How does it make you feel when people say negative things about cyclists?



The culture here in Japan doesn't seem to have that negativity towards cyclists, and it's part of the reason why I have really embraced riding whilst living here. I see all manners of ages riding their bikes here - from kids to seniors - and it's wonderful to see.

Back home though, I think there is a bit of negativity from motorists towards cyclists. I think it stems from this idea that a lot of motorists think they're bigger, thus they own the road.

I've never come across a cyclist that was disrespectful towards motorists - everyone I know who rides is mindful of traffic, sticks to designated bike lanes and so forth, but still there seems to be some resentment. I think if there was less contempt from some motorists towards cyclists it would encourage more people to ride and to feel safe doing so!
 
Have been riding all my life (now in my retirement years and riding more than ever.) Sure, every now and then I've heard a negative comment, but overall, few and far between.

The most common one is from drivers that get riled when the see bicyclists ignoring the rules of the road and can't say I blame them for that. Yes, we do have rude bicyclists, just as we have rude drivers. My solution to that is to do my best to set a good example when I ride. When the comments are more homicidal in nature, I ask them what kind of car they drive, if you know what I mean.

A fair number of comments I've heard are based on ignorance. One example is being ridiculed for the clothing that we wear as being just for style and to conform to a certain look. Have educated many such people as to the actual functionality of our clothing.

And then there are the comments from people who have a grudge against cyclists, for whatever reason, but sometimes generated because we are different, we don't conform and so on. I remember, well, a co-worker who got very angry and upset when I told him I sold my car and would now be commuting and using a bicycle as my sole means of transport. He became livid. Why? Because I dared to challenge his belief that driving a car was an absolute necessity, a sacred must do thing in his very narrow view of things. Of all the nerve! (And a girl, to boot.)

In this later category, I've always just smiled and ridden, away. Life is way too short and I have many more miles to ride. :)
 
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Not much negativity at all here in South East Asia. Actually, where I am at the moment in Thailand, there is an apparent decree from the King for his subjects to cycle, in the Bicycle for Dad promotion. The drivers are not very good though. Cycling tourists seem to have a good chance of getting mowed down. Google cyclist deaths Thailand.

On the other hand, in my home town in Sydney Au, a small minority are very antagonistic towards cyclists. I put it down to the usual suspects hating a minority group. This largely uneducated group who can be significant enough to decide the outcome of an election are egged on by radio shock jocks and are manipulated by politicians with right wing racist policies, despite the economic policies of the Large "L" Liberals (think Republican and Tea Party or Tories and UKIP).

Cyclists can fight back by campaigning for the banning of on street parking, the introduction of congestion charges and pay per mile taxes. I disagree with the whole concept of bicycle friendly communities- i think we should be making them car unfriendly.
 
Unfortunately that is the idea that is drummed into us since we are kids, there are a lot of people that would probably get to work faster and hassle free if they used a bike instead of a car.
I don't agree. I don't recall any attempts by adults to drum such ideas into our heads as kids.
 
I don't agree. I don't recall any attempts by adults to drum such ideas into our heads as kids.
Were I was brought up it was, not necessarily by my parents but by society at large. Our "success" was measured by our ability to buy a car. Truth be said a car was of primary importance since public transport was very poor and the distances we would have to travel to go to work was very big. So it was impossible to ride there.
I have since moved country and the philosophy here is different.
 
It doesn't affect me in any way. These people just don't get it. However, I have to say "it depends on a situation". Some cyclists are really crazy and those people have probably dealt with them somehow.
 
Whenever you get negative opinions about the cyclist, it's almost always from "true" cyclists or people that have had experience with this.I think used to learn it is the best option in this case.
 
When people yell at me when I'm out riding it makes me feel GRRRREEEAATTTT! Why you scream? Because i know their envy of me because they know they're not in good physical condition enough to ride a bike like I can.
 
It makes me feel sad. Cyclists are often some of the kindest people around. They're helpful and understanding. They show concern for someone in need of assistance. It's not nice to hear bad stuff about us.
 
It makes me feel sad. Cyclists are often some of the kindest people around. They're helpful and understanding. They show concern for someone in need of assistance. It's not nice to hear bad stuff about us.

Hmmmm, you must live in a nice area because all the places I lived most of the cyclists were either egotists or narcissists with some that had both conditions. Sure there are nice ones of course, but i ran into a lot of what I described in my first sentence mostly in California, I now live in Indiana and while there are not as many of those types here they're still here, and a friend of mine that use to live in Denver said that most of those cyclists were either egotists or narcissists or a combination of both which is why he moved back to Indiana because he couldn't put up with the attitudes. My now favorite bike shop wasn't always my favorite bike shop because a few of the employees were egotists, but after I made a rather loud but rude comment to one of the staff on a busy day, this was after his rude comment about my bike, the owner overheard the commotion and straightened out the attitude of some of the workers and now the staff is quite pleasant.

For those who want to know what the commotion was about, the lead sales and mechanic guy saw me coming in the store with my older Miyata 712 that I use to commute on and is in about fair to good condition, it was a very busy spring day with about 20 to 30 people looking at bikes, as I approached the counter with my bike that lead guy says to me real loud so I guess others could hear because a few of the staff was snickering: "Let me guess, your bike is broken and you want me to fix it!" So I said real loud: "No, this bike doesn't break like the junk you sell here made in China!" A good percentage of those customers heard all of this which I'm sure embarrassed the owner who also overheard it and one of the staff guys that was snickering said ouch. The lead guy got real sheepishly quiet and asked what I wanted. That lead guy since then has been basically confined to the mechanics area, he rarely if ever now comes out to sell stuff and talk to customers, and he also treats me a lot nicer. He and I had run ins before, once he asked me when I rolled in with my Trek 660 when I was going buy a new bike and junk that piece of ****! I wrote a letter to the owner about that one but at that time nothing was done about it till about 3 years later with that last run in I had. For awhile I did very little business with that store, but since they've seem to corrected the issue I buy a bit more stuff from them then before.
 
I don't really care what other people say as long as I know that I haven't done anything wrong to merit their negative comments; I can't help if people are just really ignorant about other hobbies such as cycling.
 
Two sides to this issue. I follow the laws, rules, and do my best to not impede traffic. As well as keep my wife in line and give her instructions that will keep up safe and alive. We are very courteous and I expect the same in return from traffic which usually happens. Can't say I have ever encountered anyone who has done something toward us out of spite.

But I did encounter a coworker once who said he like to scare the **** out of cyclists with his big loud 4X4. I told him that was not cool as it could have been me or my wife. We don't do bad things on the bike so it's really sad that he would do something like that no knowing. He agreed and said he needed to think more from now on! :cool:

On the other hand, there are tons of a hole cyclists out here blowing stops in front of traffic, you name it, they do it so really on another side of me, I think many cyclists deserve the negative comments. I have been on rides where my partner has done something stupid and I call them on it. One guys said, what are they going to do, hit me?

Well yeah you idiot! :mad:

Not only do I encounter idiot cyclists on the road, but even on the trail. Too many stupid riders to stand up for them as a whole.

Me and my close buds, we stay safe and courteous. Screw everybody else!
 
I agree, cyclists are the worst offenders of road rules, and that **** gives all cyclists a bad rap, so motorists take out their frustrations on all cyclists which isn't fair to those that obey the rules but there isn't anything we can do about it UNTIL all cyclists decide their not above the law and obey the road rules...which will only happen in LaLa Land.
 
I don't feel bad when people say bad things about cyclists since they have their decision to make. What I always understand about life is that not everybody will enjoy what you do however the important thing is for you to enjoy what you really do and care less about what others we have to say since some will say good things about you while others irrespective of how good you are we always want to say bad things about you. So, the thing that happens when people say bad things about cyclists is that I tried to look at it from the positive and go that they don't really like what happened but they just want to say things because they don't enjoy what we do as riders. The major thing is the fun that I have when I go out to ride.
 
I agree, cyclists are the worst offenders of road rules, and that **** gives all cyclists a bad rap, so motorists take out their frustrations on all cyclists which isn't fair to those that obey the rules but there isn't anything we can do about it UNTIL all cyclists decide their not above the law and obey the road rules...which will only happen in LaLa Land.

Why it is true that most of all cyclists always disobey the rules of the road, I feel that some car owners are guilty of this in the sense that some of them will drive when they are drunk and when accidents happen the blame will be on the cyclist that could you manage a situation where by the drivers of those car made sense by the traffic authorities. I wish there will be a situation whereby it will be a fair playing ground where the fault that occurred are not treated as a hasty generalization of cyclists always breaking the rules.
 
I must hear someone say something about cyclists at least once a week, even people who know I like to ride. An example would be when I was sitting on a bus last week and a cyclist passed by, and a man on the bus loudly commented "bloody cyclists". Taxi drivers also very often say things about them.

I know it adds a bit of extra stress to the driver when a cyclist is on the road with them, but it seems perfectly normal for drivers to shout about cyclists, even opening the window to shout at them. My facebook feed regularly has one specific guy ranting about cyclists (he's a bit of an idiot anyway, always complaining about "women drivers" as well).

Usually I try not to be offended, but I can't help it sometimes and find my blood boiling. I was wondering how other people feel about the constant negativity directed at cyclists on the roads, even when the criticism isn't aimed directly at them?
i offer them the fattest part of my ass for them to kiss ….
 
I’d probably say I feel indifferent for the most part. I mean, I realize why those negative things are being said in the first place. The fact is that a lot of cyclists are entitled jerks who feel that the rules of the road don’t apply to them. I can see them being a nuisance to a lot of motorists. Heck, I’m a cyclist and some riders infuriate even me when I’m in the car.

On the other hand, I also realize a lot of motorists are just as entitled and feel like they shouldn’t have to share the road with anyone, let alone some skinny dude in spandex.

It’s just entitlement on all sides, so I know that their negative comments aren’t worth a lot to me personally.
 
Well I get negative comments from my mom, aunt and wife because they always thought off cycling in the streets to be very dangerous so they keep on saying that I'll get into an accident and hurt myself again.

I just shrug it off not saying anything or just change the topic of the conversation.
 

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