Nothing like a little vehicular assault!

In my bike travels I have been yelled at, merged on, left-hooked, right-hooked, nearly hit by light jumpers, honked at, screech at, tailgated by a Church van, but I have never been outright attacked with a car. Today that changed.



I was riding to my friend's house in West Philly this afternoon. Things were going well, not much wind, surprisingly cool temperatures for August (I was almost cold). I had reached Powelton Ave and needed to turn left onto 38th street. There was no traffic at that time so I signaled left lane chance and moved into the left part of the lane. The light was red so I stopped. A couple of cars were coming on Powelton the opposite way, so I would not be able to turn left immediately when the light turned green. I glanced back as a reflex and saw a couple of cars coming up behind me. No problem, if they want to go straight there is plenty of room to go around me.

The light turns green and I mount and ready to go into the intersection to to turn left. The cars coming the other way take a while to clear the intersection (38th is very wide at Powelton hits it at an angle.) But as I am waiting to go I start hearing a very persistent horn behind me. I worry that someone is behind a car wanting to turn left and is getting impatient, but then a car goes past me well on the right and it hits me. The car honking is right behind me. Why? I don't know! If I were a car she'd be waiting just as long for the other cars to clear, and even if I was not there at all she'd still have to wait unless she was a nutcase. Well, my guess is nutcase.

The cars clear, she's still honking and I start to move, I am going but I keep glancing back because a honking horn can mean there is some other kind of trouble that you may be unaware of. But in this case the driver is just impatient, even though I am clearing the intersection fast than a car would. As I get over to the bike lane on 38th street I turn as she passes and yell at her 'What the hell is your problem?' She yells back something and the only word I hear is 'sidewalk'. She thinks I belong on the sidewalk. Wonderful. I yell a few other 'choice words' at her, but she demonstrates the power of her 4 cylinder engine and races down 38th. And gets stopped at a red light.

As if all of this was bad enough on her part, as I come up on her right (I did mean to tell her a few things, but she had closed her window). She tosses something out the sunroof at me. It probably wasn't heavy, whatever it was, but the woman in the car has crossed a line. The hell with it all, I do fist smack on her window and move ahead to the actual intersection (she was a behind another car).

As I pull away I see her going for her cell phone. Fine lady, call the cops. You can tell them all about it. But I glance back at her for a moment, I see she's put her car in reverse and is making a turn. She's pointed right at me. My thought is, 'Oh, she's not...she is..." she guns the motor (such as it can go) I start to lift my left leg and pull the car. She hits me with her car broadside. I'm off the bike, it rolls, amazingly I 'land' on my feet . I kick out my foot hard and hit the car. As she makes the turn onto Market street I am surprised to see where I hit, the back right door, has a dent. I remember that the biking shoes are pretty stiff.

I check myself...no damage. I check my bike. The chain has jumped. It takes a few moments while I wonder if she's nuts enough to circle around for another attack. A woman crossing 38th asks me if I am OK since she saw it. She couldn't get the plate and neither could I (growl). I thank her for asking, and having missed a couple of light cycles continue down 38th street.

Overall, I am a bit shaken. But I am not harmed, and I don't think my bike is either. I'll have it checked tomorrow.