Comments on: The Laughing Hyena Boy of Self-Conciousness http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/ Bike Your Drive! Wed, 08 Feb 2012 22:39:52 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.4 By: Nicolas Marchildon http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-5411 Nicolas Marchildon Sun, 27 Jan 2008 05:17:31 +0000 http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-5411 Adrienne, Try screaming this: "Get out of the way, I've got no braaaakes!" ;-) Adrienne,

Try screaming this: “Get out of the way, I’ve got no braaaakes!”

;-)

]]> By: James http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-2846 James Sat, 08 Dec 2007 16:59:45 +0000 http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-2846 Blast through them with mm to spare and scare the *&^ out of them! If you warn them, they're likely to step INTO your way. Blast through them with mm to spare and scare the *&^ out of them! If you warn them, they’re likely to step INTO your way.

]]> By: RL http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-2843 RL Sat, 08 Dec 2007 14:18:09 +0000 http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-2843 Adrienne, You should have used your Kung Fu moves and MADE them get out of the way! Adrienne,

You should have used your Kung Fu moves and MADE them get out of the way!

]]> By: Adrienne http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-2832 Adrienne Fri, 07 Dec 2007 23:22:15 +0000 http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-2832 Sometimes it's not so much maliciousness as ineptness. I was crossing the Arizona State University campus yesterday around noon and encountered a line of about eight guys walking abreast, blocking the entire pathway, paying NO attention to what was around them. In my perkiest loud-but-not-obnoxious voice, I said "hello!" -- the law here calls for an audible alert when overtaking pedestrians, and I have no bell. Silence. Then I "verbally alerted" them again. Silence. About three feet from them I stopped, the better not to mow at least two of them down. Then they looked up, and one of them disengaged partially from his IPOD and said, "Uh, hello yourself!". Then they laughed, to show themselves, and any one within earshot who they thought might care, that they really had the upper hand. And they proceeded on their way. I wonder what would have happened if I had been driving one of those little golf carts that some staff use for getting around on campus. Sometimes it’s not so much maliciousness as ineptness. I was crossing the Arizona State University campus yesterday around noon and encountered a line of about eight guys walking abreast, blocking the entire pathway, paying NO attention to what was around them. In my perkiest loud-but-not-obnoxious voice, I said “hello!” — the law here calls for an audible alert when overtaking pedestrians, and I have no bell. Silence. Then I “verbally alerted” them again. Silence. About three feet from them I stopped, the better not to mow at least two of them down. Then they looked up, and one of them disengaged partially from his IPOD and said, “Uh, hello yourself!”. Then they laughed, to show themselves, and any one within earshot who they thought might care, that they really had the upper hand. And they proceeded on their way.

I wonder what would have happened if I had been driving one of those little golf carts that some staff use for getting around on campus.

]]> By: RL http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-2828 RL Fri, 07 Dec 2007 19:32:46 +0000 http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-2828 Mike, as funny as it is...you just probably made that little boy cry and when he saw his dad at night he asked..."how come you never drop me off on you Harley at School? A kid was dropped off by his dad on a HONDA!" Mike, as funny as it is…you just probably made that little boy cry and when he saw his dad at night he asked…”how come you never drop me off on you Harley at School? A kid was dropped off by his dad on a HONDA!”

]]> By: Mike http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-2827 Mike Fri, 07 Dec 2007 18:14:34 +0000 http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-2827 Not a bicycle, but a motorcycle, a Honda Hawk 400 beater. Dropped my son off to elementary school on my way to work, and an insouciant 3rd grader says, "My dad says Hondas suck!" "Yeah, what kind of bike does your dad have?" "A Harley!" "When's the last time he dropped you off at school on his Harley?" Apparently that would be about... never. You'd have thought I just squashed all his Cheet-Os. Heh. I felt 1% bad about it for about a split second. Not a bicycle, but a motorcycle, a Honda Hawk 400 beater. Dropped my son off to elementary school on my way to work, and an insouciant 3rd grader says, “My dad says Hondas suck!”
“Yeah, what kind of bike does your dad have?”
“A Harley!”
“When’s the last time he dropped you off at school on his Harley?”

Apparently that would be about… never. You’d have thought I just squashed all his Cheet-Os. Heh. I felt 1% bad about it for about a split second.

]]> By: Marrock http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-2819 Marrock Fri, 07 Dec 2007 01:27:43 +0000 http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-2819 �what are you talking about, I got these off your bike!�

Brilliant.

]]> By: Smudgemo http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-2817 Smudgemo Fri, 07 Dec 2007 00:25:42 +0000 http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-2817 �what are you talking about, I got these off your bike!�

Sweet! I normally don’t like to punk kids like that, but sometimes they’ve just got it coming.

]]> By: RL Policar http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-2813 RL Policar Thu, 06 Dec 2007 22:55:42 +0000 http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-2813 When I would pick up or drop my kids off with my Xtracycle, equipped with Sweetskin tires, the kids at the school...much like the pudgy punk would ALWAYS make comments..."oooh do those tires make you feel coo? Do they make you go faster? hahahah"....so one day he felt brave and said that to me in front of his friends and I simply said to him...."what are you talking about, I got these off your bike!" I don't think he expected me to say something back...but that actually made him shut up for good. Since then he never commented about the bike. When I would pick up or drop my kids off with my Xtracycle, equipped with Sweetskin tires, the kids at the school…much like the pudgy punk would ALWAYS make comments…”oooh do those tires make you feel coo? Do they make you go faster? hahahah”….so one day he felt brave and said that to me in front of his friends and I simply said to him….”what are you talking about, I got these off your bike!”

I don’t think he expected me to say something back…but that actually made him shut up for good. Since then he never commented about the bike.

]]> By: Val http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-2810 Val Thu, 06 Dec 2007 22:20:15 +0000 http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/12/06/the-laughing-hyena-boy-of-self-conciousness/#comment-2810 When I was touring in the Netherlands, I used a stuff sack for my sleeping bag made of bright green tent fabric. I carried it on my handlebars, and when I made it I decided to make it as aerodynamic as possible by sewing it in a cone shape. I looked like a giant green turnip poking out between my brake levers. Everywhere I went, children and adults would point and laugh. I suppose that it should have been obvious to me, but it took a while before I realized that most of them were making quite obscene comments in Dutch, and getting tremendous amounts of amusement out of the whole thing. Me, I just enjoyed the attention; if they're laughing, they must have seen me, and being seen is the most important part of bike safety. It felt good to bring smiles to so many faces, and know that I was protecting myself at the same time. When I was touring in the Netherlands, I used a stuff sack for my sleeping bag made of bright green tent fabric. I carried it on my handlebars, and when I made it I decided to make it as aerodynamic as possible by sewing it in a cone shape. I looked like a giant green turnip poking out between my brake levers. Everywhere I went, children and adults would point and laugh. I suppose that it should have been obvious to me, but it took a while before I realized that most of them were making quite obscene comments in Dutch, and getting tremendous amounts of amusement out of the whole thing. Me, I just enjoyed the attention; if they’re laughing, they must have seen me, and being seen is the most important part of bike safety. It felt good to bring smiles to so many faces, and know that I was protecting myself at the same time.

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