Ok all you drivers with your heads up your ass – here’s a clue. Before you open a door LOOK to see if there is a cyclist! 5 times this week I have had doors opened on me narrowly missing your gas guzzling shitbox. WARNING! I touch your door I will make damn sure it gets damaged in my contact. Been hit twice cycling so may as well go for broke. LOOK PEOPLE! SHOULDER CHECK, TURN YOUR HEADS… oh right, too dark with your heads up your asses! —Slammin Doors
This article appears in Sep 15-21, 2011.
This week, in my own little cycle-filled corner of the city, I’ve seen a lot of passing turning cars in intersections, swerving around stopped/slow-moving cars at lights, even passing cars who are stopped at crosswalks to let pedestrians go across.
Hiwsabout you be proactive and ride proactively(and not like an arse, as the above-mentioned do),
make yourself reasonably visible, and people will look in their mirrors.
Deal?
I promise, if you pop out of my blindspot, where there’s no chance for me to see you, or you suddenly appear mid-swerve, run into my door, then throw a pissy fit and cause extra damage from this fit to my door, you’re in the wrong and will pay for the damages.
If it’s an honest mistake, have the balls to own up to it, shake hands and go on your way, shaken but not stirred.
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Been hit twice cycling so may as well go for broke.
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Doesn’t matter if you’re right, when you end up dead, or in a wheelchair, Chump.
Lose the false bravado, and drive defensively.
just give them a wide berth and ignore the fuckers driving behind you, your safety comes first.
Cranky yeah that will work until the person behind has the attitude of “Doesn’t matter if you’re right, when you end up dead, or in a wheelchair, Chump.” like wheeliep has brought up.
The streets here are shit, it’s not going to change anytime soon, so how about showing some mutual respect for your fellow human beings and stop focusing on this stupid ass cars vs bike bullshit.
People are stupid regardless of their mode of transportation, we’ve all seen (hell maybe even done) some dumb things on the roads so let’s all try to chill the fuck out and be happy we’re not stuck walking (or wheeling).
The whole thing reminds me of Louis CK’s skit Everythings Amazing & Nobodys Happy http://youtu.be/8r1CZTLk-Gk
Fuck that shit. It isn’t bike vs car bullshit and it IS about mutual respect, ie: wait a fucking minute and let me ride wide of the parked cars that might door me and then you can go around when its safe to do so. What the fuck is so hard about that?
Don’t get me wrong, I ain’t taking on 1000lbs of metal with my little bike, but if you ride in fear you’ll die of stress way before some asshole runs you over.
Or, you know, you could look in their mirrors and see what they’re about to do, since you’re moving quickly, have a skinny profile, and are perfectly silent. 5 times a week implies a problem, and unless it’s the same guy in the same car every time, it’s soley yours.
haha true enough cranky, you can’t be worried about everyone else to the point you’re scared shitless and just in case I wasn’t clear I really do think people should look before they open their doors into oncoming traffic, just like you should look both ways before crossing the street. Some common sense can go a long way 🙂
5 times this week? I was a cyclist in this city for almost 10 years and i’ve never had that kind of trouble. Sort of sounds like you just assume the right of way. Over both other drivers and the laws of physics and reality.
SwampDonkey said it better than i ever could.. “Or, you know, you could look in their mirrors and see what they’re about to do, since you’re moving quickly, have a skinny profile, and are perfectly silent. 5 times a week implies a problem, and unless it’s the same guy in the same car every time, it’s soley yours.”
Halifax needs serious bike laneage. Because cyclists and motorists seem to be in a constant pissing contest with each other and the only time any of you ever consider safety is when you’re using the word to yell at each other.
We have to give you a meter so give us a meter you self-entitled twat.
Nicely put Bro Tim.
Hopefully OB, the way things are going ,you’ll be dead or so smashed up ,we won’t have to see/hear your sanctimonious shite anymore.
While standing on Quinpool Rd last Friday I saw two cyclists hop from the sidewalk onto the road heading outbound and cross the street just before the crosswalk at Preston St so they could pull a u-turn and head back toward town…while doing this cyclist #3 who was trailing them but riding on the street and moving at a much faster speed nearly creamed both of them and proceeded to run the red light (in front of the tattoo shop), meanwhile the two sidewalk cyclists nearly got creamed again by oncoming/right turning traffic coming from Preston St.
Classic!
…and none of them were wearing helmets, none of the bicycles had lights and HEAVENFORFUCKINGBID none of the bikes had a signalling device like a bell of horn (which could have helped avoid the first near-collision at least).
I was out on a lovely walk on Saturday with my hubs and all of a sudden we hear ‘Beep! Beep!’ A little girl riding her bicycle with her mom was letting us know she was coming up behind us.
Seems like a novel idea!
Beep! Beep!
Funny how cars driving by have no problems avoiding hitting car doors that open. OP, learn how to fucking ride your bicycle.
Bro Tim, so you would like to see bikers give all parked cars a meter of space in case there’s someone in one of them who wants to get out? That’s your genius solution? Brilliant, can’t see how this will just create another problem, I had no idea how hard it was for people to look before they open a door….
more: hoping the OB will “be dead or smashed up” over this? Really? Jesus dude get a fuckin grip on reality.
Jamesk: those people sound like idiots for sure, but unfortunately there’s no cure for stupid so we’ll just have to continue to share spaces with them and I would rather not kill people trying to get to the next red light, but hey that’s just me 🙂
I’m not the OB by the way, but this has served as a pretty good way to pass a slow work day.
Man, I really hope the next person I see driving a car and texting runs into the back of cement truck and dies. Hope its a painful death too. Ooh, maybe they’ll bleed out into the street. That would be sweet. Oh yeah.
well done crankster. suck on that, haters
If Op is one of those who think they own the road when on their bike then they had it coming. Last I knew of most of rules that apply to people who drive apply to ones who use bikes as well.
I only have near-misses with being doored about once every few months, and I am riding my bike past parked cars every day. OP, I agree some people need to seriously fuck off and think of cyclists (half the people who have almost-doored me never even say sorry or even seem to notice me swerving out of their way) but I’m wondering if you, yourself might need to pay more attention to your surroundings. The only reason I was able to avoid these incidents was by constantly watching the car doors. Sucks that I have to do that, but it’s necessary.
“We have to give you a meter so give us a meter you self-entitled twat.”
that would be 6 feet, so you might as well let the cyclist have the entire lane. is that what you really want?
GV, I see you missed metric conversion class. One meter is three inches longer than one yard (3ft 3in).
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I really do think people should look before they open their doors into oncoming traffic, just like you should look both ways before crossing the street. Some common sense can go a long way 🙂
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Agreed!
I have trouble with the “all cyclists”/”all drivers” Bitches.
I still believe more people give a shit than not, and have a generally friendly demeanour, except on especially shite days.
When I do a crosswalk, at a corner or mid-street, I make eye contact and say “thanks”, so we’re “co-operating” on me getting across the street uncrushed. Wen I drive I make eye contact with pedestrians at crosswalks to let them know I’m thinking of their safety. I don’t believe in karma, just in trying to treat these folks the way I want to be treated, and blah blah blah.
And sometimes the driver/cyclist really doesn’t see you, and something happens. I’ve had near-misses, and unless they were driving/walking like a jackhole, I make sure they’re okay, and that we’re cool. No harm, no foul, go on our ways, a little more awake.
I think this is why cyclists should have to take a defensive driving course like most car drivers do. In my driver’s ed class, we learned to be proactive and that there are no such things as car “accidents” because they are all preventable – which is quite true. If people look before driving or walking out into an intersection, you can avoid that jackass who’s speeding through a red light, you can avoid getting backed into when someone has their backup lights on, you can avoid slamming into the back of someone if they stop suddenly etc, etc – even though you are in the right, you should be looking out for your own life. I don’t trust most people to make me a sandwich, let alone trust them with my life. ANYWAY we also learned when driving beside a parked car or cars, to give them a little room, slow down a bit and look inside to see if there was someone in the car. If there was, there is a chance they might whip their door open without looking (which is a dick move, I agree) so be careful. We also learned to look behind us when exiting our car when parking on the street so we don’t get creamed by cars or anything else that’s driving close by. It’s just that people start to disregard these things or they just never learned them to begin with.
We’ll get right on that right after all drivers are required to take a course, ok?
All drivers are required to take a test (written and practical)to get a driver’s license. So it should be for cyclists as well, IMO.
All drivers *are* required to take a course. You have to take either a full driver’s ed course or a defensive driving course before you can get your “full” license.
Shit, forgot about that. Seeing as how I and everyone I know riding a bike also has a driver’s license we can ‘check’ that as done.
next.
most cyclists i know are very defensive drivers, on two wheels or four. we want to arrive alive and not maimed. pay attention please http://thechronicleherald.ca/Metro/1264050…
Many years ago, auntie Xenophilia was driving her boyfriend’s BMW in Cambridge. She was pleased with her neat job of parallel parking on the crowded side street. She opened the door and CAME SO FREAKIN’ CLOSE TO CLOCKING A CYCLIST that she has never ever opened the driver’s side door without a quick glance in the side view mirror first.
LOL at ‘looking in their mirrors’, while you’re doing that you’ll probably ride into an open manhole cover. get a grip people.
Don’t think so, Crank, since I’m already parked by then.