# I hate Pick-up trucks



## joey1 (Jan 2, 2007)

I'm not talking about the red neck 4X4 truck that's all to common in PA but these new $40k yuppie machines. I don't know what it does to people but almost every car that tries to mess with me during my commute is one of these idiots.

This morning, a guy in one of these new trucks decides it's a good idea to move around me a stop light so that he can be in front of me and save himself one car length in traffic. In the process hitting me and knocking me over. And then he drives off calling me an a$$hole... Seriously, WTF is wrong with people?


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## Kalrog (Aug 17, 2006)

Did you get a license number? Around here - if you had a good DA - that could be assault with a deadly weapon.


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## joey1 (Jan 2, 2007)

No, all I saw was pure rage. Plus the all so compassionate car behind him was trying to rub the chrome off his bumper with the front of their car in an effort to make him go faster through the intersection. 

I'm sure he'll try the same thing again next time he drives by... Him and the rest of the high dollar SUV/Pickup crowd.


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## brianmcg (Oct 12, 2002)

So, its not really the trucks, but the a-holes driving them. 

They are in all types of vehicles. So, don't take it out on just the SUV/Pickup crowd.


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## joey1 (Jan 2, 2007)

brianmcg said:


> So, its not really the trucks, but the a-holes driving them.
> 
> They are in all types of vehicles. So, don't take it out on just the SUV/Pickup crowd.


Well then they are ahole magnets. I don't have these daily situations with station wagons, sedans, sports cars, even old pickup trucks. But like clock work every time I get forced into a gutter, bumped, knocked over it has always been that crowd. So if you don't mind I'll take out my anger on everyone who attemps to injure of kill me, thanks.


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## Dave Hickey (Jan 27, 2002)

joey1 said:


> So if you don't mind I'll take out my anger on everyone who attemps to injure of kill me, thanks.


I can understand you being pissed off but all Brian was trying to say is it's the driver not the vehicle. For every SUV/Pickup story, there is a BMW, Civic, etc....too...It ain't the vehicle


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## Henry Chinaski (Feb 3, 2004)

Dave Hickey said:


> I can understand you being pissed off but all Brian was trying to say is it's the driver not the vehicle. For every SUV/Pickup story, there is a BMW, Civic, etc....too...It ain't the vehicle


I don't know about that... I pretty much expect anyone driving a Suburban or Hummer to be retarded, and am right much of the time... I haven't had a lot of problems with Volvo 240s, classic cars, Miatas, etc. I definitely practice vehicle profiling and it's saved my ass many times.


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## MB1 (Jan 27, 2004)

Sure that driver was a fool but the other lesson to learn was that you were in the wrong place in the road.

Now me? I run lights but if you are going to stop in a lane at a light be in a place that a car CANNOT get around you. Let them honk their horns and yell but they are very unlikely to hit you with the front of their vehicle so place yourself so there is no way around you.

That or just run the light to begin with..........

BTW a re-reading of John Forresters "Effective Cycling" about once a year is a big help to me.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/s...-1_blended_25461597_2&results-process=default


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## bigbill (Feb 15, 2005)

Henry Chinaski said:


> I don't know about that... I pretty much expect anyone driving a Suburban or Hummer to be retarded, and am right much of the time... I haven't had a lot of problems with Volvo 240s, classic cars, Miatas, etc. I definitely practice vehicle profiling and it's saved my ass many times.



I view every car as a potential threat, even cars with bike racks. I have even had a police car try to squeeze past me in a turn lane. To the non-riding public, we are a guy on a bike who is in their way. I don't know what the solution is other than making roads wider with clearly marked bike lanes and effective law enforcement.


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## joey1 (Jan 2, 2007)

MB1 said:


> I run lights but if you are going to stop in a lane at a light be in a place that a car CANNOT get around you. Let them honk their horns and yell but they are very unkikely to hit you with the front of their vehicle so place yourself so there is no way around you.


The only problem with your reasoning is that I WAS in a spot where he could not get around without hitting me. And that he DID hit me to get around me.


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## MB1 (Jan 27, 2004)

joey1 said:


> The only problem with your reasoning is that I WAS in a spot where he could not get around without hitting me. And that he DID hit me to get around me.


Did he hit you with the front of his pickup or brush you with the side?


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## brianmcg (Oct 12, 2002)

Dave Hickey said:


> I can understand you being pissed off but all Brian was trying to say is it's the driver not the vehicle. For every SUV/Pickup story, there is a BMW, Civic, etc....too...It ain't the vehicle


 
That's my point exactly. 

You need to be careful out there and watch out for all of the cagers. That way you won't be surprised by the VW beetle with a "Save The Planet" bumper sticker and a bike rack on top of the car yelling "get off the road" and cutting you off. Trust me, I couldn't make this stuff up.


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## Fixed (May 12, 2005)

*take the lane?*



joey1 said:


> The only problem with your reasoning is that I WAS in a spot where he could not get around without hitting me. And that he DID hit me to get around me.


I either wait to the right so that traffic can clear, or I sit in the middle of the lane (where they'd have to go right over the top of you). Never sit where they "kinda sorta maybe" can get by you. 

I don't get those problems here, though.

I hate to disagree with the Guru, but I don't think running lights is the answer, either, because 1) it's illegal; 2) you might be hit; and 3) it could engender even more lack of respect for cyclists. But, it could well be a geographic / cultural difference between old east coast cities and brand new west coast cities, too. Maybe back east everyone hates cyclists already and there's nothing you'll do to make it any worse. Here, where lately every other car is a Prius, there are glorious bike lanes with "Share the Road" signs every 50 feet, we have pretty good respect going, and I don't want to do my part in harming that.


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## joey1 (Jan 2, 2007)

MB1 said:


> Did he hit you with the front of his pickup or brush you with the side?


The front corner, before the front tire but not the grill.

And I only brought this up because of the glaring trend in types of vehicles that cause me problems on a daily basis. I know that not all aholes drive suv's and pickup trucks, and that not everyone who drives those are aholes. I've had the random school bus, bike racked VW, jeep with a triathlete bumper sticker, all give me problems. I trust no one on the roads and expect every vehicle to be a potential problem. But I can count on it being a suv/high dollar oversized pickup 99.9% of the time.


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## Fixed (May 12, 2005)

*intersections here*

What's nice here, as you can see in the circled area of the aerial photo of an intersection here in Fresno, is that the bike lanes continue all the way up to the intersection in many of the intersections on bike routes. You have your own safe (relatively) place to wait. In many intersections without this, the lanes are really wide, so sitting right at the stripe between the right straight ahead lane and the right turn lane would just about allow a large truck on either side of you. Between that and the weather here, I guess we have it pretty good.


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## Fixed (May 12, 2005)

*profiling*



joey1 said:


> The front corner, before the front tire but not the grill.
> 
> And I only brought this up because of the glaring trend in types of vehicles that cause me problems on a daily basis. I know that not all aholes drive suv's and pickup trucks, and that not everyone who drives those are aholes. I've had the random school bus, bike racked VW, jeep with a triathlete bumper sticker, all give me problems. I trust no one on the roads and expect every vehicle to be a potential problem. But I can count on it being a suv/high dollar oversized pickup 99.9% of the time.


Keep in mind that over half the vehicles on the road are pickups and SUVs, so the odds are heavily weighted in favor of you encountering one, ahole or not. 

I see more problems or potential problems from old people just not looking than anything else.


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## Dave Hickey (Jan 27, 2002)

Henry Chinaski said:


> I don't know about that... I pretty much expect anyone driving a Suburban or Hummer to be retarded, and am right much of the time... I haven't had a lot of problems with Volvo 240s, classic cars, Miatas, etc. I definitely practice vehicle profiling and it's saved my ass many times.


I guess it depends where you live. I've been caught stranded on my bike twice(my own stupidity). Once a Suburban driver came to my aid. The other time was a pickup driver.


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## lancezneighbor (May 4, 2002)

MB1 said:


> Sure that driver was a fool but the other lesson to learn was that you were in the wrong place in the road.
> 
> Now me? I run lights but if you are going to stop in a lane at a light be in a place that a car CANNOT get around you. Let them honk their horns and yell but they are very unlikely to hit you with the front of their vehicle so place yourself so there is no way around you.
> 
> ...



Thanks for the book reference!


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## lancezneighbor (May 4, 2002)

Fixed said:


> I either wait to the right so that traffic can clear, or I sit in the middle of the lane (where they'd have to go right over the top of you). Never sit where they "kinda sorta maybe" can get by you.
> 
> I don't get those problems here, though.
> 
> I hate to disagree with the Guru, but I don't think running lights is the answer, either, because 1) it's illegal; 2) you might be hit; and 3) it could engender even more lack of respect for cyclists. But, it could well be a geographic / cultural difference between old east coast cities and brand new west coast cities, too. Maybe back east everyone hates cyclists already and there's nothing you'll do to make it any worse. Here, where lately every other car is a Prius, there are glorious bike lanes with "Share the Road" signs every 50 feet, we have pretty good respect going, and I don't want to do my part in harming that.


I agree with showing motorists respect too. I think If a light is run, carefully after looking both ways, I don't think most motorists would be antagonized by that. Since it is not cutting them off, it is not weaving in and out of traffic. I realize it's illegal, but I don't think most motorists would care.


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## MB1 (Jan 27, 2004)

*LOL even the freeways aren't that wide on the East Coast.*

nmnmndm


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## Fixed (May 12, 2005)

*huh?*



MB1 said:


> LOL even the freeways aren't that wide on the East Coast.


How would you know what a freeway looks like? ;-)


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## undies (Oct 13, 2005)

lancezneighbor said:


> I realize it's illegal, but I don't think most motorists would care.


I think this is very regional. Here in western Oregon car drivers are pretty good about sharing the road and there are bike lanes *everywhere*, but there is a strong expectation that I follow the rules. I hear a lot of b!tc%ing from friends and associates about tweakers and teenagers on bikes who ride the wrong way, run lights and signs, no lighting at night, dart in-and-out of traffic, etc... 

I only run lights if there's nobody around. Car drivers definitely care if they see me do it.


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## MB1 (Jan 27, 2004)

Fixed said:


> How would you know what a freeway looks like? ;-)


When traffic is really backed up I hop on the Whitehurst Freeway that is a shortcut around Georgetown. One of these days I'll have my camera along :thumbsup: and do a ride report.


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## Henry Chinaski (Feb 3, 2004)

Dave Hickey said:


> I guess it depends where you live. I've been caught stranded on my bike twice(my own stupidity). Once a Suburban driver came to my aid. The other time was a pickup driver.


I haven't had many problems with pickups. It's the huge high dollar SUVs with tinted windows that have caused me most of my problems.


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## brock (Sep 8, 2005)

Fixed - We have bike lanes tha tgo all the way to the crosswalk too, most drivers around here seem to think they're right turn lanes though...


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## Farmertan (Feb 5, 2005)

This is a pretty interestingly timed post. Until this morning, I had never had a problem commuting in in the early morning. Drivers always seem to give me plenty of room and pass with the appropriate level of caution.

Then this morning. (also in PA, like the OP). Some guy in a brand new Ford F150 does the ol' honk as he comes up to pass me. I figure it's just to let me know he's there which, while irritating is usually caused by a fearful driver not an aggressive one.

So I catch him at the light, zip past. He passes me again without honking. I catch him at the next light, zip past and he lays into the horn, very angry honking that I keep catching him.

I continued on through the light then about 1/4 mile down the road, pulled off onto a side street to turn back around and face traffic from the side of the road as he went past. Didn't want to give him another chance to blow past me. Once he was past, I went on my merry way.

So if the original poster is in the VF area and it happened this morning - who knows, maybe we both pissed him off.


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## lancezneighbor (May 4, 2002)

undies said:


> I think this is very regional. Here in western Oregon car drivers are pretty good about sharing the road and there are bike lanes *everywhere*, but there is a strong expectation that I follow the rules. I hear a lot of b!tc%ing from friends and associates about tweakers and teenagers on bikes who ride the wrong way, run lights and signs, no lighting at night, dart in-and-out of traffic, etc...
> 
> I only run lights if there's nobody around. Car drivers definitely care if they see me do it.


I understand about wrong way on one ways, no lights at night, darting, I can sure see why that would bother motorists because that would affect how they have to drive, however running the light (as long as you don't dart in front of an oncoming car...) should not affect them. 

But in any case, be safe out there.


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## baking3 (Jul 21, 2004)

*Bigger vehicles just scarier?*

I tend to wonder if we don't all just take greater note of the large vehicles compared to the smaller ones. There are plenty of Accords, Beetles and whatnot that also don't give me quite as much room as I think they should, but it's the larger vehicles that really scare the [email protected] out of me when they do it. I live in a fairly agricultural region - around here it's all dualies with turbodiesel engines that you can hear coming from way off. Those suckers sound like a full sized semi about to mow you down.


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## tarwheel2 (Jul 7, 2005)

Well, as a pickup truck driver, I haven't noticed the trend you cite. I am probably more aware of SUVs because they are so large and often have mirrors that stick out. But, objectively, I don't think I could associate bad driving habits to any particular style or brand of car or truck. I've been buzzed and honked at by just as many people driving Honda Civics as I have pickup trucks.

The only trends I have noticed about rude/bad drivers are:
-- Cell phone users, who are no better than drunk drivers in my book.
-- Teenage boys, who more often than not are responsible when someone yells, honks or throws things.


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## joey1 (Jan 2, 2007)

Farmertan said:


> So if the original poster is in the VF area and it happened this morning - who knows, maybe we both pissed him off.


I was close to the VF area going through Phoenixville on my way into Paoli. What color was this truck? I doubt it was the same guy but you never know...


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## Farmertan (Feb 5, 2005)

joey1 said:


> I was close to the VF area going through Phoenixville on my way into Paoli. What color was this truck? I doubt it was the same guy but you never know...


I was also in Phoenixville on my way to Malvern/Paoli. It was around 6:15am or so. It was still dark out. It was a dark truck - either dark blue or black.


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## chocostove (Jan 31, 2007)

I've commuted for a long time now, and I find a few things to be true. Like for instance it's always scary when a car buzzes you. It just seems much scarrier when it's a pick-up or suv due to sheer size and noise. Also, cars really seem to hate when you make it to all the same lights as them. Most of all though, If you're going to wait in que at a light, take the lane. If you leave enough room for a car to squeeze in, they will 50% of the time.
When cars complain I just tell them it's the same thing as another car being there, and that they would have to wait just the same.


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## joey1 (Jan 2, 2007)

Farmertan said:


> I was also in Phoenixville on my way to Malvern/Paoli. It was around 6:15am or so. It was still dark out. It was a dark truck - either dark blue or black.


I was about an hour behind you. And this truck was burnt orange. 6:15 is early to be on that road, you must have a bright light. The rest of the week was much better going through there but when traffic gets backed up you always get the haters who want to kill you if you buzz by them with a smile on your face.


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## Farmertan (Feb 5, 2005)

joey1 said:


> I was about an hour behind you. And this truck was burnt orange. 6:15 is early to be on that road, you must have a bright light. The rest of the week was much better going through there but when traffic gets backed up you always get the haters who want to kill you if you buzz by them with a smile on your face.


Traffic's a lot lighter that early, so I generally find that cars/trucks give me the appropriate space. I guess Tuesday was the exception. (for both of us!)


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