How do you keep your cool?

[wow64]

Some of the drivers do here in Thailand can do some crazy things. Putting yours and their lives in danger.

Cars cutting your off or just merging when you are already there and they can see you.

What do you do?

Scream into your helmet, punch their window, take off their mirror, give them the bird, shake your head, follow them home and kill their family.

How do you keep your cool when riding here so we are not reading about you in the news section?

[eeeya]

Ive got a quick fuse.

But! ive decided its just adds an extra element of danger to an already dangerous situation. I take stock of the situation and try to work out how I could have prevented it.

Ive seen a foreigner on a big bike yelling and screaming at a car on sukhumvit Rd and just decided I don't want to be that guy.

Side note, Previous life I used to be a professional driver. 3 trailer Road trains, dangerous goods gas tankers, liquid ammonium nitrate, Acid, Oversize loads with pilot vehicles.

Size doesnt matter even with flashing lights, pilot escort or DG signage plastered all over there's always someone doing something dumb around you.

[seedy]

Was behind a drunk who was riding his scooter with his girlfriend on the back.

Vigo pulled out into the road - the rider honked his horn and gave him the finger.

Next red light, Vigo stopped behind the scooter. The driver opened the door, walked up to the scooter rider, and put a handgun against his ear.

I handle it by ignoring it. May save your life.

[WingNut]

For the most part I expect it is going to happen so that when it does it helps it to roll off like water on a duck's back.

If every time someone cuts you off you think of it as bringing them one step closer to death because of recklessness then you can gain some comfort in knowing that natural selection will sort them out eventually.

When other bikes try and cut me off when weaving through traffic I just let them go. I have critical thinking skills so I am able to realize that they aren't actually going to get there faster than me if we are just all trying to reach the same red light. They don't think though. They just do.

It takes a bit of mental effort to deal with it. But stay cool applying these rationales and you will remain a lot more relaxed and safer.

Go Easy Rider...

[BSJ]

You get used to life on the roads here. 4.5 years ago on arriving I would yell abuse at 45-50 people a day. Now it probably 45-50 a year!

[ttakata]

The first 6 months here I was always frustrated with the poor infrastructure and general incompetence of this agrarian culture, but knowing there is nothing I can do about it I just accept it now and laugh.

Riding is a dangerous activity and no one can change that so I just ride cautiously; only a little faster than traffic and assume anything ahead of me is drunk.

I do wear hard knuckle gloves for protection from accidents but never had to use them out of anger.

I remember road rage stories in LA and there is no traffic there compared to Bkk. So I imagine some people here are downright psycho taking an hour to go 5 or 10km.

Yes, you never know who has a gun or a sword in their car so if you retaliate you better be on a nimble and fast getaway ride.

[DualSportBiker]

There are both preparation and response. I prepare by being assertive, visible, and alert. Riding a largish, very bright bike affords a modest benefit from an increase in 'second thoughts' around me. I ride fairly hard in town, and I rarely get cut up by smaller bikes, but I don't often ride in Bangkok

Up-country we all have sufficient space and time that getting cut up by cars should also be infrequent, but Thailand is …

Some incidents warrant response. A minivan driver almost killed both of us so I turned around, flagged him down and explained his failure very tersely without being rude or aggressive. I've had less successful exchanges that that before, so normally just let it be.

Anyhow, there is a chance you can change something to extract a less stressful experience from your rides.

Enjoy!

[WingNut]

I would not suggest showing any threatening signs of aggression to other drivers on the road. If you are a foreigner then you are a guest in this country. Show some courtesy and let them go first if necessary. If you get aggressive first you will usually always lose in one way or another if you are the foreigner. I've also seen guns pulled on the road by others firsthand. Best to remain passive to help ensure greater longevity. [emoji106]

Edited May 16, 2015 by WingNut

[HLover]

Don't react at all dummy, your not going to change anything.

Resistance is futile-borg

[Gweiloman]

Hit their wing mirrors if you can be sure that you will get away. Else, just take a deep breath and count to 10.

[slipperylobster]

I let my Thai wife drive....just to get even.

My job is to sit in the back seat, with the beer cooler and the ipad.

[Rhys]

^{Gman.... A challenge, just last week, we read about the American Rider who said the F-word to Thai Teens, because he was not impressed that they cut him off, and he was reminded that Thai can speak and understand some English.. Keep it in...mumble don't say anything out loud that would be heard.. swear in another language.. then.. have a fast bike to get away.. No need to egg on the road rage...because sadly we loose... get shot, get run over and assaulted... who needs that when all you wanted to do was feel the wind on your face and cruise.... tip your helmet as a sign of appeasement, most times that works.. Some people for what ever reason do not like bikes, and some riders give many reasons for them not to like bikers.. The cool heart when possible is best, but if you're thumping with testoeroniiii...then all is fair in war..be warned.}

[WingNut]

Your right about war. In this place war is often fought with a pack mentality. And you will always be on the side with the smaller pack.

[wow64]

Cars cutting you off just before a red light and brake checking you... It's all part of the fun.

Or beeping you for being in the lane in gridlocked traffic.

I think I am pretty patient, but I do see red sometimes.

[CMKiwi]

I've only been here 3 years and I'm still finding it hard to ignore stupidity on the roads. Car and pickups that don't bother to use their mirrors or indicate are the bane of my riding experience. My girlfriend always says I need to calm down as I will never change their driving habits.

However that aside I do feel better when I give the offender a good blast with my air horns. I've just got to refrain from driving up next to them and giving them my best impression of "What the fak are you doing you idiot"

Luckily I haven't been run over or shot yet.

[Gweiloman]

Just did a round trip Bkk - Jomtien - Bkk. I guess the usual idiots would have been out on the roads but as I was solely focused on my own riding, I didn't see any of them. All I saw were cars going slow / fast / weaving / changing lanes without signalling / drifting into other lanes / etc / etc.

I took it all as part of motoring in Thailand and didn't let any of it bother me. Didn't have to do any hard emergency stops even though I was cruising at around 150 and hit higher speeds than that when the coast was clear. It's largely a matter of anticipating what the other road users will do and when they do, just take it in your stride.

[NoshowJones]

Was behind a drunk who was riding his scooter with his girlfriend on the back.

Vigo pulled out into the road - the rider honked his horn and gave him the finger.

Next red light, Vigo stopped behind the scooter. The driver opened the door, walked up to the scooter rider, and put a handgun against his ear.

I handle it by ignoring it. May save your life.

That's the very reason I don't lose my cool here in Thailand, but back in the UK, I handed out a few sore faces, not for what

they did, but for giving me rude hand signs after it.

[NoshowJones]

Hit their wing mirrors if you can be sure that you will get away. Else, just take a deep breath and count to 10.

I like your first sentence, I have done that a few times when motorbikes ride up the sidewalks or through a market beside me.

I always make it look like an accident for the very reason Seedy has already said.

[jonnyscot]

Hit their wing mirrors if you can be sure that you will get away. Else, just take a deep breath and count to 10.

I like your first sentence, I have done that a few times when motorbikes ride up the sidewalks or through a market beside me.

I always make it look like an accident for the very reason Seedy has already said.

Very difficult to keep my cool, trouble is nowadays I'm not as fast with the fist as I was,,

Although I'd like to change my ways and be more respectful of arrogant drivers, it gets more difficult to reach that goal, in saying that although I've threatened and challenged a few thai drivers I've not yet had to lift my fist in a road rage in thailand yet.

[CMKiwi]

I had an experience today that didn't just have me fuming but shaking like a leaf as well. Riding down a road to a forked intersection. Main road takes a right veer of the fork. So I look to the left as quite often drivers will cut across without giving way.

All good and carry on through. But then an idiot in a pickup without indication cuts in front of me from the right hand fork.

Talk about nearly filling my pants! I locked up the back wheel and everything turned to slow motion. Here I was doing a speedway slide with the arse end of the pickup looming directly in front of me. Fortunately I managed to steer around it but it was a very close thing.

When I stopped a few minutes later my legs were jelly.

I've always come to expect the unexpected but this one crept up on me today.

Whats that saying about if it doesn't kill you?

I could have killed the idiot in the pickup had I stopped and got my hands on him. Absolutely no warning.

Life goes on. ..

[moe666]

no need toget upset it will do no good, defensive driving.

[tifino]

Something applied to car driving, but that i'd love to apply to the bike:

Big Noise makes your bike bigger, but it's all in what type of sound is needed for the best effect...

I did make mention of my triple ganged air-horn set up, with spacial effect time delay on my 626, on a Post a while back

(spacial effect created by having the individual horns fed from differing length tubing i.e the rear horn)

(yes - rear facing horn bolted under the back next to fuel tank) had 15 metres dedicated just to itself.)

great fun, and really good to release one's tensions upon another who, by having just cut me off, is ignorantly already destroying any driving bliss that had been enjoyed on my part up until that time.

Practical Noise-maker for bike:

My ideal tension remover though, is one day, I want to install either a sound synthesiser (or simply a minidisc recording) - of the loud sharp bleat of the sound of uncontrolled skidding tyres.

(some recording from a Yank movie car chase - screeching tyres on dirt roads - would still be quite suitable as a source sound)

Normally if you are being cutoff at short notice - you hit the Horn eh!!

Normally, someone having a horn blasted at them, will ignore you because they assume that if you have the time available to loan some of it to move your finger to the button, then you have time to let them get away with it...

ABnormally, a driver being hit by the sound of uncontrolled tyre screech:

- will instinctively react

- stop what they are currently doing

- to save their own skin from being frizzed

- in an as yet to be confirmed imminent Smash

then you casually pass by and wave hello (with a smile of course)

...and the dude still hasn't caught-on why there's no burning rubber smell

amazingly! this concept came upon me first, back in 1978, when I was cutoff by an idiot who ignored me (cyclist), when he roared out of an ofstreet parking lot.

I locked up, and the amazing sharp screech of my both bike tyres almost destroying themselves on this old shiny concrete road, pierced his closed windows.

The big eyes from his fright were memorable, and I'd like to see that again.

...Job's done...

Edited May 21, 2015 by tifino

[losworld]

Always drive defensively here and never trust signal lights always keep your eye on the front tires of nearby vehicles if they turn the car follows.

[Gweiloman]

I had an experience today that didn't just have me fuming but shaking like a leaf as well. Riding down a road to a forked intersection. Main road takes a right veer of the fork. So I look to the left as quite often drivers will cut across without giving way.

All good and carry on through. But then an idiot in a pickup without indication cuts in front of me from the right hand fork.

Talk about nearly filling my pants! I locked up the back wheel and everything turned to slow motion. Here I was doing a speedway slide with the arse end of the pickup looming directly in front of me. Fortunately I managed to steer around it but it was a very close thing.

When I stopped a few minutes later my legs were jelly.

I've always come to expect the unexpected but this one crept up on me today.

Whats that saying about if it doesn't kill you?

I could have killed the idiot in the pickup had I stopped and got my hands on him. Absolutely no warning.

Life goes on. ..

I don't get it. From how you described this incident, it seems like a dual carriageway leading to the intersection. If you wanted to veer right, why bother looking left? Also, were you (presuming it was a dual carriageway) on the left lane or right? If it was the former, you should be looking at traffic on the outside lane. If you were on the latter, then there would have been no issue.

[CMKiwi]

It was a dual carriage way all the way including the y intersection. So basically you have 2 dual carriage ways coming to a single carriage way.

The single dual carriage way has the right of way leading to the right, however not all drivers on the left dual carriage way give way at this intersection.

I was in the right hand lane and veering to the right. The vehicle in question was approaching from the right hand side dual carriage way so in essence he was going from the right hand carriage way and into the left hand carriage way......a bit like a u turn but not.

Oh and I attended and passed a defensive drivers course some years ago. There wasn't a great deal else that I could have done in this instance. If I had blasted him with my air horns then I ran the risk that he would freeze on the spot, then I would have collided with him. I could not change direction to the left hand dual carriage way as I was passed the turning area and too close to the offending vehicle, which may have ended up with me getting hit by any number of vehicles. It's not wise to change directions radically in this country......unless you own a songtheaw.

In the end I have learnt from it......never assume anything on the road. Some drivers wear 'blinkers' or have parallel vision ie they don't see anything around them. One has to be very alert all the time. Generally I am when riding the bike, and so far no accidents. A few near misses and although it increases your heart rate, I can handle that easier than having to spend time in hospital or in the worst case living in a wooden box 6 feet under.

[wantan]

^

>...however not all drivers on the left dual carriage way give way at this intersection.

I am sure they all give way to bigger vehicles. But if you come along on your bike thingy thinking you are doing right...

I know some of these kind of intersections. Some even have no signs at all and you dont know for sure who has right of way. Very dangerous if you come along first time and dont know the situation, less dangerous for the people living nearby.

Glad nothing happens. Keep it this way.

[oval]

I find myself constantly swearing while riding in BKK:

"what the FK are you doing??!"

"fkn move!!"

"fkn retard fkn stupid CNT!!"

"FCK SAKES FAAAARKEN DCKHEAD!!!!!"

I'm generally a fairly calm person, but I guarantee that at some point during my commute I'll be swearing to myself loudly in this manner.

[tifino]

missus and I have a little game, on who can mouth "idiot" the most - with a smile of course