Hi. It’s been awhile. All good?

Boston this year?

 

Boston this year?

Yes. Wife also qualified.

LM - Wife is from near there. OC is definitely changing and not for the better. We are up the 57 near Raging Waters.

 

Sorry about the morons.     I'm due to get yelled at.   It's been about a year since I've been screamed at.  Well, running anyway.  It's a once a week thing on my bike.

Ugh, that sucks Babs!  I intentionally get as far away from cyclists as I can while driving, they put up with total asshole drivers who will seem to intentionally encroach into the bike lane.  I always hope that someone will see me give more space, and have some lightbulb go on that it might be the right thing to do.  But screaming at you?  That's next level.  I'm sorry that shit goes on.

 

Ugh, that sucks Babs!  I intentionally get as far away from cyclists as I can while driving, they put up with total asshole drivers who will seem to intentionally encroach into the bike lane.  I always hope that someone will see me give more space, and have some lightbulb go on that it might be the right thing to do.  But screaming at you?  That's next level.  I'm sorry that shit goes on.

Yeah I don't get it.  I actually obey traffic rules on my bike too.  I get yelled at and buzzed when I am just pedaling on the shoulder minding my own business doing nothing wrong.

I get harassed by cyclists with some regularity, mainly because I have the unmitigated gall to be running on their cycling trail.

My world.

 

My world.

Hi!

 

 

Oh, and in the land of harassment of female runners, I've had 2 encounters since last Saturday.  It's been a blessedly dry spell without catcalling, honking, throwing of objects, or other jackassery.  I had chalked this up to 1) Now that I'm old, no one feels the need to yell at me about my boobies, and 2) I live in such a wonderfully safe and enlightened part of the country.  NOPE.

 

Last Saturday I was approaching a guy headed the opposite way on the sidewalk, I swung my trajectory out so he wouldn't have to step sideways to avoid me (I'm polite yo), but he went the same direction.  OK, that happens, we both guess the same, so I wove over the other way.  He moves to be in front of me again.  It got really weird, and I realized he was intentionally blocking my path, then he started yelling incomprehensibly at me when I was about 5 feet away.  I kind of hopped at the last minute to get out of his way--he made it difficult, at which point yelled "I'll choke you" RIGHT IN MY EAR, like I felt the hot breath and spit on my ear and neck.  I was totally shocked and just kept going, as he screamed "you and your piggy face" at my back.  There was probably a full sentence there, but it was garbled.  I turned down a street and wove around to be sure he wasn't following me (he wasn't), but it scared the living shit out of me.

 

Fast forward to yesterday, I'm on the bike path (not a bike lane, a full two direction path for pedestrians and cyclists), way over to the right shoulder--again, I'm polite and try to give plenty of space to the cyclists.  I heard a couple guys kind of being loud behind me, I heard one yell, "ok, at the same time," then they proceed to go past on either side of me--like inches--the guy on the left hit me with his elbow I think, although it could have been his hand--and both yell in unison into my ears as they go by.  There's a male runner about 100 yards ahead of me, they pass him without any comment.  Of course.

 

I'm so irritated.  This shit has not been an issue for me for years, and now this.  And there's nothing I can do but put up with it.  The police can't help, I can't describe those bikers at all other than "one mountain bike, one fat tire bike, two assholes," and intimidation isn't illegal.  The weirdo in my neighborhood I will keep an eye out for, but again, what can the police do, even if they could find him?  Nothing.  He didn't do anything that's against the law.  It's incredibly stupid for me to try any physical retaliation, I'm 5'4" and besides wanting to continue to be able to run, I like my face as is.  Anyway, in case you were wondering, fucktardedness is alive and well in liberal California, where everyone is supposed to be all enlightened and chill.  Disappointing.

Damn! I don't know if it's because Montreal feels safer, or because I have no clue what my girl friend runners go through, but I am not aware that it is like that around here.

It really sucks.

I refuse to move on the sidewalk for the cyclists who are too good  to use the neighborhood bike lane.

 

LM, those encounters sound scary, especially the first.

Same!!!  If it's a little kid, I'm more understanding, but teenagers and grown ass adults get yelled at to get in the bike lane.  So I guess I do yell at cyclists, but not "real" ones.

And yeah, that first guy was either tripping balls, needs some mental health intervention, or he's a psycho killer.  None of these options are good.  I really don't like that he was about 2 blocks from my house, so in my neighborhood.  I was thinking about it, maybe I'll post on nextdoor to see if anyone else has encountered him.  There were tons of people out walking that day, maybe someone knows something.

Cy, it's been years since I've had anything like this happen.  YEARS.  I know it happens all the time other places, but I stupidly thought I'd found heaven where the only thing to be scared of is distracted drivers.  I think FreeSoul's experience is pretty standard.  Although, IIRC, she had someone drive past her and harass her, turn, drive past and yell again, and again... that would have scared the running right out of me.  Women are tenacious AF, I guess because we have no other option.

I do appreciate you men on this forum, y'all are much more hip to the issue and it's good to have supportive men who get it.  My husband was shocked.  He had no idea.  I was like dude, this is what it's like being female.  Do. You. Get. It. Now.???