Many Thai drivers/riders become aggressive when you overtake them. Why?

[Hili]

stop talking and start riding

btw dont put any (DELETED) into my mouth which i never said. I never preached anything about proper driving; i ride how i ride finito - if you have a problem with thats fine with me cause i will never ride with you.

a forum full of crybabies

Edited April 23, 2015 by seedy
language

[jdinasia]

What's with all the trolls and their fake anger?

You ask a simple question as to why many Thai drivers/riders act a certain way, and the trolls go nuts.

Most of us don't have the issues you claim to experience regularly.

[Happy Grumpy]

stop talking and start riding

btw dont put any (DELETED) into my mouth which i never said. I never preached anything about proper driving; i ride how i ride finito - if you have a problem with thats fine with me cause i will never ride with you.

a forum full of crybabies

You're getting angry.

Why not just answer the simple questions that were asked instead of throwing a hissy fit and ignoring them?

They do seem like more than reasonable.

[Happy Grumpy]

What's with all the trolls and their fake anger?

You ask a simple question as to why many Thai drivers/riders act a certain way, and the trolls go nuts.

Most of us don't have the issues you claim to experience regularly.

Let's not forget the question....

Why it happens, not if.

Just flicking through the first 5 pages there are 18 different posters that mention it happening. There really is no if about it. Questioning if is just trolling. Or as another poster pointed out - they just don't realize it's happening - as I didn't for a few years until Thais explained the meaning of it.

[andrewrooney]

^There are at least as many people disagreeing with you, if not more. Also, interestingly enough, many of the people disagreeing with you are the regular posters on the bike forum, whereas the people who are agreeing with you all seem to have migrated from the general forum or wherever you posted this originally. This being the internet, unfortunately it's impossible to ascertain whether or not any of you actually ride, but I'm guessing it's not many.

Your last post makes it pretty clear you're just trying to get a rise out of people with this thread. Therefore, I put it to you that you and your racist buddy are in fact the trolls, and I will abandon this shitfest of a thread. Toodle-oo.

[Happy Grumpy]

There are at least as many people disagreeing with you, if not more.

Again the question is not if, it is why. There is no disagreement that it happens.

Toodle-oo.

Edited April 23, 2015 by Happy Grumpy

[Hili]

stop talking and start riding

btw dont put any (DELETED) into my mouth which i never said. I never preached anything about proper driving; i ride how i ride finito - if you have a problem with thats fine with me cause i will never ride with you.

a forum full of crybabies

You're getting angry.

Why not just answer the simple questions that were asked instead of throwing a hissy fit and ignoring them?

They do seem like more than reasonable.

Sure here are the answers:

I ride offensive because nobody give a damn about you on this roads so you have to watch out for yourself (and not to endanger others) but then in then in the end there are the ppl who are riding as per the book keeping on the left lane and slowly riding and these are exactly the ppl who get scared cause they get pushed by others and feeling offended; maybe even get overrun or get front ended into a songtaewo.

The way i ride is just for me and i dint recommend this to anybody cause its up to you how you ride. But then don't get scared here and start to complain, everybody choose his choice so if you don't like to ride here go home and stop calling others reckless if you have no clue about riding here.

I just adapted to the situation here; don't blame me for that, blame the thais as you always do here!

[wantan]

This thread is at least as interesting as the "Are big bikes safer than scooters?" thread. This is why we have TV bike forum. To be able to discuss such things politely and with open minds. Thats not possible in a forum solely for big bikes. Love it

[Happy Grumpy]

stop talking and start riding

btw dont put any (DELETED) into my mouth which i never said. I never preached anything about proper driving; i ride how i ride finito - if you have a problem with thats fine with me cause i will never ride with you.

a forum full of crybabies

You're getting angry.

Why not just answer the simple questions that were asked instead of throwing a hissy fit and ignoring them?

They do seem like more than reasonable.

Sure here are the answers:

I ride offensive because nobody give a damn about you on this roads so you have to watch out for yourself (and not to endanger others) but then in then in the end there are the ppl who are riding as per the book keeping on the left lane and slowly riding and these are exactly the ppl who get scared cause they get pushed by others and feeling offended; maybe even get overrun or get front ended into a songtaewo.

The way i ride is just for me and i dint recommend this to anybody cause its up to you how you ride. But then don't get scared here and start to complain, everybody choose his choice so if you don't like to ride here go home and stop calling others reckless if you have no clue about riding here.

I just adapted to the situation here; don't blame me for that, blame the thais as you always do here!

Great. Fascinating.

Now perhaps you could reply to the topic.

Aggression on the roads here. Why?

[Myaimistrue]

This thread is at least as interesting as the "Are big bikes safer than scooters?" thread. This is why we have TV bike forum. To be able to discuss such things politely and with open minds. Thats not possible in a forum solely for big bikes. Love it

You're an experienced rider, what do you think about this? Have you experienced competitive Thai riders and, if so, why do you think it happens?

[Nebula]

I race or ride like I race sometimes usually when no many vehicles around and didnt see agressive scooters. Crazy yes. Agressive coz I passed them No. Lets go and research . I am in Northern Bangkok. There was agression look at one when I yelled at him coz he was riding in the middle of the left lane and there was a bus in the other, both doing same slow speed. So I couldnt stand him doing this and me waiting for them to free space.

[English_M_in_Bkk]

stop talking and start riding

btw dont put any (DELETED) into my mouth which i never said. I never preached anything about proper driving; i ride how i ride finito - if you have a problem with thats fine with me cause i will never ride with you.

a forum full of crybabies

You're getting angry.

Why not just answer the simple questions that were asked instead of throwing a hissy fit and ignoring them?

They do seem like more than reasonable.

Sure here are the answers:

I ride offensive because nobody give a damn about you on this roads so you have to watch out for yourself (and not to endanger others) but then in then in the end there are the ppl who are riding as per the book keeping on the left lane and slowly riding and these are exactly the ppl who get scared cause they get pushed by others and feeling offended; maybe even get overrun or get front ended into a songtaewo.

The way i ride is just for me and i dint recommend this to anybody cause its up to you how you ride. But then don't get scared here and start to complain, everybody choose his choice so if you don't like to ride here go home and stop calling others reckless if you have no clue about riding here.

I just adapted to the situation here; don't blame me for that, blame the thais as you always do here!

Great. Fascinating.

Now perhaps you could reply to the topic.

Aggression on the roads here. Why?

You aren't interested in a reason why, in fact there is no reason because the whole concept of what you are saying is ludicrous in the first place.

First of you you would have to accept that all Thai people think the same, that if some people are acting aggressively it must be because they have some kind of shared psychosis that only manifests itself in certain racial groups - clearly this is ridiculous and just can't be answered. Some riders/drivers out there are idiots and aggressive. Yes, there is a lot of bad driving out there, and that can be clearly explained by the fact that the driving test over here is a joke - has nothing to do with crackpot Victorian notions of shared traits based on race.

When a lot of people have rightly told you that their many years of experiences of riding in Bangkok has not resulted in the same outlook as yours, you rudely shut them down and just call them trolls.

Yes, you can have an opinion, but when that opinion seems a little crazy, and reading your original post what you are saying does seem kind of crazy. Don't be surprised if people say "Hang on that sounds like bs to me"

I love riding in Bangkok, and I love riding around Thailand. I ride everywhere, everyday I am on a bike, and I have had some run ins with idiots, but I expect the same in a Western country too. Saying that doesn't make me or anyone else a troll.

[Happy Grumpy]

in fact there is no reason because the whole concept of what you are saying is ludicrous in the first place.

That about 10% of scooter/bikes that I overtake on my city commute react aggressively?

Ludicrous.

Hmmmm.

Yes, there is a lot of bad driving out there, and that can be clearly explained by the fact that the driving test over here is a joke

Interesting theory.

But sounds a bit, well, ludicrous when we're talking about aggressive driving.

[wantan]

I had some idiots in cars who increased speed when i started overtaking. They are not in a hurry but simply wont let you pass. This can get dangerous if your bike lacks some power.
And if there are such idiots in the cars, chances are there are similar idiots on bikes.

Why?
- manness
- face
- and often frustration

[Myaimistrue]

I had some idiots in cars who increased speed when i started overtaking. They are not in a hurry but simply wont let you pass. This can get dangerous if your bike lacks some power.

And if there are such idiots in the cars, chances are there are similar idiots on bikes.

Why?

- manness

- face

- and often frustration

Yes, it happens to me regularly with cars and bikes and I do think it has something to do with a perceived "loss of face." Sure, it happens everywhere, but I find it much more common here. Like someone else said, you can sometimes see a puff of smoke as you come up behind someone who nails it in an attempt to prevent you from passing, then they have to jam on the brakes to avoid rear ending someone as you split the lane and leave them behind.

[English_M_in_Bkk]

in fact there is no reason because the whole concept of what you are saying is ludicrous in the first place.

That about 10% of scooter/bikes that I overtake on my city commute react aggressively?

Ludicrous.

Hmmmm.

Yes, there is a lot of bad driving out there, and that can be clearly explained by the fact that the driving test over here is a joke

Interesting theory.

But sounds a bit, well, ludicrous when we're talking about aggressive driving.

The phrase 'it went completely over your head' just about sums it up. Adios fantasy man, some of us will just keep on loving riding in this great city and country.

[Happy Grumpy]

Okay, it's all down to the poor driving test they do.

Thanks for the input. Goodbye fantasy man.

[Gweiloman]

But if you see it as reckless driving thats your problem than you seem to dont know how to survive on these roads.

Interesting.

Some view it as 'reckless driving', some (bizarrely) don't.

• Why don't you?

• What do you see it as?

How does my situation:

Cruising smoothly, observing the road far in front of me, letting people who want to overtake me overtake me and race away while I cruise at (not too far) above the flow of traffic, observing all around me, not caring about beating people and needing to show them my 'rear tire' to feel content in myself'.

• Equate to 'not knowing how to survive on these roads?'

Thanks for the interesting discussion.

As i mentioned its offensive but controlled riding.

Nice riding Hili. Staying ahead of traffic. Like your life saver checks. Noticed that you are covering the brakes too!!

Are you sure this is Bangkok, Thailand? Didn't notice any aggressive riders, haha. Had a good laugh around 12:29. The BIB sure wasn't going to step out in front of you.

[Gweiloman]

Just out of curiosity, what do you ride and what sort of riding do you do? Commuting, touring, racing? Would help some of us to understand better where you are coming from so that we would know how to respond to your posts.

My situation is :

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/818776-many-thai-driversriders-become-aggressive-when-you-overtake-them-why/page-3#entry9325603

Today it was a CBR150R while on my CBR250R.

He was in front of me.

I just do what I always do on that road, observe in front of me and move smoothly into other lanes. He got stuck in his lane as I cruised past him in another lane.

A few minutes later and as the road had opened up I am cruising and go to change lanes into my right, check my mirrors and do a head turn and luckily picked him up as he came from behind left at WOT to overtake me on my right by a few centimeters in a racing position.

Very, very aggressive.

Not very peaceful and Buddhist.

You had the misfortune to encounter one of many idiotic riders. But he's not idiotic just because you overtook him right? In fact, what you did can hardly even be called an overtaking manoeuvre. You were merely on a different lane from him.

What you take for aggressive, I would actually call it just fun playing. Many a times, there would be riders on much smaller bikes than mine adopting a racing position and catching up to me while I'm cruising along. When they do overtake me, they will let up and sit up a bit and when I re-overtake them, I will them the thumbs up and almost always get the same in return. What you (and most likely the OP) doesn't realise is that it's aspirational for some to ride big bikes. So when they see a big bike go by, they like to fantasise that they are on a BB themselves.

Depending on your love or hatred of Thais, it would either be classified as a laugh or aggression.

[Gweiloman]

This thread is at least as interesting as the "Are big bikes safer than scooters?" thread. This is why we have TV bike forum. To be able to discuss such things politely and with open minds. Thats not possible in a forum solely for big bikes. Love it

That's why a lot of BB riders can't be bothered to post here anymore. Makes no sense to debate anything with someone who rides at 70 kph on Thai highways.

[Gweiloman]

Well, my mooh ban must extend all the way down to Nakhon Si Thammarat, because I just road my "scooter" down there and back, encountering many competitive/aggressive Thais in cars and on bikes during the 2000km trip!

Depending on what speed you ride your scooter, I guess you would classify anyone that overtook you as being "competitive/aggressive"

[Gweiloman]

The flip-side of the coin on this is when you drive a motorbike (translation: scooter), and unavoidably hold back traffic.

Several times, I have been at a place on the highway where there was no shoulder, and had to move out into the lane, when it appeared clear and safe behind me. I was driving about 70-80 kmh, but that was way too slow for a number of impatient drivers who came up behind me at over 100kmh. Many times, they have passed me, leaving less than a half-meter between my leg and the side of their vehicle, which scares the water outta me. Several other times, they passed, then purposely edged over to the side of the road where there was gravel, and sprayed me with dirt and rocks (a good reason for a full-faced helmet).

I know the hot-shots in this forum will tell me to get a hotter bike, yadda, yadda, yadda..... But that's not the point. I mostly toodle around the village and seldom get out on the open highway. I don't do this often, because I respect the danger incurred when holding back impatient traffic in Thailand; but there are sometimes when it cannot be avoided. The vengeful idiots then compound the danger by their anger.

Absolute recklessness and spite.

It's riders like you that is the reason why the law states that riders have to keep on the left lane, not allowed on bridges, overpasses, underpasses, toll roads............ sheesh.

Do us all a favour. Stay in your mooban

[Gweiloman]

Your own problem if you let yourself get disctracted by idiots on the road; we all know there are more than enough out there. I don't give a <deleted> about these i ride my way and mostly focus on myslef and my surroundings.

They are your surroundings.

Change 'distracted' to 'noticing'.

Why do you care that 'They see your rear tire anyway'?

You seem to have a dangerous riding attitude and poor skill set.

Perhaps some riding training would benefit you and keep you around a few years/decades longer.

You are in your 20's right? Best get some more motoring experience under your belt before you start challenging the more accomplished riders.

[Whyamiandwhatamidoinghere]

I think it must be added that NO Farang ever does anything that could be seen as dangerous on the roads, Farangs in Fortuners and huge Pick ups are shy, laid back folk, with excellent road manners, who never ever break the speed limit, never ever drink and drive, if only the Thai's could be more like us white folk, the world would be a better place.

Hang on a minute, perhaps they are like us...........

http://www.statisticbrain.com/driving-citation-statistics/

http://www.statisticbrain.com/number-of-dui-arrests-per-state/

Maybe you should consider being like like them non white folks since white folks are near extinction. Your best hope is for protective status of an endangered species.

[wantan]

This thread is at least as interesting as the "Are big bikes safer than scooters?" thread. This is why we have TV bike forum. To be able to discuss such things politely and with open minds. Thats not possible in a forum solely for big bikes. Love it

That's why a lot of BB riders can't be bothered to post here anymore. Makes no sense to debate anything with someone who rides at 70 kph on Thai highways.

Whatever, we are happy you still join us every day. Be honest, you love TV too

[Myaimistrue]

But if you see it as reckless driving thats your problem than you seem to dont know how to survive on these roads.

Interesting.

Some view it as 'reckless driving', some (bizarrely) don't.

• Why don't you?

• What do you see it as?

How does my situation:

Cruising smoothly, observing the road far in front of me, letting people who want to overtake me overtake me and race away while I cruise at (not too far) above the flow of traffic, observing all around me, not caring about beating people and needing to show them my 'rear tire' to feel content in myself'.

• Equate to 'not knowing how to survive on these roads?'

Thanks for the interesting discussion.

As i mentioned its offensive but controlled riding.

When and why was this? It was entertaining, but I did not see many opportunities for what we are talking about to occur. Traffic was light and it looked like a Sunday morning joy ride. My daily morning, and especially afternoon, commutes look a lot different than this! That said, I use the same strategy as you, get out, and stay, ahead!

[bramds]

But if you see it as reckless driving thats your problem than you seem to dont know how to survive on these roads.

Interesting.

Some view it as 'reckless driving', some (bizarrely) don't.

• Why don't you?

• What do you see it as?

How does my situation:

Cruising smoothly, observing the road far in front of me, letting people who want to overtake me overtake me and race away while I cruise at (not too far) above the flow of traffic, observing all around me, not caring about beating people and needing to show them my 'rear tire' to feel content in myself'.

• Equate to 'not knowing how to survive on these roads?'

Thanks for the interesting discussion.

As i mentioned its offensive but controlled riding.

Hili, nice to see someone riding in my hood

I have the exact same riding style. If you don't ride like this, you are lost, in my opinion, cut through and get ahead.

Never had a Thai do any victory movements, saw it one time from a guy on a scooter who just escaped a police checkpoint, there I could understand the excitement.

What a lot of people here don't understand is treat others like you want to be treated yourself.

[johnsell50]

I saw plenty of this behavior in Chiang Mai when I lived there. I had a Thai on a bigger bike cut me off then when I beeped at him give me the finger.I raced sports cars for a while in my misspent youth so i decided to have a little fun in my little Mira and raced him down the very curvy road we were on. After I punched it and passed him I slid through all of the turns till I got to a bigger road then slowed down and let him pass. He gave me the finger again and I gave him the biggest smile I could and waved bye. I'm not sure he appreciated it. And yes, those little Miras have a lot of balls up to about 80 KPH. After that forget it. I also had a Thai here in Udon get very mad at me because I didn't move over into oncoming traffic so he could pass me on the left around parked cars in traffic. Once we got moving he took a stick and started beating on the side of my truck. I am not a badass but no one should have to put up with that shit so I blocked him in, got out of my truck, walked over to him and took away his stick. Then I got back into my truck and drove away. No more problems. I think it helped a little that I am 6'2' and weigh 200 lbs. And yes, I probably should have more sense but no one has accused me of having any sense in a long time. LOL!

[Myaimistrue]

Well, my mooh ban must extend all the way down to Nakhon Si Thammarat, because I just road my "scooter" down there and back, encountering many competitive/aggressive Thais in cars and on bikes during the 2000km trip!

Depending on what speed you ride your scooter, I guess you would classify anyone that overtook you as being "competitive/aggressive"

I rarely get overtaken, I'm talking about Thais trying to prevent you from overtaking them and/or reacting to being overtaken.

[DLang]

I saw plenty of this behavior in Chiang Mai when I lived there.

Phuket, Pattaya, Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Udon Thani, Nakhon Si Thammarat and the entire route there from BKK. Where numerous posters on this small thread have all experienced it.

The question of why it happens is an interesting one.... Perhaps it questions somethings that some posters don't want to question and find uncomfortable.

Edited April 24, 2015 by DLang