Help!

Commuting, Day rides, Audax, Incidents, etc.
Phil Fouracre
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Location: Deepest Somerset

Help!

Post by Phil Fouracre »

I don't want to perpetuate the ongoing moronic drivers/perfect cyclists argument, as I don't believe it is true, but, can someone please tell me what goes on between the ears of some drivers 'cos I can't work it out. This morning cycling back from shopping expedition, nothing too onerous. Country road single lane, level, some bends, not complicated! Was following a reasonable sized tanker, probably doing 20mph+. Nothing difficult so far? As it was impossible for me, let alone any other vehicle, to overtake I was pootling along between primary and secondary, about 25 yards behind. Car arrives, sits on my tail! then on the horn! I think "What The . . . .", went through my mind. Looked round to see morbidly obese [rude word removed] gesticulating at me to move over, fair nuff! I'm not going anywhere so why not. Car overtook with said drivers matching wife/sister mouthing something in my direction (always wondered how they make cars suspension so good these days?) then promptly slams on his brakes and sits a foot behind the tanker. So, my question is what was going on in there?
Last edited by Phil Fouracre on 19 Aug 2014, 9:07am, edited 2 times in total.
Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity
MartinC
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Location: Bredon

Re: Help!

Post by MartinC »

Absolutely nothing.
thirdcrank
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Re: Help!

Post by thirdcrank »

A Top Gear aficionado?
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661-Pete
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Re: Help!

Post by 661-Pete »

Needed his daily fix of diesel exhaust fumes, and you were depriving him of it.

Phil Fouracre wrote:said drivers matching wife/sister
Does the "/" stand for "or", or "and"? :mrgreen:
Suppose that this room is a lift. The support breaks and down we go with ever-increasing velocity.
Let us pass the time by performing physical experiments...
--- Arthur Eddington (creator of the Eddington Number).
Phil Fouracre
Posts: 919
Joined: 12 Jan 2013, 12:16pm
Location: Deepest Somerset

Re: Help!

Post by Phil Fouracre »

Assume or! morbidly obese blob, no way of knowing!!
Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity
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ArMoRothair
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Location: Londinium

Re: Help!

Post by ArMoRothair »

Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist. Must get past the cyclist.

Something like that, perhaps?
Phil Fouracre
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Joined: 12 Jan 2013, 12:16pm
Location: Deepest Somerset

Re: Help!

Post by Phil Fouracre »

Stringing five words together in row, nope don't think so, way too much effort, would cause the brain to explode. What got me was that they could see the tanker just the same as I could, even had hazmat stripes across the back, so much for the benefits of fluorescent colours!!!
Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity
reohn2
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Joined: 26 Jun 2009, 8:21pm

Re: Help ! Lardy moron encounter

Post by reohn2 »

Seems a pretty normal day out to me :) .
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"All we are not stares back at what we are"
W H Auden
MartinC
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Joined: 10 May 2007, 6:31pm
Location: Bredon

Re: Help ! Lardy moron encounter

Post by MartinC »

I stand by my original comment. We sometimes agonise about what's going on in a motorists mind but I think the true answer is nothing. It's no use asking what they're thinking 'cos they aren't thinking.
kwackers
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Joined: 4 Jun 2008, 9:29pm
Location: Warrington

Re: Help ! Lardy moron encounter

Post by kwackers »

MartinC wrote:I stand by my original comment. We sometimes agonise about what's going on in a motorists mind but I think the true answer is nothing. It's no use asking what they're thinking 'cos they aren't thinking.

That's true - right up until the point where they press the horn at which point they've made a conscious decision to be annoyed and justified it to themselves.

Prior to that it's mostly mindless automation and to which Hanlon's Razor applies: "Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity"
Phil Fouracre
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Re: Help!

Post by Phil Fouracre »

Fantastic! Only trying to think of that the other day, very apposite, thanks
Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity
reohn2
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Re: Help ! Lardy moron encounter

Post by reohn2 »

kwackers wrote:....."Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity"


Very apt in the case of some drivers,the non consequential thinking that goes on behind the wheel of motor vehicles is there for all to see,whatever mode of transport you use on the roads.
It's allowed to continue unchecked by a sheer lack of enforcement of the law and a lack of meaningful penalties when the law happens to be,or is attempted to be,enforced.
Mindless stupidity is being accepted as a consequence of modern motoring because as a society we've decided we can't afford to enforce the law in any meaningful sense and are relying on statistics of KSI to to inform us of a complete untruth.And worse still it's a politrickal outlook of fear of loosing votes that reduces conviction rates of road using criminals.
In short the roads are a free for all,and unless something is done about it things will ever get worse.
IMHO road crime is one area where education by the big stick approach will work.
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"All we are not stares back at what we are"
W H Auden
Stewart H
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Re: Help!

Post by Stewart H »

The attention of many car drivers is focused about twenty feet in front of them, anything beyond that range is not yet being processed and so comes as a surprise :)
reohn2
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Re: Help!

Post by reohn2 »

Stewart H wrote:The attention of many car drivers is focused about twenty feet in front of them, anything beyond that range is not yet being processed and so comes as a surprise :)

Funny I thought it was about 20 inches in a downward gaze at the magical and hypnotic text/Twitter/Facebook screen :?


*Story alert*
I knew a lay-preacher(a good one,who could be quite entertaining),when I asked him what his best sermon was he answered 'Oh,about 15 minutes,after that they've lost concentration'
It's a short stride..............
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"All we are not stares back at what we are"
W H Auden
AlaninWales
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Joined: 26 Oct 2012, 1:47pm

Re: Help!

Post by AlaninWales »

Phil Fouracre wrote:What got me was that they could see the tanker just the same as I could, even had hazmat stripes across the back,

Sorry to take it out of context, I agree with everyting else posted here, apart from this: They couldn't 'see' the tanker as well as you could, becaue they were not paying attention. Seeing requires other organs than just the eyes registering and xmitting to the brain, the information needs to be processed (and patently wasn't).

Nothing unusual here at all. Nothing to see ... move along :wink:
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