Cyclists revenge, good stories, thoughts etc.

[kwackers]

Driving to close to a cyclist, or any other vehicle, doesn't warrant ripping someones wing mirror off.

No, but there's close and there's close... I have on one occasion 'tweeked' someones mirrors (both sides), not to cause damage just to cause annoyance, but in my defence they had actually side swiped me in a cycle lane and knocked me off and then when I went around to point out the error of their ways was met with a torrent of abuse that would have embarrassed a sailor! (And that from an bloke in his 60's and his missus!).
Regardless of ideals, sometimes anger will play a part. As a general rule I try to avoid getting angry, life becomes so much simpler...

Probably not, but a less confrontational approach may have been more helpful

Agreed. But then if we're honest being met with "teaching you a lesson" is unlikely to improve one's temper...

Don't mind the pink elephant, but the naked girl doesn't do it for me

Not a problem, I'm happy to write naked bloke provided if when you reply you change it to naked woman. (I did consider naked person, but that doesn't do it either...)

[Jimmy The Hand]

You certainly are kwakers if you are advocating taking the law into your own hands other than in genuine self defence.

Actually it was gisen who advocated 'direct justice' not kwackers

[kwackers]

It's not a question of being impartial or not, you do not have the other party's or witnesses accounts or other evidential material.

Neither do you and yet you're pretty vocal!
Either we accept the OP or we don't! I do, if you don't why are you discussing it?

You obviously don't understand the difference between right and wrong. I have read the same posts as you. Fine if it was you yourself who was the perpetrator, but you weren't, so you are arguing for some one else you probably do not even know or haven't even met which appears a little unwise to me especially as you weren't there. The perpetrator who has recounted his story here can't be particularly bright, going onto a public forum and admitting guilt to a criminal offence, a public forum such as the CTC who represents cycling nationally and no doubt promotes totally different values and would encourage all road users as well as cyclists to remain within the law.

How do you reconcile that comment with the quote above it? On the one hand I'm not allowed to comment not knowing the facts and yet somehow when self-incrimination is mentioned you believe every tiny remark!

As for self incrimination on a forum - I think you should get real, why don't you send a link to Scotland Yard, I'm sure they'll be more than a little interested in this little story...

You certainly are kwakers if you are advocating taking the law into your own hands other than in genuine self defence.

Being attacked with a vehicle doesn't merit self defence? Indeed I am Kwackers, just don't cut me up.

[Coffee]

i didn't retaliate against a specific driver but i will admit to taking several photos (making sure the flash was ON) near one of our speed cameras after being cut up once.plenty of motorists worried for a few days i don't doubt. sad ,yes, but satisfying.

LOL, that's brilliant!!

[Jimmy The Hand]

... I have on one occasion 'tweeked' someones mirrors (both sides), not to cause damage just to cause annoyance,

and that's the difference you didn't deliberately knock his mirrors off

(And that from an bloke in his 60's and his missus!).

There's nothing wrong with being 60 as my family are happily pointing out to me this year even at that I still mange to keep the average age of our DA down

Agreed. But then if we're honest being met with "teaching you a lesson" is unlikely to improve one's temper...

True, but it would be better to report him to the licence authority, who knows that might be the last starw for him and his licence is revoked.

I'm happy to write naked bloke provided if when you reply you change it to naked woman.

Deal

[Galaxy-Tourer]

the fact is this cyclist has committed an act of criminal damage and admitted it. The driver of the vehicle may well have committed offences against the cyclist prior to this but these are a separate issue. His account of the incident shows clear intent to cause criminal damage to the driver's vehicle as retribution for the prior poor driving toward him. The law does not recognise revenge or tit for tat behaviour. Two wrongs do not make a right. Resorting to criminal damage is clearly wrong.

And you are right.
However, the law does not protect cyclists. Drivers get away with intimidating and endangering cyclists, every single day. They get away with it.
Who is to protect the cyclist, if not himself, and other cyclists?

Turning the other cheek is all very well, but it will not save your life.

[Ivor Tingting]

the fact is this cyclist has committed an act of criminal damage and admitted it. The driver of the vehicle may well have committed offences against the cyclist prior to this but these are a separate issue. His account of the incident shows clear intent to cause criminal damage to the driver's vehicle as retribution for the prior poor driving toward him. The law does not recognise revenge or tit for tat behaviour. Two wrongs do not make a right. Resorting to criminal damage is clearly wrong.

And you are right.
However, the law does not protect cyclists. Drivers get away with intimidating and endangering cyclists, every single day. They get away with it.
Who is to protect the cyclist, if not himself, and other cyclists?

Turning the other cheek is all very well, but it will not save your life

.

Just one day you might bite off more than you can chew. Maybe you might be deliberately run down, you might be punched and knocked down, or maybe you might be stabbed or shot for confronting a driver. There are enough pyschos in society at some point many will be behind the wheel of a car. The news is full of people being attacked or killed because they have disrespected some one else which is essentially what we have here, two transport groups with very different priorities on the road coming into conflict each showing very little respect to the other. Each saying if you endanger me or disrespect me I will make you suffer. Surely you learn something by reading these anecdotes or having experienced a flavour of it yourself, the consequences can be catastrophic.

Chasing after a vehicle once the initial incident has passed and then knocking off it’s wing mirror as you pass by frankly doesn’t achieve anything. It might bring a false sense of vindication for a cyclist who momentarily feels that he has redressed the balance of the oppressed cycling community. We all have to get along and I can’t help but feel this type of retaliation is taking us in the wrong direction. They are other ways to tackle what happened in this case as have been put forward.

The law applies to everyone whether you are driving a car, lorry, riding a bike or are a pedestrian. It might be an imperfect system of regulation but it’s what hopefully stops us becoming vigilantes. Once people chose to actively step outside the law not to adhere to it and then to take the law into their own hands you have anarchy.

If you take a pragmatic view that cycling anywhere near traffic is dangerous that you are going to potentially be pushed around have cars potentially knock you off then adjust your riding accordingly I think you will fair a lot better. I’m not saying become a victim at all but ride defensively. You will honestly start to enjoy cycling so much more. The education of vehicle drivers to the needs of other road users in particular cyclists needs to take place at the initial training stage prior to the driving test, by the police and through government bodies and campaigns. I see the government have revived the Think bike! road safety adverts for motorbikes which will also hopefully have a benefit for cyclists.

Pride before a fall

[dupregerald]

I agree we as cyclists should not retaliate for a minor indiscretion but I will if it is not acidental or a lapse of concentration but a wilfull act of mailice against me as a cyclist purely because I am on a bicycle and happen to be infront of a certain driver at a low point in their day.

If someone walks past me in the street and takes a swing at me and misses when I'm minding my own business I would report this to the police, if a more serious risk to my life occurs at the hand of a person behind the wheel and I report this to the police which do you think they would take more interest in?

I don't advocate taking direct action and I don't do it all the time, I reserve it for those special few who make a special effort to endanger my life, and hope to make there's a little more thoughtful.

[PW]

I do advocate direct action, close passes result in a clenched fist hitting the mirror, deliberate attempts to force me into the kerb get a pedal cleat down the door panel. I'm quite prepared to back that up if the attacker (for that's what he is) wishes to get out of his weapon.

[[XAP]Bob]

A Lexus lost some paint to me this morning.

Having "overtaken" rather close (two lane A road, short stream of traffic in other direction, pretty gusty crosswinds) he then stopped after a hand waving "you should be in the gutter" conversation)

I pulled up next to the passenger side window, he called me a <expletive> dimwit for cycling in the middle of the road (I was on the left hand trye track of most vehicles, just out of the gutter, away from the drains and with space on both sides to be pushed into by the crosswinds), said that "if [something I can't recall] he'd break my <expletive> neck"

As he pulled away he managed to clip my handlebars and lose a strip of paint from his door.

Why he couldn't have waited for the cars to pass then actually overtaken me like all the other drivers mange to do...

[Tony]

I had yet another taxi driver skim me this morning on the way to work. When I pulled up next to him and held my thumb and finger up to show a small gap, he made gestures of apology. Not the best, but better than nothing, so I left it.
The thing is, he came so close I actually cricked my neck jerking the bars to avoid his wing mirror. While he sort-of-apologised, on this occasion, will he change his behaviour before he causes more than a cricked neck?
I doubt it, but I can hope.

A few days previously, I had a chauffeur actually push me and telephone the police because I asked him for his company's name to report his driving. He called the police.
The coppers were quite amused. I was sent on my way while he got a prolonged lecture about his driving. But then, I knew the copper.......

[meic]

Ivor, I think that while all your list of potential deliberate acts of violence which may happen to Kwacker is real, it is MUCH more likely that he will just be knocked off and killed by some nice mother (on the phone) who is late picking up her little darlings.

Kwacker, I think that your time on a motorbike has numbed your sensitivity to danger.

[kwackers]

Ivor, I think that while all your list of potential deliberate acts of violence which may happen to Kwacker is real, it is MUCH more likely that he will just be knocked off and killed by some nice mother (on the phone) who is late picking up her little darlings.

Kwacker, I think that your time on a motorbike has numbed your sensitivity to danger.

Hey! What have I said!

All I've ever done is tweaked someones mirrors who actually knocked me off! (Alright, and the odd shouting match - but that's pretty rare) I prefer to ignore people and just get on with it.

I get my danger kicks these days hanging several thousand feet in the air off a single 10mm bolt.

[meic]

10mm?

That could hold tonnes, H&S gone mad.

[Tandem Tourer]

I have a small raygun which vaporises the offending vehicle and driver. The driver is, unfortunately, put through enormous pain prior to being vapourised (the next model promises to be less painful).

Yesterday I was pulling onto the road (single lane each way) near the crest of a hill and just before a corner. I looked behind me to check whether there was any traffic coming. The coast was clear so I pulled into my lane and directly into the path of an enormous mercedes sedan which was overtaking on the crest of the hill and around the blind corner. I dont know if he saw me, but I didnt see him because I was looking for traffic coming from the correct direction in that lane not for traffic going the wrong way. I sensed him though and wrenched my front tyre around meaning that instead of clipping my tyre, he missed it by about 6 inches.

I think that if I could have vaporised him and his car I would have. However, subsequently, I have decided that a better punishment would be for him to lose his licence (and maybe car) which will be returned to him when he has completed 100 (I thought 10,000 initially) hours of cycling supervised by his local cycling organisation. He would need to maintain an "accreditation" with the local cycling organisation and log 50 hours every year for the rest of his driving life.

More generally though, would it make a difference if all drivers needed to log 20 hours with a cycling organisation prior to getting their licence?