What's your strangest or funniest interaction with a motorist?

[mylanc]

I'm sure that a lot of you out there with many more miles than me have some great stories, but my interaction with a woman in a car the other day prompts me to ask what funny/odd interactions you've had with drivers.

I was stopped a couple of cars behind a red light toward the left side in the left-most lane anticipating a left turn further up the road. I noticed the car behind me inching forward and then crowding next to me in my lane along side of me. An "earthy" woman, probably in her 60's, rolls down her window and says to me sincerely, "I think it's great that you're wearing all that safety gear and riding safely. My brother rides in California." A bit surprised by the whole sequence and her comments, I replied, "Thanks". Just then, the light turned green and traffic started forward. Instead of letting me go ahead, she pulled forward cutting me off leaving me to gawk at her bumper and several environmentally related bumper stickers.

[bluehole]

1: Several years ago I had an RT with the electric windshield. Rolling down the interstate I lowered the windshield because the temperature was rising after a cool morning. Seeing the windshield move electronically excited the kids in the mini-van in the lane next to me. The mini-van and I traveled side by side for a few miles while I accommodated their requests, via hand signals, to raise and lower the windshield. Fun to find out what entertains kids.

2: Roughly 20 minutes from home...returning from a long trip...of course in driving rain. I am in the left lane of a long sweeping exit from one highway to another. As I pass a Mercedes I look over and see the driver. He is nicely dressed in a blue striped oxford shirt. He looks over at me, picks up his Starbucks, gives me a slight "Cheers" nod, smiles and takes a sip of his coffee. I had to chuckle. Here we are, side by side in completely different environments. I am in the rain, wet and dirty. The rain hitting my helmet sounds like gravel. Meanwhile the man in the Benz is traveling beside me in dry comfort...probably listening to classical music. His actions were not ill willed. I think he appreciated the moment as I did.

[royce]

... 2: Roughly 20 minutes from home...returning from a long trip...of course in driving rain. I am in the left lane of a long sweeping exit from one highway to another. As I pass a Mercedes I look over and see the driver. He is nicely dressed in a blue striped oxford shirt. He looks over at me, picks up his Starbucks, gives me a slight "Cheers" nod, smiles and takes a sip of his coffee. I had to chuckle. Here we are, side by side in completely different environments. I am in the rain, wet and dirty. The rain hitting my helmet sounds like gravel. Meanwhile the man in the Benz is traveling beside me in dry comfort...probably listening to classical music. His actions were not ill willed. I think he appreciated the moment as I did.

I equate this interaction to two riders waving to each other. Neat story, thx for sharing.

[David13]

All my encounters are like that.
I mean, they are all funny, odd, strange. All something. A lot of them are funny or comical.
I suppose one recent one I remember. And old man says, do you like riding that bike? I wouldn't do it if I didn't like it says I.
I recently told another one, in response to a similar comment, I love riding it.
A lot of times when I lane split to the front of the line at a stop light, I will talk to the first car driver, if their window is open. Or, they talk to me.
I always talk to other bike riders, if I stop beside them. I have to say something.
Some years ago a man said to me, oh, I'd like to have a bike like that, but the wife wouldn't let me.
Why not do what some of us do, says I, have the wife buy the bike for you? Oh, that's not going to happen, says he. But he was sufficiently chagrined to go home and look in the mirror.
Some don't respond. So I just move on to the next.
dc

[cehlbeck]

Just this past Sunday I was riding from north Georgia down to Daytona Beach, FL to visit my Dad. I was on I-75 in south Georgia, in the middle lane, with the cruise control on. There was an SUV ahead of me in the right lane that was pulling a trailer and travelling at a slower speed. As approached I could see children's bicycles in the trailer and then noticed there was an Ontario, Canada plate on the trailer (maybe the SUV). Then I saw an R1200GSA on the trailer! As I slowly pulled along side the driver looked over and gave me an energetic wave when he saw me on my K1200LT. I pointed back at his GSA, shook my head (like a parent giving the "no no" sign) and shook my finger at him. I could see he burst out laughing. Then he pointed at his wife, shrugged his shoulders and she started laughing too. We all had a good laugh. I really hoped that I'd run into them at a rest or gas stop along the way.

[mylanc]

1: Several years ago I had an RT with the electric windshield. Rolling down the interstate I lowered the windshield because the temperature was rising after a cool morning. Seeing the windshield move electronically excited the kids in the mini-van in the lane next to me. The mini-van and I traveled side by side for a few miles while I accommodated their requests, via hand signals, to raise and lower the windshield. Fun to find out what entertains kids.

2: Roughly 20 minutes from home...returning from a long trip...of course in driving rain. I am in the left lane of a long sweeping exit from one highway to another. As I pass a Mercedes I look over and see the driver. He is nicely dressed in a blue striped oxford shirt. He looks over at me, picks up his Starbucks, gives me a slight "Cheers" nod, smiles and takes a sip of his coffee. I had to chuckle. Here we are, side by side in completely different environments. I am in the rain, wet and dirty. The rain hitting my helmet sounds like gravel. Meanwhile the man in the Benz is traveling beside me in dry comfort...probably listening to classical music. His actions were not ill willed. I think he appreciated the moment as I did.

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Just this past Sunday I was riding from north Georgia down to Daytona Beach, FL to visit my Dad. I was on I-75 in south Georgia, in the middle lane, with the cruise control on. There was an SUV ahead of me in the right lane that was pulling a trailer and travelling at a slower speed. As approached I could see children's bicycles in the trailer and then noticed there was an Ontario, Canada plate on the trailer (maybe the SUV). Then I saw an R1200GSA on the trailer! As I slowly pulled along side the driver looked over and gave me an energetic wave when he saw me on my K1200LT. I pointed back at his GSA, shook my head (like a parent giving the "no no" sign) and shook my finger at him. I could see he burst out laughing. Then he pointed at his wife, shrugged his shoulders and she started laughing too. We all had a good laugh. I really hoped that I'd run into them at a rest or gas stop along the way.

Great stories!

[LuckyGrownup]

1) I had a car pull over while I was speeding to work at 6AM on my 2002 R1150-RTP. I thought that was funny since the police lights are disabled. I was only going 70-80MPH on a highway posted for 55MPH. The driver was going about 60MPH-65MPH. So, this one made me laugh.

2) The other incident was while in a grocery store. I was in full gear. My helmet was in the shopping cart. A male in his thirties walked up to me and said 'That is so cool.' 'What do you do ?'. His eyes were like saucers as if I was a famous stuntman or a space man that recently escaped from the international space station. I think I let him down when I said I a motorcyle commuter.

[elgin mary]

I stopped for gas on a camping trip. I was in full gear and had me tent and things on the pillion. A husband and wife came up to me and asked me if I rode that big motorcycle all by myself. I looked at the bike and then looked and them and said yes indeed. Not sure where I would have been able to put the real driver.

[Omega Man]

Here is one from old Bubba-Z, looked up "old school" 'cuz the ADV Lady is always excited to see someone
http://forums.bmwmoa.org/showthread....o-see-me-today!
OM

[The_Veg]

The other incident was while in a grocery store. I was in full gear. My helmet was in the shopping cart. A male in his thirties walked up to me and said 'That is so cool.' 'What do you do ?'. His eyes were like saucers as if I was a famous stuntman or a space man that recently escaped from the international space station. I think I let him down when I said I a motorcyle commuter.

I had a similar thing when I lived in Dallas. I was in a grocery store in riding gear, and to set the picture, I stand 6'4" and I have broad shoulders and red hair, which at the time was cropped fairly close. My height was added-to by wearing tactical police-style combat boots, which at the time were my low-budget riding boots. I was also in a black Firstgear Kilimanjaro and black Belstaf pants. So this older gent walks up to me with this dumbfounded grin and says, in a nice TexSux drawl, "Sir, you look like a German paratrooper!" I told him that he wasn't that far off since I had a German motorbike parked outside, and we both had a good laugh.

Another one happened a few years later during a ride on a hot day in the North TexSux countryside while stopped for fuel and refreshment at a convenience store. I was walking out of the store and this older guy (why is it always the older guys?) was about to walk in. Picture an old farmer-type, jeans, white V-neck T-shirt, leathery skin, straw cowboy hat. "Izzat'chur Bee-Emm-Dubya?" he asks in a thick drawl. We got to talking for about ten minutes and he told me that he was stationed in Germany back in the 1950s and had a buddy who rode a war-surplus BMW and liked to corner it on the cylinder-heads (made the turn-radius smaller, he said...I would imagine so!). I love moments like that.

Then there are all the children in front yards. *ALWAYS* wave to them!

Another time a couple of days before arriving at the Lima rally I was scooting around southern Ohio having a good ol' time exploring the backroads and passed through some Amish-country. The road had some ups and downs to it and as I was coming over the top of one this Amish lad was coming over the top from the other way on a bicycle. I remember his light-blue shirt and suspenders and straw hat, and how he looked just a year or two shy of the point where he would have to start growing the beard. He appeared to be enjoying the day, and we exchanged a wave as we passed...and maybe it's just me, but I think I saw a slight glimmer of envy in his eyes.

Another children-story: one time in a parking lot in front of a store I was getting on the bike and making-ready to take off, and this toddler was admiring the whole process, his mom cooing the usual, "yes, it's a motorcycle!" type of banter, and as I hit the starter he reflexively put his fingers in his ears! Then he realised that the airhead wasn't that loud and looked a little perplexed as he withdrew the fingers. I suppose that that's a sad commentary on what, at his tender age, he had already come to expect from motorcycles, but it was still sort of funny.

[The_Veg]

Oh and I forgot the other cute moment at the store, same visit as the 'paratrooper' story. So I come out to the bike to find a really blingy custom-chopper parked next to my bike. The rider of it comes out just after I do. I'm putting my groceries into the Integral cases while he's figuring out how to carry his carton of Blue Bell, which winds up against his crotch right behind the tank. He gives me this little amused half-glance that says he wishes he'd had some luggage and that he knows it's gonna be a cold ride home.

[jshuck]

I park my bike around the corner, leave my helmet and walk around the corner to the bakery for a scone. I guy is getting out of his Audi and he looks at me in all my gear and asks, "Fisherman or Plumber?" We have a good laugh and then we get into a discussion about wearing the proper gear and a helmet. I'm 67 and he was about the same age, but he's stuck in his cage.

[glenfiddich]

A couple years ago I was commuting to work on my GS wearing my red Stich Onesie. While waiting for the light to change so I could make my left turn a blue hair woman pulled up in the lane next to me and signaled that she had something to tell me. I leaned over and opened my visor.

"Nanu, nanu!" she shouted, then laughed and drove away.

[drummer]

Great stories - thanks all.

It is sad, but all i seem to remember are the ones were people just amaze rather than add humor. Things like being in a store with full AGATT gear (minus helmet) and have someone ask, "do you ride a motorcycle?" Really?? They have to ask??

[jcabiles]

1 - There are several stretches of I-66 outside of the WA DC Beltway that have restricted lanes that are open/closed to accommodate rush hour traffic. They are "controlled" with green arrow/red x lights. There are always cagers who are in such a hurry, they ride these lanes when the Red X lights are on. I have an '04 RT-P with the code 3 lights removed. Last week as I drove in the right lane next to the restricted lane, I watched traffic in my right side mirror. I saw several cars approach the restricted lanes and continue on. I immediately slowed to the speed limit, then put on my 4 way flashers and extended my left arm out. The cars in the restricted lanes did see me and put on their left turn signals and appeared to slow. A couple immediately merged into the correct travel lanes. One eventually caught up to me and I gave him a blast of my horn and he then moved left.

2 - I'm sure every rider has seen their share of cagers texting and not paying attention while driving. I like the vantage point from my RT-P, and when I come up on a driver texting, I give them a blast on my horn and yell out, "Put the Phone away." Priceless seeing the surprised look on their faces. There was one instance where the driver finally figured out I was not a cop and he went back to texting and driving. I decided to stay well to his rear.

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