Road Rage

[Glory Hunter]

I decided to take my Suzuki Bandit courtesy bike for a trip to London this weekend.

I arrived around 6pm on Friday and immediately got stuck in traffic on the South Circular. I was visiting a friend in Putney which is an area of London I don't really know so decided not to filter as I felt it would be unsafe (I generally only filter on roads I know).

After a couple of miles of plodding along, I suddenly heard a horn being sounded which went on for about 30 seconds. My immediate thought was someone had had an accident. I was looking around me and in my mirrors but couldn't see what was happening.

Anyway, suddenly the Land Rover behind me drew up alondside and the rude-girl behind the wheel started shouting at me 'what is your problem, what is your fucking problem!!'. I must admit I was a little taken aback; as I hadn't moved for a good minute I really couldn't see what I could possibly have done wrong. So, I replied that I was sorry but I had no idea what she was on about. She then proceeded to shout 'If you wanna sit in the middle of the fucking road, buy a fucking car' (I'm assuming she meant carriageway).

Now, I've had a lot of people in the past getting angry with me for filtering (even speeding up to cut off the gap etc.), but I've never been shouted at like this. On reflection, I really can't understand her problem; was she really that angry that I was keeping her a whole 12 feet further from her destination than I should have been? And if she was so concerned about congestion why was she driving a Land Rover?

Of course, what I should have said is 'And if you want to drive a fucking 4x4, buy a fucking farm', but unfortunately I didn't think of this until too late!

Anyone else ever been on receiving end of any similar sort of abuse?
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2003 Suzuki VanVan - Sold
2000 Honda CB500 - written off by a spoilt brat with no manners
2005 Yamaha XT660 - I'm in lurve....

[Yarri]

LOL 'And if you want to drive a fucking 4x4, buy a fucking farm' ill remmember this one
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Theory Passed: 23/10/2008 49/74 Bike Test Passed: 05/01/2009 1 minor
Theory Car Passed: 22/07/2009 48/74 Car Test Passed: 22/10/2009 2 minor
Few minutes of life of the biker could be more interesting then the whole lifes of many people

[carlnicholson...]

When I had the CG, a gay fat bloke got out of his mighty Peugeot and started giving me lip for not moving over in my lane so he could squeeze past a parked car. I was turning right in front of him, so it would have been easier for hiw to give way to me but hey ho.

He got properly shirty and started making threats, he was probably expecting a spotty kid as when I took my helmet off and walked over to him he properly shit himself. I ran after him but he sped off and didn't look back!

Best part is, I now know where he works. May be worth a visit maybe.
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"THOSE WHO RISK NOTHING, DO NOTHING, ACHIEVE NOTHING, BECOME NOTHING."

[Luke_Retrofly]

You should have beat the shit out of her. I don't like any violence against any women but for her sheer stupidity and selfishness the only thing she deserves is a good hiding!

[DeltaStarr]

You should try riding in Los Angeles... CRAZY PEOPLE!!!
The cool thing is we can ride between cars here "lane splitting"

[McGee]

[Devils Advocate]

[That_Hornet]

I've been vocal with someone who pulled out on me while on the phone. Slap on the window then a good lot of abuse thrown at him.

Was a privet hire cab. They should be pro drivers. Clearly not.


But as to abuse towards me. Some gestures, But to be fair i take it where its due.

If im being a tvat i will hold my hands up to it.

But this girl in the land rover would have got so much back. Mirror maybe?

[LordShaftesbu...]

I must say, there seems to be a constant stream of these road-rage incidents posted here and they almost always seem to be instigated by some purple-faced harridan drunk on their own rage. The other theme is that it happens in the overpopulated areas of England. I ride twice a day in Edinburgh and despite it being as hectic as any city there never seems to be the same sort of incidents.

In fact, I would say the standard of driving in Edinburgh is superior to even sleepy little towns like Dumfries (where everyone acts as if they have never negotiated a roundabout despite the place being full of them - seriously they sit there as if it's one of the Seven Wonders of the World).

[st3v3]

Why am I seeing foreign characters in the OP?
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Roger wrote: Women don't get damp for clingy puppies. Get some better happy pills, hit the gym & buy a medallion the size of a dinner plate. Job done

[That_Hornet]

[The Original Muzza]

[st3v3]

[Darth]

Been on the receiving end of some road rage once many years ago whilst driving a mini (not the estate agents specials of today - a real one. With rust and everything!)

On an A road i knew very well, had been 3rd car back behind a caravan through several miles of twisty bends. Finally came up over the crest of a hill leading onto a good half mile of straight always keeping an eye out for approaching traffic. All clear so waits to see what other 2 cars in front are gonna do - nothing apparently so puts all my 998cc of power to good use and starts my overtake.

As i drew level with the car in front of me, he all of sudden decides he wants to overtake too and makes me run onto the grass verge to avoid a collision. After much gesticulation and horn beaping he notices me and swerves back into lane while i pass the caravan before now visible traffic gets into range.

About 2 miles down the road i see this cavalier (the car who tried to run me off the road) coming up behind me at what must have been well over a ton, lights flashing frantically horn apparently stuck in the ON position. I slow down to see what his problem is (bearing in mind this is way before road rage was such a common phenomena) and he pulls in front of me and does an impressive starsky and hutch style handbrake turn blocking the road in front of me.

He then got out of his car, apparently unconcerned that he was blocking the Aberdeen to Fraserburgh road and stormed up to my car and started hammering on the roof and windows demanding i get out for some kind of duelling match. I just kept gesturing from behind the glass (he was bigger and older than me and very angry!) at the traffic he had brought to a standstill until his mate got out and convinced him he really should just be getting a move on at which point he thankfully got back into starsky and hutch mode and wheelspun off towards Aberdeen.

Was really all quite surreal!
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Harold_Shand wrote: I suppose it's like anything, you get your fingers burned when you start out, you learn from it and eventually become a complete arsehole about the whole thing.

[Irn-Bru]

No road rage on my bike, apart from some wanker in a van attempting to squash me into the back of a bus when I snook through the gap (he was blocking the entrance to a side road, the tosser).

In my old car however, another wanker in a van decided to over take me on a blind corner outside of a school so I beeped at him - but he didn't take to that. He slammed his brakes on trying to make me go into the back of his work van () but luckily my reactions are top notch (they have to be when you drive a shitty car with even shittier brakes) so I swerved and over took him. He then tried to over take me again outside of the school gates and I was pissed off so I was swerving all over like I was drunk () so that he couldn't over take. He then managed to squeeze through (literally an inch away from my car) and I went into the back of him (gently) and put my foot down and spun him out. Wanker Two wrongs don't make a right and all that, but it made me feel better and hopefully taught him a lesson.
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KTM 990 SMT & Suzuki DR-Z 400 SM

[baldy]

I once was riding through morrisons car park when this bloke reversed out on me. I swerved round him and carried on and parked up. A few minutes after i had parked up he came blasting towards me and started shouting saying i should watch where i'm going or he'll flatten me next time. I just told him to get fucked and flicked my fag at him then walked off. Tosser.
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One day i will rule the world, just not today.

[SamJL]

If that had been me getting shouted at, it would have gone something like this:

Raise fist - Punch mirror off - Ride off

[chris-red]

Everytime someone starts shouting at me I just get off the bike. Shouting at someone who is 6'5" wearing bike gear and walking towards you it not a good idea and most people relise this and shit themselves. Taking off the odd Wing mirror or 2 is good fun, especially when you know it will cost them and arm and a leg to replace. That is reserved for the worse offenders mind.
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Well, you know what they say. If you want to save the world, you have to push a few old ladies down the stairs.
Skudd:- Perhaps she just thinks you are a window licker and is being nice just in case she becomes another Jill Dando.
WANTED:- Fujinon (Fuji) M42 (Screw on) lenses, let me know if you have anything.

[Banned]

In my old flat there was a mini frozen supermarket very near, finally had enough of the HGV drivers leaving their engines and fridges on, this is after speaking to shop and all the drivers, who did change what they were doing and all the neighbours were pleased with that change, a lot of neighbours.

Anyway got into arguement with a driver who ignored all requests, who decided to kick me slyly in the shin.

I was fuming and he ended up on the floor with me on top of him seething with venom coming out of my mouth. I did not hit him because i did not want the hazzle.

I got up and fucked off, cue 6am next morning , rozzers lift me out of my flat and off to the station.

Cue annoying court appearances and 100 quid to him and a 100 hours for me. I hate court and never contested as i did not want the hazzle or crown court etc.

A 100 hours on saturdays with dickheads takes a while and reinforces the need to not get carried away again, despite provacation.

I get less annoyed nowadays as right or wrong in this namby pamby country your get screwed over so its not worth it.

Live and learn.

Steve

[lostboy]

I haven't been the direct victim of road rage but a few years ago I was with my grandparents at a 3 lane roundabout when this bloke (in his 30's before you all think I'm a bully lol) who was in the left hand lane (which was a left turn only), decides that he is going straight across, my grand-dad carried on across the island when further up the road the car that had made the wrong manouver pulls up in the road virtually sideways on to block our moving forward.
The geezer gets out his car and starts having a go at my grand-dad, my grand-dad (who is 5 ft nothing) gets out the car and the bloke starts getting in his face until i walk up behind the bloke and taps him on the shoulder the bloke turns round and says "Yeah what?" then he looks at me and sees I'm a bit bigger than him and alot broader, (drain the colour from his face) I grab the cunt and tell him to apologise which he does, and then I tell him to "piss off before I lose my rag" he soon drove off. lol.

On the other hand have never dished out road rage, but once when I went shopping came out the supermarket and found some little 4 yr old kid sat on my bike, this didn't raise my ire, until i saw his mum leaning on the part of the seat he wasn't sat on talking on her mobile phone and her fucking shopping bags hanging off one side of my handlebars!!! it's fair to say that she soon walked to her car when she realised it was my bike, but no apology so I followed her to her car and gave her a softly spoken smiling bollicking (so as not to distress the kid), but she wasn't interested in apologising so we left the car park around the same time and she drove off with me behind her, I think she thought I was following her and she decided to speed up a little 'flash' silly cow got flashed by the speed camera! funny thing was I turned off the junction just after to go home as I lived in that direction anyway.
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Never invite a vampire into your house you silly boy!

[the grim reaper]

I've had a couple of incidents, only in the car though, never on the bike.

One was with the ex, when trying to join a single carriageway from the slip lane, a bloke in a Civic Type R was hanging back and the ex (who was driving) was moving into the gap infront of him. It's his right of way but he was well back and we had two wheels over the give way line and are running out of slip lane. At the last second he suddenly boots it and squeezes past us, forcing us onto the grass at the end of the slip lane. The ex beeps at him, not particularly aggressively and pulls into the gap behind him. At the next roundabout he goes right, except that I know there is no right turn on that roundabout and, lo and behold, he comes out three cars behind us as we went straight on.

At the next round about I told the ex to go right round and, surprise, surprise, he followed us onto the road towards our house. There's a load of shops near where we live, so I tell the ex to pull in outside the shops (plenty of witnesses in case it got interesting), which she did. He slowed down behind us, as I got out and then floored it off down the road. Bloody hero in his car but not willing to get out.

The funniest one I ever heard was a bloke (Roger) who was in my old bike club. He was 6'7" and about the same distance across the shoulders, bloody massive bloke. He was in the outside lane of the M5 on his ratty old VFR when some rep in a BMW just pulled out, forcing him onto the concrete strip by the central reservation. Roger accelerates, lifts his foot and takes rep bloke's wing mirror clean off. Rep bloke goes mental and chases through the traffic. Roger spots a layby up ahead and pulls in to sort it out. Rep bloke skids to a halt in a shower of gravel, jumps out and runs towards Roger, who gets off the bike and stands up, and up, and up.

Rep bloke says 'Very sorry mate!' and returns to his car I'm certain he was chasing as he really felt the need to apologise

Cheers

Grim
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Adverts don't always work: Remember that advert, where the army are running across the desert and they have a wounded man on a stretcher. They get to a ravine, the bridge is down and a caption pops up that says, 'What are you thinking?'. I don't know about you but I was thinking, 'Christ, I'm glad I'm not in the f***ing army'.

[windy12]

Some car drivers do not care who they may injure on the roads, bikers, cyclists or pedestrians it is quite worrying really.

I never see any pulled though. An unmarked medium size Police motorbike with a camera on touring around wouldnt half get a lot of prosecutions but they dont seem interested.

It is at least twice everytime I go out that someone does something potentially life threatening.

We were out round the lakes this weekend and it was mainly cars trying to push out in front of us in the towns from side streets, and cars trying to keep up round the twisty roads in shit cars, when they are like that you have to overtake another to keep something between you and them, car forums and magazines keep that stupid notion that cars are quicker round corners and so many seem to want to prove it. The planks cant seem to get it in to their heads that is on a racetrack which usually doesnt favour the bike ie the bike chicanes etc arent being used, bar F1 cars, usually involves a very limited number of road legal cars which are rarely in the spec they pretend them to be in the test, the last one I saw had downforce on the rear!!! Hardly an average car that joe bloggs buys against an average bike.

But it makes for some scary moments on the roads, when they try to put theory in to practice.