So it's my very first group with the Lo Bees (which I think is some sort of pun about A riders, B riders, High Bees, Low Bees, Bee Line) who advertise themselves as 15-16 mph average. We had a group of about ten bikes, including a recumbent and a tandem recumbent. Set off down the country road, and within less than a quarter mile, the lead rider has been run off the road by a very angry man in a pickup, and they proceed to yell at each other, and the driver threatens to "Kill all you bike riders!" Other cars pull over, the whole group is stopped, and eventually the angry man drives off.

We continue on, and the group spreads out, and then regroups about five miles later at a stop sign. The group captain says he'd like to say a few words about car/cyclist confrontations. He says, in his opinion, there are some people who are a$$&@(#$ who will just always be that way, you can't reason with them, and confrontation just makes them worse. He says, these aren't just random people, either- they are dangerous and just need the right situation to set them off. Remember the man who was shot by police this week? (There was a deal here this week where a horse trailer broke down in front of a guy's house, about 11PM, and was stuck there a couple hours waiting for a tow and another trailer to remove the horses. Man in the house becomes irate that this trailer is out there, and gets confrontational, and the police are called, and arrive, and try to calm him down, and (he has a past history of police confrontations) the guy goes back in the house, and comes out again, and the horse trailer driver notices he has a gun, which he proceeds to draw on the cop, who shoots and kills him.) Just a time bomb waiting to go off. Captain asks us all, for our safety and the safety of other riders, to remain non-confrontational and say nothing if treated aggressively by drivers. Good advice, I would say. He said get as much of the license plate as possible, even the first three letters will be enough, with a truck description, to ID the driver. Call the police later. (Do you think police take aggressive driving reports seriously, or blow it off???)

Later, at about mile 30, I am in a small group, and a large truck comes up behind, with no oncoming traffic, blaring his horn, and the team captain bails out and goes cyclocrossing through the ditch. Everyone else held their line, and the truck eventually moved to the left and blasted past us.

I wonder if groups of riders enrage drivers more than a single rider, or if it was just a bad day in redneck North Central Florida...I've never seen such aggressive behavior ever.

Nanci