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all this silly talk of using a pistol over some traffic incident is childish in the extreme.go ahead and use the pistol and watch the great times that follow.not much time to ride when enjoying bed and breakfast in a jail cell.

very true...as good as shooting some jerk may make you feel, it's not the answer and you can never take it back.

I work for an ice delivery company and i drive a rather large ice truck.. at one point i was on the highway in the big truck and i cruising through a construction zone. because of the way the lanes were set up semis had to be in the left lane. being me i was breaking the rules and driving in the right lane. as i gained on a truck that was in the opposite lane i saw a motorcycle with a camaro stuck to his "O Ring". as i got close to the semi i waved the bike in front of me then i got on the gas and pulled my truck up next to the semi. he was doing 55 so i slowed down and trapped the camaro behind the two of our big trucks for about 5 miles when he got off the highway

hehe revenge is sweet.

I carry stones..... and when some cager keeps pulling in on me after several attempts to pull away I have no problem throwing stones at the car....

In all my years of driving I have always tried to accomodate bikers... Even when some crazy donkey kid is lane splitting in tight spots I still try to push to the side... Not because I care about possible damage to the car but realize that even my mirror could possibly knock the rider of the bike...

Sevulturus wrote:
You're better off going out of your way to avoid some jerk in a truck then starting a fight.

THAT IS THE BEST ADVICE! I think it is best to pull over(as soon as possible) or speed out of the situation and find an exit-get as far away from the offender as quickly and as safely as possible, then go about enjoying your day and your ride!

There are a few times I have been wronged by cagers so badly that I could have thrown a handful of ticked off hornets into a cager's window and giggled gleefully as I watched their car crash and burn in my rearview mirror so I understand the rage, I just dont act on it. (I admit I have gotten pretty outraged a few times yet now I just get away asap and I honestly think that is the best way to go)

secgeek wrote:I carry stones..... and when some cager keeps pulling in on me after several attempts to pull away I have no problem throwing stones at the car....

I used to carry a handful of ball bearings in my pocket for errant cagers. Never did use them, although I had plenty of opportunities in my first few years of riding, and I eventually stopped carrying them altogether. 24 years later I find that "stupid cager" incidents are few and far between and when they do happen, some of the blame can be put on my inattentiveness.

I've learned to keep an eye on my mirrors; if I see some jackass weaving his way through traffic with little regard for the rules I put myself in a position where he can rocket past me without hanging off my "O Ring" until the way is clear. Sometimes I'll even pull over to the right and wave him by. If there's no place for them to pass and they insist on crowding me, I'll make several concerned-looking glances in my mirror until they back off. If that doesn't work, I'll do the "back-off" gesture. If THAT doesn't work, I'll do a series of weaves across the lane which usually confuses them enough to back off. But if even that doesn't work, then I'll signal and pull over because it's obvious the cager does not have a functioning brain and it's better to have them in front of me than behind.

I've learned to watch the front tires of any car waiting at an intersection up ahead; if they start to roll as I approach, I do an immediate evasive swerve just in case. More often than not, the sudden movement of the bike gets noticed and the cars bounce their front bumpers off the pavement as they hammer the brakes. I've also learned to scan the roads leading to that intersection before I cross it; if I see some minivan come screaming up to the stop sign I know they're in an obvious hurry and anything less than a semi-trailer in size won't register in their tiny brain as they take a quick glance each way before nailing it. I throttle down, weave the bike, hit the high beams and plan an escape route should they decide to pull out in front of me. I've done a few panic stops in this situation, too.

Admittedly, after some of these incidents I have let loose with a few choice words and hand gestures at the offending cager but I have never let it escalate to the point of retaliation. I'm not very good at math, but I do know that a 650lb bike has no chance against a 4,000lb car at any speed and in any situation. Grappling with a cager on the road - regardless of whether they're being aggressive or ignorant to you - is a losing battle no matter what you do.

Some really great Tips there Gummi!


I too do most of those things, has kept me 'Crash & Incident Free' for Decades.

9000white wrote:all this silly talk of using a pistol over some traffic incident is childish in the extreme.go ahead and use the pistol and watch the great times that follow.not much time to ride when enjoying bed and breakfast in a jail cell.

Well put....the end result will be that someone will be riding you! YAW!

Many of today's drivers believe they have the right to drive whatever speed they want, and if someone is preventing them from doing so, they have every right to tailgate, drive eratically, or basically do whatever they feel is necessary to get you out of their way. Most of these drivers are probably normal, decent folks until they get behind the wheel and then they lose all of their common sense. Once on the highway, they turn in a raging, selfish beast who has no regard for the safety of anyone else on the road. Their mission is to get from point A to point B as quickly as possible without regard to the laws or safety. I can't imagine trying to keep my cool with someone tailgating me while riding a bike. It burns me up when people tailgate me in my car! I've even thought about rigging up some type of a small tank (like maybe a windshield washer fluid tank) under my rear bumper with a spray nozzle. I could use an electric pump to spray vegetable oil rearward on the tailgaters windshield. The driver would still be able to see blurred objects, but would have to pull over to clean the windshield, as washer fluid wouldn't be able to clean it off. I would love to do this to these idiots!
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Mercedes Benz Vario