Say hi to the driver of this brown Kia Soul, California plate 7DVW586, who I met Friday at about 5PM at the intersection of Figueroa and 21st Street as he crept out (as so many motorists do) into the bike lane. Apparently me ringing my bike bell and getting his attention so that they didn’t either hit me or further impede my right of way didn’t sit well with him. What a weird world in which we live that people take offense at simple requests for safety and consideration.
Video clip of our introduction.
Still showing California plate 7DVW586 in the lower right of the frame (click to biggify).
Slowed down video a block or so to the north on Figueroa of the same vehicle passing me (illegally driving in the Bus-Only lane, by the way) where the passenger has tossed a fast food container out the window, striking me in the thigh — just another unfriendly reminder that asshats gotta asshat and motorists harassing cyclists is still standard operating procedure.
Still image of the fast food container (A Jumbo Jack from Jack in the Box, I believe) in the moment before hitting me with the passenger’s throwing arm still visible framed in the window. Not a bad toss, if I do say so myself. Looks like he’s had practice. But if the box held the remnants of said shit sammich and the thrower was hoping the carton would open on impact and splatter its contents against my pants leg, I’m terribly pleased to say it stayed closed and I was not soiled. Small favors. But say, isn’t littering a crime punishable by a $1000 fine?
Not shown: realizing post-crimes he was going to get stuck at the red a half-block up at Washington Blvd., the chickenshit driver made a right. I was helpless but to follow to see how far he would get before I inevitably caught up.
Slowed vid of me pulling alongside and passing the suspect vehicle in the left turn lane, eight blocks east at San Pedro. Full disclosure: It took 78.4% of everything I had not to just stop and empty my can of pepper spray into the car’s interior. The 21.6% leftover is very proud of my self-restraint
Still image of our reunion. Howdy fellas! Bet you thought you’d lost me, huh? The passenger freezing in holyshit mid-sip of his tasty beverage is my second-favorite takeaway. Thankful for his sake, he didn’t elect to send it in my direction.
My first-fave takeaway is them yanking a u-turn in this slowed-down video and running away back west on Washington after they saw I’d stopped and dismounted on the opposite corner ready to, shall we say, “advance the dialogue.”
Not shown: me pursuing them further. Because I didn’t.
#ToLiveAndBikeInLA
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