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We've heard about driver vs. bicyclist fights before, but Streetsblog has a really unusual one. Unusual because the bicyclist was charged with criminal mischief for slapping the side of the SUV! From Streetsblog:
[Ray] Bengen, 63, was riding down the Ninth Avenue bike lane on May 21 when he came across the Ford Excursion you see in this photo (curb weight: 7,190 lbs). A long-time city cyclist, Bengen had a green light and wasn't quite sure what to make of the vehicle in front of him. The car wasn't moving and its brake lights were off.You can see those photos here—and Bengen said, "The driver then went berserk. Talk about road rage. He threw open his door forcing me and my bike to the ground giving me some awful bruising down my leg. As I was now on the ground yelling at him that he's in a bike lane and was just about to run me over, he started to scream at me 'Don't even think about it, don't even think about it.'" Then suddenly the driver stopped, removed the bike from the area near his truck and drove away. Police did arrive at the scene after the dispute.The bike lane on this stretch of Ninth Avenue is part of the city's first on-street protected bike path. At the 20th Street intersection, where Bengen came across the car, there's a left-turn bay for vehicles and an exclusive green phase for cyclists. The Excursion, as you can see, was in the bike lane, not the left-turn bay.
Bengen rode slowly by on the left. Then he sensed the car start to move as he was passing. Alarmed, he slapped the side of the car with his palm in an effort to alert the driver as to his presence. A witness, who Bengen says has agreed to testify in court, snapped three pictures of what happened.
Then last week, Bengen was called down to the precinct because the "Manhattan DA had filed charges of criminal mischief against him. (The DA's office is also pursuing assault charges against the SUV driver.)" He was handcuffed, fingerprinted and released; Streetsblog was told the Manhattan DA's office plans to offer more details at the hearing next month.
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the meathead had an invisible "you toucha ma car, I breaka you face" license plate.
any more details on the complaint? I suppose the vague "criminal mischief" is enough.
I'm a regular fender and trunk slapper: bike lanes get no respect, but neither does a pedestrian's right of way in a cross walk. I had no idea there was a law wide enough or a police force stupid enough to put me in cuffs for that.
Hmmm...I don't think I can arrive at a final judgment about this incident yet. Facts haven't come out. They will at trial. The arrest and filing of charges against the bicyclist (or against the driver, or anyone for that matter) is not a final judgment. Just means that there are allegations (which there always are on both sides of any conflict) and some preliminary evidence to support charges.
Sorry, that was meant as a general post, not a reply to Geoelh.
Judging by the driver's vehicle and his shoes, I will guess he may have been on his way to a whacking.
Bicycling in NYC is becoming increasingly dangerous as drivers become increasingly stupid. Stop signs are taken as a suggestion. Stop lights are a stronger suggestion. Speed limit? It's how fast you can manage to go.
Seriously, I'm not the only person I know who gave up bicycling because it's become more dangerous than it used to be. Now, what am I going to do with my bicycle?
ok I ride a bike and i own a car in the city and i think everyone can agree that bikes don't even consider stopping for stop signs and red light an option so lets not go there
Yellowfoot, maybe cyclists are less likely to stop at stop signs or red lights, but they're MUCH less likely to KILL SOMEONE (pedestrian, another cyclist, driver, whoever) if a collision results from that.
bicycle riding is actually getting much SAFER. ten years ago, without any bike lanes, only professional messengers and crazy people went out and biked. what we see now is a huge increase in the volume of bikers, leading to the illusion that things are getting unsafe.
harrisgraber :
It's not THAT bad. This lane is usually pretty safe.
I love biking, but I don't do it in NYC because there are far too many psychos like this, and also plenty of genuinely oblivious idiots.
there appears to be a passenger in the SUV. thank goodness for the pictures. everybody take note of the plate.
i've only been out here for a year, but i've heard that it used to be much less bike-friendly just a few years ago even. i also have a friend who drives a cab on weekends who told me it has become less of a car friendly city.
Most cyclists who have been on the streets for even a few weeks/months has had this or something close to this happen to them.
I learned my lesson quickly and now just scream profanities at the top of my lungs. Don't know why, but I've only been threatened by physical violence by male SUV drivers. Sometimes I think it's just me, but the stories out there usually corroborate this factoid.
Not that I'm excusing the driver, but WHY did that cyclist try to pass on the left? If I come across a car in the far left/right lane, sitting at an intersection, to me that car is turning left/right. Passing on the inside was risking getting hit.
Obviously this was a protected lane and this situation should never occur, but when you're on two wheels, you have to ride defensively and assume everyone else is an idiot.
Tower18 : Probably to avoid cars turning in the left turn bay, but yeah, maybe not the best choice to pass on the left. He shouldn't have had to though - the guy in the SUV was parked in the lane.
I'm confused, don't 9th ave have the protected bike lane that has an island separating the auto traffic and the bikes? how is he passing on the left when the bike lane is the left lane?
The turn lanes on corners do not have any barrier between them and the bike lanes.
The turn lanes on corners do not have any barrier between them and the bike lanes.
The way the 9th Ave bike lane is constructed, the bike lane is running to the left of traffic. The bike lane is usually separated from traffic by an island, but at east-bound streets (left-hand turns) the bike lane is immediately to the left of the traffic turning lane. So at 20th St., the car should have been in it's own turning lane, with the bike lane on its left. There are separate lights with separate signals for bikes and cars. This biker seems to have had the green bike light, and the car should not have been either in the bike lane or crossing over it, as he would have had a red light.
Got it, they're separate lights for the bike lane and car lanes. Same as on the Broadway bike lane.
Pedestrians, bicyclists, skaters, etc.: Before attacking a vehicle, or even objecting vocally to offensive driving, always make sure you have an open escape route. In any confrontation with a motorist, the police, the DA, and the courts will not help you or punish the aggressor -- see above.
I've smacked cars on my bike many, many times. I always see it as a last resort to get the drivers attention if I'm about to be hit because I'm in there blind spot. Wouldn't the driver rather have a quick tap to save them the trouble of hitting a cyclist, and everything that comes with an accident (police, hospital, lawsuits etc.)
Everyone needs to take the road rage down a notch, it's getting kind of crazy.
@StyleCrusader That's very true. I'm a lifetime NY'er and cyclist, and overall NYC is at least 10 times more bike friendly than it ever has been.
I agree yours is a very rational argument. But bicyclists should try to understand the car owner and driver's emotions/mentality. A slap to the side of a car is sudden and unexpected. Hearing a sudden thud on the side of my car is very jarring. It triggers a very protective instinct in me that screams out "WHAT THE **** WAS THAT THAT JUST HIT MY CAR?!" The next reaction is to whip my head around in all different directions to try to find the source. By that point, (in a matter of a second or two), a driver is already in an aggressive mode. I guess, to sum up, a car owner is protective of his car, is all. Mind you, I don't even treat my car like a baby. If I can get upset, what's the mentality of people that baby their cars?
Add this on top of living in NYC, when stimuli is everywhere (and potentially threats, too) which puts a person on hair-trigger.
Whatever happened to whistles and horns for bicyclists? Or yelling? And isn't it a better policy to hit the brakes on a bike to avoid an accident, than to slap a vehicle? Even as a driver, and I have studied this issue, hitting the brakes is faster and more efficient than trying to warn others that they're violative of my space or causing a danger. When you try to warn, you rely on the other person's reflexes. Accidents happen in split seconds. Warning is the lesser way. Braking is better. It's nice to be able to do both, but reality usually prevents that. When you brake, you immediately stop the collision trajectory that you're on. That goes to lessen the impact. I would think same physics applies to bikes too, no? Plus, bikes are more nimble than cars.
(Of course, there's a host of other issues as well, such as aggressive or angry drivers, the greater onus being on a driver because he's driving a heavier, more dangerous vehicle, etc.)
When on my bike, it is an almost daily occurrence for cars to suddenly and unexpectedly turn directly into my path. Often there is not only no time to stop, but no alternative route to take (because the car is where my escape route would be). I completely understand that drivers sometimes can't see bikes in their blindspots, but many drivers don't seem to even look before they make sharp, unexpected turns. And to think that a driver could hear a bike bell (or that a biker can even get to it in the split second in which the car is turning into the bike's path) is unrealistic. And since your post concerned itself with loud unexpected noises, permit me to speak about the drivers who feel that they have to honk at bikes to announce their presence. Well, we can hear you coming - all a car horn is likely to do is to unnerve us and possibly cause a less experienced biker to panic and maybe lose control. Unless the biker is (stupidly) wearing headphones, believe me we can hear you!!
Agreed. Blindspot is tough. Increasing biker awareness hopefully will alleviate this problem. Usually, I'm lucky enough to be approaching the biker from behind as I approach the intersection, so I see him. But I've had a difficult time training myself to look in my blindspot/mirror before making a right turn. I'm usually focused on pedestrians at or near the crosswalk/corner.
Sorry no. When a giant vehicle is about to crush you or run you off the road or into traffic, sounding a bell or horn does jack squat, braking/stopping-short will get you run over, and screaming your lungs out barely works when the driver isn't already distracted (which they usually are).
My solution has been to become a smarter, faster, more agile rider in city traffic because I've been physically threatened by road raging SUV drivers after I merely slapped their fenders or knocked on their windows.
You're right, assuming the vehicle is on a direct course into you. Then you have no choice but to swerve. (I've experienced other drivers ignoring my horn as well.)
(stereotype alert) I really do think a lot of SUV drivers have a complex. When SUVs became popular, I really didn't see the need for them that any old station wagon couldn't serve. It was my theory then, and it remains so now, that a lot of people feel bigger = tougher = better. I've read that driving an SUV gives one a sense of "empowerment". I echo this sentiment, on the few occasions that I've driven other people's SUVs. It's a very dangerous state. I drive a Civic, and I swear to you, it gets no respect.
As a cyclist and former motorcyclist, I never cease to be amazed by the disregard drivers have for riders. I hope this gets the attention it deserves in court, the cyclist is found not guilty with record cleared, and that the driver gets the treatment he deserves, with the indignity of a booking from NY's Finest.
We can couch this as cyclist versus driver all we want, but the underlying problem is that when people get outside in this town they view anything or anyone they come across as an obstacle.
A fat-gut meathead wearing meathead clothes and a meathead/narc haircut driving the type of car that only meatheads drive acted like a complete asshole after someone touched his precious, precious car - what a surprise! People like this are the reason I don't own a bike. It is much easier to avoid people like this while on foot than on a bike, I think.
I've been threatened by these meatheads who think you've hurt their delicate little trucks by touching them. The evidence here suggests the DA is one of them.
This guy must have had some connections at the DA's office in order for them to prosecute something as ridiculous as these charges, especially considering there's multiple photographs and witnesses of the confrontation.
Whomever in the Manahttan DA's office who's prosecuting the bike rider should be disbarred and investigated for filing false charges.
But if the driver had run over and killed the cyclist, the police would not have charged the driver with anything. That seems to be the M.O.
Just want to point out the linked streetsblog post has an inaccurate explanation of what "criminal mischief" entails. The damages do not have to amount to $250 in all cases. Any damage caused intentionally to property belonging to another person can be charged as criminal mischief. There is no lower limit if there is intent. The $250 limit only applies if damage happened happened without intent but through recklessness.
This is from the same DA's office that failed to prosecute the Chinatwon van driver who left his van running and got out, whereupon it subsequently killed two children. The DA said he couldn't prosecute! I guess Morgenthau's office is just as corrupt as the NYPD.
Is the DA for real. That's ridiculous. People need to realize that just because you have a car does not give you the right to drive wherever you want. The city really needs to start cracking down on crappy drivers..... especially ones with rage issues.
seriously -- bicyclists in this city are the absolute worst. if you toucha my car, i breaka you face! 'Nuf said.
You in bike lane, you about to hit me, I toucha your car. You toucha my face, you become famous but not in a good way.
watch where you bike. this ain't your bike loving douchebaggery williamsburg.
Um, did you read the post? The cyclist was IN THE BIKE LANE.
i ride a bike and a motorcycle in NYC ... it's like being in a pin ball machine ...
i've slapped and even kicked cars and SUV's that have come close to nailing me ... better to deal with a dented car than a major injury ...
to stupid drivers and stupid bikers (of all kinds), there should be yearly tests and heavy fines for bad driving and for bad biking.
watch where you drive, this ain't your douchebaggery wyandanch.
Lessons to learn from this story:
1. Human propulsion does not entitle you. Keep your hands to yourself.
2. A nonphysical alert method (horn, whistle, etc) should be part of every riders gear.
When a 7000lbs vehicle is about to run you over and endanger your life through obliviousness, you have every right to smash a window open, grab the driver by the collar, and shake the shit out of him/her.
Lesson to learn:
1. Don't sit in the fucking bike lane.
Lessons to learn from this story:
1. Human propulsion does not entitle you. Having a bicycle lock/chain and a vehicle capable of speeds faster than a old, fat Lawn Guylander does.
When I would run in Riverside Park, I'd cross 95th Street, where cars turn from the West Side Highway (street view). Even though there's a light, cars would just keep going relatively fast to try to sneak through red lights—I used to slap cars all the time because I would be in the middle of the street.
As a fellow runner I sympathize with your plight. I jogging in manhattan was an excersize in futility unless i was in the park or on the battery park trail.
The driver's license plate: NY BXN 4640
look. while i think that road rage is a bad thing, i do think that a little vigilanteism is in order. the reason why is that car drivers think they own the effing city and the DA does nothing to disabused them of this when they kill people.
to that end, i propose the following five point plan:
1. a bicycle vigilante team ought to be formed.
2. this team should carry heavy truncheons and tire piercing spikes
3. tire piercing spikes should be placed beneath tires of cars illegally blocking pedestrian walkways and bicycle lanes
4. truncheons should be used to smash windows and dent the bodies of cars that grossly violate the rules of the road, thereby endangering the safety of pedestrians and bicyclists
5. if meatheads get out to protest, truncheons should be employed as tenderizers
am i serious? well, halfway so. since the state won't protect bicyclists, i think that we ought to defend ourselves, and since careless driving threatens our lives, we are all acting in self defense.
this reminds me of a story, with which i end:
my friend - a once pro rider who rode with george hincapie when they were teenagers - was once riding his bicycle in a legal manner (at traffic speed on the right side of the road). a car that was passing on the inside nearly ran him over. my friend caught up with the guy easily (he was once pro) and told the driver to be careful. the driver told him to shove it. my friend then took his bicycle pump and swung it with all his might onto the windshield of the car. the window cracked badly. he immediately kicked the side of the car as hard as he could, denting the fender, swung his bike around and pedaled the other direction.
all i can say is that this story gives me great satisfaction. it would only be better if kipp had a truncheon and a spike.
I enjoyed this post maybe too much.
mns comment that is
Great story MNS, count me in.
This isn't about bike justice at all is it, you silly truncheon fetishist!
If the biker had biked away before the police arrived and before he gave him name to the police, he wouldnt be in the legal mess he's in now. The car driver is of course, an idiot for suing.
The scumbag in the SUV is a cop. Only a NYC cop would feel absolutely entitled to not only park in the bike lane, but then lie about it, assault the bike rider (we've seen this before....) and then make sure that the bike rider was hit with phony trumped up charges.
Typical SUV driver behavior.
Man, I hate Bush.
i will take this down if i'm mistaken, but heres a (public) photo of the guy who doored the cyclist : http://tr.im/pDBG
That's him, douchebag Gus Gonzalez. You can check out his wife's facebook page, Laura Di Spirito, who works at the Waldorf. It appears to possibly be his son in the front seat. Nice example, Dad.
Why are cyclists such huge wimps? He should have kicked that SUV driver in the nuts, gotten up, kicked him again, and then biked away.
Agreed!
I had a similar incident happen where a driver tried to cut me off, so I knocked on his window to let him know I was there (I did not knock hard). He then went ballistic and started threatening me, so I put my fist through his passenger side mirror (I was wearing gloves - I'm not that tough) and told him to back up his threats while I pulled out my U-lock. He subsequently sped off.
Gus Gonzalez is lucky that he didn't pull this with some crazy cyclist (there are plenty out there), or he'd be tasting nut-soup right now.
It will likely lessen your lawsuit awards if you punch them. Seriously, if someone assaults you with a vehicle, don't kick their ass. Only kick their ass if it will save you from getting yours kicked. Get the license plate number (take a photo, get from bystanders, or security cams) and go somewhere they wont follow you. Go to the hospital if you are hurt and get checked out. Then go straight to a qualified attorney. The attorney will sue them and their insurance company to cover your medical bills, damage to your bike and cargo, missed work, and legal bills. Go directly to the attorney once your safety is assured. They typically take no money up front and 1/3 of the settlement. If you don't like the way the attorney handles your case, you can get a new one to take over. Expect it to take a long time for the case to finish.
If the crash is a genuine accident, just exchange information politely. If they didn't see you and you get hit, just don't be mean. If you put them on the defensive it may affect the story they tell their insurance company, and you could end up waiting longer to get paid.
Don't expect the police to "punish" the other person. They are there to get medical help, stop fights, move traffic safely around the scene, and verify that you exchange addresses and insurance. Calmly allow them to do that and it will go better for you. This is easier said than done because your body is going to be in shock. If one of you is acting crazy and the other one is acting calm it's likely to affect the police report which is very important to your case.
tldr:
1. ow!
2. get license plate
3. gtfo
4. doctor
5. lawyer
6. indian chief
7. profit? - not really, just less loss.
update: http://www.streetsblog.org/2009/06/25/meet-the-alleged-road-rage-thug-of-ninth-avenue-gus-gonzalez/
Recently,I recently purchased directional turn signals for my bike and the 1st day I used them they saved my life at an intersection where a truck was making a right turn.
It's a no brainer. I purchased mine at www.safetybikesignals.com
Why aren't more riders using them. I don't get it. Do you?