Dealing with Wrong-Way Riders

moonshdw@xmissionz.com

I hesitate to use epithets like "Fred," because the way I figure it, to
Lance Armstrong we're all Freds. But...
There's one Fred in particular that I (almost) run into quite
frequently. This dope is a regular commuter, but he doesn't wear a
helmet, he hauls a large load in a backpack, and he invariably rides on
the wrong side of the road. (This being in the USA, that's on the left.)
Question One: What's the best way to pass this bozo?
Question Two: What, if anything, would you say to him about his
illegal, inefficient, unsafe, stupid way of riding?

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Just zis Guy, you know?

On Sun, 4 Apr 2004 21:07:28 +0000 (UTC), moonshdw@xmissionz.com wrote
in message <c4pteg$q6m$1@terabinaries.xmission.com>:

> Question One: What's the best way to pass this bozo?
> Question Two: What, if anything, would you say to him about his
>illegal, inefficient, unsafe, stupid way of riding?

Stop, wait for him to pass you, and in passing hand him your dog-eared
copy of Effective Cycling with your compliments.

--
Guy
===
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at Washington University

Marc Slemko

In article <c4pteg$q6m$1@terabinaries.xmission.com>, moonshdw@xmissionz.com wrote:
> I hesitate to use epithets like "Fred," because the way I figure it, to
> Lance Armstrong we're all Freds. But...
> There's one Fred in particular that I (almost) run into quite
> frequently. This dope is a regular commuter, but he doesn't wear a
> helmet, he hauls a large load in a backpack, and he invariably rides on
> the wrong side of the road. (This being in the USA, that's on the left.)
> Question One: What's the best way to pass this bozo?
> Question Two: What, if anything, would you say to him about his
> illegal, inefficient, unsafe, stupid way of riding?

A game of chicken.

Gooserider

<moonshdw@xmissionz.com> wrote in message
news:c4pteg$q6m$1@terabinaries.xmission.com...
> I hesitate to use epithets like "Fred," because the way I figure it, to
> Lance Armstrong we're all Freds. But...
> There's one Fred in particular that I (almost) run into quite
> frequently. This dope is a regular commuter, but he doesn't wear a
> helmet, he hauls a large load in a backpack, and he invariably rides on
> the wrong side of the road. (This being in the USA, that's on the left.)
> Question One: What's the best way to pass this bozo?
> Question Two: What, if anything, would you say to him about his
> illegal, inefficient, unsafe, stupid way of riding?


WWFD? (What Would Fabrizio Do)----Sprint right at him. He'll move. :-)

Tom Kunich

<moonshdw@xmissionz.com> wrote in message
news:c4pteg$q6m$1@terabinaries.xmission.com...
> Question Two: What, if anything, would you say to him about his
> illegal, inefficient, unsafe, stupid way of riding?

If the guy hasn't gotten the idea himself after several encounters what
could you possibly say that would break through his thick skull. Ignore the
clown and avoid him as best you can.

Arthur Harris

Anonomous wrote:
> I hesitate to use epithets like "Fred," because the way I figure it, to
> Lance Armstrong we're all Freds. But...
> There's one Fred in particular that I (almost) run into quite
> frequently. This dope is a regular commuter, but he doesn't wear a
> helmet, he hauls a large load in a backpack, and he invariably rides on
> the wrong side of the road. (This being in the USA, that's on the left.)
> Question One: What's the best way to pass this bozo?
> Question Two: What, if anything, would you say to him about his
> illegal, inefficient, unsafe, stupid way of riding?

The only thing you should be concerned about is his wrong way riding.

My standard routine is to slow down and shout, "Hey, you're riding on the
wring side. You're gonna cause an accident." What else can you do?

If he refuses to ride on the right, you should move well left into the lane
as you approach him. That's how I would approach any road obstruction.

Art Harris

Matt O'Toole

moonshdw@xmissionz.com wrote:

> I hesitate to use epithets like "Fred," because the way I figure
> it, to Lance Armstrong we're all Freds. But...

Freds aren't necessarily bad cyclists, they're just not cool. Most people who
never read Bicycling magazine before about 1990 don't know what a fred is
anyway.

> There's one Fred in particular that I (almost) run into quite
> frequently. This dope is a regular commuter, but he doesn't wear a
> helmet, he hauls a large load in a backpack, and he invariably rides
> on the wrong side of the road. (This being in the USA, that's on the
> left.) Question One: What's the best way to pass this bozo?
> Question Two: What, if anything, would you say to him about his
> illegal, inefficient, unsafe, stupid way of riding?

Ask him to stop so you can speak to him. Politely explain why he should be
riding on the right side of the road. I wouldn't even approach the helmet
issue -- the other one is the biggie anyway, and if you get too preachy you
won't accomplish anything.

Matt O.

George

If you do get to talk to him you might explain that if he
gets hit by a car doing that HE will probably be ruled at
fault and have to pay for his head breaking the car window.

moonshdw@xmissionz.com wrote:
> I hesitate to use epithets like "Fred," because the way I figure it, to
> Lance Armstrong we're all Freds. But...
> There's one Fred in particular that I (almost) run into quite
> frequently. This dope is a regular commuter, but he doesn't wear a
> helmet, he hauls a large load in a backpack, and he invariably rides on
> the wrong side of the road. (This being in the USA, that's on the left.)
> Question One: What's the best way to pass this bozo?
> Question Two: What, if anything, would you say to him about his
> illegal, inefficient, unsafe, stupid way of riding?

David Kerber

In article <7d0cc.9672$Zw.4811@nwrddc02.gnilink.net>, matt@deltanet.com
says...
> moonshdw@xmissionz.com wrote:
>
> > I hesitate to use epithets like "Fred," because the way I figure
> > it, to Lance Armstrong we're all Freds. But...
>
> Freds aren't necessarily bad cyclists, they're just not cool. Most people who
> never read Bicycling magazine before about 1990 don't know what a fred is
> anyway.
>
> > There's one Fred in particular that I (almost) run into quite
> > frequently. This dope is a regular commuter, but he doesn't wear a
> > helmet, he hauls a large load in a backpack, and he invariably rides
> > on the wrong side of the road. (This being in the USA, that's on the
> > left.) Question One: What's the best way to pass this bozo?
> > Question Two: What, if anything, would you say to him about his
> > illegal, inefficient, unsafe, stupid way of riding?
>
> Ask him to stop so you can speak to him. Politely explain why he should be
> riding on the right side of the road. I wouldn't even approach the helmet
> issue -- the other one is the biggie anyway, and if you get too preachy you
> won't accomplish anything.

Yep. The only issue that's a *definite* safety issue is the wrong-way
riding.


--
Dave Kerber
Fight spam: remove the ns_ from the return address before replying!

REAL programmers write self-modifying code.

Zippy the Pinhead

On Sun, 4 Apr 2004 21:07:28 +0000 (UTC), moonshdw@xmissionz.com wrote:

>What, if anything, would you say to him about his
>illegal, inefficient, unsafe, stupid way of riding?

In the fullness of time, it would probably go:

"Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord. May his soul and the souls of
all the faithful departed rest in peace. Amen".

AustinMN

<moonshdw@xmissionz.com> wrote in message
news:c4pteg$q6m$1@terabinaries.xmission.com...
> I hesitate to use epithets like "Fred," because the way I figure it, to
> Lance Armstrong we're all Freds. But...
> There's one Fred in particular that I (almost) run into quite
> frequently. This dope is a regular commuter, but he doesn't wear a
> helmet, he hauls a large load in a backpack, and he invariably rides on
> the wrong side of the road. (This being in the USA, that's on the left.)

I believe the correct term for this is "Wrong Way Wilbur" (definitely _not_
a reference to that fine bike mechanic, Wilbur Wright).

> Question One: What's the best way to pass this bozo?

I ride closer to the right, so that he is forced to pass me on my left. If
it doesn't look like he's going to move left, I stop completely. These are
the same things I would do for a wrong way car, whether on my bike or in my
car (OK, I admit it. For a wrong way car I'd go in the ditch to avoid a
head-on collision). In the car, I'd add a long blast on the horn to try to
wake him up.

> Question Two: What, if anything, would you say to him about his
> illegal, inefficient, unsafe, stupid way of riding?


Have a collection of quick things to say as he passes, and use a different
one each time:

"Hundred dollar fine for riding on the left side" - Find out how much it is
in your state before you use this one. Don't tell him it's virtually never
enforced.
"It's safer if you ride on the right."
"Cars don't expect you on the left."
"Every car that turns left will hit you."

If you get into a conversation with him, explain three things:

First, he's far, far more likely to be hit by a car travelling in the same
direction and turning left. No driver, no matter how careful, looks over
their left shoulder before turning left. But that is exactly where he is
riding. Almost every car approaching almost every intersection is not
looking where he is riding, so they will not see him until it is too late
for either of them to do anything about it.

Second, give him this example of approach speed. If car traffic is moving
35 MPH and he is riding 15 MPH, then he is approaching traffic at 50 MPH.
But while riding on the right, the traffic would be approaching him at 20
MPH. 20 MPH is obviously a safer closing speed than 50 MPH. In addition,
if on a collision course, both the car and the bike must come to a _full
stop_ to avoid a collision whoel he is on the left. If travelling on the
right, the car need only slow by 20 MPH to avoid the collision, and the bike
doesn't need to do anything.

Third, there were some places in the early 70's that tried the "bikes ride
on the left facing traffic" thing. The carnage that resulted got those
places to change back to bikes on the right.

Austin
--
I'm pedaling as fast as I durn well please!
There are no X characters in my address

Mike Kruger

"AustinMN" <tacooperX@Xatt.net> wrote in message
news:uq3cc.36809$He5.708184@bgtnsc04-news.ops.worldnet.att.net...
> <moonshdw@xmissionz.com> wrote in message
>
> > Question One: What's the best way to pass this bozo?
>
> I ride closer to the right, so that he is forced to pass me on my left.
If
> it doesn't look like he's going to move left, I stop completely.

I do the opposite. I treat them as if they were a pedestrian, so they pass
me on my right.
If necessary, I will move farther left into the lane in order to do this.
That seems to be what other people do. These guys are always way over to the
edge of the road.

> > Question Two: What, if anything, would you say to him about his
> > illegal, inefficient, unsafe, stupid way of riding?

The area I most commonly see wrong-way riding is an area in which some store
signs are in a foreign language. It doesn't appear to me that riding
through a neighborhood dispensing advice on how people should act --speaking
in what may be their second language -- is a winning strategy.

When I do say something, it doesn't seem to have any effect. Sort of like
when my mother-in-law would visit our house, and provide helpful suggestions
on how we could run our household better.

frkrygow

moonshdw@xmissionz.com wrote:

> Question One: What's the best way to pass this bozo?

When someone like that has ridden toward me, I've "played chicken." I
headed for them. When they started to move east, I moved east. When
they switched to dodge west, I dodged west. We eventually stopped with
front tires touching.

> Question Two: What, if anything, would you say to him about his
> illegal, inefficient, unsafe, stupid way of riding?

After stopping, as above, I've said "Now which of us is riding on the
wrong side of the road?"

With the exception of one 12-year-old kid, I've gotten sort of shamed
apologies from them. I've said "Riding against traffic is one of the
biggest causes of cyclists getting killed."


This is a pretty rare occurrence, which is why I never seem to have the
"Ride Right" sheets that I've typed up for our bike club. But here's
the text, if anyone's interested. (The original is formatted with
different font sizes, some italics, etc. The reverse side features some
general safety tips.)


=================================================================

Ride RIGHT!

The traffic laws in Ohio and every other state say:

Bicyclists must ride on the RIGHT side of the road, WITH
traffic - not against it!

Why is this? Why NOT ride facing traffic?

1. Drivers of cars, walkers, and other cyclists never expect to find you
there.

2. You can't see traffic signs or signals from the left side of the street.

3. If you're riding toward the cars, you come together faster. There's
less time to avoid a crash.

4. If you're riding toward the cars, you'll hit much harder if there's a
crash.

5. When drivers of cars pull into the road (from a stop sign or
driveway), they won't look for somebody coming the wrong way. They'll
pull right in front of you. And it'll be your fault!

6. If there isn't enough space for the car to pass you on the road, the
driver can't wait until it's safe to pass. You'll get forced off the
road into the ditch - or worse, into a head-on crash.

7. A wrong-way bicyclist is a real problem for another bicyclist riding
correctly. Someone has to go into the ditch or into traffic.

8. Riding against traffic is one of the leading causes of serious
bicycle accidents.

9. Riding against traffic is against the law. But don't worry about
this one. They won't arrest you unless you're alive.



Is there any reason you SHOULD ride on the left, facing traffic?

1. You can see the driver's look of surprise just before he hits you!




IF YOU WANT TO KEEP AN EYE ON TRAFFIC, GET A REAR VIEW MIRROR.



Courtesy of the Out-Spokin' Wheelmen Bicycle Club, Youngstown, OH.



--
-------------+
Frank Krygowski [To reply, omit what's between "at" and "cc"]

Tom Sherman

Marc Slemko wrote:

> In article <c4pteg$q6m$1@terabinaries.xmission.com>, moonshdw@xmissionz.com wrote:
>
>> I hesitate to use epithets like "Fred," because the way I figure it, to
>>Lance Armstrong we're all Freds. But...
>> There's one Fred in particular that I (almost) run into quite
>>frequently. This dope is a regular commuter, but he doesn't wear a
>>helmet, he hauls a large load in a backpack, and he invariably rides on
>>the wrong side of the road. (This being in the USA, that's on the left.)
>> Question One: What's the best way to pass this bozo?
>> Question Two: What, if anything, would you say to him about his
>>illegal, inefficient, unsafe, stupid way of riding?
>
>
> A game of chicken.

I suggest a bike such as the RANS Rocket [1] I have. The exposed 62T
chainring out front will increase the intimidation factor.

[1] <http://www.ransbikes.com/2004Bikes/Rocket.htm>.

--
Tom Sherman - Quad Cities (Illinois Side)