To the black guy that assaulted me at 830am on Summer Street Wednesday morning, and damaged my bicycle. Go to anger management. You need help. I banged on your window because you were putting my safety at risk when you tried passing me aggressively with no space between my bike and your car. All for what, to save you the extra one or two seconds before you got to the cars in front of me? It’s a narrow road. What were my options? Am I supposed to turn on my magical rocket jets and fly into the sky so you can save two seconds? Were you really in that much of a hurry?
I didn’t damage your car. But you destroyed my bicycle. It is currently being repaired, thanks to credit cards. I am a student, I have no money. I can’t even afford to buy food and I was just about to turn onto college street to go get dental work at Dal. You got out of your car, shoved me off my bicycle, unprovoked. I tried to talk to you calmly. I tried to explain that I didn’t hurt your car, that I only banged with a gloved open hand, on the window, because you were driving me into parked cars as you tried passing me.
I have served you coffee probably 200 times or more. You always seem in a rush when you leave. I’ve never seen you smile, so perhaps your life has difficulties in it that I don’t know of. I’ve greeted you as friendly as I could each time. My goal in life is to try to make people happier. What is it in life that makes you lash out at innocent people?
I am charging you with assault, and I am charging you for damaging my bicycle. It’s an expensive bike, and my only transportation. You damaged my wrist, and now I need to miss classes. I hope you get some help for your problems. Your woman seemed very nice. She tried to stop you. We all tried to stop you calmly. You let your anger spiral out of control for what really wasn’t anything to get angry over. Take responsibility for your actions. See you in court. —Assaulted Cyclist
This article appears in Jan 22-28, 2015.
If he was from Alerta, you could have the trifecta of Hate Crime.
Banging on the window isn’t sufficient… You have to get really crazy and scream and stuff… I tend to kick doors and quarter panels instead.
Authorities have released this composite sketch of the alleged assailant:
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/…
Stefan Urquelle is wanted on a Canada wide warrant for cyclist bullying. He is to be considered dangerous and citizens should not approach, or bang on his windows.
I don’t know if I would have confronted you from banging on my car, but I can certainly see why someone would. Drivers are beyond frustrated with cyclists in this city. Maybe he didn’t have room to get around you as much as you thought. But once you banged on his car, you have to accept that you will have to deal with the repercussions. I guarantee that you do not follow all the rules of the road as a cyclist, because I have yet to see a cyclist downtown follow them. At some point you all run stop signs, or use the sidewalks, or drive up the middle between two lanes of cars, use the crosswalk button to get a cross a street. Then cry when people suggest you pay insurance because you want to be treated like you belong on the road too.
We’ll team together and create a lynch mob which will march to Parade Square and demand the expulsion, er… demand the City create seperate lanes – for cars, for buses and for bikes.
Or, you can stay out of my fucking way or suffer my wrath! 🙂
first, im sorry OB for you experiencing someone standing up and protecting their property. Im sorry for you being uncomfortable with his effort to pass you and YOUR anger management issues in thinking its alright to pound on someone else’s property to express your anger. The avenues you could have resorted to were(in case there was no bike lane) occupy the lane as a vehicle on the road is allowed to do(thereby making it hard for him to pass you) or take the license plate and report it. YOU took it upon yourself to provoke an incident. YOU suffered for it. YOU, i hope will understand that some people, like myself wouldnt stand for stuff like that. There is laws, in place for you to follow, as that driver was as well. I am sorry for your life lesson…it will probably be lost on you though. Good luck in your studies as well…obviously it isnt Law.
It wasn’t the bike at all; it was the man bun and spoilt milk that P.O.ed the driver.
My advice is to not do shit like that and just stop your bike and wait for them to move along. You don’t know who are dealing with or what they are on, and when you do something to provoke the wrong person this is what you can get. The Halifax Cycling Nazi Party will stomp on this advice with their jackboots, er, birkenstocks, and tell you to ‘fight back’ and take the lane and all that bullshit but it doesn’t mean shit if you’re lying in a gutter, right?
Or as someone else said, if you’re going to do something like this again, best bet is to go all in, put on your best crazy eyes and maybe have some spit coming out of the sides of your mouth.
I call BS. You can’t afford to eat but yet will spend it on your bike. If you go to Dal, bus passes are included with the tuition.
DIFFICULTIES YOU DON”T KNOW OF
“I’ve never seen you smile, so perhaps your life has difficulties in it that I don’t know of.” Assaulted Cyclist
Yes that’s it. His life does have difficulties that you don’t know of which prevents him from smiling, principal among which is the nature of his business. It’s the girls. Give them an inch and they’ll take a mile.
A pleasure as always,
Cheerio!
I bet he lives within walking distance of Dal. The bicycle is a badge of honor among the university hipster elite.
You boned yourself when you banged on his window, mate.
Hopefully the judge throws the book at you ….cars (& trucks) are freaking expensive, you would have to be on a racing bike made of composite materials , for it to be more expensive than a decent paint job for my vehicle .
Its winter time, put your bike away & walk, hitch hike or take the damn bus
Flame away ~:D
Biking remains a viable mode of transport during winter months on most days, don’t hate me because some people on bikes don’t know what the fuck they are doing.
http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MzI0WDUwMA==/z/r…
I Hope your charging him. Get the bastard !!
I guess the OB forgot about the storm and the roads are not completely clear. WTF are people doing on bikes on such rotten roads. Do yourself a favour and park the damn things. It is not safe. But hey if you want to be a part of the road, go for it. I won’t shed a tear over your stupidity.
I had a similar incident a month ago. Truck owners have an irrational adulation toward their vehicles. Anyway, consider it a lesson in not provoking drivers. Next time just get their license plate; the police are usually willing to ticket 1 meter infractions if you ask politely.
I understand a pedestrian or cyclist being irate when they feel a driver has endangered them but it’s generally not a good idea to engage in vigilantism. Better to let the police handle it. A driver almost took me out in a crosswalk one day so I called the police with the plate number. The driver lied and claimed that I had crossed against the light. I didn’t have a third party as witness so no charges were laid….. BUT, I’m sure that that driver has been a lot more cautious after being called by the police and warned that the fine for not yielding to pedestrians is around $700.
Deja vu. Recently there was another post concerning a car/ bike tangle and the cyclist pounded on the hood of the car and I suggested caution to the OP as there some psychos behind the wheel. Add tapping on the window to that list.
I look forward to seeing you and the assailant on Judge Judy.
As a driver and a cyclist. I gotta say, driver’s are crazy self important motherfuckers. The roads weren’t invented for cars only, and just because they drive an expensive vehicle with a boss stereo doesn’t give them the right to endanger and belittle cyclists which they do do every goddamn day.
It’s as simple as this:
You touch my car, I break your face.
If there was an assault committed, you damaged his property first. It may not stand up in court, but you struck first, and took away your own theory of self defense.