Road rage over motorcycle OC???

[smithwessn]

This incident happened to me several weeks ago. I wasn't going to bother posting about it, but I've been thinking about it a lot and decided to share. I'd like to see what others think about it. I'll do my best to describe the incident well enough to give you a visual.

I was on the motorcycle heading North bound on Rt29 in Collegeville. (For the local guys, this happened by the Redners/Sears Hardware/Wendys shopping center.) I'm on a portion of road that is two lanes in my direction of travel. The right lane ends just after an entrance to a housing development and is usually very light on traffic. I'm in the left lane, which continues straight and is usually heavy with traffic. There's about 4 car lengths between me and the car in front of me as we near the end of the right lane. A silver Chevy HHR in the right lane doesn't have a turn signal on to go either direction, but has plenty of room to move to the left in front of me. I roll off the throttle a bit anticipating a lane change on his part. He continues to hold his position so I end up passing him. By this point I figured he was turning right into the development. As I pass him I glance to my right and he's looking over at me and is still looking at me when I look straight. I glance right again to see I'm still being eye balled. I don't really think much of it.

The road goes down to one lane as it curves to the left past Wendys. After the road straightens back out, a center turn lane then changes back to two lanes in my direction. After a short straight stretch of road, both lanes end at a light at T in the road. Right lane must turn right, left lane must turn left. This time it is the left lane that is usually light on traffic and the right lane that is usually heavy with traffic.

I position myself to stay in the right lane and before the left lane is even formed by the yellow line, Mr. silver HHR flys past me on the left. I could hear the engine in the poor car screaming for mercy. There was no doubt he was wide open on the throttle. Meanwhile, traffic in front of me is slowing to a stop, there's about 1 1/2 to 2 car lengths to the car in front of me. The second Mr. silver HHR is past me he cuts into the right lane. Hard. No turn signal. No warning. He now has to stand on the brakes to keep from hitting the car in front of him, since he shoe horned his ass into a rather tight opening. He cut in so hard and fast, his car is slightly angled into the lane as he stops. (picture a movie scene when a police car cuts off a vehicle at an angle and comes to a stop to end a pursuit. yeah, it was kind of like that) My stopping distance is now virtually zero. I could have completely stopped before hitting him, but I was worried about the car behind me stopping before it hit me.

My split second reaction was glance over my left shoulder to make sure traffic was clear before taking evasive action. I made a rather abrupt lane change into the left lane, which was clear of traffic all the way up to the T. At this point I'm trying to figure out what the hell just happened. Meanwhile, I'm in the right 1/3 of the left lane looking for an opening in the right lane to tuck back into. No such luck. I'm coming up on the light at the T with no chance to get back over. No big deal. I'll just make a left, I can get home that way it's just a bit out of the way.

As I'm coming to a stop, I check my mirrors. Sure as shit, here comes Mr. silver HHR flying up on my ass. What. The. Fuck? This guy just damn near killed me and now he's going for round 2? At this point I'm extremely concerned for my safety. Never in my life has my brain processed so much info so quickly as I evaluate my situation and my options. I determine that anything involving waiting for the green light to be able to make the left turn isn't an option. (will he try to run me off the road as I make the turn? will he get out of the car while the light is red? etc) Mr. silver HHR stops about a foot off my rear tire. Right lane traffic has a green arrow and is moving. I look over my right shoulder and see a small break in traffic developing about 4 cars back. I check my left mirror to make sure the guy didn't get out of his car, look back over my right shoulder and take advantage of the opening in traffic the second it presents itself. I flip on my right turn signal and simultaneously make the right turn, from the left lane. Completely illegal, I know, but at that instant I felt it was my safest and quickest option. All I wanted to do was put as much distance between us as possible. After making the right, I was fortunate enough to catch the turn arrow for the immediate left to continue up Rt 29. I did nothing but check my mirrors for the next several miles. No sign of Mr. silver HHR.

I'd love to know what the hell that was all about. Perhaps it was nothing, and I made a big deal of it in my mind. Maybe this guy is just a really, really bad driver from out of the area and didn't know what lane he needed to be in. On the other hand, maybe it was a bit of road rage on his part. Maybe he felt I cut him off and was pissed. Maybe another bike pissed him off 5 minutes earlier and he was taking it out on me. When I passed him he would have had a clear view of my OC'd S&W. Maybe that's why he was looking at me so intently. Is it possible this guy is so anti-OC or so anti-gun that he was trying to "teach me a lesson"? (off duty PPD?? ) Was he trying to make me rear end him or was he hoping I would get rear ended? Did he plan on getting out of his car to confront me?

All these things and more have gone through my head. Just seeing how aggressive this guy was driving makes me think it was intentional and malicious. The lengthy eye balling I got while passing him makes me think he did, indeed, take a good long look at the S&W on my hip. What do you guys think? Does it look like I was a target of road rage because I was OC'ing?

[renegadephoenix]

your not OCing a big enough gun, get a Sig, Bushmaster or Draco pistol on a single point sling over your shoulder.

that should stop Road Rage drivers Real Quick!!

[Valorius]

It takes a special kind of stupid to intentionally go road rage on someone that you SEE is openly carrying a gun.

Given that so few people do it (OC), most people would assume that you were an off duty or plainclothes cop or something, which would make it even more stupid to mess with you.

Not sure that i would have done anything differently than you. IMO, you handled the situation well.

[Metz]

It takes extreme level of assholness to cut the guy on two wheels no matter what.

[Bigrepp61]

maybe it was the anti oc guy from youtube that said he would run you down if you were carrying a gun...

[soberbyker]

I doubt it had anything to do with you being OC, it's more likely the moron thinks you cut him off the first time the lanes narrowed.

He had a bad day, the dog ate his homework, the secretary said no, who knows what's going on in peoples heads these days.

I ride a MC and think some folks are just jealous they're not. Why else would they all of a sudden speed up when you pass them especially after a whole line of cars just did?

I also drive a truck, nobody likes to be behind a truck. For all of you non truck driving MFers, that big space between me and the car in front of me isn't there for you to jump into, it's my safe stopping distance.

Anyway I digress, people are in their own little world out there, they drive like they're the only one on the road, gone is courtesy, gone is undivided attention to their driving, gone is common sense. Driving used to be enjoyable, not so much anymore.

Just remember in a game of chicken, two wheels isn't going to beat four, use your throttle to get the hell away and forget about it.

.
.

[PaBimmerGuy]

Originally Posted by soberbyker

that big space between me and the car in front of me isn't there for you to jump into.

its not ?

[Maropowered383]

Man SB you hit the nail on the head when people pull in your braking area, I hate that. Even if I'm in my pickup with a trailer. Some people just are braindead when they get behind the wheel.

[LoCo]

I agree with Sober. I ride just about every single day all year, while OC'ing when its warm. I don't believe these people are anti gun. I think they're anti motorcycle. Or perhaps they're just idiots. I had two separate people try to intentionally hit me last summer. Both on 55 in Jersey...go figure. When all else fails, a size 16 steel toe boot to the side of a car generally convinces folks that they should be in their lane, not mine.

[ray h]

I agree with SB 100%.
I doubt he even noticed you were OC. The average driving idiot notices very little of what goes on around them if it doesnt directly effect them at that very moment.
When on a bike your only real defense against people is to keep space between you and them. If I have to share the road with someone as described above, I try to get back behind them if I can. Behind them is the position of power because you can control the spacing better then if you are in front and you can see them better.