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Angry woman Yancy/Avalon ~4:30 7/16/10

Started 1 year ago by Al
Latest reply from Al

Al
Member Profile

Ma'am. Let me explain what I was doing.
I was on my bicycle, traveling up Yancy to Avalon. I stay to the right along most of that street so motor vehicles can get by. Near the top of the hill at the stop sign however, I must take a left. So near the top, I move to the left side of the "lane." This ensures that I am unmistakably making a left, but it allows vehicles to make a turn to my right. See, if I make a left turn from the right side of the road, a car can easily make a right in front of me, a "right hook" that is dangerous.

Today I moved left behind a black Prius that eventually made the left turn and I pulled up to the stop sign to check traffic. As I was doing so, you pulled up behind me in your older SUV type vehicle. I signaled my left turn (left arm out, parallel to the ground, pointing left). Then the long route 54 bus passed and parked at the stop just to the right of the intersection heading into town. I could not see around the bus and knew there was traffic approaching up Avalon. Then, the Water Taxi bus pulled up just behind the Metro bus blocking the view even further. Another SUV was just behind the Water Taxi bus.

Since my view was totally blocked, even after the SUV had used the turn lane to pass the two buses, I still could not see around the buses and determined it was not safe for me to proceed unless I could see oncoming, uphill traffic. If you go through this intersection with any regularity, you know that vehicles coming up Avalon frequently move into the center turn lane at a high rate of speed (and without signaling) to make a turn onto Yancy. I will not proceed until I determine it is safe for me to do so.

While I was waiting, you grew too impatient to wait any longer and accelerated around me to my left, into the wrong side of the road on Yancy and sped past me entering the intersection at a high rate of speed. You showed absolutely no regard for the situation, the people around you (both on bike and in the other vehicles traveling on the street) it was frightening.

I wasn't trying to make you angry or be a jerk. I was just trying to make a safe turn onto Avalon. That's it. Hopefully your afternoon was a good one and that your anger will not hurt anyone in the future.

Posted 1 year ago #
DOC
Member Profile

Sorry about people like that Al. I hate impatient drivers that would rather get to their location 23 seconds earlier than see you alive and safe. Keep doing what you are doing and they will get their kummipins. On a side note, I have no idea how to spell kummipins.

Posted 1 year ago #
austin
Member Profile

People can get pretty psychotic when they get behind the wheel. That intersection is a bad area too, with all the traffic on Avalon and that weird yancy/avalon/30th intersection. I cross Avalon there often and am regularly honked at for being in the road (aka intersection, aka Crosswalk) and have experienced drivers coming down the hill accelerate at me as though they're threatening to run me over. I especially like the guy with the older yellow Pontiac with noisy exhaust.

Posted 1 year ago #
Leroniusmonkfish
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I just can't understand why people still ride bicycles....cars have been around for quite some time now. :)

Posted 1 year ago #
waterworld
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DOC: I believe the "kummipins" to which you refer is spelled "comeuppance." It means a "deserved rebuke or penalty," comparable to "just deserts."

Posted 1 year ago #
waterworld
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(Oops, I hit send twice.)

Posted 1 year ago #
ws4ever
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Kummipins is WSB-speak now. I love it! Alot. Heh, heh.

Posted 1 year ago #
JoB
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had an impatient car play bumper cars with me yesterday when i didn't move through the green light quickly enough...

you could see that half second where he wondered whether he should stop to see if everyone was ok before he rapidly turned and sped off.

too many people speeding to their own funeral.

Posted 1 year ago #
WSeaFam2
Member Profile

I understand how insane some drivers can be. My husband is a bus driver and has to deal with crazy drivers all day. When I hear what he has to go through I don't know how he does it. He has had people who were so put out waiting for him to board riders they have driven on the wrong side of the street almost causing head on accidents, and even driving on the sidewalks to get around him just missing hitting pedestrians. Then the driver will flip him off and/or yell at him, even though legally they are required to yeild to the bus.

But this goes back to people living inside of a small bubble where ONLY they and thier time are important..sigh Saftey, consideration, or laws are not.

Posted 1 year ago #
miws
Member Profile

WSeaFam2, just today, while I was riding the 128 from Morgan Junction to the Admiral District, some moron whipped a quick left in front of us, causing our driver to have to slam on the brakes a bit. Not too hard, but enough to snap passengers out of daydreaming.

The driver lamented out loud, with a sigh, how she was tired of that happening. I have to give her credit, she didn't even give the horn a toot. I would have been tempted to lay on it.

And oh yeah. The car drivers just hate it when a bus pulls out ahead of them. Sure, once in a great while the bus driver will pull away from the curb, and there will be an immediate blast of the car horn indicating the bus driver cut off the car driver (who was probably speeding ;-) ) at the last second. But mostly, it's some self involved jerk, that is offended that a bus pulled out ahead of them from 1/4 of a block away, because, they don't want to get behind a slow, stinky bus.

Which they aren't so much anymore. With the improvements that have been made over the last decade or so, there's no noticeable diesel smell (at least that I can tell) and they aren't quite as slow as the buses from many years ago.

Mike

Posted 1 year ago #
Al
Member Profile

Ma'am - I saw you at the Morgan St. Thriftway yesterday, Saturday Aug 7th. You were chatting with someone you hadn't seen for quite some time. You seem like a nice person, but do hope you have remedied your road rage tendencies.

Posted 1 year ago #
miws
Member Profile

Were she and her friend blocking the aisle while chatting?

Coulda been a nice revenge opportunity!;-)

(Not that you'd lower yourself to her level).

Mike

Posted 1 year ago #
austin
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"too many people speeding to their own funeral."

Not fast enough.

Posted 1 year ago #
lilith
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I was at the same Yancy/Avalon intersection yesterday, waiting for my turn to go. My strategy for that left turn is to stay to the right enough that a car can pull up on my left (not my usual strategy for left turns, where I generally claim the whole lane). I then signal left and make eye contact with the driver, so we're clear on what's happening. If it looks like it's going to be a while before I can go, but there is an opportunity for a car to make it, I wave them past me.

Anyway, yesterday I was waiting and had just missed my chance to go, when a big green muscle car (not sure of the type, but it was very nice) pulled up next to me with a young man driving. I signaled, he waited, then after a couple minutes I waved him through. He pulled up next to me and said, "Let's go for it!" He then pulled through the intersection slowly, blocking for me.

It made me smile, and I thought about the angry woman, and what a different experience it is when people are just plain nice.

So thank you, muscle car guy.

Posted 1 year ago #
Al
Member Profile

I've had too many cars make a right turn in front of me as I'm trying to turn left even if my arm is out signaling my left turn so I am smack in the middle of the road there - vehicles can still make a right turn to my right however.

Yes! I love nice people - sometimes I get cheered while riding up Yancy. That's always fun since the hill is not a fun climb. A little patience goes a loooong way.

Posted 1 year ago #