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If anyone knows the roadie that had an altercation with a taxi driver in Mildenhall (Suffolk) this afternoon (about six), tell him he should be ashamed of himself and I have reported it to the Police and encouraged the taxi driver to do likewise!
Rider came up the street at speed, passed me (in my car, I'd just turned right onto that road), dived to the inside, Taxi driver turns left, rider going to fast to react other than mount the pavement, cut across front of taxi just missing car coming the other way. He then storms back to taxi driver raging at him and smashed his wing mirror off and rode off. Now regardless of the rights and wrongs of who did what as far as road use is concerned, that was criminal damage and everone watching (it was busy) will make their own conclusions about him and other cyclists! He was on something pretty swish as it had aero bars, he was pedominantly dressed in white kit. Don't know what the hell he thought he was trying to achieve riding through there at that speed at that time of day!
He was on for a KOM and some taxi got in the way.. Fuming
tell him he should be ashamed of himself
So it sounds like the taxi driver didn't check his mirrors properly before making the left turn cutting off the cyclist, and the cyclist should be ashamed of himself? A smashed wing mirror is the driver getting off lightly, imo.
How did he smash the mirror off?
OP implies cyclist's speed and movement meant taxi driver was both surprised and being undertaken...
+1 , undertaking a car turning left is just stupidity.OP implies cyclist's speed and movement meant taxi driver was both surprised and being undertaken...
Sound like he's a triathlete, not a cyclist.
Cloud nine think your wrong there if the guys undertaking the taxi the laws pretty clear undertaking is a no no regardless of the taxi checking or not. Name and shame the guy if you find him as he does the rest of us that cycle safely no favors when it comes to image
rider sounds like a bellend
Did the OP pull out in front of him?
got a link to back that up?the laws pretty clear undertaking is a no no
rider sounds like a [s]bellend[/s] triathlete
Did the OP pull out in front of him?
He was in sight when I pulled out but the traffic slowed and he caught up, it is narrowish street with a builders merchants (unsighted entrance), multiple other turnings, pedestrian crossings and a bus station.
Now regardless of the rights and wrongs of who did what as far as road use is concerned
..... Michaelmcc?
nickjb,we drive on the left and pass on the right in the uk.
163 - only overtake on the left if the vehicle in front is signalling to turn right, and there is room to do so
That do ya?
Cheers four banger I remember the question coming up on my theory test a few ago (31 years of age only started driving fours ago as had too at the time)
163 - does this apply if you're in a dedicated cycle lane?
Shame you cropped this bit from 163:
[i] If the queue on your right is moving more slowly than you are, you may pass on the left[/i]
You know, before the internet, nobody other than the very people who were involved would ever have known about this.
If he was a triathlete he would have fallen off before he got up to decent speed and wouldn't have the skillz to hop onto a pavement to dodge a taxi.
Shame you cropped this from 163:
stay in your lane if traffic is moving slowly in queues.
"Diving up the inside" doesn't mean you're in your own lane you just created. I really hope you only ride a bike nickjb, as you apear to know FA about the Highway Code.
You know, before the internet, nobody other than the very people who were involved would ever have known about this.
This - how does anyone other than the OP feel they're in any position to judge the cyclist?
I can't quite work out what happened here from the OPs description of events and I'm not sure how anyone else has!
What I do know is I'm getting bored of strangers judging me to be scum of the earth when I'm on my road bike...
why did you choose to report it to the police?
I'm guessing it was the criminal damage bit
I need to know if I should be outraged. Please help.
give it a go Dez, then report back
[i]I'm guessing it was the criminal damage bit[/i]
Yeh but surely that would be up to the taxi driver, it was the wing mirror from his vehicle.
Give your name as a witness, but report to the police?
He's riding down the middle (all over in fact) of a busy town street - kids, cars, buses, taxis, shoppers etc and then he takes the fact that he ****'d up out on the taxi driver? some seem to be suggesting that he can do as he pleases?
How long before his rage surfaces again, and again most stand by, watch and shrug as they carry on?
We all (well ok, some present company excepted!) make mistakes on the road, a lot of the time nobody sees, it affects noone. The cyclists behavior was not acceptable, he was the one that put himself into the position he did not the taxi driver.
fourbanger - Member
163 - only overtake on the left if the vehicle in front is signalling to turn right, and there is room to do so
That do ya?
Isn't that for motor vehicles? 'Rules for cyclists' are 52-82.
Also, rule 160 includes this:
"be aware of other road users, especially cycles and motorcycles who may be filtering through the traffic. These are more difficult to see than larger vehicles and their riders are particularly vulnerable. Give them plenty of room, especially if you are driving a long vehicle or towing a trailer"
Filtering through traffic suggest passing on the left or between lanes.
Yep, oddly I was reading an article on this sort of under/overtaking from bike pov this morning.
Where bikes are concerned it's not cut and dry is the short answer.
Personally, I tend to only roll by traffic on the left if there's a queue at a traffic light - if it's safe to do so. Obviously I'd stop at the light. Usually I'll overtake to the right simply as it's easier for drivers to understand so therefore safer for everyone.
Oh, and regarding throwing Highway Code around, you do realise it's much closer to 'best practice' than actually being the letter of the law? Not knocking it, as road users should know it, but it's not The Last Word.
Going back and smashing the taxi was definitely unwarranted and probably criminal though!
the poster said [i]the laws pretty clear undertaking is a no no[/i]. By way of proof you posted a rule that specifically lists some examples of when it is allowed. Hardly conclusive. The cyclist has done something wrong IMO, but I was looking for clarification over one specific aspect. You haven't been able to do that although maybe I wouldn't go as far to say it is because you know FA about the law. TBH 'the law' is pretty irrelevant in this case as what happened to both parties could easily have been avoided with some common sense.you apear to know FA about the Highway Code.
A bit ott but as ironic punishments go it was pretty appropriate. 😈Going back and smashing the taxi was definitely unwarranted and probably criminal though!
...everone watching (it was busy) will make their own conclusions about him and other cyclists
What if he turns out to be Irish or muslim or gay or all three?
Will everyone then make their own conclusions about gay muslim Irish people?
Why do individual cyclists always get held responsible for the public perception of all cyclists?
Well the next time I see a roadie I'll make sure to part the way in a Moses style crevice through the busy streets as not to upset him/her resulting in him/her damaging my car in a rage,after all he/her does own the road.
If the queue on your right is moving more slowly than you are, you may pass on the left
I've not checked, but I think it's safe to assume that refers to a dual carriageway? Or a queue turning right. You cant really have two queues on single carriageways can you.
So, taxi driver left-hooks cyclist. Cyclist breaks his wing mirror.
People getting knickers in twist, why?
Such is the vagaries of the highway code. There are plenty of roads throughout the UK that are not specifically dual carriageway but allow multiple lanes to form where space permits. Are these covered? In this particular case the cyclist wasn't in a separate lane, formed or otherwise, but that doesn't excuse the taxi driver from not using his mirrors before manoeuvring.
Only got the OP to go on, but
... also doesn't excuse the cyclist from not anticipating the actions of other road users, travelling at an inappropriate speed and failing to overtake only when it's safe to do so
... also doesn't excuse the cyclist from not anticipating the actions of other road users
That is ridiculous. You just blamed the victim of a left hook.
It's a left hook if the vehicle half-overtakes you and pulls left
It's not a left hook if you choose to undertake a vehicle that's already indicating
It's not really a left hook IMO if you undertake a car that's slowing on the approach to a junction even if it's not indicating (this is the observation bit - even if it's not turning off, why is it slowing and why should you be overtaking "into" whatever it's braking for?)
what we hear from the OP is that the cyclist [b]over[/b]took his car, then changed sides and tried to [b]under[/b]take the taxi. Taxi turned left shortly after this manoeuvre started.
We don't know whether any indicating or slowing was taking place so this situation's not totally clear.
I'm assuming Moe is a cyclist and so would tend to see incidents from that perspective, yet still thinks the cyclist was a cock. That's pretty much good enough for me (as I'm not a judge/juror).
Me too.....
If the situation's not clear, we shouldn't be so quick to condemn the cyclist.
Regardless of the guff on this thread, filtering (to either side) is perfectly legal for cyclists. Otherwise, we'd all have to sit in traffic with the cars and trucks.
However, there are times when filtering on the near side is inadvisable, because drivers do not always use their near side mirrors before manoeuvring (sp?) left. If the cabbie had been signalling left, then to attempt to filter on the near side was bloody stupid. However, we don't know if this was the case. Futhermore, if the driver DID signal, we don't know if he checked his mirror before he did so.
And yep, knocking the wing mirror off someone's car is antisocial and not something I would ever do. However when you've just had someone try to kill you, you don't always think rationally.
again,
I'm assuming Moe is a cyclist and so would tend to see incidents from that perspective, yet still thinks the cyclist was a cock. That's pretty much good enough for me
Many people have difficulty accepting they're at fault, especially when the adrenaline's running, and some of them will be cyclists. A few of those will turn out to be aggressive arseholes.
I'm assuming Moe is a cyclist and so would tend to see incidents from that perspective, yet still thinks the cyclist was a cock. That's pretty much good enough for me
Moe, you have a fan! Use your power wisely...
The cyclist was riding too fast for the situation he was in, on equipment far from ideal for the environment he was in (fact), it is also possible that even if the cyclist thought the taxi driver didn't indicate he may of in fact have done so (all the traffic except the rider was moving slowly and the rider was unsighted from the taxi by me), the taxi driver may also have checked all his mirrors and still missed the rider due to the way the rider was making his way through the traffic. If he had seen him passing me in his offside mirror he may also have judged that because of the speed he was travelling that was there he would probably stay. All speculation of course but when all is said and done the rider was not riding to the conditions, he was gambling, he made himself look a fool but it could've been far worse!
And yep, knocking the wing mirror off someone's car is antisocial and not something I would ever do. However when you've just had someone try to kill you, you don't always think rationally.
I think the more accurate observation, is the cyclist almost got killed by a combination of his own poor riding/judgement, then flew off the handle fueled by adrenaline.
As Scaredypants said, if the Taxi was at fault then Moe would have started a thread about the Taxi driver nearly killing the cyclist, after all he's a cyclist on a cycling forum, there's only one way to view his bias!
Although I disagree with this statement, there's nothing wrong with a road bike, I'd rather be on mine than on my MTB in town.
on equipment far from ideal for the environment he was in (fact)
there's nothing wrong with a road bike, I'd rather be on mine than on my MTB in town.
granted, but he was on a bike with aero bars, not ideal?
If the situation's not clear, we shouldn't be so quick to condemn the cyclist.
It appears that a lot of people on this thread were all there as witnesses!
I really don't understand how any of us are in a position to judge the cyclist [i]or[/i] the taxi driver based on the OP's description...
granted, but he was on a bike with aero bars, not ideal?
eh? So supposed to take a spare pair of bars with him for when he's riding through town? Or do you mean he was riding in heavy urban traffic [i]on[/i] the aero bars ie: not covering the brakes? In which case, fair enough - that's not showing much skill or risk awareness
No, Moe's all we have on that scoreIt appears that a lot of people on this thread were all there as witnesses!
to be fair, if he can hop a kerb from there, I'm impressedOr do you mean he was riding in heavy urban traffic on the aero bars ie: not covering the brakes? In which case, fair enough - that's not showing much skill or risk awareness
The cyclist was riding too fast for the situation he was in
In your opinion
[url= http://www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise/factsheet/en06opin-l1-f-what-is-fact-and-opinion ]Not a fact[/url]on equipment far from ideal for the environment he was in (fact)
Bingo!All speculation of course
but when all is said and done the rider was not riding to the conditions
Well, y'know, perhaps the taxi driver was "not driving to the conditions" when he drove into the path of a cyclist.
Maybe the cyclist [i]was[/i] being a knob. But those of us who weren't there cannot pass judgement. It is telling how quickly people jump to condemn the cyclist on the basis of a subjective anecdote on the internet.
People grasp at stories which confirm their predisposed world view. "Bloody cyclist came out of nowhere" anecdotes are popular for this reason.
Having done a bit of research my discription of the bars is slightly off, this is the type of bars on the bike.
[url= 
]Bars[/url]
Funny how folk discect what others say to suit their own view.... all speculation was regarding what the taxi driver may have done.
btw, meant to say earlier but there was no kerb as such, he exited the road on the pedestrian crossing and across the pavement.
A mini cam arrived in the post that morning and I considered putting it in the car but I guess if I had spent time doing that I wouldn't have been there .... in which case it may never have happened ..... so ....that must mean.... It was all my fault! Happy now!?
People grasp at stories which confirm their predisposed world view. "Bloody cyclist came out of nowhere" anecdotes are popular for this reason.
Yes, on the dail mail comments section. By the same argument if a cyclist was riding badly enough for someone on a cyclist website to think they were being a bit of a cockerell then they must be really bad! Similarly, if the story had been about a bad bit of driving then it needs to be taken with a pinch of salt as this is STW where we all weave sandals from organic lentils, read the guardian, and hate cars (especialy taxis).
Having done a bit of research my discription of the bars is slightly off, this is the type of bars on the bike.
Presume you mean bullhorn, running the base bar from an aero setup would be a bit wierd, but not impossible, as they're based on bullhorn bars, which were just upturned drops with the drops cut off. Same width as a drop bar, and actually really practical for riding round town, hence the number of fixies and commuters seen with them.
after all he's a cyclist on a cycling forum, there's only one way to view his bias!
Not really. He's a mountain biker on a mountain bike forum who drives a car - it seems plenty of those chuck their bike on the top of the car to drive to the trail centre (complaining about being held up by roadies on the way) and never ride on the road. You only have to look at any previous thread on bikes vs cars to see people supporting the actions of drivers despite evidence suggesting they're the ones at fault.
Not that I'm saying that's the case here (though I see nothing to suggest that the OP does ride bikes on the road), nor am I saying that the cyclist in this incident wasn't in the wrong, just that it's a dangerous assumption to make.
Not really. He's a mountain biker on a mountain bike forum who drives a car -
I've been driving for 32yrs with one sole acci .... er, collision (someone drove into me while I was indicating to turn right), I survived being a teenage motorcyclist, as well as another 10yrs of motorcyling in more recent times, I spent 13 of the last 20yrs regularly commuting by road bike on busy twisting B roads through town & country and the last 3yrs on a relatively busy (very busy at times) single carriageway A road. Mtb has only really been a part of my life for the last 7yrs (I do also commute offroad by Mtb as well).
It does sound like the roadie was going to fast for his surroundings.
I with TINAS, I doubt Moe would start a thread about iffy cycling if he had any doubt it was not the cyclist fault.
Typical STW arguing about something they have not seen.
[i]Typical STW arguing about something they have not seen.[/i]
Exactly why I don't other with this type of thread anymore (except er, this one 😉 )
When you say that, people actually come back with the argument that they [i]do[/i] know what happened. Bloody weirdos.
DezB - how's that outrage working out for you? I was a bit concerned given the length of time since your last post that something had become of you.. 😉
Still not decided. Sorry.
When cycling if I ever filter on the inside or even just approaching a left turn with cars behind me I'll keep glancing behind me to the right to assertain the position of any cars and if they're indicating or slowing to turn. Yes the motorist should wait for the cyclist before taking the turn but some misjudge your speed, some are idiots and some just take the chance. After nearly being sideswiped by a young man in a honda I'm always very careful and when crossing a left turn or going through a junction, I think it's always best to think the car behind you is going to turn left on you until they don't. I can't be responsible for other peoples actions but I can be responsible for mine.
TBH plenty of bellend drivers and bellend cyclists on the roads....
Like the driver this morning who overtook me going down a hill an then decided a minute later to brake in front of me 🙂
Sorta get used to it .... mmmm gotta love Hopes....
(Course shoulda been riding primary for maximum mayhem)