Have you had problems with people throwing items at you?

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  Jun 01, 2008 2:39 PM GMT

  I do not know what the hell is going on, but recently I have had people throw coke cans and beer bottles at me while I cycle.
  Should I keep a camera on me and take tag numbers or not bother?

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  Jun 01, 2008 4:28 PM GMT

  We were doing a training ride a couple of weeks ago here in So. California which took us through a rough part of Pasadena,CA.
  We got jeers from people, some yelled at us asking for money, and a couple of guys were on the street corner. One almost jumped in front of me and the other tried to spit on me.
  I'd say a response to this is to RIDE FASTER,lol

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  Jun 01, 2008 5:01 PM GMT

  This sort of thing really sucks, and needs to stop. It's happened to me, too - kids chucking pebbles (at me) from a footbridge over a canal, along which I was cycling. In a lot of cases, if you respond to their taunts the situation will probably only inflame, unless you can act with substantial authority and know what you're doing. If you are injured, then it may be wise to seek witnesses, perhaps confront them - but do it calmly! - and call the police, I guess.
  
  If I get any better advice, I'll pass it on.

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  Jun 01, 2008 5:27 PM GMT

  More than 30 years ago I was cranking down a farm road here in NM, probably doing about 25 mph, when a truck passed in the opposite direction, doing maybe 30-40 mph. Just as they passed me, a little shit-bag kid in the back pitched a rock the size of a quarter, which hit me right in the middle of the sternum. I thought I'd been shot. I had a dent there for months. There's no protection from random acts like that.

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  Jun 01, 2008 5:49 PM GMT

  What's wrong these people? Sorry to hear it.

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  Jun 01, 2008 6:04 PM GMT

  This is Horrible to hear!
  What do those object throwers think?
  
  Maybe they are feeling they are in "Easy Rider" and you are outlaw bikers?
  
  Seriously, is this a common occurrence?

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  Jun 01, 2008 6:19 PM GMT

  From my experience, no, throwing things is not the norm. I've had two vehicles try to run me off the road and and some tool throw an empty pop can at me. Several years ago, my folks and I rode the TOSRV and some crusty old guy went on and on about how his property extended out to the center line and this was trespassing etc. etc. Some people just don't like cyclists.(or maybe we're just easy to screw with)

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  Jun 01, 2008 6:43 PM GMT

  When I was in high school, I had a bunch of people in my car and one girl threw a can at someone on a bike. I was disgusted. I didnt want to be associated with people like that. I honestly wanted to stop my car and apologize.

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  Jun 01, 2008 6:47 PM GMT

  I was walking down the street one day by a bus full of high school kids. I heard something whip by my head... and smelled the faint scent of blueberries. Looking down, I saw a half-eaten blueberry muffin.
  
  Blueberry muffins are delicious; what kind of sick, twisted, depraved person would throw one away?

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  Jun 01, 2008 6:53 PM GMT

  LutherGooch saidI do not know what the hell is going on, but recently I have had people throw coke cans and beer bottles at me while I cycle.
  Should I keep a camera on me and take tag numbers or not bother?

  
  
  ... Carry a camera??? How about a Smith and Wesson?*
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  *I think that's a brand of gun

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  Jun 01, 2008 7:03 PM GMT

  I get beads and cups thrown at me every Mardi Gras. Won't even go into the lethal missles during St Patrick's day parades. Or what gets thrown at you from Bourbon Street balconies if you flash anything..

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  Jun 01, 2008 8:29 PM GMT

  When bicycling or running, I don't feel safe on public streets. It seems certain members of the unintelligentsia find it necessary to harass, taunt, and even harm those of us who engage in physical activities. I've noticed two things about such people: (1) they are almost always unkempt and out-of-shape, and (2) they only harass from the safety of their vehicles. So, apparently, these people are resentful cowards. Fortunately, there are miles of bicycle trails where I live, so I don't have to ride on the streets. When running, I stay in my own neighborhood which is high on a hill and apparently inaccessible to people who like to harass and harm physically fit people.

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  Jun 01, 2008 8:45 PM GMT

  
  I run and I get jeered at, screamed at, and I get people who swerve like they want to hit me. I also often get a car load fulla of girls that yell out "Yeah, BABY! Yer so sexy!" and the like. It's never a carload fulla guys though.
  
  I think it's because people are jealous; they see you doing something good for yourself and something that elevates you above them and it pisses them off. Or maybe it's because it's been a long commute and they are bored. I guess I make a pretty arousing target with my reflective belt on and I can attest, cyclist are awful pretty and more importantly, shiny!
  
  
  

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  Jun 01, 2008 9:07 PM GMT

  dean_pdx saidWhen bicycling or running, I don't feel safe on public streets. It seems certain members of the unintelligentsia find it necessary to harass, taunt, and even harm those of us who engage in physical activities. I've noticed two things about such people: (1) they are almost always unkempt and out-of-shape, and (2) they only harass from the safety of their vehicles. So, apparently, these people are resentful cowards. Fortunately, there are miles of bicycle trails where I live, so I don't have to ride on the streets. When running, I stay in my own neighborhood which is high on a hill and apparently inaccessible to people who like to harass and harm physically fit people.

  
  
  That's it exactly! These people resent us for our fitness lifestyle. I have had only a couple of situations where objects were thrown at me (this is the rural midwest afterall) but those people fit the description precisely! We have to remember that we are living in a country where the vast majority of people are out of shape slugs

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  Jun 01, 2008 9:10 PM GMT

  Hmmmmm,never thought of it that way.

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  Jun 01, 2008 9:28 PM GMT

  I just posted about this topic the other day in the thread, "ROAD RAGE!!!" And I don't get it either, I'm almost afraid to go out on my bike anymore.
  
  Let it be known that I consider myself a misanthrope, but it's still hard for me to imagine how someone can rationalize such careless, outward violence towards complete strangers.
  
  But if you are one of us that uses a bike to get from point A to point B, do what I am now putting into practice and just wrap your bike lock around your forearm and use your imagination to fill in the blanks if you're ever threatened. I hear stories about bikers (motorcyclists) using ball bearings and other various paraphernalia to protect themselves on the road, so why not us?

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  Jun 01, 2008 10:07 PM GMT

  [quote I hear stories about bikers (motorcyclists) using ball bearings and other various paraphernalia to protect themselves on the road, so why not us?[/quote]
  
  Pepper spay/mace just dosen't pack enough whaloop any more.Sad.

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  Jun 03, 2008 12:12 AM GMT

  I know a guy who keeps dead batteries within easy reach while cycling for just such occasions...

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  Jun 03, 2008 12:37 AM GMT

  There needs to be some sort of cyclist harassment network in every city, done through a web site. The cyclist reports what happened, describes the perpetrator, and others take note. Of course a handful of vigilante cyclists might take matters into their own hands. Still, with a little publicity, at least the word is out that cyclists are watching, organized, and ready for the next prick to fuck with them. Can't hurt, eh?

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  Jun 03, 2008 12:40 AM GMT

  Yeah, I had a brick chucked at me whilst riding in Cleveland. Basically, avoid St Clair; stick to Shaker Heights. I guess I should have known that, though.
  

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  Jun 03, 2008 1:06 AM GMT

  I swear the past couple days have been "let's hit the cyclist on the side of the road" in the Denver metro area. Denver is usually a good place to ride too, unless you are being passed by a truck from Texas, then expect something to be thrown at you.

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  Jun 09, 2008 7:14 PM GMT

  Caslon4000 said[quote][cite]LutherGooch said[/cite]I do not know what the hell is going on, but recently I have had people throw coke cans and beer bottles at me while I cycle.
  Should I keep a camera on me and take tag numbers or not bother?

  
  
  ... Carry a camera??? How about a Smith and Wesson?*
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  *I think that's a brand of gun[/quote]LOL, my friends say no to the gun. I have one of those pop rocket tempers and would most likely unload a clip on the automoblie, reload, unload another...reload...you see what I mean?
  Now the guy that mentioned that someone threw a "blueberry muffin" that is just anti-american man!
  
  If people are going to throw objects, I want them to throw me 100 dollar bills. ...no change please.

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  Jul 03, 2008 10:54 AM GMT

  The only things that have been hurled at me are " Get off the road" followed by honking.. to which I quicky produce my middle finger.
  
  Dunno how so many assholes are unaware of the rules of the road pertaining to bicycles.
  
  

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  Jul 04, 2008 9:31 PM GMT

  Lapinblanc said Dunno how so many assholes are unaware of the rules of the road pertaining to bicycles.
  
  

  
  
  Probably because they don't require a class or a license before they let people take bicycles out on the road.
  
  
  

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  Jul 04, 2008 9:42 PM GMT

  Actually, while riding in Michigan, there were two times when some induhvidual crossed the center line and opened the door of his vehicle to force me off the road. The pick-up door I could dodge, but that damned Oldsmobile door was about seven feet long and there was no chance.
  
  There is one spot on my road where there's a view point on a cliff that's directly above the roadway on the next switchback down. Induhviduals like to drop beer bottles, rocks, and other objects over the rail, but they don't seem to care whether it's a cyclist or a car going past.
  
  

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