Was out riding my bike today, keeping nicely to the right like a good girl. No traffic in sight except one oncoming bus. The driver gave me the finger with a vengeance. Only because he can? What's wrong with ... people? Men? Drivers? Can't they just let me exist? - ThreadSky

katjakircher.bsky.social • 6 days ago

Was out riding my bike today, keeping nicely to the right like a good girl. No traffic in sight except one oncoming bus. The driver gave me the finger with a vengeance. Only because he can? What's wrong with ... people? Men? Drivers? Can't they just let me exist?

Comments

velonavia.bsky.social•6 days ago

Alltså, så jävla trött på allt Katja...

katjakircher.bsky.social•6 days ago

Ja, vad ska man säga ... Du är ju en av dem som verkligen har fått betala ett högt pris för att vissa ska kunna ta för sig helt hämningslöst. Alla dessa ackumulerade orättvisor kan verkligen bryta ner en.

notinvented.bsky.social•6 days ago

If you can afford it get two GoPro type camera (other brands are available) mounted facing forwards and backwards, and the next time someone does that to you name and shame them on the social media platform of your choice.

katjakircher.bsky.social•6 days ago

Thanks for the compassion! I sometimes carry cameras (typically only rearward) and measuring equipment to log overtaking (doing some research in the field). I'm not even sure I care about shaming the particular driver - it's more like, is that what our society sees as normal? So depressing.

delightfulhater.bsky.social•6 days ago

This is also that kills me! Drivers are so hateful to my children and I on our walk to and from school daily or they just shrug as they almost clip us. Is this inconsiderate, impatient, definitely asshole behavior your norm? Why would you treat anyone in the community that way? Super disheartening.

katjakircher.bsky.social•6 days ago

So sorry to hear. And yes, I agree wholeheartedly. How can this be so normalised? I wonder whether it is specific to car-centrism or whether power turns people into monsters in general? Very sad either way.

obcycler.bsky.social•6 days ago

I'm sorry that happened to you!

katjakircher.bsky.social•6 days ago

Thank you! It's mostly just bizarre what being in a motor vehicle brings out in people (at least that's how I interpret it).

obcycler.bsky.social•6 days ago

Yeah, it's terrible. I've been yelled at by drivers to get the f out of the way while I was riding in separated bike lanes.

katjakircher.bsky.social•6 days ago

Yes, it's quite amazing. Defs not the first time stuff like this has happened to me, and each single occasion doesn't affect me much by itself, but there are times when I get sensitive to the accumulative effect. Attrition or something ...

obcycler.bsky.social•6 days ago

Yeah, definitely. It's why I started recording every ride and having conspicuously visible cameras has noticeably cut down the number of incidents for me

williamvalkeaoja.bsky.social•6 days ago

Stod på trottoaren vid ett rödljus efter att ha hämtat barnen från föris. En busschaufför tutade för att han ville kunna köra upp på trottoaren. Andra gången det händer i år.

ekstromenator.bsky.social•6 days ago

Hade med 100% säkerhet inte flyttar mig en millimeter men tagit upp mobilen för att visa att jag fotar.

katjakircher.bsky.social•6 days ago

Allt blir svårare när man har barn med sig, i alla fall om de är små. Kunde hata hur utsatt jag kände mig när jag rörde mig ute med barnen när de var små. Men i princip har du naturligtvis rätt.

katjakircher.bsky.social•6 days ago

Ja, typ samma sak. Helt gränslöst. Har haft någon taxiförare som hotade att köra på mig på cykelbanan, som ett annat exempel. Men det är så normaliserat alltihop att folk nästan känner sig obekväma när man tar upp det som problem.

timonvanhaeften.bsky.social•6 days ago

Come and have a look at our bikes in The Netherlands; we literally have more bikes than inhabitants

katjakircher.bsky.social•6 days ago

I've biked in the NL a few times and what hit me most was the interconnectedness and functionality of the infrastructure. Almost as if cycling was taken seriously and not just treated as an afterthought at best. Though to be honest, in my vision for the world, there are no private cars at all.

commonninja.bsky.social•6 days ago

There are social media profiles, preying on vulnerable young men, which try unite them against a common enemy. Doesn't matter what the enemy is. Women. Vegans. Cyclists. Immigrants.

It is a far right tactic.

commonninja.bsky.social•6 days ago

For the mere sight of a person on a bike to evoke such an unprovoked response when there was no necessity for interaction, suggests (to me at least) the person making the response has been indoctrinated.

commonninja.bsky.social•6 days ago

I too am sorry that you had that experience.

katjakircher.bsky.social•6 days ago

Thanks so much, it's so kind of all of you to reach out. The thing is, this is just one basically random example of completely unprovoked sh*t behaviour from drivers. Each single one I can deal with, but the omnipresence and frequency makes it tough to bear. One loses hope in humanity a bit.

katjakircher.bsky.social•6 days ago

And in the great scheme of things I'm still a very privileged person, so it hurts to consider how life must be for less privileged people - especially with the future looking bleak all around.

commonninja.bsky.social•6 days ago

The villification angers me.

It makes cycling harder to relate with.

And it makes an already vulnerable group of people feel more vulnerable. Especially women, trans people, people of colour and less well off people.

It makes me happy to see someone on a bike. Even on the rare occasions I drive

synthandrus.bsky.social•6 days ago

Get the route/bus number and report the asshat (pardon the language, but...)

katjakircher.bsky.social•6 days ago

I'm sure nothing would happen to him. Tried another time when another driver had crowded me off the road and the company didn't care a bit. And in a way he's mostly a symptom of the society we accept as normal ...

synthandrus.bsky.social•6 days ago

That's a shame, but not surprising, sadly. Did you at least make him mad by smiling and waving? Usually gets them foaming at the mouth. 😂

katjakircher.bsky.social•6 days ago

Wasn't fast enough this time, unfortunately, but yeah, it can have a better effect than shaking one's fist.

just-slothlike.bsky.social•6 days ago

it's such baseless anger... drivers are just inherently more aggressive because they "can" go faster

katjakircher.bsky.social•6 days ago

Yeah - though while in most cases of harassment I've experienced so far, there was at least that type of "explanation" (not that I condone the behaviour), but this guy just saw me in the oncoming lane, that's it.

Comments

Posting Rules

Reply