Brian Nystrom wrote:
>
>
> >> What amazes me is the amount of harassment I get from people driving a
> >> 5' wide car in a 10' wide lane that don't think they have enough room if
> >> I'm riding near the white line on the edge of the road. This past
> >> summer, I even had some brain-dead "bimbette" driving a Jeep that her
> >> mommy and daddy must have bought her try to tell me that I should be
> >> riding on the sidewalk (which is illegal here). At the time I was on a
> >> road with 2, 10' wide travel lanes and a 6' wide shoulder. Apparently,
> >> that wasn't enough room for her.
> >
> > Always carry a few extra water bottles. They make a hell of a bank when
> > they hit the hood  :-)
> 
> Cleats do a nice job on doors and fenders, too.  ;-)

Some car drivers can be real dicks. I had a run in with one a number of
years ago while out walking my dogs at night. I always used to carry a good
sized stick with me to prod my dogs in the right direction and to whack any
dogs that may choose to make a nuisance of themselves. It is a rural road
with no street lights.  I was walking on the left side of the road, facing
traffic. I was dressed in light clothes and carrying a flashlight.   Some
dick head comes flying down the road at high speed and instead of moving
over to the centre a bit, moves over to threaten me.  I whacked the side of
the guy's car. He stops and comes back to confront me....tells me I am
walking on the wrong side of the road, have no business being on the road
???? Pedestrians have every right to walk on the road and are expected to
walk on the left facing traffic. 

The idiot leaves, turns around, and comes flying back at high speed.
Knowing that he he about to do something dumb to intimidate me, I stepped
back and picked up a handful of 3/4inch gravel off a driveway. As the guy
approached me he swung toward me. I guess  he wasn't expecting me to whip a
handful of gravel at his car when he did that.  I hope he called the cops
and told them the whole story.