On Tue, 04 Apr 2006 20:39:56 +1000, Spoken4
<
[email protected]> wrote:
>I have been commuting for just over 10 weeks now ( a newbie!)after
>moving jobs to a place close enough to ride each day. Been fine up till
>now, as the 7am traffic is light and I use the Mullum Mullum trail for a
>bit of it. However this morning....
>Those of you who head out the Maroondah Highway through North Croydon
>will know the cutting between Yarra road and Croydon Road. Cars comming
>out of Yarra Rd and heading out towards Lilydale get a slip lane that is
>long enough to make you think you can merge, but is actually too short
>to do so safely. You can see it in their eyes...do i? don't i?? do i???
>I start from the lights heading out and down the hill (which is great
>fun generally - very fast)and a Camry in the slip lane waits for me and
>the traffic to pass, however a &%^*$ in a Land Cruiser can't wait and
>passes the waiting Camry *on the inside* and while I am trying to move
>over to the left, appears out of nowhere on my left shoulder close
>enough to touch! AND HE KEEPS SITTING THERE trying to merge next to me!
>I followed what appears to be the suggested protocol of this group and
>gestured to him appropriately and pulled up to him at the next lights
>and suggested (loudly) that he might give me more room.
>I move off at the lights and he pulls slowly up next to me as we
>continue out and yells at me through his window while forcing me over
>closer and closer to the gutter (at speed).
>I caught him at the next lights, but had a green arrow and thought best
>to keep going.
>I hereby take great pleasure in announcing that all 4wd drivers are
>imbeciles!
>Thank you very much...
I drive a Toyota Landcruiser trayback 4WD, and also ride a bike(Giant
AC). Admittedly, most of the time BOTH these vehicles are used way
out in the middle of nowhere (CW QLD), but I do a couple of trips to
cities throughout the year. i am paranoid about hitting anyone else,
and especially make sure I dont crowd people on bikes. I watch my
mirrors constantly, and practice safe driving techniques.
I occasionally see inasne cyclists travelling distance between towns
out here, and I always make a point of giving them as wide a berth as
possible when passing, and slowing down so my wake doesnt cause them
grief..
However, for all this, I am (apparently) an imbecile....sigh
I drive a Landcruiser, partly as my work vehicle (I run a sheep &
cattle station), and partly because my previous car (82 Mazda 626) was
pretty much destroyed by the rocks and other bitey bits on the main
road leading to the nearest civilsation. The underside of the 626
looks like it was attacked with a sledgehammer.
I like not having to worry that a large kangaroo will try ever so hard
to end his life embedded somewhere in my windscreen (this actually
happened to my father in a Datsun ute). My bullbar will take care of
the majority of those (thankfully, we dont have elk here...).
I have looked at smaller (and cheaper) alternatives, but at the end of
the day, the Landcruiser seems to be the most likely to survive our
roads and wildlife and still be usable.
My Landcruiser sucks to travel long distance in(The seat is a bugger),
and is shocking for fuel economy (in comparison to other modern cars -
its actually VERY good compared to older Landcruisers!), but it does
what we need. It has a **** turning circle, and is way too large to be
comfortable in heavy traffic. I dont honestly know why people own
such beasts when they live in suburbia. Vehicles like the Holden
Crewman V8 and other similar vehicles would surely provide the towing
capability needed for most operations.
Saying EVERY 4WD driver is an imbecile is a bit like saying my dog is
black, therefore all dogs are back. Not very usefull. I've read
people here saying SOME roadies are incredibly rude, but does this
mean ALL roadies are the same??
No doubt the guy you met is a ****, and needs a good kicking. However,
I would suspect he would be a **** regardless of what he is driving.
My thoughts; no doubt others will see it differently.
Cheers,
Rod....Outback Queensland
(Who was palnning on taking his Landcruiser south later this year on a
trip around this great country, and thought he might take his bike
along in the back as well. It might be nice to actually ride on
bitumen!)