Reading a few posts here recently about getting pissed off with either a cage driver or another biker and I have to say it doesn't pay to get angry while on 2 wheels.

Quite a few years ago I was riding along minding my own business. Up ahead was a bike sitting a little right of center of their lane, stopped (one lane in each direction). No signal, just standing there. I figured he'd stalled so I went around him to his left. There was oncoming traffic which becomes relevant a little later in this story.

No sooner had I passed him than he chased me down the road. I didn't realize he was actually after me so I slowed to let him pass - usually the best thing to do. He reached over with his right hand and punched my left hand on my handle bar - an astonishingly dangerous thing to do.

I stopped. He stopped - and then jumped off his bike and ran at me yelling that he was turning left when I passed him. The reality was that he couldn't actually turn left due to oncoming traffic - but fair enough - whether he was correctly positioned to turn, whether he was indicating his intentions or not, I did something I shouldn't have done.

Rather than get into some dumb yelling match with him I acknowledged that he was right and I apologized. Apparently we were both near our respective homes at the time.

He stormed off without saying anything about his massively stupid and intentional action that could have easily put us both down.

A few months later I was sad but less than surprised to read in the paper that he'd killed himself colliding with a pick-up.

 

Another "Tough guy" ...Good for you that you kept your cool.

 

I have to agree with you on this one. I've witness similar instances of road rage my self by fellow motorcyclists. While I can sympathize with them in feeling their anger with the stupid actions by other motorists I also am acutely aware of the dangers of engaging another vehicle on the road and do my best to avoid a confrontation that really has no good outcome foreseeable.

 

<<do you mean "killed himself" or died in a bike vs truck collison. A big difference to those who cared about him.>>

i tried not to respond to this but post but it just stunk too much!! Sorry...

 

I have to agree with WFA.... the original post did smell of a little holier than thou attitude.

Having said that, the intent of the post was to indicate that acting with anger is a recipe for losing, if not for disaster, in any situation.

Any action taken with anger means that person automatically loses. That applies to a brawl in a bar or disciplining a child. All actions should be taken with a calm and calculated approach, aimed at achieving an intended goal. As soon as you deal in anger with someone, you have lost .... and it doesn't matter if the other person is "Mean Mountain Dean", or a child.

 

Glad to hear that you both let it go, but can't really blame the guy for getting pissed.

I'm trying to picture the situation. If I'm getting this right, it was a one lane (each direction) road, so the guy may have decided to stop a little right of center to be further away from the oncoming sledge hammers. So he's sitting there waiting to make his left turn and then a bike passes him on the left. Probably shocked the crap out of him. Still no excuse for the followup reaction that could have killed you both.

I figure that he'll use his turn signal from now on and you'll never pass another vehicle on the left when they are stopped in their lane. So the whole incident might have been a worthwhile learning experience.

I do have one question. If you thought he was stalled in his lane, why didn't you pull off to the right or stop behind him to see if he was OK?

 

Took the words right out of my mouth!
I always stop to help a biker in distress.

 

Good comments all -

look,

a. I'm not saying I was right about passing him. Quite honestly I'm actually saying I wasn't - but that's not the point. Like so many things we do as we ride it was a split second decision as I came around a corner and was likely the wrong decision (and just to be clear he was right of center of his lane - i.e. closer to the curb than the center line.)
b. Should I have stopped and helped him - maybe. This wasn't in the middle of nowhere however and obviously without being there it's a little hard to tell whether stopping and helping would have been necessary or appropriate.
c. Killed himself or killed by a truck - good point. The newspaper sided with the truck driver but we all know how that goes. I'm always sorry to hear of a biker going down let alone terminally and besides you can be 100% in the right and still put yourself in greater harm's way. (The accident involved him rear ending the truck).
d. Holier than thou? - whatever. My point is let it go and live to ride another day. I don't know why it took me 50 years to figure that one out - and I still struggle with myself from time to time.

I'm just asking that anyone and everyone that rides a bike try to take a deep breath and not do anything that might endanger the life of themselves or others when someone does something stupid or just plain ugly. This one stuck with me some 20 years after the fact.

 

anger is not something that goes well with biking, somethings just don't mix...

 

Couldn't say it better. This past weekend headed to Rolling Thunder on 301 rolling south through Delaware I just about kissed it all good by. I was rolling with 3 other bikes, we were in a tight group running about 70 (just a little over the speed limit). I was the sweep and we were running in the left lane. A pickup truck came flying up in the right lane. Anyway out of the blue, no signal, no indication - nothing, he comes into our lane. He just missed from hitting my son (third bike in group) and ran me into the grass as I was trying to keep the bike under control and upright while not hitting him. I got back on the road pissed and just wanted to get around him but no matter which lane I went he would cut over and block me. I slowed to less than 30 MPH and so did he. The lead bike saw what was happening, sent the other two bikes ahead and slowed down to see what was going on. The pickup just about rear ended him but I was able to get around thanks to the distraction of the lead bike. We both hauled butt to catch our group. The pick up chased after us. We were doing 90 MPH side by side with the truck no more than a car length behind when a trooper pulled out behind us and the truck after we passed him making a U-turn from the other direction - his light came on as he made the U-turn and came after us. Thinking we were snagged, we slowed and again the truck just missed from hitting us but this time the trooper pulled the truck. We never looked back.

Just a few thoughts - if I would have let my anger get the best of me most likely the story would have had a much different outcome. Second, there was no shoulder to pull over to or side road to detour to at the time the truck blocked me. Third, I have no idea what set the pickup truck driver off - maybe just a bad day for him but it was the closest I have ever been to having a really bad day on my bike.

Sure there was enough of us (and we are all big guys - I was the shortest at 6'2", all vets, and very capable of handling most situations) but it would not have taken much for the pickup truck driver to take one or more of us out with his truck and just keep rolling.