Soda Can = Weapon

[PrtclMn001]

Originally Posted by iDave

Some diverse and interesting perspectives in this thread. If I had to choose between Julie and the bike, I'd choose Julie. On the back . All the best .

Dave, I think getting her back in the pillion position on the back of my bike would help (being able to once again experience what I experience in the saddle)... our 18 month old makes that somewhat difficult for now (in a good way - I never imagined how great being a dad would be) so she hasn't been on the back of the bike in over a year.

For her, she's seeing her friend's family (wife and 2 young kids) trying to make it without a dad and the prospect scares her and I totally see her point.

I'm hoping that the winter, with the bike in a nice warm garage and out of sight, will help put some of that anxiety into the background. As for me, I have been riding more careful and alert than ever because I don't want to let her down.

[tundrawolf]

A friend of mine was riding his bicycle when an El Camino with some kids in it yelled "Hey old man!" and literally ran him off of the road. The result? A compound fracture in his arm, and bolts and plates later.

[Johnny Bouncewell]

This occurred a few weeks ago and I still shocked it happened. Has anyone been hit by bird? In the FACE! Holy shit, it scared the hell outta me. It sounded like I got shot. For ten years they've always gotten outta my way then WAM the bird whacks me in my helmet on the edge of my closed faceshield and top of helmet.


Needless to say, my Suomi won the battle but there was feathers wedged into the gasket after another 50 miles of riding till I got to campus. Just for comparison purposes, it was about the size of a dove but was hard to identify at 85.

[PrtclMn001]

Originally Posted by Johnny Bouncewell

This occurred a few weeks ago and I still shocked it happened. Has anyone been hit by bird? In the FACE! Holy shit, it scared the hell outta me. It sounded like I got shot. For ten years they've always gotten outta my way then WAM the bird whacks me in my helmet on the edge of my closed faceshield and top of helmet.


Needless to say, my Suomi won the battle but there was feathers wedged into the gasket after another 50 miles of riding till I got to campus. Just for comparison purposes, it was about the size of a dove but was hard to identify at 85.

yeah - I've gotten nailed by a seagul. Feathers, blood, and bird crap EVERYWHERE

[bl4ckd0g]

Originally Posted by Johnny Bouncewell

This occurred a few weeks ago and I still shocked it happened. Has anyone been hit by bird? In the FACE! Holy shit, it scared the hell outta me. It sounded like I got shot. For ten years they've always gotten outta my way then WAM the bird whacks me in my helmet on the edge of my closed faceshield and top of helmet.


Needless to say, my Suomi won the battle but there was feathers wedged into the gasket after another 50 miles of riding till I got to campus. Just for comparison purposes, it was about the size of a dove but was hard to identify at 85.

It's common in the Chicago 'burbs to get nesting Canada geese guarding their turf in the local county forest preserves. I've been 'flown into' twice: once while on my mountain bike, and the second while on my recumbent tricycle.

I've grown accustomed to dog chases, but getting a face full of feathers from pissy geese never gets old. They usually open their beaks and hiss Banzai! while spreading their wings and sticking their webbed feet out in a full-frontal attack.

The first time, the goose flew into me, his right wing got caught in my front tire and I almost did an endo. I pulled him out from under my fender and downtube only to see him scurry away in defeat. A few years later, on my tricycle, I had collided with an unwanted passenger for a few hundred feet while I tried to peel that feathered pecking, dry-humping bastard off of me.

Never did hit a bird on any of my motorcycles though.

[coppertop]

Knew a guy that woke up in an Iowa ditch with a dislocated shoulder. The last thing he remembered was tooling down the road (county blacktop, two lane, rural). Took some figuring, but the feathers and bird crap down the left front of his jacket clued him in. Damn bird knocked him smooth off the bike (a cruiser). He was lucky he wasn't hurt worse, as he rarely wore a helmet...

[Jasper ST4]

Wow, I'm late to this thread. I need to check out this forum more often. These days, especially with the cell phones, I'm calling the police, it may save someone else's life.

Many years ago I was on my airhead beemer in Fort Ord, California and a guy cut me off to get ahead me onto the freeway onramp., then he backed off the gas and just crept along, I guess to show his female passenger how powerful he was.

I got tired of his game and went to pass him in the left shoulder. When I got along side of him he veered into me, hitting my right jug. I nearly lost control, left the pavement and highway 1 was waiting for me about 50' below. My adrenaline went through the roof, my reptilian brain took over and I wanted his blood on my knuckles.

I roared past him and motioned him to pull over. To my surprise, he did. Maybe to impress the woman. I walked up to the scrawny bearded fuck and he said in a shrill voice "I don't want any trouble". I realized that he was just a dishrag and it would have been like wringing one out. I got on my bike and left.

Looking back on it, I really should have got his license number and filed a police report. I probably would have gotten a ticket but he would have been whacked pretty good.

I always hoped at least his babe dumped his sorry ass for that.

[dezfreeze]

I've only had cigarette butts thrown at me thankfully, but I have been intentionally ran off the road when running and cycling. Even had people go past and blow the horn right as they pass to try to freak me out. One guy tried to high five me?!?
Only once has someone tried to bully me when on a motorcycle. He intentionally let me turn left in front of him so he could get behind me, and proceeded to charge at me at a high speed several times, like he was going to ram me, flashing his lights and honking the entire time. I simply signaled and motioned for him to pull off into a parking lot. I did, he did not, and as he made the next turn I flipped him the birds. Guess he didn't want any trouble outside of his cage. Some people really make you wonder.

[ADVancing]

I have seen a picture of a guy open carrying a AK47. I doubt anyone tries to throw stuff at his back.

[bikepolanski]

That's terrible. I've seen that crap happen on bicycles before and it is so enraging that you feel like you'd literally kill the person if you found them. I can understand that rage. But, if you can be zen about it...how sad must it be to drive around in a cage with your beat-off friends, having so little going for you that you would disrespect a total stranger just cause you perceive them as vulnerable. Perhaps it's best that we don't get the chance to beat them limp...all the more time they have to spend in their sad, narrow environments.

[jetjackson]

Ahh such stupidity! Often young people too.

A couple of years back here in Oz a car ran into a wire that had been strung across a road a pulled tight between two electrical poles. If it had been a motorcyclist that found it the story would have been a lot different. The police put a lot of investigation into it but I don't know if they ever charged anyone.

In another instance a chap I went to school with was coming home from a night out and was a bit drunk. He found a small promo aussie rules ball and threw it at a passing cyclist who at 5am on a Sunday morning was obviously professional and pulling some speed. The ball caught in the front spokes and the cyclist went over the handlebars. The last I heard the cyclist had a broken neck (I don't know if he was quadraplegic) and the chap was facing charges.

In short, you can do everything to protect yourself but there are still stupid people out there.

[Harp]

When I was 20 3 punks pummeled me with eggs as I rode my Kawasaki KZ 900. They took off running through yards thinking I wouldn't follow. They ran right to one of there houses and locked the door. I looked in the garage to see 2 nice motorcycles of that era and pounded on the door until a man answered and I explained the situation. Being a rider he knew how bad this could have been, grabbed his kid by the ear, corralled his friends, pulled out 2 lawn chairs and we both sat and watched as those punks washed, waxed and polished every inch of my bike. Since it was a small town he called a friend who was a the town police chief to come and give the boys a lecture. A little satisfaction was nice to get.

[tundrawolf]

Originally Posted by Harp

When I was 20 3 punks pummeled me with eggs as I rode my Kawasaki KZ 900. They took off running through yards thinking I wouldn't follow. They ran right to one of there houses and locked the door. I looked in the garage to see 2 nice motorcycles of that era and pounded on the door until a man answered and I explained the situation. Being a rider he knew how bad this could have been, grabbed his kid by the ear, corralled his friends, pulled out 2 lawn chairs and we both sat and watched as those punks washed, waxed and polished every inch of my bike. Since it was a small town he called a friend who was a the town police chief to come and give the boys a lecture. A little satisfaction was nice to get.

THAT is cool.

I remember when I was a kid I was terrorizing some kids on the block with my DT-1 250. I rode it on the sidewalk, chasing the kids, and outside a cul-de-sac. While I was outside the cul de sac on the sidewalk, I happened to see a cop who was passing. Oh **** I said I rode the bike home QUICK.

Well, shortly after that the cop knocked on my door. (No parents home thankfully) Turns out those kids ratted me out when the cop drove through the street.

The cop said "Are your parents home?"

"No..."

"Were you riding the motorcycle chasing those kids on the sidewalk?"

I hung my head low.

"Yes."

"Don't ever let me see you on the sidewalk again. And wear a helmet!"

"Yes, sir."


Phew. I was so scared. But it taught me an important lesson: Not to ride on the sidewalk. And, maybe, to wear a helmet. Well, and not to chase kids with my dirtbike. Yeah. I was 14 at the time I think.

[Alejo]

Originally Posted by pheepster

Nice idea; hard to ague with video.

Riding through rural Utah last summer overloaded on a tour, I was on a two lane road just enjoying the day. Old white truck coming my way... WTF? duck, feel something breeze past my head, make sure my girlfriend is still on the back, then it registers that the fucker just threw a big gulp at my head. I sooooo wanted to turn around and get the info. But it just wasn't worth it at the time. I still wonder what would have happened if that had hit me, or her on the back for that matter. I'm sure a big gulp hitting at 70 + 70 can't feel good, regardless of what's in it.

Video would have been great in this case.

Ass. holes.

no one tried that one to me yet

i don't know what would i have done