Nothing really all that exciting to report. I tried to go for a ride after work today. Forgot my helmet. Went home and got it. I was so pissed when I got to the trail head that I sprinted up schultz and little gnarly. I thought I was gonna puke. Fortunately, it was getting dark and I didn’t have much more than an LED light, so I had an excuse to cruise back down the road on the way back. I guess that was training or something for the race this weekend. Whatever.

“Dara has a nice little theory about car-bike road rage”:http://www.juniper-solutions.com/dara/wp-trackback.php?p=42 on her site. Interesting theory. I don’t know that I totally agree it, though. I don’t know that anyone who’s tried to run me off the road was really jealous in any way that I was riding a bicycle. In fact I think they were more angered that I dare to ride on their road with my bike, not jealous.

I get a sense that we, as bicyclists, feel that we are somehow taking the ‘higher ground’ by commuting on a bike. We are saving energy, we are reducing greenhouse-gases and ozone-depleting emissions, and on top of that we are making ourselves more healthy. Very rightous. I don’t think that we are necessarily wrong in that description, but I think we are wrong in assuming that everyone else holds that opinion about us as well. Look at the number of SUVs in this country. In fact, look at the number of *two-wheel-drive* SUVs in this country. These things have no practical use as an SUV. They cannot get out of the snow, the sand, the mud, or anything else. They have huge oversize engines, and usually rear-wheel drive! Do you think the majority of people who own these vehicles (and don’t really need them) feel any remorse about their purchase? Most likely not. So, with that in mind, do you think that that guy in his “big H2″:http://www.fuh2.com really feels jealous of us? Not likely. He/she is just pissed off because we’re taking up the outside 2 feet of his lane, and therefore the oversized SUV that they’re driving won’t fit (surprise, surprise). Now, don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against people who buy an SUV or a truck who actually use it. But c’mon, what practical use does an H1, 2, or 3 have over anything else? Anyone? Anyone? Didn’t think so….

On the second point Dara makes, I do think that a lot of these people are inherently bullies. The dominance thing is definitely a big part of the whole problem. Everyone has something to prove, and it just comes down to how they go about proving that. However, I don’t know that there is a correllation between running a bicyclist off the road and beating a spouse or abusing an animal, but I’ll give her that one……

I won’t relate any stories of being run off the road on my bike for all of you, I’m sure you can find some equally as graphic ones easily enough. But you can rest assured, it’s happened to me. Maybe that’s part of the reason I don’t own a road bike currently? Although I guess the fixie may count since I commute on it fairly frequently………

Ponder away, and let me know how off-base I am.