Things you see when you’re riding — road raging cyclist and driver fist fight on Santa Monica Street

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Don’t ask me why I went that way.

My plan was to bypass the meshugenah frenzy of Main Street traffic and shopping Main in Santa Monica on Wednesday.

But at the last moment, I decided to cut up Ocean Park Blvd from the beach, and head up Main to Abbot Kinney before making my way down the coastal bike path.

Just as I rounded the corner at Main, though, I saw a guy charge up to a little red delivery truck on the opposite side of the street, jerk the door open and pull the driver out before he began punching him.

Or more precisely, punching at him, as neither party seemed to be able to land a decent punch.

Ali vs Frazier, this was not.

As I went back and dialed 911, the pugilists seemed to calm down; the first guy went around the other side of the truck, emerging with a bike.

He looked like he was trying to ride off when the driver grabbed the rack on the back of his bike; next thing I knew they were exchanging words again, followed quickly by more punches.

Eventually, sanity seemed to prevail, and the cyclist rode off up Ocean Park, followed by the SUV. And both were gone long before the police arrived.

Then again, so was I, as I got tired of waiting and continued on my ride after the 911 operator assured me they had my phone number if they needed me.

Why the fight, I have no idea.

Judging from the position of the bike behind the truck, it could have been a near miss right hook, or the driver may have even bumped the bike just before I got there.

But that’s pure speculation. It could just as easily been the result of an ongoing dispute that started blocks earlier.

And either party could have been to blame.

However, I do know that the cyclist was legally in the wrong the moment he pulled the driver from the truck. On the other hand, the driver had the chance to walk away and chose not to, leading to round two.

In other words, they could both have faced charges if the police had arrived sooner.

So don’t be an idiot.

No matter how mad you get, or how justified you feel, just get the license number and ride away.

It beats the hell out of going to court on criminal charges.

Or maybe getting your ass kicked.

Or worse.

Thanks to Chris and the gang at the Westwood Helen’s for hooking me up with the helmet cam — and fixing up my bike so I could ride a little easier with it. And thanks to Richard Masoner of Cyclelicious for volunteering to pitch in to process the video when my Mac failed me.

12 comments

  1. Evan says:

    Put the testosterone away, people.

  2. D. D. Syrdal says:

    I’d be a little worried about the guy in the red truck driving off all adrenalined-up like that. Probably went home and kicked the dog.

  3. Glad to see you’ve finally cam’d up, Ted! Looking forward to more vids!

  4. Erik Griswold says:

    That bus has a forward looking camera and Metro is supposed to keep that stuff for at least six months.

  5. KARL says:

    I agree the bus has it but good luck getting them to share it- in the mean time I implore everyone to watch this pregnent girl talk- it’s ancient history but nobody can say she doesn’t have a point, and by now her kid is born, walking or at least talking about this stuff I’m sure.

    download?t=1342852500&v=56037717&s=2b2b71e3c3da023c987dd1a348a15643

    Notice I provide a link that will allow you to watch this iin full hd quality regardless of how fast your internet is without buffering as you’ll own the file. Something youtube does not encourage but she could of prevented off of vimeo if she wanted. If your nervous about downloading files you can downloadthem to a jumpdrive and then plug into your bluray’s usb but don’t spend like $80 on a dongle- for that i kid you not you can now have shipped, without tax, a terrabye fasterthen any obsolete hard drive for less per gig obviously then any hard drive in it’s class even! I spent nearly an hour or more taling to B&H about this mindblowing development after they told me they only had 32 gig cards when in fact for $50 youcan get $64– but why? Why spend $50 on a measly 32 gigs unless your aspy or someting and want to hide it in your nostril? Underyour tongue you can put a terrabyte and more importantly WRITE A TERRABYTE without the mission impossible suspense of it taking longer then usb3 requires.

    I watched thevieo finally closely and that lens your using is like made of jell or something? I guess it’s not smooth so as you move your head you get the through an aqaurium effect. It needs the music, hte funny music, toreally rock.

    I also want to say that both of these people are of course victims- both denied a decent vehicle, forced like rats to bite each other for being in a prison of exploitation known as the american road- so unlike Henry Ford’s dreams- now turned into nightmares.

    This video is one of three- the others have graphics that might stop you from thinking it’s worth downloadingi them in HD, and don’t feature her in all her pregnent glory. I’ve not yet gotten past the first minute- but befrore everyone calls it a night want to share her and deny, honestly, that I knew an upstart marketing guy from pen state had thrown the $50 ulock ime ntioned on a crappy shaft bike and is getting lots of business at 4 figures a pop claimning it’s a bargain.

    He does understand though the rack is no longer needed… if only he had funding like the polaroid /billionares of 2012 sorry i can’t backup and put scare quotes on polaroid as this file is apparenlty hogging all my bandwidth.(and of course i’m using cable internet so porn of neighbors is getting all of itfor customers who pay 4 times as mch per month)

    These guys bonded- why can’t we?

  6. KARL says:

    CORRECTION:

    It’s $50 at most for a solid state hard drive good for a terrabyte- I mean $80 for that, and an obscenely high $50 for a thirtieth as much memory that’s sloth slow even if unheard of for even the most with it and lowest cost and most senior and loved online retailer for such modernity in obsolete microsd form. THe point was that no SLR will allow you according them to plug in the terrabyte! If this is true… and of course it’s not, but if it was, one would have cause to fight even harder to bring hope b ack to life. Again storage is a a commodity and I can’t imagine overstating hte signifigance or th eopportunities that selling super fast terrabytes that take up less space then a classic pack of gum, even if smashed to a few squares of Hersheys chocolate size. It’s the most disruptive product I’ve encountered since 4 gigs or a gig was rumored possible for camcorders and of course they sell cards wiht mere gigs on them for thosuands each ot tv stations as if this item does not exist and only keeping a usb3 port of such camera’s allows that.

    My call got transfered around and none of my best qustions got any comment- questions like- ok, so you want three times for your projectors what google shopping says I should pay- that means they can play at least slides off a usb port right? and fast like not ojust 15 per second like 35 millimeter slide projectors in museums can do a decade or two ago but with this pocket miracle maybe 60 or more? Soto say it doesn’t do video is of course silly.

    Anyway they also claimed that slr’s can’t record v ideo for more then 10 mintues- something i’d not even heard rumored.

    I’ve been that driver before- I’ve been minding my own business and have someone, well multiple assailants try to get me to taek there life, topush them into traffic, or kick htere head over the street likes like there goal postsf oro g iving me a sucker bloody nose sneaking up from obehind while i cart the addict off tojail only to be distracted by a half dozen cops rushing into tackle them so bad as to take that dum blow. I’ve had the amubulance tecks get pissed atteh swat team for holding us up pissed off I took therequestion about what ER was good for me seriously and specified the one outsidethere district as it’s next to my home and barely further then what they assumed I would say. I’ve gone to court and kept the inocent guy whose fist got me my only MRI jailed for weeks with a pair of shiners doingthe talking from a tap upon my probisis onl yto wonder where the bastard who wanted me to push him off hte sidewalk so bad I was willing ot take time out to walk him to the payphone not realizing it’s the one the cops enjoy hte resturaunt of moreo then any other and no amount of martial arts prepares you to take your eyes off the hands you assume are going ot reach for at least a knife any second and make sure no other homicidal idiot is stalkiong you all beyod the pissed to havethere digestin interferred by having to apparently rescue an unsuspeciting innocent gentleman daring to take awalk on a sidewalk with Narcon toting skateboarding train just jupmed off bro’s around- for those where the suits I tried to get to drop a dime for man yminutes that proceeded butthey forgot there disposable phone to c all 911 anonymously in there unmarked cars i bguess.. And don’t forget that every bro these days has a warrant- it’s your only ticket out of jail if your a true bike advocate after all, no warrant, no release, that’s how it works wher eI hail from.

    So check out the video’s please. GEt somethign to think about while riding- there’s more the nthe same old pleasures of yesteryear in store for tho se of us who can really attempt to opne are eyes and ears and don’t mind listening to someone even iwth child when she’s got something to say.

  7. KARL says:

    “irrelevence is the threat; change is the opportunity” [final words from the well under 200 seconds linked above by me]

  8. KARL says:

    ooops again i had missread the timer on playback half way through tghinki ti wasthe full vidoe- well under six ihundred seconds is ‘more accurate BUT the BRUTAL editing of this presentation has me wonder more about what was cut thte nwhat i just watched…. and i have no idea how to access the unredacted perspective especiall ynow that she’s given birth and is therefore infinitely less trustworthy lol.

  9. KARL says:

    and i’d be rfemiss if i faield to mention she actually talkes favorably about a FOrd.. claimingi hes’ got somethign to do abouto mobility… as opposed to being entirely dependent on it not being realised tomaintain his pride.

    I know of no Ford who’s like Reagan’s daughere even much less son. Except that is the long dead ones that are only facetiously cited by the Nazi Tesla’s who by now should of gone on a wheel even if not horsepower diet.

  10. Eric W says:

    Ted has a Cam!

    Only you find these things. I live right there, ride every day, never a fistfight.

    Only you get to see this stuff – so get recording.

    And you didn’t mention the peacemaker in the white shirt, who kinda broke the fight up. And that the 720 Bus sat there for a couple of minutes watching this (there is very likely a cam on board). No fair, this is only part of the story. Next time feel free to drop by, we’ll make up an ending…

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