A couple times in recent days, I’ve been sprayed while cycling with a fluid (strongly suspected to be urine) by someone in a full-sized pickup. The same demographic who coal roll cyclists. It’s happened once or twice previously, but now seems to be getting more common. Anyone familiar with this practice? Does it have a name?
I’m not sure what i can do about it, except maybe get a handlebar camera to get evidence. And then sue them. Not sure if that’s worth it.
Are they doing this from a vehicle? Get their license plate number and report the incident to the police. I’d think the name for this stunt might be assault.
I’ve never had that happen to me but I haven’t been biking in a decade. When I was biking, over the course of a couple decades I’ve had a couple beer bottles thrown at me.
The only time I tried to catch a plate was when I was running and people shot at me with a bb gun from a car, but they had removed the plate. (They did catch the people afterward though, I guess a dark blue sedan from XXXX dealership with no plates might be easy to find.)
Why wife is a cyclist, and while I haven’t heard anything about urine or being sprayed, there are people who deliberately place tacks or other sharp objects in areas they know cyclist will be. This happens with regular frequency for announced cycling events and before the race people have to go down the route and check for sharp objects.
It’s never happened to me. I have had cars veer towards me on rural roads a long time ago, but nothing in the past 2 decades. My more pressing concern these days is drivers that simply don’t see you and turn right in front, or being doored.
I’ve never had this happen o me, Thank Og, but I have had people in cars driving close by roll down their windows and suddenly yell really loudly at me to try and shock me.
Why they do this, I have no idea, but it’s potentially lethal – if you swerve or fall, you’re right next to a fast-moving vehicle.
It’s because they want to kill someone while having plausible deniability legally.
Jesus Fuck what is WRONG with people???
I haven’t heard of this sort of thing happening on my local cycling routes … but we have had the tacks-on-the-path thing, and someone strung a wire across a local bike path one time. Kids ride on those things (not that it’s in any way okay to seriously injure an adult EITHER, but you know what I mean)
If you can get details of these buggers and put the fear of the law into them, please do - they’re a menace.
This type of idiocy is not limited to cyclists. I used to have to conduct some lighting surveys for facilities, which required me to walk around late at night taking light readings. On two occasions, both in Orlando, I was on the sidewalk next to my client’s building when I was hit by milkshakes thrown from passing vehicles. Yes, the cup and everything. Must be a popular pastime in Orlando.
Just to be the Devil’s advocate here but I was sitting at a stoplight recently next to a pick up and got sprayed pretty good with windshield washer fluid–turns out the stuff goes quite a ways out on a tall vehicle. And it don’t smell so good either, I could see it being mistaken for pee. Any chance this could have been what you caught?
I second this. There’s no doubt in my mind that they have broken a law of some kind. Whether it’s assault or something else will depend on your specific jurisdiction’s laws. But if you can get a plate or description, I would encourage you to report it.
A few decades ago I was riding home from a party with my girlfriend, and someone driving by threw a full, large, slushie at her. It made her crash. I remember immediately (without thinking) yelling an expletive at them, and they slowed down. I was scared then that they were going to come back. Luckily, I think, it was a pretty busy street – probably too many witnesses. I wish I’d had the presence of mind to get their info and report it.
I would imagine that this is what is being done. They have turned or otherwise rigged their windshield washer.
The spray I got was just from the wipers flinging the fluid around like it normally does. This is why I don’t wash my windshield at a stoplight, it really splatters the cars around me. Out on the road I have plausible deniability. 
I don’t doubt that some people do that. It also happens sometimes with unrigged ones. While driving, I’ve had my car windshield get sprayed when the car in front of me is using the windshield spray. I saw it going out and over the windshield on both sides. (I assume unmodified because they really were trying to wash their windshield, and some was going where intended.). Maybe the nozzles were slightly clogged. I’ve seen it happen a few times on the highway.
You’ve just made an excellent argument for ALWAYS having a camera attached to a bicycling helmet. These instances are assaults and should be reported.
I worked in Surveys for the State of Confusion for many many years. Because of my hearing impairment, I was not allowed out in the field. But oh, I heard the horror stories from the field crews! People AIM for the orange!
~VOW
I am a big believer in the dash cam in my car. Time stamp, speed, sound, excellent video, etc. I am never driving another car without one.
I used to be an avid bike rider and if I were still riding in these days I would definitely have a helmet cam. There is just so much going on that your eyes cannot all take in, but the camera will.
Are there handlebar and seat cams for a bike too?
WTH is wrong with people!
A Christmas tree was tossed at me on my bike once as a teenager. A dead tree dragging tinsel it barely missed my back tire. Could’ve been from the same crazy lady who previously ran me off the road screaming I wasn’t allowed to be on the street. Floriduh dipshits.
OK, windshield washers is almost certainly what it was. I know it wasn’t water in the most recent case, because a drop got on my lip. It may not be intentional in all cases, but I suspect it is. These were all from full-sized pickups, the same group who do coal rolling.[1] Anything they do is suspicious. Anyway, it gives a lot of plausible deniability. Even with cam footage, I’d have problems proving it in court.
Of course there are. Also for helmets. Google confirmed it, but really, I’d have been surprised if such things did not exist.
.
[1] Not every full-sized pickup coal-rolls, of course. Maybe only one in 5 or 6. But 98% of coal rollers are FS pickups. I expect their drivers brag about how many cyclists they’ve coal rolled on <powerof2>chan.
It almost certainly is. They may not have adjusted the sprayers, but they definitely know that the liquid gets dispersed over more than just their windshield.
Used to have that in drive thru’s from time to time. Reach out to get their money, and they would decide at that time to clean their windshield. First few times, I though tit was a coincidence, then I realized that it was intentional.
Same with these fuckers.
I’m gonna admit that I get nervous around bicyclists, I am always afraid that they are going to hit a rock and go flying out across my bumper. But I am nervous and observant and vigilant to make sure that I don’t hurt them, even if they do something unexpected.
I really don’t understand the bicycle hate, though.
Seems as though cams on the bike would be more useful, and probably easier to use, than cams on the helmet. Especially for the rear view. (But I haven’t ridden a bike since I was 15, so YMM have more relevant experience.)