Is it illegal to "bumper sticker" someones car?

[JWC]

I've almost been nailed by two drivers today riding my bike to work. One ran a stop sign and I managed to slide to a stop three inches from the passenger door. I don't think she ever saw me despite having a bright red riding jacket on.

The second, was just a few minutes ago on the way to work from lunch. I noticed a Montana van coming up behind me as I got to my intersection. I pulled to the center of my lane, gave a left hand turn signal and, despite a double yellow line indicating no passing, he tried to pull around me as I made my turn. This time, if he hadn't stopped completely, I would probably have a broken leg, because I was almost through the left lane. He yelled at me, which totally pissed me off. What he didn't realize is me and my bike can hit thirty mph and I flipped a U-turn and ran him down till he stopped. When I tried to explain he can't pass on a double yellow, he just said "fuck you" and took off.

I'm thinking about making or having made vinyl decals that will adhere to the back of these type drivers that say something like:

"I CAN'T DRIVE"
OR
"ALMOST HIT BIKER, DIDN'T CARE"
OR
"TOO OLD TO REMEMBER HOW TO DRIVE"

I thought about riding with a brick I could toss, but that would be a violation. Since this is a small town, I know I'll run into these people again, somewhere, sometime.

[L. ed foote]

it ain't illegal if you don't get caught

[sparkplug]

Sounds like a problem. I believe it would be illegal to bumper sticker someone's car but as long as they don't catch you then who cares. No, you shouldn't do it. You have to realize that if you get hit well nice knowing you.
I remember once in some town they made a man put blinkers on his horse. He could have put a bumper sticker on his horse that said "Kiss this".
With both hands on the bike handlebar, use your other hand to write down the license plate and report him. Let them know that you are trying to help them keep gas prices down so he doesn't to ride a bicycle. I'm tired of these bicyles hogging the road. Haha :D  

[Rupert]

Hit the car as hard as possible with your fist. They'll think they hit you and freak out, and you might leave a small dent.  

[Tom]

Hit the car as hard as possible with your fist. They'll think they hit you and freak out, and you might leave a small dent.

Nice.


JWC, I think I would have tore that guy out of his car and owned him.  You're too nice.

[JYODER240]

There's only one way to find out  :P  

[Speed_Racer]

Yeah...bikers don't get any respect from cars. I've noticed that now that I'm biking in a more populated area (town of 110,000).

When I'm biking, I hate that "woosh" sound as a sideview mirror whizzes just past your left side. Give us some breathing room, geez.

[Rich]

Get a magnetic one maybe?

[footoflead]

Get a magnetic one maybe?

to expensive...



i would like to make some stickers that have some adhesive that doesnt come off very well...and when somebody thinks their car is so great they have to take up 4 spaces...stick it just below their line of sight  

[JWC]

Finally back online at home.  Daughter became PO'd about somethng the other night while working on the computer for school and randomly hit keys....sending the PC in "recovery"

Anyway, we were talking about my near misses today at work. Someone mentioned I should get a cattle prod and the next time this happens, zap the car and see if it kills the electrical system.

I don't know if that would work, but it should would be cool.  

[JWC]

It funny that both vehicles were Pontiacs, both purchased from the dealership I used to work for six years ago and where I was the Pontiac team leader.  My boss suggested that the other dealership may have put out a contract on me.

Also, one of my techs was telling me how a couple of weeks ago he was traveling down the same street and some woman in a white car ran the same stop sign (California stop) that the first near miss occurred and rolled through without looking left or right. He slid to a stop in his Festiva just a couple of feet from slamming into her. She never knew he was there.  By comparing the make and model and a description of the driver, turns out to be the same friggin' lady.  

[Run Away]

I rode year round for 4 years, I know what you're talking about...


I've always wanted to kick out some tailights, it would be easy, fast, and they're just expensive enough to be really anoying, but not enough to file an insurance claim.

[TurboDan]

In 2003 when I lived in Tampa for about six months, I had to park in a large parking garage every day.  After a friend and I were both sharing a mutual hatred of ricers one day, he decided to print out a bunch of "Rice Tickets" from that web site Ricecop.com, and he gave me about 50 of them.  

I kept them in my laptop case, and would sometimes appropriately fill out the form and stick it under the wiper of various riced out cars parked in the garage.

 

[SargeMonkey]

In my town there are quit a few dents in cars... Cut me off? Dent door, till it hits window. I've hit a parked car going about 35... It hurt, and I busted the forks off my old BMX bike. There are some farily steep hills in this area so its easy to pass traffic at times.

[mazda6er]

Sounds like a perfect opportunity to spread some Christmas cheer to me. I suggest bringing along a nice can of fuscia spray paint. That would teach people real quick.

[850CSi]

Strange. Around here people are mostly very conscious of bikers and being careful around them.

[L. ed foote]

I try to give wide berths to cyclists whenever I can.  Many times, I'd rather let them make their move than breathe down them.

All bets are off in NYC where it seems that if you "adjust" to them you'll throw them off and they may get seriously hurt.

[JWC]

Amazing how many people I've talked to about this like the cattle prod idea.

Hypothethically speaking....would a cattle prod, touched against the sheetmetal or tailpipe of a car, be enough voltage to fry an alternator or PCM?

[TBR]

Bikers aren't perfect either you know. Last month we passed a biker who was riding on a busy 3-lane road with a 55mph and a perfectly good shoulder and he was riding right on the solid white line. Why? That makes no sense when there is 6 ft worth of shoulder and fairly high speed limit. I don't care what the DMV says, a bike isn't a car and some riders need to realize that!

[Run Away]

^the number of stupid drivers far outweigh the stupid bikers....

Wait till you have done both for a good period of time.

[TBR]

I am sure that is true, but there are also far more drivers than bikers. The percentages may not be as different as first thought would indicate.

[Run Away]

I'd have to dissagree on that too, the people who bike daily are usually the ones on the road (people just out for a ride or who don't use the bike as a main method of transportation normally stick to residential streets or sidewalks) and they are normally good riders, since biking is often a passion/interest.

Most drivers on the otherhand, drive because they need to, not because they enjoy it.
It's like how car enthusiasts are on average better drivers than non enthusiasts.

[JWC]

Though I had one close encounter in ten years of riding in California, for the most part, I found Californians respectfule of cyclists.

Here in NC, that's not the case. Two years ago a friend's future daughter inlaw was killed when a F250 crossed the center lane and hit her head on.  She had just taken the point in a group of six riders and was picking up the pace. The others were trying to catch up when the accident happened. The driver, also an aquaintance, has never explained why he crossed the center line.

The problem lies with the fact that most drivers don't understand that cyclists do have to follow the rules of the road.  You many not care what DMV says, but the law is the law.  Now, if I had been trying to turn left through the intersection without signaling, that would have been different, I would have considered the incident my fault, though NC law doesn't require vehicles to signal a turn, it is a "suggestion".  When I pulled into the center of the right lane and signaled for a left turn, the driver behind me should have respected that and acted accordingly.

Conceivably, if he had hit me, it still could have been considered my fault. In NC you can legally pass a vehicle making a left turn. In the event of a collision, the driver making the left turn is charged with failure to yield and making an unsafe lane change.  My only defense would have been the double-yellow line making the street a no passing zone.

[TBR]

I think you did the right thing in your situation and the other guy was clearly wrong. But, a bicycle has no business being within inches of a lane with a 55 mph speed limit. It is simply very dangerous. What happens if someone (either the biker or a close by driver) drifts a little?  

[Speed_Racer]

A friend's dad was involved in a bike vs. car accident. The person driving got too close to the white line, and hit him with their right exterior mirror at quite a good speed.

The guy on the bike was a mess. He was in critical condition for about a week. That was about 4-5 months ago, and he's probably still recovering (at home.)

On most winding New England roads, there aren't shoulders, so bikers pretty much have to ride the white line, because there's less than a foot between the white line and the shoulder. When people don't move over, accidents like this one occur.

Fortunately, I bought my bike here in Utah, and the roads, shoulders, and bike paths are wide enough for me to safely ride. I'm dreading biking back in NH, though.

[TBR]

Just like to note that you can't always give bikers as much room as you would like due to other traffic.  

[the nameless one]

The second, was just a few minutes ago on the way to work from lunch. I noticed a Montana van coming up behind me as I got to my intersection. I pulled to the center of my lane, gave a left hand turn signal and, despite a double yellow line indicating no passing, he tried to pull around me as I made my turn. This time, if he hadn't stopped completely, I would probably have a broken leg, because I was almost through the left lane. He yelled at me, which totally pissed me off. What he didn't realize is me and my bike can hit thirty mph and I flipped a U-turn and ran him down till he stopped. When I tried to explain he can't pass on a double yellow, he just said "fuck you" and took off.

I'm thinking about making or having made vinyl decals that will adhere to the back of these type drivers

What you would like to do would be termed criminal mischief. As for the guy who almost passed you, if you got the plate number, see if your state has a method of having you sign a statement against the operator of the car in order to have a ticket issued.

[Rupert]

TBR- Go ride a bike everywhere you go for a year.

Bikers ride on the white line when there is a shoulder because the shoulder is full of the crap drivers throw from their cars. It's also got a lot of gravel and larger rocks and other roadside debris, including bits that have fallen off cars. It's also to give a biker a place to swerve or fall if needed. I wish more drivers knew how to behave around bikers, but the only way to really teach that is to ride a bike and get them out of the "us vs. them" mentality.

[JWC]

Just like to note that you can't always give bikers as much room as you would like due to other traffic.

...and that is where you slow down until traffic clears and go around.  Me riding a bicycle is not different than someone riding a motorized scooter that is limited to 25mph.  I generally ride at 15-19mph  on the street where both these incidents occurred. The speed limit is 25mph, but driver's want to go 35-40 and generally act as if I'M the one breaking the law. I have on occasion upped my speed to the 25mph mark, but it makes no difference.

[TBR]

TBR- Go ride a bike everywhere you go for a year.

Bikers ride on the white line when there is a shoulder because the shoulder is full of the crap drivers throw from their cars. It's also got a lot of gravel and larger rocks and other roadside debris, including bits that have fallen off cars. It's also to give a biker a place to swerve or fall if needed. I wish more drivers knew how to behave around bikers, but the only way to really teach that is to ride a bike and get them out of the "us vs. them" mentality.

I would rather risk my tires than risk getting run over.

JWC, slowing down isn't always practical either.