Riding on the Great West Road today at 2pm. A silver VW people carrier starts flashing at me to pull over and let him past. I’m doing 40 (max speed limit) There are speed cameras just before the approach to the Hammersmith flyover, so I stick to the speed limit. I’m riding in the right hand lane. He moves over to undertake me on the left, and swerves right in front of me causing me to hit the breaks hard. I almost hit the centre barrier. I have no idea how I stayed on.
I go crazy and follow him on to to the Cromwell Road and then down Earls Court Road. I pull up along side him to have words, he tells me to f— off and laughs. I continue to tail him on to the Old Brompton Road.
He pulls up and parks on Gledhow Gardens, and gets out of the van. I park up and we end up having a shoving match this quickly becomes a full on fight. I still have my lid on so he’s not having mutch luck.
He then runs over to my bike and kicks it over, jumps back in the van and drives off.
I know it was stupid to follow this guy and I’m not the type of guy that enjoys fighting in the street.
Whilst waiting for the police to arrive, several bikers scooters and cyclists ask if I need any help.
Thank you to all of you.
The damage to the bike is minor, only some scratches and a broken rear indicator. My necks a little sore,( he had me in a head lock at one point).
His licence plate number : YN05 YDK If you see him, feel free to give him a piece of your mind.
I’m not trying to sound unsympathetic, but what were you doing riding in the right hand lane at 40mph if the left lane was empty?
Personally I’d always attempt to get back to the left hand lane as soon as possible after overtaking, not hog it forcing people up your inside to pass.
I saw an obviously pissed off driver doing something very similar to a car on the A4 the other day, that car didn’t move over, he eventually undertook it then did as yours did and slammed on the brakes in front of him.
Some people really don’t take very well to being held up, or even perceiving to be held up…
In my experience the best thing you can do in these confrontations is heed their obvious anger and let them past. I’m not suggesting the driver of that car was in any way right in his actions, but I think you could have avoided the situation.
Seconded. Hope they catch and throw the book at this prick…but you had it coming.
TBH (I know this wasn’t the case here) for all you know he had someone on the back seat loosing pints of blood after being stabbed or someone having a heart attack and trying to get them to hospital asap. Point is you don’t know why they want to get past but it winds everyone up those who don’t follow lane discipline. Emergency or just plain impatience…keep left, unless overtaking
Yeah - it is dangerous as you’re forcing people to cut you up basically.
The right hand lane is purely for overtaking in, as soon as you’ve finished that you need to get back in to the left.
The driver sounds a bit of a psychopath but I’ve seen this sort of thing before, if you are holding someone up (or they think that you are) they will often do something dramatic to make their point to you (such as cut in closely then brake), a stressed out working driver especially.
That’s not to say there was anything right about what you say happened, but it’s better to avoid creating these situations full stop by riding ‘unobstructively.’
I never knowingly try to hold someone up in London or anywhere else really.
It doesn’t justify a physical assault by any means but stressed out drivers do desperate things! The best thing is to be on your guard and try to ride in a way that doesn’t get in the way of anyone else’s!
I think I was one of them, if you were not far east of Brompton library, with a silver bike lying on the pavement!? I stopped at the lights going west, on the black and purple bandit, and put my thumb up to you to check if you needed any help, although what I could have done I don’t know, lol. Glad to hear it wasn’t an accident and at least you’re ok of sorts.
I was doing 40 in the right hand lane because 40mph is the maximum speed allowed on that stretch of road. Any faster and the several speed cameras would have issued me a ticket regardless of the fool behind me. The left hand lane was not empty and I felt it unsafe to make a sudden change of lane at that precise moment.
There was nobody loosing pints of blood in the back of his people carrier. His actions were reckless. As I went over the Hammersmith flyover the speed limit changes from 40 to 30 mph. This is when he performed his little stunt.
Hi rockerchick, yep I remember you and your bike! Thanks for the thumbs up
I would never knowingly hold anyone up or ride in a reckless fashion. Having ridden, driven and cycled in London my whole life at some point if not on a daily basis, your gonna **** some one off, or be pissed of by somebody else’s driving, riding and walking.
I guess in most accidents the blame rarely rests on the shoulders of just one individual.
But I feel that regardless of what I should have or could have done, it does not excuse that guys behaviour.
I don’t think anyone ‘has it coming’ that justifies them being forced off the road of their property damaged.
So he started flashing you at the speed camera just before the flyover and then cut you up after the flyover at the 40-30mph speed limit change?. Thats at least 1200+yards you had to find a safe point to pull in and let him on his way no?
I know there was no one bleeding or dieing in the back seat. You didn’t at the time he was flashing you…
Don’t get me wrong fella, I’m glad your ok and as I said I hope they catch and throw the book at this prick. Sounds like attempted murder. However you could have defused this before it happened, thats all I’m saying.
Yep,
Been there in a post last year. Some asshole was trying to examine mine by driving up it even though the car in front of me was trying to negotiate pillow humps in a traffica calming area on the back roads of Wimbledon. I tapped my brake light a couple of times and when we got to the end of the road I was going to turn left and started moving over and he undertook me in a single lane, dragging the side of my knee!!
It almost came to blows, he drove off and as it turned out we were both going the same way, he thought I was following him and it started up again. Eventually I had to walk away the guy was a huge fooker and was willing to take it to the next level and actually at the time I was thinking more about my bike than myself.
Well your experience has just re-enforced my thoughts of tackling twats who drive like pigs. It ain’t worth it!! I’m sorry about your bike though, if somebody kicked my bike over I would be pretty distraught. At least you’ve got his plate, post when you get a result. I’m always interested to see how the law deals with knobs like this.
…just another thought, when I see pricks like this come up behind me, even if I consider them to be a threat I normally give a spurt on the throttle and nip past the car in front of me and use them as a buffer. If that doesn’t work and they’re lane hopping I normally hang back and let them go. It’s safer in front than the back ( save the jokes for the adult section ) . Seriously I do this pretty often when I see a £50 Fiat with a £200 stereo or a white van man.
Yeah good point, I do that a lot too, if i glance in my mirrors and and all I can see is headlights/bumper I’ll think “F this, I’m not putting up with that” and get past the next car ASAP. If that’s not possible I’ll slowly roll off the throttle to allow me to break less harshly if I need to…THEN overtake the car in front when I can!
Not sure if it’s textbook advanced riding, but sometimes you have very few options.
CharlyBR600-RR, I think you watch to much TV mate. All this talk of me not knowing at the time of the incident that there could be someone bleeding and dieing in the back seat of his van is just plain silly.
It’s easy to give your oppinion when you are sat at in the comfort of your home. But in the few seconds it took for the incident to occur, I did not feel that it was safe to move left.
I am most certainly not saying that I made the correct decision. Just that the his actions were to intentionally run me of the road and use his van as a wepon.
Mean you no disrespect. All opinions are wellcome. (and helpfull)
This is a very good point… Still the guy sounds like a twat, i had a guy in italy nearly kill me doing something similar and it nearly came to blows, only reason it didn’t is because he spoke no english, and i didn’t know the italian for **** YOU YOU DUMB ****!!!
Regardless of the rights and wrongs he’s was in a big metal box and you were not… sometimes it is simply better to let people get on with it, or stop, call the police and report the matter… if there is any form of contact then it’s a failure to stop on the part of the other driver, but they would have a defence if they could demonstrate that they didn’t know they’d made contact with you.
I hope the arsehole that cut you up get’s done for assault and criminal damage at the very least…
Glad to hear it wasn’t an accident and at least you’re ok of sorts. 
