Dumb commuter cyclist

Ok, bold statement. But I'm tired, worked a lot this week, and on heightened sensitivity since Shawn's accident.

I cruise home early to sleep. Leaving downtown, I stop on 5th at the C Train tracks. A guy passes me, looks a bit, weaves through and pisses off pedestrians crossing, the runs the red light and crosses 8th just seconds after a C Train went by. Then as he gains speed he pisses off pedestrians on the other side by weaving through them. I put the hammer down to catch up once green. He weaves randomly between backed up cars on the train underpass between 9th and 10th, runs a yellow on 11th. I catch up at 17th.

Me: Hey, I've been riding behind you.

He: Hi.

Me: I've been judged a lot lately by drivers who don't differentiate between riders who follow road rules, and those that don't. Helps us all if we all follow them, I don't like being painted by that brush.

He: What do you mean?

Me: When I follow the road rules, and others don't, I get labelled, and treated on the road as if I'm an unpredictable rider.

He: I was riding fine?


Me:  Fine?  You ran two red lights, weaved between cars, randomly drifted lanes, and cut off pedestrians while running red lights in the last 5 blocks.

Here's where I get upset a little more. He says he did nothing wrong... and cutting through pedestrians is just like walking?  I didn't even really get that.  How do you even start to defend that running red lights then cutting through people (like, when there's 10 people crossing each way by the train, not like when there's one person and most of the road is open).


Me: don't you see their faces, let alone the RED lights your ran? You need to KNOW and FOLLOW ROAD RULES.

Light turned green. I left. This was a 40 year old nerdy looking guy with full commuter gear. And a completely dumb cyclist. It made me irate. A person can't be that blind, or they wouldn't be able to weave between cars. And they presumably have a job and some life. So they're chosing to act DUMB and should know better.