Why are some people so angry? What makes them take that anger behind the wheel of a car?
This morning I got on my bike early, wanting to take advantage of the break in the rain predicted for Chicago all weekend. I flatted a mile from home – a shard of glass that I never could have seen while in the saddle. Once that was taken care of, I took off again. Legs felt good. Weather feeling damp but not raining… all good.
Until I encountered the man in the silver car. I was in the right lane at a red light at the corner of a busy intersection. He came up fast behind me, leaning on the horn. I sensed him coming even before I heard him. I turned and he was making wild gestures at me, obviously saying some unflattering things that I could not hear. This intersection has a “no turn on red between 7 am and 7 pm” sign so I was not holding him up. Apparently he felt differently. I pointed to the sign and the clearly marked bike lane. I should have just let him rant, but it’s difficult when someone is acting so irrationally. This is a fairly long light and he continued his tirade directed at me.
The light turned green and I moved forward, along with the traffic that was in the lane next to mine. Instead of turning right, he gunned his engine and buzzed between me and the cars that were going straight with me. Thankfully I was close enough to the right that he didn’t hit me, but he certainly came close. I believe his intention was to scare me, and I hate to admit he succeeded.
This is not my first encounter with a 3,000 pound missile. Last summer I was “sideswiped” by a driver that was obviously not paying attention as she drifted to the right into the bike lane. I went down hard on that day, and had several bruises to show for it. Although I wasn’t hit today nor did I go down, the feeling I was left with was much worse. This was intentional. Not much worse than feeling vulnerable on the bike.
I love being on my bike, but I do feel like riding in the city is akin to riding through a war zone sometimes. Bad pavement, high traffic, people not paying attention…
I was lucky. I know it. And I regret pointing out that sign because I probably just fueled his anger – but as frustrated as he was in that moment, I’m just as frustrated for having to endure this every time I go out to ride. There are cyclists out there every day having to deal with angry or distracted drivers, and I don’t want to do anything to contribute to their potential harm. Lesson learned: car plus angry man vs bike and I lose.
I won’t be making that mistake again.