(no subject)
When I began using bicycles for everyday transportation needs, there were several things that I had to get used to. One of those things was honking. Most drivers are either ignorant of the laws regarding bicycles (ie, bikes are considered vehicles and as such, entitled to use the road) or their attitude is "Yeah, we all know that laws are meant to be broken." A small percentage of motorists feel the need to use their horns, often punctuated with colorful gestures, to emphasize their anger at having to share the road with a cyclist.
When I first began riding on a routine basis, my reaction to this honking was to shake my fist back at them and then flipping them off. On a few rare occasions, I actually got the opportunity to tell them off. Not surprisingly, their visible reaction (as seen in their rearview) tended towards more anger, perhaps at what they perceived to be my impudence. A few of them even pulled over. I imagine that ideal reaction, from their point of view, would have been me pulling off the road and on to the sidewalk. However, I would imagine that my angry response was not entirely unwelcome. If anything, I was coming to them on their terms, in their state of mind, and feeding their anger. Even worse, I would then carry the anger with me for a short time.
After a while, I used to just wave and smile at honkers. Cyclists that suggest using this tactic usually say, "just act like you thought they recognized you" and that smiling/waving is a kind, inoffensive response. Personally, I think it's the same response as getting angry except it's the passive-aggressive version of reacting. Once again, it only serves to feed the anger.
Finally, I stopped responding to honking. People would drive by me, waiting to honk until the hood of their car was very near my head. They would honk, pump their fists at me, and occasionally, yell at me. I just kept riding. Not only did I stop responding, but the honking no longer affected me. After all, it was their honking. It was their issue.
So, you're wondering, "Uh, what the hell is this about?"
Jen, this is my response to your journalling and wanting me to know "where you are coming from." You can persist with your angry "honking" (Edit: by the way, don't take that in a belittling or dismissive way.) as long as you like, but don't expect me to do anything other than just keep riding.
p.s. yes, I do understand that logically, the next step with this whole analogy has to do with being run over. So be it.
When I first began riding on a routine basis, my reaction to this honking was to shake my fist back at them and then flipping them off. On a few rare occasions, I actually got the opportunity to tell them off. Not surprisingly, their visible reaction (as seen in their rearview) tended towards more anger, perhaps at what they perceived to be my impudence. A few of them even pulled over. I imagine that ideal reaction, from their point of view, would have been me pulling off the road and on to the sidewalk. However, I would imagine that my angry response was not entirely unwelcome. If anything, I was coming to them on their terms, in their state of mind, and feeding their anger. Even worse, I would then carry the anger with me for a short time.
After a while, I used to just wave and smile at honkers. Cyclists that suggest using this tactic usually say, "just act like you thought they recognized you" and that smiling/waving is a kind, inoffensive response. Personally, I think it's the same response as getting angry except it's the passive-aggressive version of reacting. Once again, it only serves to feed the anger.
Finally, I stopped responding to honking. People would drive by me, waiting to honk until the hood of their car was very near my head. They would honk, pump their fists at me, and occasionally, yell at me. I just kept riding. Not only did I stop responding, but the honking no longer affected me. After all, it was their honking. It was their issue.
So, you're wondering, "Uh, what the hell is this about?"
Jen, this is my response to your journalling and wanting me to know "where you are coming from." You can persist with your angry "honking" (Edit: by the way, don't take that in a belittling or dismissive way.) as long as you like, but don't expect me to do anything other than just keep riding.
p.s. yes, I do understand that logically, the next step with this whole analogy has to do with being run over. So be it.