While last week's 5-year sentence of a Los Angeles doctor for a road rage attack that injured two cyclists got big headlines, rage on the road involving bicyclists isn't uncommon.
Sometimes bicycle riders are the target, sometimes they're the aggressors, and sometimes they're in the wrong place at the wrong time. It makes me wonder if there's a way to avoid road rage.
Angry old lady
In Naperville, Illinois, a 67-year-old woman is charged with four felony counts of aggravated battery. Last July, witnesses told police she rammed a 17-year-old bicyclist on a BMX bike from behind.
The victim told the Naperville Sun that he heard the motorist honk at him then floor the accelerator as he jumped from the bike, escaping serious injury. She dragged the bike under her car all the way home. The case returns to court Jan. 10.
Facebook fan?
In Oxenford, Australia, a motorist cut off a cyclist, got out of his car and knocked him to the ground and punched him several times. The 42-year-old cyclist was taken to the hospital to treat cuts on his face in what police called a “serious and vicious assault.”
Given that this occurred in Australia, I have to wonder whether the motorist is a member of the Facebook group “There's a perfectly good bike path right next to the road you stupid bicyclist”, which is based in Australia. Until the group came to light in the bicycling community last week, it was comprised of 30,000-some members who ranted with hateful commentary against bicyclists riding in the road. Since then, bicyclists have flooded the group with pro-cycling comments.
Cyclist punches driver
Police in Cambridge, England, are investigating a case where a motorist had to brake to avoid hitting a bike rider last week. When he got out of the car to argue, the cyclist punched him.
The Cambridge News reports bicyclist left the scene, but was hunted down about 10 minutes later by the driver, who again confronted him. This time the cyclist punched him twice and smashed the car windshield with his bike.
Killed as bystander
One of the most tragic involved a 32-year-old man looking for a job by bicycle. In Chicago, a bicyclist was struck and killed on Dec. 15 after a driver lost control of his van after crashing into another van in an argument that led to a chase.
Jepson Livingston, 32, was riding his brother's bicycle to look for a job when he was struck and killed by one of the vans, reports CBS 2 in Chicago. The driver, Tyrice Pryor, 21, ran from the scene and left Livingston in the street. He later was identified and charged with murder and held on $2 million bail.
Friends and relatives led a procession to the crime scene this past Saturday and installed a ghost bike there.
Avoiding road rage
As a bicyclist, it's not always possible to avoid road rage. Some motorists are just pissed by your very existence and use of the road. Others, like Jepson, are unwilling victims of the rage going on around them.
But keeping a cool head can help avoid some confrontations.
Once while bicycling in Stockton, California, I tried to chase down a car after one of the occupants threw a bottle at me. Just plain stupid. Later, I wondered what I would have done if I had caught them. Probably been the victim of road rage.
More recently, I tried to chase a car after the driver honked and yelled at me for being on the road. Luckily, I'm not that fast of a bicyclist. He probably wouldn't have appreciated my explanation of the rules of the road.
Escalation
In the case of the LA doctor sentenced to five years, he testified that the cyclists flipped him off when he told them to ride single file. That may or may not be true, but I'm sure many of us can admit to making that gesture to motorists in tight situations. It's instinctive.
Think about it. Someone honks his horn or shouts as he passes. You flip him the bird. That leaves the next step to the motorist. Does he escalate or ignore?
Lately I've been trying to keep my emotions in check when I ride. I haven't “saluted” anyone in a couple of years. I have shouted a couple of times when I thought someone was going to hit me, but left it at that.
10 tips
Edmunds.com has 10 tips on how motorists can avoid feeling road rage. Some tips can apply to bicyclists as well, such as giving ourselves enough time so we don't feel rushed and not taking others' bad driving personally. Also, keep hostility in check:
“Not only will giving into anger not resolve an irritating situation, it can increase the risk of retaliation. Think to yourself, “Is making my point worth endangering my life?” “
That's certainly the case when the road rage can lead to a bicycle vs. car confrontation.
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