Ok first and foremost. I'm 28 and have been riding a bike for more than 11 years, my current Softail for more than three years. I ride to my college three times a week and its about 110 miles round trip. I ride in a "aggressively defensive" manner and believe in riding that way to stay safe. But what happened to me recently has me head spinning and making me wonder if I acted wrongly or not wrongly enough.

So I was on the interstate as it entered a major city, on a three lane interstate. About 5 miles into town, saw a smaller metric cruiser (like a mid 80's 800cc Kawasaki in good condition with a full face strapped on the back for passengers and he was wearing a half helmet) merging into traffic on a on ramp. I move from the right lane to the middle lane even though he was merging in front of me just to be respectful of a rider. He stayed in the right lane.

As soon as he was on the interstate he started acting very odd. His white shirt kept flying up, so he kept letting go of handle bars with both hands and grabbing his shirt, causing him to rapidly decel. So he would go from about 70mph down to 45mph and repeat. This would immediately happen again and he repeated it many times. And he would also put his head down to speed up like a crotch rocket and looked just stupid and odd. He would do this while speeding up from pulling his shirt down.

Now after I had been so nice to mover over, a car had cut me off and was slowing down every time he did because he was the rider was making nervous as well. Traffic was piling up and I was getting VERY uncomfortable. All of a sudden the car in front of me shot left in between two semis in the left lane and sped up. So now I have an open lane in-front of me, full traffic to my right and left, an Suv crawling up my a$$ and I'm feeling boxed, so I speed up to 70mph and begin to pass him. As I come up on him, he looks in his mirror, shoots left, goes peg to peg with my front wheel a foot behind his, pushing me into the semi on my left, ( I could have touched it and him), he raises his middle finger with his hands on his grips, and RAISES his his left foot and tries to KICK MY BIKE!

Luckily I off throttled, braked and he missed. Now I'm three car lengths behind him the suv is right up my a$$ again traffic is still heavy. I keep thinking, "no that did not just happen, a rider just tried to intentionally hit me like a F***ing car! and try to kill me" Now my exit is coming up in about 2 1/2 miles and I'm thinking I'm just not going do anything stupid. I move over to the right lane after some people finally pass him on the right. And I begin to try and calm down. At that moment he looks behind him, puts his hand on his chest (making a laughing movement) and flips me off again.

At that moment, I snap think F U, I'm not staying behind this idiot to get killed, and drop the hammer. My bike flies forward, coming up rapidly in the right lane with him in the center lane. As soon as I get close, he does it again, pushing me past the yellow line onto the rumble strips. You do not grab your brakes on the rumble strips, they have enough sand in them to dump you in a second. I do the only thing I can, I reach out and punch his helmet as hard as I can. He swerves left, and I get back on the road and fly. I look behind me to make sure he didn't dump, he wobbles for a second then starts coming up on me. I easily out pace his bike take my exit. After than there is a long curved road (one 90 turns into another 180 that goes under the interstate and he is following me. I'm well in front of him but I know he's there and coming up fast. So at the first light I slam on my brakes, stop, kick the stand down (don't even shut off the bike) and begin walking behind my mike back up the road towards him.

All I'm thinking is that I have a 3 1/2 inch Remington folding knife in a holster on my back(that I carry every where and my father gave to me before he passed), and as he comes up I think I'm not gonna get it out unless I need to. He skids, goes past me and flies through the red, goes left at the light, while almost getting hit by a Miata. I get back on my bike, ride the last 1/2 mile to class and go in.(I always leave the knife in my solo bag since its a collage)

It has been a few weeks since this happened, and every time I see another bike, I grip my bars and think about it, just ready for it again. I have always tried to be kind to other riders, regardless what they ride, because I always looked at it like we are all on two wheels trying to have fun and dodge the cages. I haven't been in a scrap for years, but I hit him so hard I broke two knuckles open even though I was wearing leather gloves. I don't know what to think, part of me thinks I acted wrong, that I acted just right or that I should have chased after him made him count some teeth.

So no BS, what do the older and wiser have to say, and what advice can you give a normally level headed, fun rider? I love riding, but I have two boys and a lovely wife, and and at the end of the day, I don't want to burn the world, just give my boys a kiss goodnight and lay down with my girl. But this just has me going back to a dark place and I just am at a loss.

 

 

That's some crazy stuff right there. I probably would have pulled over the first time he tried to run me off the road and called 911. Trying to pass him and putting myself in the same position again would not have been my move. I like you would be nervous every time I see a bike coming my way.

 

I'm going to take this at face value that it's not a BS story. No insult to your youth, but at 28 you're still a kid. It sounds like you've been fortunate enough to get this far through live without ever having to deal with a certifiably unbalanced person. The thing to remember about someone who's completely nuts is that there's no rhyme or reason to what they do. You can either try to retaliate, or just chalk it up to experience and forget about it. My choice is the latter.

 

Agreed, however I have been going to class there for over three years, and have seen a car pull over and get hit by another car. To give you guys a hint about this interstate, It is one of the most dangerous stretches of interstate in the country, (which surprises some) with fatalities happening more than ever this last summer. When I talked to a local friend who is PD (not making a report, just asking for advice) his response was, "I don't know what to tell you, but if I had seen it, I would have gone after the guy for attempted murder and have you admit to self defense". Even so, he doesn't ride and I'm still at a loss.

 

Too bad you don't have some dirt bike experience to fall back on , just like wrestling or any other contact sport with the right skills you could have used your bike to f*c his day up . I'll leave it at that the kumbayah crowd is gonna eat you for this anyway .

 

I have a firetruck horn on my newly acquired and rebuilt road glide.....when I touch that horn off everyone stops.....no siren or modulation so it's just a horn and legal but vehicles stop on both sides of the road when I hit it.....used it once to deal with a clown like that....guess who won?

 

Well being i just saw the Borne Legacy i would have pulled up next to him and unloaded a few rounds his way... But that's just me.... You know if you post crybaby stuff like this every time some a$$-clown try's to kill you out there you will get to 1000 post count in a very short time...

 

Well I have 13 posts (with this one) you have well over a thousand.
I have been on here since 2009 looking around. You have been on here since 2011.

So obviously I don't "post cry baby stuff". Since this is not my first time someone has tried to kill me, just the first time things went this odd. Just asking for an opinion from other members on a situation that was rather odd and asking for advice from senior members. Just funny I guess considering how often all I hear is how the older riders always complain about how the younger ones never listen or ask. Guess this is good example of why we don't bother most of the time. Plus since I started young and have riding for 11 years, I'm not a "new" rider nor as careless with my money. Since at 25 I bought a House, a new bike off the showroom floor with two to kids that are well fed and in good health.

 

Next time it happens just pull up next to him and try to talk him to death.