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I thought this blog post was interesting. I feel somewhat comforted by the fact that someone, who is a much more admirable person than i am, is dealing with some of these thoughts.
http://noimpactman.typepad.com/blog/2009/08/biking-as-assertiveness-training.html
For a while now I have been considering writing a post examining whether i am becoming an asshole cyclist or not. I don't think that i am, actually, because i do my best to really pay attention to traffic laws, other road users, my own safety, being considerate, etc. However, it is also clear to me that i am more aggressive and less tolerant than many of my closer (in biking terms) peers, and i do not know how i feel about that. In my aggressiveness it is because i fully believe that i have a right to be on the road, and i'm going to do what it takes to assert my right safely. (But it still requires being aggressive sometimes!) I suppose one thing in my favor is that i am equally intolerant of motorists, pedestrians, and other cyclists. But, for someone who believes in tolerance and grace, i don't think this is much of a win.
I am, if anything, most irritated by cyclists who act like jerks. (It is good incentive to keep an eye on myself.) In part because those folks are decreasing my safety and comfort on the road. Unlike many beginning cyclists, i am not afraid of the occasional jerk motorist. (For one, those people are mercifully few. For another, they are usually predictable.) I'm more discomfited by the motorist who is trying to be nice - the person who hangs out behind me while we're going down the street (i can't see them there, i can't tell what they intend to do, and i feel some subtle pressure from them - i'd far rather they just pass), or the person who insists on stopping to let me go when they have right of way (argh! doesn't help me if i've already put my foot down to let you know i was actually stopped - at that point its more of a pain to have to get up to speed quickly. If you'd just follow your traffic rules i never would have had to dismount to begin with!) I think i know why these drivers behave this way, and i believe it is out of good motivations, and also out of a fear that i'm unpredictable because i'm on a bike. The more cyclists can be assumed to follow traffic rules (it means we have to follow traffic rules, yo!), the easier this stuff will get for both sides of the equation.
Anyway, its just me thinking. I've still go work to do to improve my skills and user-friendliness, but i'm left unsure of how much of the aggressiveness is necessary, and how much of it is a danger.
http://noimpactman.typepad.com/blog/2009/08/biking-as-assertiveness-training.html
For a while now I have been considering writing a post examining whether i am becoming an asshole cyclist or not. I don't think that i am, actually, because i do my best to really pay attention to traffic laws, other road users, my own safety, being considerate, etc. However, it is also clear to me that i am more aggressive and less tolerant than many of my closer (in biking terms) peers, and i do not know how i feel about that. In my aggressiveness it is because i fully believe that i have a right to be on the road, and i'm going to do what it takes to assert my right safely. (But it still requires being aggressive sometimes!) I suppose one thing in my favor is that i am equally intolerant of motorists, pedestrians, and other cyclists. But, for someone who believes in tolerance and grace, i don't think this is much of a win.
I am, if anything, most irritated by cyclists who act like jerks. (It is good incentive to keep an eye on myself.) In part because those folks are decreasing my safety and comfort on the road. Unlike many beginning cyclists, i am not afraid of the occasional jerk motorist. (For one, those people are mercifully few. For another, they are usually predictable.) I'm more discomfited by the motorist who is trying to be nice - the person who hangs out behind me while we're going down the street (i can't see them there, i can't tell what they intend to do, and i feel some subtle pressure from them - i'd far rather they just pass), or the person who insists on stopping to let me go when they have right of way (argh! doesn't help me if i've already put my foot down to let you know i was actually stopped - at that point its more of a pain to have to get up to speed quickly. If you'd just follow your traffic rules i never would have had to dismount to begin with!) I think i know why these drivers behave this way, and i believe it is out of good motivations, and also out of a fear that i'm unpredictable because i'm on a bike. The more cyclists can be assumed to follow traffic rules (it means we have to follow traffic rules, yo!), the easier this stuff will get for both sides of the equation.
Anyway, its just me thinking. I've still go work to do to improve my skills and user-friendliness, but i'm left unsure of how much of the aggressiveness is necessary, and how much of it is a danger.