Some interesting comments from recent post – People hitting cyclists However, I hope it doesn’t put people off cycling, e.g. comment
I suppose I should not be reading these events prior to my cycling lesson tomorrow but one has to learn of the experiences.
Hmm I think I would change my cycling route in the same way one does when driving. But then wha t do I know. 
Firstly it is quite rare. Most of the time you can cycle without incident. Despite it being very rare, the chances of having things thrown at you are higher if:
- You are wearing lycra.
- You cycle fast
- You cycle on busy roads / dual carriageways.
If you dress in normal clothes, if you cycle slowly, I would be very surprised if anyone leaned out of the window to spray a water pistol in your face. It’s no guarantee of course, but there is an element that if you look like a proper cyclist, you’re more likely to attract attention. I might speculate that if you are a racing cyclist, cycling along at 20mph, it’s more inconvenient for a motorist to pass you. If you’re doing 10mph, it’s easier.
We are always judging people on their appearance, so it’s nothing new if motorists judge cyclists by the way you look. There is anecdotal evidence that motorists give some types of cyclist more room. i.e. if you don’t look like a cyclist, motorists pass with a little more care. If you look like an old lady wobbling around on a 3spd, cars may give you more space as they go past. A humorous blog from: Telegraph
…On the way to work I sometimes pass the same lady cyclist. She looks as though she’s pedalling through treacle on a ladies sit-up-and-beg bicycle.
She struggles along wearing a rainjacket over a pleated skirt, and she wears a white helmet which looks like half a large billiard ball attached to the back of her head.
I’ve always thought she was in the wrong gear – mechanically and sartorially – but thinking about it more carefully, she justifies No 1 son’s theory.
Unlike the other cyclists in their helmets, rucksacks and leggings who look the part and merge with other road users in morning traffic at comparable speeds, this lady’s very obvious because she’s slow, looks a bit inept and quite vulnerable. As I pass, I do give her an extra-wide berth so she must have The Look just right.
Now, if you happent to be old lady on a Vintage 3 speed, you’ve probably got lots of experience to tell me otherwise. And I’m not going to start getting a blue rinse hairdry, just to see whether motorists give me a little more space.
Also, going back to recent post – Cycling a question of perspective there is always a choice how we respond to sharing the road. If we become fearful of bad incidents, we can easily put ourselves off. On the other hand, we can remember that mostly cycling is fun and safe.
So there you go, cycling is less dangerous than walking, and when you walk around town, you don’t feel obliged to wear a pink wig, wicker shopping basket or helmet, in the hope a bus won’t drive on to the kerb and knock you over.
Related
Couple of points on the “Death rate mode of transport per km” plot:
Typically people will take longer journeys in motorised vehicles (because they go more quickly) so this adds a significant bias to the data. A far better representation of risk is derived if you use “Time spent travelling”. For example, most people will have an upper limit on the time they want to spend travelling (e.g. 1 hour each way commute) and this will affect mode of transport choice.
Also, comparing individuals within each group you will see a significant spread of distances covered, which to a large extent represents the experience of the individual. So an individual with a higher exposure may not have a (proportionately) higher risk (e.g. an adult vs a child cyclist)
I would really like to know stats for cycling / racing on dual carriageways
This sort of thing is the reason that even when I’m wearing cycle shorts for the comfort afforded by extra padding (pretty much anything longer than the 5 miles each way into town for shopping), I pull on a tatty pair of trackie bottoms or scruffy old cargo shorts over them, so I won’t get mistaken for one of the spray-on body-condom crowd.
> I might speculate that if you are a racing cyclist, cycling along at 20mph, it’s more inconvenient for a motorist to pass you. If you’re doing 10mph, it’s easier.
Very much this — your relative velocity is less, so it needs a longer clear stretch of road to manage safely, and is compounded if there are more than one of them to pass.
It cuts the other way, too — when I’m cycling doing my usual <15mph amble on the way home from work, the worst thing to get passed by is a pack of grimly peddling no-fun-allowed sport cyclists. Buses and farm vehicles are much more inclined to give a wide margin when passing.