SFIrish had a Harley Sportster until the day before she went into labor with our first. She will have a bigger version when the kids are out of the house. She loved riding on the open roads around El Paso, particularly up into New Mexico. I'll probably get a class-M and join her, though I'm not sure.
Speaking as a cyclist, it's terrifying how many car drivers are clueless; they present the primary worry as I try to get around safely, but there is a tiny group of people who intentionally use their cars as weapons to intimidate. I'm not at all surprised by the video above. I've seen that kind of behavior several times--and, curiously, never when I've been the one doing something I shouldn't have. (People love to hate cyclists for running traffic signals, blocking traffic, etc., and I'm not perfect, but I know when I'm doing things wrong and when I'm not; usually not.)
I've had two vehicles--one a BMW and one a pickup truck--swerve at me. I'm sure they didn't mean to hit me, but there's no doubt they were sending me a message that the didn't like sharing the road with me. The BMW's driver just yelled at me when he did it; the pickup did it just before a traffic light that stopped us both, at which point he started to get out of his truck and wanted to fight me. My crime? I was in the left-hand turn lane on a multi-lane road, so that I could turn left.
It's far from the average day, but it's more common than it ought to be. Most people laugh and think it's funny. It should go without saying: it isn't.
And PS how on earth have no arrests been made in that incident? Could there be a clearer instance of vehicular battery? That crime is usually prosecuted against people who injure others while driving under the influence. It is shocking how few prosecutions there are against sober people who were, at best, criminally negligent--and more likely, as in this case--intentionally assaulting the victim. The driver of that truck should be facing charges. Full stop.
