The hatred towards cyclists/horse riders etc

[RH1234]

Following on from a conversation on another thread; AIBU to think that the hatred towards all cyclists/other road users I.e. horses is completely atrocious and unjustified.

Lots of people will make comments about “I bet they were in Lycra”, “I dislike road cyclists”, “they don’t even pay road tax”.

My question is not; do you hate cyclists. My question is why do you hate me someone you have not met) as a cyclist?

For perspective:

1. I pay VED (Road tax doesn’t exist) on 3 vehicles.
2. I have insurance for my bikes - which includes public liability etc. My cycle insurance is genuinely more expensive than my car, I also have free insurance through British Cycling.
3. I don’t run red lights (for transparency, I have been through one red light, floor sensors don’t pick up carbon fibre, it was 5am, after waiting a few minutes, with no cars I went through)
4. I cycle an average of 19-23mph, I can overtake tractors near me, I’m smaller than a tractor surely you can pass me.
5. I do ride two abreast if in a group, but if passing is difficult, as per the Highway Code we ensure you can pass when safe.
6. When riding on my own, I wave cars past so they can often go before they can see.
7. Yes I wear Lycra - but you try cycling 100 miles without decent chamois in place. I won’t mention leg hair as that’s a whole different subject for you.
8. My wife use to love cycling, but won’t ride on the road now due to the drivers attitudes.

AIBU to be annoyed that I don’t do any of the things people moan about, yet people will hate me, some people will hurl abuse, some people will literally try and drive me off the road (luckily not that often for the last one)

All I want is, to enjoy the sport I’m love, get fit and then spend the time with my family. Yet my wife has said to me, she is anxious when I’m out and follows me on find my iPhone, because she’s terrified someone will one day leave me for dead in a ditch.

Surely a two minute delay is not unreasonable? I don’t judge based on hobbies or backgrounds, why am I judged?

AIBU in thinking that those who state they hate cyclists clearly are either media influenced or just plain horrible people.

Apologies, this has turned into more of a rant than a AIBU, but I’m sure you get the gist.

Perhaps this is going against the grain on here but I find the cyclists around here to be reasonable and the horse riders to be, on the whole, arrogant. The cyclists often wave a thank you for carefully passing them. The horse riders, not all but most, ride side by side so passing them widely is impossible as they are already on the white line in the middle of the road. Despite slowing down and being carefully, I’d say that less than half of them ever offer a nod or wave to say thank you.

But the roads were originally for horses, wagons etc. Cars are just another vehicle on them. The roads are not specifically for cars, lorries etc.

The highway code clearly says it is safest for riders to ride 2 abreast. It reduces risk of drivers not giving us enough room when they overtake.
Police also advise riders to ride 2 abreast too.

They should nod but not always possible to say thanks with a hand gesture if it's not safe to take hands off reins.

I’ve driven in rural areas for 30 years, and have never seen anything like that. What are you doing in your car to make these horses so jumpy? Revving your engine at them? Beeping your horn and driving up their backsides?

Exactly

That we are all road users and everyone gets home safely
So cars and cyclists should drive and cycle as to the road one is using so if there is a single lane we drivers need to wait to pass safely um , as l said we all use the roads

Therefore, a nod or a wave thank you for drivers going extremely slowly and being very careful when passing would be polite.

Agree with a nod but like I said not always possible to wave.

Horse riders are supposed to ride side-by-side for their own safety.

That's really good to hear. I think we should encourage cycling as a means of transport. There are arseholes out there for sure but I don't think they are a majority by any means.

A nod to say thank you for those of us respecting their safety and passing them respectfully would be nice.

I have another, half-baked, theory.

For many primates, being shown an arse is a sign of disrespect. Therefore, being shown lots of (lycra-clad) arses enrages the chimp brain, and causes visceral and irrational hatred.

As the chimp brain is more dominant in some half-witted motorists (probably the same ones who say 'cyclists don't even pay road tax) it makes for a dangerous mix.

Let’s go with a nod then. It’s not difficult to do but I very rarely see it around here.

And yes - cyclists are supposed to ride two-abreast, rather than single file, as it takes a shorter time for a car to overtake, and thus should in fact be easier.

I had a mammogram appointment yesterday at Kings in Denmark Hill, s London. Took me 20 mins on quiet roads to get there on my bike. Bus would have taken nearly an hour. Car nearly impossible as there’s no parking.

I’m in my 50s, I cycle boringly sensibly. I have helmet and lights but do wear Lycra on occasion. I obey every rule but do get cross with both Mamils and Deliveroo cyclists who ignore the rules.

The intolerance on this thread is deeply depressing.

Thats a shame. I always make sure i smile, nod and thank all drivers. I've taught DD to do the same?

We have both, on the whole all fine.

However, we are increasingly being used for races and...as a result we have cyclists going out in packs in between times and that can be irritating.

I agree, and I've never once encountered a rider who didn't do that.

It’s nice to see that some do it. It would change my view of horse riders if they did this.

Everyone I ride out with does too. Like you say, it takes nothing but goes a long way

And how do you think the horse gets to the woods? (What woods, no woods and very few bridleways round here). Levitate? Teleport?

Do you really think we want you ride on roads? I've actually stopped riding because of the attitude of so many drivers. Your car may dent if you hit a horse, but that horse could easily be killed.

Get the bus or the train

While that's perfectly feasible if you live in a city or a big town, down here in Smalltown we don't get any buses before 9am or after 5pm, they're only 2 an hour at the best of times, there's a 1-hour gap while the driver has his lunch break, then hourly intervals between 2.30 and 5pm, when the bus is busy being a school bus.

And the bus only goes to the town centre, if you want to go to a different town or the city, you need to get another bus or train from town.

I once considered getting the bus from town to vist my SIL. It's only 20 miles, but it takes over 2 hours, because the bus stops at all the little villages along the way. It's half an hour by car, so I quickly gave up on that idea.

Do you think the congestion would be reduced if those WHO ARE ABLE TO were empowered to make the decision to cycle instead?

Cycling is NOT the only answer to congestion but it is AN answer and should be part of a sensible, integrated transport policy.

I have no problem at all with horses, there are very few of them and where I am they are only ever on small back roads. Plus we've built over so much countryside riders often have to ride on roads to reach bridleways, many stables won't have direct access. And I of course want horses to be able to hack out, it's not at all fair on them if they have to spend their entire lives going round in circles in an arena. They will almost certainly only be riding from their home to the closest path, not blocking roads for miles and miles - and they will pull over and wave people past at the first opportunity. And say thank you.

Cyclists on the other hand ride on busy main roads, even at rush hour when they know full well they're going to cause delays. They never pull over to let people past even when there's an almighty traffic jam crawling along behind them. There are also so many of them, at least where I am. So once you finally get past one, you find another. Then another - in the summer, a 10-15 minute journey can take well over twice that. There is also absolutely no need to do it. You can get as fit on a stationary bike, without breathing in fumes. If you want to be outside in nature, a walk or run would obviously give a far more pleasant view than tarmac and bumpers. I can understand why people cycle to commute, and I think there should be far more done to encourage bikes, electric bikes and scooters in cities, and to firmly discourage cars. But in the countryside it's pure selfishness. You know full well you're inconveniencing people, but carry on regardless. You can hardly be surprised if people think badly of you for it.

What fields and woods? You realise that fields and woods are privately owned?! And if they aren’t, a lot don’t allow horses as they don’t have the infrastructure for horseboxes to park because if they did, there would be people camping there and they don’t want.
We can’t just go where we please. We are limited to the very few bridleways that are available and public byways including the roads. Believe me, I would much rather ride off road than on road but I have no option but to.