This topic SERIOUSLY amazes me. I don’t know if this is a Southern California thing, but next time you’re on the freeway, try switching lanes two ways.

Way 1: Look to see when there is space and go

Way 2: Look to see where there is space, signal, and go

In Southern California, I’d say that almost 80% of the time when I’ve signaled, the car that was cruising at the same pace for at least a mile, SPEEDS UP! What the hell is wrong with that scene?

I don’t know if this is consistent with my theme lately of being a runner and biker and HATING cars because they seem to not understand that if they hit me in their car, that I will get HURT! For every 3-4 hour ride I do, there’s at least one close call and at least one other asshole driver that needs to get really close to me on my bike despite having a gigantic lane to drive in. Doesn’t he realize if he as much as touches my bike, there’s a good chance I will fly off and break something. And why do drivers get so mad when bikers share a lane for a quarter mile because of a tight lane or close shoulder? You’re losing maybe 15 seconds of your day for my safety. Is that too much to ask? Not to mention it’s my right to share the road.

Sorry, I rant. But why do cars naturally speed up? And I heard that Californias never signal – is this the root cause? Is it because when I do signal, there is a greater chance of that gap closing? Today, this gap was widening as I tried to get into the lane for the freeway off ramp. Instead of just doing my usual cut and go, I signaled, and the white BMW SUV speeds up and has to slam on his/her breaks. I don’t even look back thinking how ridiculous this is, but what’s behind that?

Is it our competitive spirits? Is it our concern for time? Does our cost/benefit analysis capability in our brain just breakdown at that moment and we forget we are maybe losing 2-3 seconds of our lives? All I know is that I let people in now when they’re signaling, unless of course I’m forced to slow down. Then I get upset for an entirely different reason