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Comment by wiredfool | Hacker News Reader

I have to keep reminding myself to use the 5 finger wave instead of 1.

But they didn’t signal, they came from nowhere, blah blah. There’s only one hand sign drivers recognize.

Take more space if you need it for whatever reason is what I recommend to other cyclists. Dooring is a big issue, and motorists overtaking in blind corners, narrow steets or when you want to turn left. See the marks on the road where the outer tyre of vehicles leave there mark? That's the line a cyclist should ride on.

When I ride my bike on the street, I exercise an abundance of caution and assume all cars are out to kill me (through negligence if not outright malice.). But some cyclists seem to have another mentality, where if they merely do as they're supposed to while exercising their rights then they are personally in the clear. Why should I avoid that busy multi-lane road, I have as much right to it as the cars. They're the ones that suck. True in the legal sense, but being in the right won't unsquish me.

Motorists will try to squish through if you give them just a little too much space. Please do no cycle with just a foot of space towards the side of the road as this is always an invitation for motorists to overtake when it's not safe.

Generally, it's the right thing to do, but sometimes it leads to motorists feeling that you're in their space and getting angry about it. They simply don't recognize your place on the road. There is no easy answer other than an abundance of space for small (e.g. bikes, euc, e-scooter) vehicles.

They'll just have to learn to deal with that.

Or they get angry and make aggressive maneuvers that put you and others at greater risk. Yes, motorists should just get used to sharing the road with cyclists, but reality is usually a compromise between what is the theoretically safest option vs what is the safest practical option given the current road conditions and the skill of surrounding drivers.

That's for their insurance to deal with.

Their insurance isn’t going to bring you back to life after they hit you.

I don't experience a murderous rage from drivers, but I'm also not american.

My friend used to carry a copy of the driving regulations and confront motorists who got angry when he took up a lane. Obviously though this doesn't scale (either time or quantity wise).

If drivers are angry at me, at least they see me

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