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Sussex swearing man YouTube stillPolice identify driver who unleashed torrent of abuse on Sussex cyclist (+ video)
Sussex police have identified the driver of a Jaguar car who launched an expletive-ridden tirade at a cyclist and also appeared to punch him in a road rage incident earlier this month.
Cyclist Eddie Bell, aged 38, posted video to YouTube of the incident, which took place near Pevensey Bay, East Sussex, the weekend before last. He made a note of the vehicle’s registration number and passed it on to Sussex Police.
Quoted in the Argus, a spokesperson for Sussex Police said: “Police have the video and have identified the driver. They will be investigating this as an incident of public place violent crime.”
Here’s the video of the incident. With 25 swear words in 37 seconds, it’s very definitely Not Suitable For Work:
From what Mr Bell says in the description to the YouTube video, it seems that the driver may have interpreted what the cyclist says was “a cheeky wave” as an altogether more insulting gesture, although even so the reaction would strike most as being way over the top.
Mr Bell said:
This guy pulled into the green cyclist box on the approach to Pevensey Bay indicating that he was turning left so I gestured as if to say what are you doing this is a cyclist / motorcycle box to protect us from what you're about to do.
He wound down the window and spat some abuse and then sped off turning left towards Beachlands. I gave him a cheeky wave (not anything more) and cycled on towards Eastbourne forgetting about the matter.
He later passed me very close and drove down to Martello Road where he waited for me. I noticed that my go-pro was dead and this is when I got my phone out as I could see what was going to happen. There is no preceding footage as my go-pro battery had died.
I took the video on my phone as I thought it would deter the driver from over reacting. With a bike between my legs and one of my feet still cleated into the pedals, what more could you expect me to do?
Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
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59 comments
My guess is that he's just a wanker, that knows, through repeated feedback from everyone that he comes into contact with, that he's a wanker.
Unfortunately, because of the dominant trends in popular culture which suggest that cyclists may be messed with this particular wanker thinks he is going to get away with it.
This is a case where my inner liberal capitulates to my conservative super-ego and urges that caning and imprisonment are too good for him.
Words he forgot:
Willy
Fanny
Poo
Bum
Norks
Wimblers
Flaps
Danglers
Bugger
Balls
Banjax
Biscuits
Starfish
Crisps
Fish
Merkin
C*ttlefish
I had a young lad pull over, jump out of his car and stand in the road waiting for me. When I arrived, I stopped and straddled the bike for a bit of stability as he put his face in mine, just a couple of inches away.
"Did you call me a w***** because I drove too close to you?" He screamed at me.
Lost for words I was.
I'm not quite sure why the cyclist stopped. Having made the point in wasting the drivers time, i.e. he's now stopped. I'd just carry on my merry way leaving the driver stood by the road looking silly.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Just-world_hypothesis
Read the description...
Its filmed with a mobile phone, not a GoPro (hence the 'vertical' video)
The owner got the camera out when the he saw the driver waiting for him. He's not edited out anything.
I was just about to say much the same thing. If his GoPro's battery hadn't run out he could have still edited the footage to remove whatever happened before.
Was also about to observe that! Surprised the comment got so many recommendations when it really doesn't make sense - if there was something 'reflecting badly on the user' he could have just not mentioned the GoPro's existence at all - it appears to have played no part in the affair.
This video illustrates why it's never worth getting into a spat - you just never know when you're messing with a psycho. Conversely, of course, I'd love to imagine the next cyclist this guy picks on is some pissed-off cage fighter that's just found out his wife's left him...
I'm constantly puzzled by the way the crazy-aggressive types manage to avoid getting into conflicts with each other more often than they do. I think they must have some sort of organisation working hard behind the scenes to avoid such inter-nutter conflicts. They probably work out schedules and time-tables to ensure they don't cross paths too often. Or maybe they can sense each other's presence in some mysterious fashion?
brilliant
I genuinely don't know how i would react to that, my natural reaction would be to smack the silly c**t back twice as hard. But knowing how easilly i could be knocked over in cleats and over the bike, it would restrain me. I probably would've stopped by his car and waited for him to get back to it actually before remonstrating in the same manner...it just doen't get any better.
As for what happened, the driver clearly thinks he was called a wanker, as he repeatedly states on the video. So we have a version of his side of the story too, if that's all it takes to get him so very angry i worry for anyone else who meets him
It scares me that there are people out on the road like the car driver. What get's into peoples heads to behave like Cavemen? Here's hoping he gets charged and the experience is enough to dissuade him from behaving like this in the future, but he might hate cyclists even more......
What is wrong with this guy? It really depresses me that there are people around who behave that way, and it depresses me even more to think that they might be in charge of a ton or two of metal.
Looks like the driver will be charged with assault.
'Predictably the comments in the local rag are supportive of the driver. '
Not surprising, given that we only see one side of the story...
W-T-***ACTUAL***-F has that got to do with it?
Would you mind clarifying what behaviour on the cyclist's behalf would justify (morally or legally, take your pick) this sort of reaction?
'not surprising', not 'rightly so'.
This guy is clearly an absolute plank. But, what happened before could have been *anything*. You and I, as cyclists, know to probably 99% accuracy that it was almost certainly absolutely nothing. Others don't. So, some people are going to side with the driver in the absence of any evidence to the contrary. Human nature
It's become more apparent to me a helmet cam or similar is a valuable device, particularly on certain routes, and this is a perfect example. I wear one daily on the bike commute.
What really shows how daft the driver is .. the cyclist is HOLDING a camera phone! You can't get more obvious than that unless a camera crew follows you around everywhere. The driver deserves everything he'll get, not only is he clearly a wanker, he is a stupid wanker.
In regards to those commenting in the local rag -- they're also the ones you need a helmet cam for.
Predictably the comments in the local rag are supportive of the driver.
All this stuff will not stop until theres better education for all road users and the highway code is actually enforced.
Jeez those GoPros are clever things. They even run out of battery when there's a chance of recording something that might reflect badly on the owner.
Rather cross, isn't he? As he appeared to throw the first punch (and there looked to be witnesses to the fact, and his stance on the roadside was clearly premeditated), I'd like to think a subsequent chainring/cogset to the face and removal of his carkeys to the top of the nearest tree would have calmed things down and allowed time for the Police to arrive.
Of course, no-one wins a war.
Except, of course, the winner?
I think his brother must be driving the 760 TransDev bus from Leeds to Keighley last night.
Had a word with him after he came across the cycle lane to get round a right turning car.
He was out of his seat about to give me what for, until he noticed that three other cyclists had stopped to back me up...
I hope you got a number plate, or at least an approximate time, combined with a half decent description of the driver it might be worth letting the company know. Both the driving behaviour and the response to your remonstration are entirely inappropriate and bring the company into disrepute.
Yes driver of the car for your info you are a wanker a complete wanker infact, he would of been eating cleat & picking up parts of his car too
Who did he think he was ? Alan Ford or Ray Winstone ..definatly got his script from Guy Richie though
Auto Pause... No wonder he crapped his pants.
Interesting behaviour on British roads, I had a teenager shouting similar abuse at me on Huddersfield road not that long ago. He was driving behind me for about half a mile beebing, even though there was no oncoming traffic and I was not cycling in the middle of the road. (at least not until his beebing got on my nerfs) So he could have easily overtaken me. I still have visions of what i wish (but probably would not have done) if the guy had confronted me like that.
self protection on a bycyle: http://zapatopi.net/blog/?post=201105171350.self-protection_on_a_cycle
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