Yes, I freely acknowledge the title is a play on the title of a biography of Peter Sutcliffe. In the case of Sutcliffe it served to show that even monsters have relationships within the community and the enormity and horror of his crimes were hidden in a regular everyday life.
This morning, I had an encounter with another cyclist, that in no way, shape or form bears any resemblance to Peter Sutcliffe and his use of a ball hammer, apart from the fact that I'd place a fairly hefty wager that the other rider concerned would be married and have children. These assumptions are based on the fact that he was stereotypical of many recent converts to cycling, middle-aged, slightly plump and wearing cycling clothing with an insurance company as branding.
This particular rider was a prime example of behaviour that infuriates motorists and does little to help cyclists in the battle to share the road.
The incident in question took place on Broadway coming into Newmarket. I had ridden around the airport loop and was heading home along Broadway. The traffic lights at the top of Ayr St were red.
I have yelled at riders before for riding through these lights and on one occasion, having stopped and then watched several riders ride through the red light and dodge traffic, had the unpleasant sensation of a very near miss of a rider who was chasing his foolish friends and suddenly realised that I was stopped and unclipped at the red light, he engaged in a bit of panic braking and served to avoid a very stationery me.
Today, the other rider in this sorry little tale was just ahead of me as we approached the red light. I stopped and he wobbled his way through the red light. Shortly the light turned green and I, incensed, raced after the other rider to admonish him.
This is what followed :-
Me - Red lights are for stopping at
Him - Fuck off, I was having a nice ride until you came along
Me - The road rules are for everyone to obey
Him - Fuck off, what gives you the right to tell people what to do? Are you Mr Policeman?
Me - I bet Vero are proud to have their name on your backside
Him - Fuck off, go and play with yourself...
At this point I was turning right at the roundabout and he was sailing straight through, but obviously little discussion or reasoning was going to make any impression.
Going back to the opening title, this man will have connections within the community, most likely he will have a family (although I sincerely hope not for the future of humanity) and will generally be a responsible member of society, but put him in lycra and on a bike and he thinks of no one but himself. Cycling is a community, but is also part of the wider community, and while we expect other road users to obey the Road Code, we as cyclists need to do the same. Behaviour like I witnessed this morning only serves to weaken the cycling cause for greater safety and consideration from other road users.
Shame that this guy couldn't respond a bit more politely. I'm a red light runner on occasion but I pick my lights and Ayr St is one I always stop for, the intersection is too complex to judge as safe. I commute from Onehunga in to town so mostly in narrow two lane traffic often going through lights that are two lanes going to one lane shortly after. I take the opportunity to go through a red light when it is clear to me that no other traffic is coming through and no pedestrians are crossing, ie. slowly and at simple intersections with good visibility. It is safer for me and better for drivers when I can clear the intersection and be down the road a bit before they have to start going around me or get caught up in the merge to one lane.
ReplyDeleteI guess I'm unclear about the purpose of this story. Is it that:
ReplyDelete*someone was having a nice morning ride?
*they spotted someone doing something dangerous?
*they remonstrated with the offender?
*the offender turned on them with colourful language?
*the offender wore a visible brand on their shirt/shorts?
I guess my point is that as a cyclist, I'm at risk from buses, cars, trucks, pedestrians, other cyclists all the time. I rant at drivers with random frequency, when they impose themselves on my personal space. When I ask fellow cyclists to cycle in tandem as opposed to side-by-side, I know I'm going to get a burst in return. This is because while I travel with my personal protection a my utmost priority, and am happy to tell other road users when they impinge on that, so are the other cyclists around me.
While I would like to believe in a fraternity among cyclists, in a hail-fellow-well-met knid of way, this doesn't actually exist. ...and I need to get over it.
As for identifying the guy by his jersey, if I was to berate torpedo7 or allpress coffee everytime someone wearing their gear offends me, I wouldn't get much else done.
Thanks for your response.
ReplyDeleteI agree with a number of points you make.
The jersey identification was partly me reporting the conversation verbatim, and partly to demonstrate that the other rider wasn't some lone wolf, that he is indeed part of a wider community.
I too, optimistically, believe in the wider cycling fraternity, and would dearly like a return to the friendly wave and greeting. Maybe those days have gone, but I'm not yet willing to concede.
The purpose of this tale was to use a single example (which was quite amusing for me at the time, rest assured I've been insulted in far more graphic and pornographic fashion than this simple exchange) to make a point about the current unwillingness of a class of riders to concede that they do indeed belong to the world of road users.