greyfeather, I ride in any conditions but the worst thing to ride in is traffic, and among the worst experiences is when someone harasses me verbally or with their car. That is so demoralizing. The only thing that makes it tolerable for me is that I'm involved in local, state, and national bike/ped advocacy. (National is League of American Bicyclists, http://www.bikeleague.org/).

I would advise that you NOT engage anyone, don't respond, don't reply. That is really hard to do and it took me years to just let them go. It is by far the best response. You aren't going to change that particular person at this particular time. You'll have other opportunities to change people's minds about cyclists.

People DO change. I have faith that my advocacy efforts and donations help them change. One day you will talk to someone who will admit "I used to yell at cyclists" or "I used to think cyclists shouldn't be in my way", who feels differently now, because they know a real cyclist-- you-- a real cyclist who is a nice person, not whatever stereotype is in their head.

Thanks for sharing your struggles with us. I've been there, some days I'm still there.