Today’s QT comes to us from Premium Member Russ Starke, who offers a suggestion for how to not let idiot drivers drag you down during – or after – a ride. It’s about shifting your mental focus from the negative side to the positive side.
Here’s what Russ wrote:
We all have those occasions when a driver passes too closely or does something else to irritate us.
Sometimes we mentally (or verbally) fuss and fume for the remainder of the ride and often for sometime afterwards.
I make it a practice to mentally (and sometimes out loud) thank every driver who passes safely.
Even when a jerk driver does something to irritate me, my ride is overwhelmingly about gratitude and positive vibes. I get home energized and often cannot even remember the episode with the jerk.
Its a little thing, but it takes the power away from the jerks and gives it back to me and the bike.
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If possible, I actually make an effort to raise a handand wave at every driver who passes safely. They almost invariably wave back and I think they give us more room once they’ve acknowleged us as fellow travellers.
I like the attitude shifts others detail here. But let’s hold onto another important lesson here: bike infrastructure in the US is pitiful compared to many developed and ‘undeveloped’ parts of the world (Colombia, for example). In our car culture, bike safety will be an ongoing issue until we have separated bike lanes!
You may laugh, but I feel safer riding with the cars, in traffic, than on a dedicated bike path. The cars are much more predictable than the families with strollers, dogs, skateboards, land paddle boards and such.
Ditto what Kathy has posted: waving to drivers makes for a better connection with them, and helps build the attitude that we’re all just sharing the road together. Re: Russ’ positive attitude…I like it and use it a lot. Here’s something else you can do to enhance it: when a driver passes unsafely, or show signs of road rage, I first ask “Did anyone actually get physically hurt by that pass?” If not, then I mentally thank God for a ‘safe’ pass, keep focused on that, and ride on. “Sticks and stones can break my bones, but names will never hurt me.” I don’t care how negative a driver is, as long as I don’t get hurt. That’s what counts.
I make a concerted effort to be a human being while riding. That means waving to cars, saying hello to walkers, etc. It’s much easier to cut-off, or drive badly around a random blob of lycra and shiny plastic than it is an actual human being.
Great comments here and glad others are waving to motorists who pass us safely. I’ve done this for awhile and often get waves back- I believe it creates an acknowledgement that cyclists are humans too. We’re all sharing the same road and it’s possible to coexist safely. Also believe it counters the cyclists who run stop signs and “take the lane” riding two abreast in traffic. Thats selfish and makes even this cyclist mad when I see it.
I’ve been waving to drivers and other cyclists since I started riding seriously back in the 70’s. More importantly is making eye contact with drivers, usually at intersections with a smile on your face.
I agree. Here in Sacramento there is a beautiful multi-use paved path called the American River Parkway. It runs for 30+ miles along the river. All users have one thing in common, the knowledge that there is no car/truck traffic. Consequently many users (including cyclists) are “zoned out”. Many in fact (my estimate is 1/3) have earbuds in and cannot hear anything coming up behind. As bad are the “serious” cyclists treat the parkway as a cycling interstate despite a posted 15 mph limit and won’t slow for anything. Consequently I avoid the parkway on any weekend with good weather. It is safer out on the roads with a taillight on.