A drunk cyclist slapped my car window after I'd already given him the road. I jumped out and genuinely wanted to hit him.
I almost got into a fight with a cyclist today.
It’s a slightly ridiculous story, but I’ll tell it exactly as it happened.
Today I had to drive my father to the dentist (he’s getting dental work done), so I was heading to my parents’ place. Turning off the main road into the courtyard, I saw a drunk cyclist riding straight at me down the middle of the road.
I stopped. So did he. I gestured at the open space on the left and the right so he could go around me. It’s a road wide enough for one car — two won’t pass — but going around me was easy from either side.
He stared at me with glassy eyes, then started gesturing at something. I realized this was going nowhere, so I backed up a bit and to the right, leaving him the middle of the road.
He grumbled something and, as he passed me on the left, slapped his hand against the passenger window.
I stopped, killed the engine and jumped out. Caught up with him and genuinely wanted to hit him. That was the first (stupid) emotion. Then emotional intelligence kicked in and I realized that fighting a drunk guy on a bicycle is a bit much.
I calmed down, told him a few times that you don’t do that, got back in the car and drove on.
The situation showed me that I’m carrying a fair amount of dormant aggression. Maybe I should start going to a boxing gym and let off some steam on a bag.
I understand violence is only acceptable in self-defense, but that slap on the window — after I’d already given him the road — really got to me. The window is fine, the hit was more symbolic than hard.
Thinking about it later, some part of me kept saying maybe I should have taught him a lesson so he’d be smarter next time. In that moment my hands were itching badly.
But he’s drunk, and tomorrow he won’t even remember what he got it for.
Having thought it all through with a cool head, I’m glad I held back — because if I’d hit him, I’d be regretting it right now. Even though he was in the wrong.
What would you have done in a situation like this? Do you think getting physical is ever justified here?