: gear, etc. (I'm a t-shirt guy myself) this guy proceeded to unleash
:: a tirade of invective against me that was unbelievable.
::
:: Him: I hate you f***ing people. I hate you f***ing people.
::
:: Me: Actually, I ride my bike 6 out 7 days, I just happen to be on my
:: skateboard today.
::
:: Him: Why are you in the bike lane, get out of the bike lane, I hate
:: you f***ing people (he liked that phrase a lot).
::
:: Me: I'm a cyclist too, dude, I'm not "you f***ing people". And I
:: have a right to be here too. The cops will kick me off the sidewalk
:: before they kick me off the bike lane, You have plenty of room
:: anyway.
::
:: Him: I hate you f***ing people (not making this up, this is what he
:: kept saying).
::
:: Me: Dude, I bike in the middle of downtown Portland traffic. I take
:: the lane when I have to. Are you telling me you can't pass me in the
:: bike lane?
::
:: Him: **Riding away and flipping me off with one hand extended
:: backwards** F*** you!
::
:: So that was it. I was road raged on by a fellow cyclist. I thought
:: I'd seen it all.

I guess cyclists aren't all angels, huh? Just where is someone on a
skateboard supposed to be, anyway? We had a discussion in here not long ago
about a kid on a skateboard getting hit by a car in a parking lot by a lady
who was on her cell phone (decided by Judge Judy). Apparently, we can't all
just share the road.

And what about joggers? When I'm riding on a wide shoulder (beyond the
white line) and there is a jogger on my side of the road coming at
me....well, I just wait 'til it's and move out into the lane...but I always
wonder if the the jogger should be there...

Preston Crawford wrote:
:: ...in a separate thread. So I was heading to the bike shop from my
:: wife's tri bike shop (about a mile apart) on Saturday to look for
:: that bike I mentioned in another thread. The trick is, that on this
:: particular day we were cruising around by car, so I went to the bike
:: shop via my skateboard (also ride a longboard when it's sunny - good
:: exercise). I was in a stretch of Beaverton where the road was
:: particularly wide and the traffic not particularly heavy or fast,
:: but the sidewalk was being worked on. So I rode for a few blocks in
:: the bike lane (looking to make sure no one was behind me) before
:: hopping back on the sidewalk. Before I got a chance to do that,
:: though, a cyclist pulled up beside me. Fully geared up in the team
:: gear, etc. (I'm a t-shirt guy myself) this guy proceeded to unleash
:: a tirade of invective against me that was unbelievable.
::
:: Him: I hate you f***ing people. I hate you f***ing people.
::
:: Me: Actually, I ride my bike 6 out 7 days, I just happen to be on my
:: skateboard today.
::
:: Him: Why are you in the bike lane, get out of the bike lane, I hate
:: you f***ing people (he liked that phrase a lot).
::
:: Me: I'm a cyclist too, dude, I'm not "you f***ing people". And I
:: have a right to be here too. The cops will kick me off the sidewalk
:: before they kick me off the bike lane, You have plenty of room
:: anyway.
::
:: Him: I hate you f***ing people (not making this up, this is what he
:: kept saying).
::
:: Me: Dude, I bike in the middle of downtown Portland traffic. I take
:: the lane when I have to. Are you telling me you can't pass me in the
:: bike lane?
::
:: Him: **Riding away and flipping me off with one hand extended
:: backwards** F*** you!
::
:: So that was it. I was road raged on by a fellow cyclist. I thought
:: I'd seen it all.

I guess cyclists aren't all angels, huh? Just where is someone on a
skateboard supposed to be, anyway? We had a discussion in here not long ago
about a kid on a skateboard getting hit by a car in a parking lot by a lady
who was on her cell phone (decided by Judge Judy). Apparently, we can't all
just share the road.

And what about joggers? When I'm riding on a wide shoulder (beyond the
white line) and there is a jogger on my side of the road coming at
me....well, I just wait 'til it's and move out into the lane...but I always
wonder if the the jogger should be there...

"Preston Crawford" wrote in message ...

Him: **Riding away and flipping me off with one hand extended backwards**
F*** you!

Sorry Preston, didn't have any idea that was you.

"Preston Crawford" wrote in message ...

Him: **Riding away and flipping me off with one hand extended backwards**
F*** you!

Sorry Preston, didn't have any idea that was you.

On 2004-09-06, Roger Zoul wrote:
I guess cyclists aren't all angels, huh? Just where is someone on a

Not like I didn't know this, but this game was like enraged. Crazy
enraged. I'd never seen *that* before.

skateboard supposed to be, anyway? We had a discussion in here not long ago
about a kid on a skateboard getting hit by a car in a parking lot by a lady
who was on her cell phone (decided by Judge Judy). Apparently, we can't all
just share the road.

Yeah. Weird. I thought he had plenty of space. Usually I use the sidewalk
or the road when I longboard. Just depends on the situation. My thoughts
mainly being...

Try to be safe
Try to be predictable
Try not to put myself in situations where someone wouldn't see me or know
where I'm headed

In that situation the bike lane seemed like the best idea. In downtown
Portland, you actually skate on the streets. The traffic is so slow that
you almost go faster than traffic even on a skateboard during rush hour.
So I take it situation by situation. I guess this cyclist has had a few
run-ins with "skate punks" like me or something.

And what about joggers? When I'm riding on a wide shoulder (beyond the
white line) and there is a jogger on my side of the road coming at
me....well, I just wait 'til it's and move out into the lane...but I always
wonder if the the jogger should be there...

Agreed. I generally don't get mad. I just move pass them, no biggie. I
actually like it when they're coming towards me, because at least I know
they're paying attention.

I don't know. There aren't really any clear rules on skateboards. I think
as long as I'm behaving responsibly, the bike lane seems fine. I can go
just about as fast on a longboard as some of the slower cyclists go, so I
figure, what's the difference?

Preston

On 2004-09-06, Roger Zoul wrote:
I guess cyclists aren't all angels, huh? Just where is someone on a

Not like I didn't know this, but this game was like enraged. Crazy
enraged. I'd never seen *that* before.

skateboard supposed to be, anyway? We had a discussion in here not long ago
about a kid on a skateboard getting hit by a car in a parking lot by a lady
who was on her cell phone (decided by Judge Judy). Apparently, we can't all
just share the road.

Yeah. Weird. I thought he had plenty of space. Usually I use the sidewalk
or the road when I longboard. Just depends on the situation. My thoughts
mainly being...

Try to be safe
Try to be predictable
Try not to put myself in situations where someone wouldn't see me or know
where I'm headed

In that situation the bike lane seemed like the best idea. In downtown
Portland, you actually skate on the streets. The traffic is so slow that
you almost go faster than traffic even on a skateboard during rush hour.
So I take it situation by situation. I guess this cyclist has had a few
run-ins with "skate punks" like me or something.

And what about joggers? When I'm riding on a wide shoulder (beyond the
white line) and there is a jogger on my side of the road coming at
me....well, I just wait 'til it's and move out into the lane...but I always
wonder if the the jogger should be there...

Agreed. I generally don't get mad. I just move pass them, no biggie. I
actually like it when they're coming towards me, because at least I know
they're paying attention.

I don't know. There aren't really any clear rules on skateboards. I think
as long as I'm behaving responsibly, the bike lane seems fine. I can go
just about as fast on a longboard as some of the slower cyclists go, so I
figure, what's the difference?

Preston

On 2004-09-06, Fabrizio Mazzoleni wrote:

"Preston Crawford" wrote in message ...

Him: **Riding away and flipping me off with one hand extended backwards**
F*** you!

Sorry Preston, didn't have any idea that was you.

I thought that was you. I thought it might be a Fabrizio look-alike (he
certainly was all geared up and everything), but I didn't think it would
be you.

Preston

On 2004-09-06, Fabrizio Mazzoleni wrote:

"Preston Crawford" wrote in message ...

Him: **Riding away and flipping me off with one hand extended backwards**
F*** you!

Sorry Preston, didn't have any idea that was you.

I thought that was you. I thought it might be a Fabrizio look-alike (he
certainly was all geared up and everything), but I didn't think it would
be you.

Preston

Preston Crawford wrote:

[about a cyclist-skateboarder interaction with a rude cyclist]

I'm reminded about psychology experiments, where volunteer college kids
were paid to play the parts of prisoners and guards.

After a fairly short time, those paid to be "prisoners" started trying
to find ways to break the rules and hassle the guards. Those paid to be
"guards" began finding ways to demean the prisoners.

Many people have attitudes that are governed by the rolls they play.

And in the bike lane, that jerk cyclist apparently played the role of a
dominant operator of a vehicle that was "supposed" to be there - and he
obviously felt you were not.

Hmmm. I wonder how he treats cyclists when he's driving his SUV?

I wonder how he treats pedestrians?

--
--------------------+
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replace with cc.ysu dot edu]