First Days of Sun = Stupid People Out in Force

Seriously, I want to know what it is that makes people drive and act like morons when it first becomes nice out here in the NW?

Are they blinded by the sun?
Are their bodies having allergic reactions to the warmth/sun?
Or is it that people are just venturing from their hibernation so they have no social skills due to a lack of interaction with other humanoid forms?
Or are people just plain fricking dumb asses?

I ask these questions because on my 3.5 hour ride yesterday I had roughly 5 drivers show obvious lack of thought when passing me.

Like the ass in the red Dodge Durango who decided to pass on a road with no shoulder into oncoming traffic. Oh but wait, he didnt move over into the other lane so the oncoming traffic wasnt an issue.

Or the small navy sedan that decided to buzz us for shits and giggles, no oncoming traffic, country roads with 45ish speed limits, complete visibility. He was going at least 60+, and didnt even bother to move over the center line at all.

What about the dipshits in a silver 4 Runner 2 blocks from the house who decide to ride my butt when I'm slowing down for a red light (yea its red, that means stop), and then cut the corner thru the 7-11 parking lot to make a right hand turn. Had they just waited the light would have turned shortly and it would have been about 5-10 seconds later. Nooooo. Their time is important.

I wonder how much people think about their antics in their cars actually affect the rest of us. Esp those who do not have 2000lbs of plastic and metal surrounding them. It seems like people view their cars as an extension of their houses. And since they can do whatever they want in their houses, the same follows for cars. I mean how many times have you seen people pick their noses in their cars?

I guess it seems like people either dont think about how their piss poor driving actually involves others. Or that all I have between me and the road is Styrofoam and a small plastic shell. That is no match to your mid-sized SUV.

This is my life, and the lives of other cyclists here. Its not a game. It is not amusing or funny. Give us some space and respect that we are a road user as well. Really the extra 2 seconds it takes to slow down and pass at a safe distance wont effect your life in any way shape or form.

Ridding the world of stupidity...

So I dont understand how people can be so ignorant sometimes. The other day I was coming home from work. It was a beautiful sunny day, one of those spring days where you are just thrilled to be out in the warm sun because its been soooo long.

So anyways, I come up to intersection #1, its got 3 lanes going E-W, 2 lanes going N and 3 going S, plus a bus lane that runs E-W between the lanes. Big. I'm waiting for the light with another cyclist, shes older on a more upright big squishy saddled bike, going for what looks like a recreational ride. The light turns and I roll through the intersection to the next stop, one block away. This one is 2 lanes in each direction and a 4 way stop. There are cars going S, N, and W. I wait for the car to go west. They sit there looking confused, so the cars going N & S go. I start to go, when this older woman blows by me w/o even looking around or pausing at this stop sign. Let me go back a bit, this 4-way stop is on the UofO campus. Near all the dorms. This equals a inordinate amount of bad/inattentive drivers in the area as well as higher congestion. Its not so smart to just speed through any intersection w/o looking around you, especially this one.

Few things irritate me more than fellow cyclists blatantly ignoring basic traffic laws. We are cyclist we are not exempt from them. When cyclist ignore traffic laws, we piss off drivers who are (for the most part) adhering them. The drivers then classify all cyclists based on the behaviors of the the few stupid ones. Later drivers interact with cyclists who are obeying traffic laws and treat us like we are not, or they dont respect our right to be on the road too.

So I roll up to this woman. I get her attention. She takes out an ear bud and acts all put off by having to do so. I tell her that she needs to stop at that intersection. (Note this is not something new for me, I will yell at other cyclists if they are being stupid, as well as cars and pedestrians if they being stupid too). She tells me with all seriousness that she doesnt have to stop at stop signs because she is on a bike. My jaw was on my handle bars. I probably looked like one of those cartoons. I was floored. I, of course, tell her she is wrong, and that she needs to re read the traffic manual if she is in doubt of this. She then tells me, "I am 56 years old and I know better than you do." I tell her just because she is old does not make her wise, again that she is wrong, and I ride off (to the next stop light).

I feel like I've hit in the head with something, I'm just so dumbstruck at the sheer stupidity of the conversation.