MY PET HATE

[dawnrazor]

Just thought I'd share my personal pet hate when I'm riding around in town.

So lets say I'm traveling in one direction straight on a road, and pointing towards me is a car, jeep, van etc waiting in the middle of the road to turn right. So basically waiting to cross my path. I'm always real wary of this senario 'cus the scope for serious damage is huge, so I will alter my speed down until I'm certain they see me, figuring I have more options if I'm going a little slower and things go pear shaped.
Now say there is no traffic behind me, so once I pass it is clear for the car to turn. BUT they never wait until I pass almost everytime they begin to turn as I approach or as I'm parallel to them. I find this increedibly disconcerting, and in the event I have to stop suddenly at this point, I would be hit, and would have had very little chance of avoiding it. At times I've been in situations where it feels like the car has only missed the back of the bike by inches (probably not that close, but you know what I mean)

So there you go thats my pet hate, if there was something I could do to stop it happening I would, but short of standing on the pegs and screaming "STAY WHERE YOU ARE CUNTFACE", I'm out of ideas! (which has a surprisingly good success rate)

So pet hates people, how about them ------- lets hear 'em

[Karma]

So pet hates people, how about them ------- lets hear 'em

Lassie! That do-go bitch always running off... never did a days work in her life!

[Phurrball]

The right-turning-car-waiting-to-cross-my-path thing is right up there for me too...especially when it's a slusher and slowly creeping forward...

I make sure I'm seen - flash the high beam a good few times (The ol' 'Pass' button has its uses), or give a good wiggle on the bike. Good insurance methinks.

[onearmedbandit]

My pet hates when riding around town? Every cage driver, courier, taxi, bus, truck driver, pedestrians, children running onto the streets, potholes, tar snakes, grit on corners. If they would all fuck off out of town I'd have a great time!

No really the above doesn't bother me, they all have as much right to be on the road or doing what they do as I do. Just things to be aware of that's all.

[ManDownUnder]

Tailgating.

I reckong there's a market for something that would inject just enough oil or maybe oil into the exhaust pipe/gas stream so it gently drizzles a mist of gunk on their windscreen.

Not enough to do any damage, but enough to let them know you ain't happy, or fool them into thinking something's wrong so they back off.

Either way it's good...

[ManDownUnder]

2nd pet hate - taxi's, couriers and other "professional drivers" that ignore the road rules and do what they can get away with.

Holding up traffic? No problem!
Scaring the crap out of people - NO PROBLEM

They don't all do it, but there are enough to warrant my buying air horns for the bike...

[skelstar]

Yes, the moving car at intersections is one of mine. Strangely I have very little problem with tail-gaters, if at all they are usually VERY aggressive but very infrequent. I find aggressive, but conservative. riding is a safe way to be.

[ManDownUnder]

I find aggressive, but conservative. riding is a safe way to be.

Agressive but conservative you say... sounds like George W's "Pre-emptive defense policy" to me...

[skelstar]

Agressive but conservative you say... sounds like George W's "Pre-emptive defense policy" to me...

I thought that might throw someone.

[Devil]

I make sure I'm seen - flash the high beam a good few times (The ol' 'Pass' button has its uses),

I would be very very wary of doing that, you dont want to make them think you want them to go...

[vifferman]

Yeah, that starting to turn before I'm past thing pisses me off too. A couple of times I've slowed right down, but usually you don't know they're going to do it in time. It also pisses me off when cars on my right at an intersection (like the very bottom of Curran Street, when you're headed towards the harbour bridge) start to go. If I can see they're going to do that, I tootle them melodiously, and wave them back, with a vigorous waving them back waving movement.
The only thing that works, I've found, is to shut your eyes.

However (but!) the biggest pisser-offerer for me is people that don't give way or stop when they should, like redlight runners, and people who treat stop signs as "I'm gonna go, unless something's coming that might hit me, then I'll whack on the brakes". Most mornings, the final ~0.5km or so is up a street with multiple intersections, all but one of which I have right-of-way for. ALL of them have stop signs, and most of them time the people using them treat them as voluntary. A few times I've had three or four intersections in a row where I've struck cars intending to not give way to me, and I've had to almost come to a stop because I was unsure if it was safe to go. Once I had cars coming from both left and right, I slowed, and they decided I was letting them go, so after almost stopping, they started to go again! Once, I was so pissed off / bemused, I let go of the handlebars, clapped my hands to my head, waved them back, shook my head in bemusement, and rode off.

[Waylander]

Heh, ask Road Rash about that one fuckhead that did this to him when me and him were riding together somewhere north of here. I was a good 10 feet behind him and I had to hit the brakes hard to keep from hitting this idiot. Good skills on his part to avoid it.

Should have stopped and had a "talk" with the guy.

[Beemer]

I hate the ones heading your way and waiting to turn too - they give me the shits whether I'm on the bike or in the car. Likewise the ones who you think "they had plenty of time to turn before I got there" but they wait until you are almost there and turn right in front of you! And the tailgaters! And the ones who creep forwards at traffic lights and intersections! Saw a prime example this morning - the car two ahead of me at the lights in Levin started creeping forward until it was about a metre over the line - when the lights changed and it took off, I realised it was Darren Hughes, the MP for Otaki! It's amazing how poorly people in marked vehicles drive!

[Eurodave]

And the ones who creep forwards at traffic lights and intersections! Saw a prime example this morning - the car two ahead of me at the lights in Levin started creeping forward until it was about a metre over the line - when the lights changed and it took off,

These are the sorts of people that connect with red light runners at intersections! :slap: When Im on the bike I always pause a little & check both ways B4 turning right at a city intersection just in case a 'oh the light is orange,that means accelerate harder you can make it eh!', person trys to barrel through regardless

[Swoop]

Tailgating.

I reckong there's a market for something that would inject just enough oil or maybe oil into the exhaust pipe/gas stream so it gently drizzles a mist of gunk on their windscreen.

Not enough to do any damage, but enough to let them know you ain't happy, or fool them into thinking something's wrong so they back off.

Either way it's good...

There is. I used to have a switch rigged to the brake lights on my first cage. Someone getting a little too comfy with ya rear end - on goes the switch and hey-presto! getting smaller in the mirror real quick. This has the benefit that you are not actually having to brake, which makes the idiots even closer to your rear...
Hmm, I kinda miss that switch nowadays!