OK, so I have seen this guy on base, in the past, wearing a bright fluorescent-yellow jacket, riding his bicycle down the center of the street.

However, earlier this week, I saw the same guy, riding in the middle of the fast lane on Yokosuka kaigan dori.

Cars had to slow down & change lanes to go around him.

When we got to the stop light I pulled up next to him on my motorcycle (both of us in the turn lane). I asked, “What the hell are you doing?”

The guy proceeded to flip me off, then take off on his bike & run the red light.

I caught up to him, got next to him & said, “What the (explicative) do you think you are doing?”

He yelled, “(Explicative) off! I’m riding my bike!” I responded, “In the middle of the road? It’s illegal!”

He, again, said, “(explicative) off!”

I got up next to him & said, “I’m gonna ride you all the way to security!” He responded, “Go ahead. They won’t do anything to me!”

We exchanged words up to the gate. I approached the sentry & informed her that the guy in the yellow jacket was riding in the center of traffic, which forced cars to go around him. I also informed them that he ran the red light & stop sign.

He rolled up, & got off his bike & said I came at him yelling saying, “What the (exploitative) are you doing?”

I retorted, “That’s not the way it happened. I asked you ‘What the hell are you doing? You flipped me off, ran the red light & then I said that to you!”

He smiled & said, it’s your word against mine.

I’ve talked about this with other people, & other people are aware of this guy, because they see him on base riding down the center of the street.

They informed me that he is a “Khaki.”  I have seen him in Khaki as well.

I don’t know if he is senior enlisted, or an officer, but he is an older, bald guy!

My question is, what makes this guy think he is above Japanese law, or base regulations?  Also, why doesn’t security do something about this guy? 

I understand that they can’t do anything if it happens off base, but on base, they can do something. Is it because he is a “Khaki?” Does being in a khaki uniform automatically allow you to disregard local laws & base regulations without punishment?

I wanted to get his name, so I could report him to his command, but security wouldn't give me his name.

They told me, "You can take it up with HQ & go from there." But, how can I take it to "HQ" if I don't have his name?

The other thing is, he does this DAILY! One of my coworkers told me that he saw the guy riding down the middle of the street YESTERDAY! This is after the confrontation with security!

The guy doesn't care. He seems to think he is, or is being treated as, untouchable, because he behavior continues on without missing a beat!

Posted By Mike Applegate, MCPO, USN, Ret. on 01-21-2011 4:38 PM
Before somebody starts snapping pictures and posting them, you might want to consider the legal implications that situation might cause on this site, especially if you identify the person or the license tag. I'm not saying what this guy is alleged to have done is right, but there are laws to consider, both U.S. and Japanese. Just saying' ...

Posted By Maelstrom on 01-21-2011 4:58 PM
Well, Japanese people don't ride in the middle of the fast lane. They are authorized & supposed to ride on the road, but near the sidewalk, not in the middle of the FAST LANE on a 4-lane, 2-way road.

They are required to cross streets at crosswalks. However, they can ride through the crosswalk, unlike on base where they are required to get off & walk the bike through the crosswalk.

So, riding in the fast lane out in town, is NOT legal. Neither is running stop lights.

Plus, it's rude & arrogant to ride in the center of traffic & force motorists to have to slow down behind you to your speed, while waiting for an opportunity to move over into another lane to pass you.

I think, "when in Rome, do as the Romans do." If you are going to ride out in town, do it just as the Japanese do. Otherwise, it makes ALL of us foreigners look bad.

Posted By lewisly on 01-24-2011 1:50 AM
They should award points for people that run over the idiot bycicle riders. Dont feel bad drivers, we have these bycicle idiots all over the roads in the states too. We drivers pay heavy insurance premiums and licence fees to drive.

Funny you should put it like that.  Most elected judges will rule on the side of the automobile driver in any/every case when an automobile driver hits a cyclist, either accidentally or on purpose.  That is because far more Americans drive than ride a bike after they turn 16, and most have the same opinion as you.  "Kill the person who isn't in a car, because they're not in a car like me."

Never mind that the person on the bike is trying to split the difference between following the law and surviving being on the road with people like you.

Never mind that in an accident, you'll have a dent and they will be dead. 

Never mind that that person is probably also a driver who does "pay heavy insurance premiums and licence fees to drive", but is choosing to not drive that day.

Oh, and by the way; it's spelled BICYCLE.

I don't agree with the whole running them off the road thing, but something needs to happen to the guy. The police need to stop him & ticket him (both on & off base).

Also, it is common & accepted practice in Japan for people to ride their bikes on the far side of the road, near the sidewalk traveling with the flow of traffic.

I have no problems with people doing that. However, riding in the middle of traffic, in the fast lane, & impeding traffic is selfish by the bicyclist, & it's illegal.

Posted By Maelstrom on 01-24-2011 12:19 PM

I don't agree with the whole running them off the road thing, but something needs to happen to the guy. The police need to stop him & ticket him (both on & off base).

Also, it is common & accepted practice in Japan for people to ride their bikes on the far side of the road, near the sidewalk traveling with the flow of traffic.

I have no problems with people doing that. However, riding in the middle of traffic, in the fast lane, & impeding traffic is selfish by the bicyclist, & it's illegal.

Another thing this Motorcyclist has an obvious attention to detail and perception problem he’s never seen me in Kaki and neither have the people he has spoken to. Maybe there is another mad cyclist out there. Maybe he is a Senior enlisted or even an Officer, that’s a lot of maybe’s if you ask me MAYBE he should get his information straight before he starts ranting, it just makes himself look less intelligent. (A LOT LESS).

I’m 99% cretin I’m the bicyclist in question. Here is my side of the argument. First of all I always ride on the left hand side of the road as close to the edge as possible, only coming out to miss grates, pot holes, and other such obstructions (like all those cars that like to park on the side of the road, remember motorist I must give a wide birth to these cars because I might get a door opened on me). There are 3 places on my rout to the base from Miura Kaigon that I’m forced to move to the right side of the road. First is when you cross 16 going towards PC Depo turning towards the Kaigon Dori. There are 3 choices, the left lane turns left, the center lane goes straight, and the right lane turns right, so I must maneuver to the center lane, this causes me to split a lane, I go to the head of the line so every motorist has seen me, arguably the safest thing to do. At the very next light I turn and proceed down the right side of the road because I will be turning right at the next light, again arguably I think it is safer for me to be in the lane that I will be turning with traffic from in a few meters, rather than at the last moment maneuvering across 2 lanes going straight, then getting into the turning lane and the motorist are seeing me for the first time. The last time I’m forced to make this choice is at the stop light in this guys rant. At the stoplight before I’m forced to maneuver to the turning lane, I get over to the right hand side of the road as soon as possible, again this is to avoid maneuvering at the last moment across 2 lanes of straight going traffic.

On the day in question I was on the right hand side of the road so I could proceed down the left hand side of the cars waiting at the light. As stated earlier I go to the head of the line so every driver at that light has had the opportunity to see me. This day there was a Motorcyclist at the head of the line, and he obviously took exception to my choice in placing my bicycle at the head of the line (Now there was a car a good distance from the turning lane, it looked as if he had come over last minute and could not fully fit into the lane. This forced me to go around him witch I imagine might have looked like I was traveling down the center of the road to the Motorcyclist). The first words out of the Motorcyclist mouth was “what the F*** are you doing”. I don’t respond well to hostility, so yes I flipped him off and proceeded through the light. After he caught up to me, (and rode that motorcycle up to me rather aggressively) and after the second Mother F*****, and a Son of a B**** thrown in there. I told him to F*** off and to get that motorcycle off of me. He proceeded to try to intimidate and corral me in a sense that is when I started to maneuver closer to the motorcycle (to see if he had the guts to really hit me, he didn’t). At this time he said “he was going to tell base security” and I told him to “go ahead”. When I came up to the gate he was already yelling and cussing at the gate guards, he was so upset he didn’t even recognize me, even though I had on the aforementioned bright florescent green jacket on. I let him rant on for about 2 or maybe 3 minutes before I asked to motorcyclist “what were the first words out of your mouth?” I answered for him “what the F*** are you doing?” He proceeded to lie and stated he said “what the hell are you doing” either way when you start a conversation off cussing you loose your reference power base. Security agreed with me that he was in the wrong not on his opinion on whether I was in the wrong lane or not, but by how he was handling himself during the confrontation. So Motorcyclist this is a learning lesson for you, you could be in the right all day long but if you come at somebody the way you did it negates anything you have to say.

Here is the worst thing I do I pull up to a stop light if there is nothing coming in any direction I proceed forward, effectively running the light (although rather slowly) still against the law. Nobody is perfect, I admit when I’m wrong. Know you’ve herd both sides of the story I’ll let you decide.     

You state: “This day there was a Motorcyclist at the head of the line, and he obviously took exception to my choice in placing my bicycle at the head of the line (Now there was a car a good distance from the turning lane, it looked as if he had come over last minute and could not fully fit into the lane. This forced me to go around him witch I imagine might have looked like I was traveling down the center of the road to the Motorcyclist).”

FALSE! You were already at the stop light. I came up behind you.

You state: “The first words out of the Motorcyclist mouth was what the F*** are you doing.’”

Again FALSE:

I said, “What the HELL are you doing?”

You proceeded to flip me off & run the red light!

You state: “After he caught up to me, (and rode that motorcycle up to me rather aggressively) and after the second Mother F*****, and a Son of a B**** thrown in there.”

AGAIN FALSE! After being flipped off by you, & you arrogantly running a red light, I got up next to you and THEN said, “What the f**k are you doing?” It was in response to your arrogance.

You then responded, “I’m riding my bike. F**k off!”

You state: “When I came up to the gate he was already yelling and cussing at the gate guards, he was so upset he didn’t even recognize me, even though I had on the aforementioned bright florescent green jacket on.”

Um, no, jack-hole! I knew who you were, with you smile on your face.

Also, security did NOT agree that I was in the wrong. They just told me, “Unfortunately, we cannot do anything unless we see it ourselves.”

You stood there smiling & said, “It’s your word against mine.”

It’s not just me that who has an issue with you riding in the middle of traffic. Read the other posts. Some other people have seen you rising down the centered of there street & are bothered by it, as well.

So, I guess you are going to point the finger at the world & say EVERYONE has a perception problem, right?

 
Granted, I see a lot of Japanese run red lights on bicycles, but Japanese don't ride in the turn lane; they go to the cross walk a ride across the street that way.

 
From what I understand, on base, you are allowed to ride in the turn lane.

However, that is not the case out in town. Tell me how many Japanese people you see doing what you do.

I have been here for over ten years & I have NEVER seen that.

It bothers me, because you impede traffic. Cars have to slow down behind you & change lanes to go around you.

Again, I don't see Japanese doing it. You stand out like a sore thumb, for one, you are wearing a bright yellow jacket (which is cool for safety reasons), & because you are a foreigner.

Some Japanese may see you doing that & think “ぼかがい人。”It makes ALL OF US look bad.

Also, you state: “…to see if he had the guts to really hit me, he didn’t.”

 You wanna see if I have guts? Well, you know what I look like (& I know what you look like). Next time you see me (off base), make a move.

Posted By tulipsonly on 02-08-2011 12:48 PM
I find it very amusing that rank came into this topic at all.

Posted By kabukidaimyo on 02-08-2011 4:01 PM
Motorcyclist,

So let me get this straight you rode up behind me down the left side of the cars just like I did, and had time to yell “what the F*** are you doing” before I ran the light? I find that hard to believe for I took a look at the oncoming traffic and admittedly illegally ran the light without much slowing down because there wasn’t any oncoming traffic. I never stopped at that light that means you were chasing me down, road rage comes to mind and your statements are full of it.

You weren’t present for the conversation after you so speedily roared off from the gate. They said that you admitted that you had cussed at me and that was that. They said nothing about me running lights, riding down the middle of lanes, or any of it.

You are obviously misled, I do not have to go to a cross walk dismount and cross at lights. I do have the right to get in the turning lane, I will continue to get in the turning lane and turn with the rest of you. Not you or any motorist will change that. There is a little saying that you need to adopt (share the road). I take your last statement as a threat I quote “You wanna see if I have guts? Well, you know what I look like (& I know what you look like). Next time you see me (off base), make a move.” You may need to check your self, you have problems, and there are places you can go to get help. There are people who care for persons such as your self, maybe not me but there are people that care.

Take care.

By the way, it’s not yourself, not "your self."

 "Speedily rode off..." I don't think so. I didn't "speed off." I left, because security said that we needed to squash the argument, so we weren’t' impeding oncoming traffic.

Yes, I admitted that I cussed at you, after you flipped me off & ran the red light. At least I have the honesty to admit it, unlike you who denied wrong doing, & denied flipping me off & cussing at me portraying yourself (notice the proper spelling) as being innocent. But, then again, you seem to be a self-serving liar, so it's not surprizing.

I didn't say you had to walk across out in town. You just assumed that. You CAN ride across in town. You DO NOT have the right to ride in traffic out in town.

Dude, you stated that you moved close to see if I had "the guts to hit" you. So, obviously, you were, or are looking for a physical confrontation. So, don't come off as high & mighty. You wanna step up, then, back it up. Don’t come off implying that I don't have guts for knocking you on your ass then play "victim, when I offer to give you what you want.

Obviously, you only care about yourself. So, go ahead & continue to ride in the road & make all of us foreigners look badly. If you get hit by a car when you run a red light, don't complain.

Posted By Fireballfish on 02-08-2011 4:08 PM

Posted By tulipsonly on 02-08-2011 12:48 PM
I find it very amusing that rank came into this topic at all.

I agree completely. It seems like both these gentlemen have inflated egos that have been bruised.

Maelstrom- I genuinely hope you wouldn't seriously want to fight over this; if you had to fight every person who you disagree with, you'd never get any peace. Sometimes it's better to let things roll off your back.

Kabukidaimyo- I'm glad you got on the site and told your side of the story, however I think that despite the fact that you were approached in such an aggressive manner, you could have handled the situation in a more maturely. Also, please do not be goaded into fighting; it never solves anything and quite contrarily could land both of you in serious big trouble.

Posted By Ed on 02-08-2011 5:29 PM
Hey! What's wrong with looking baldy???

Posted By Densetsu on 02-08-2011 7:49 PM
'You DO NOT have the right to ride in traffic out in town."

Actually in most places he does not have the right to ride on the sidewalk and is required to ride in traffic. Sidewalk bike riding is suppose to only be done by elderly and very young children. Most of the time that rule is ignored, but he has more of a right to ride in traffic then ride on the sidewalk.  Good luck with you two solving your personal issues.

I think a mandatory cycling class...

Posted By Lazarus on 02-09-2011 1:27 PM
I remember when people solved their problems by not resorting to childish immature topic threads on Internet websites

Posted By tulipsonly on 02-09-2011 11:58 AM
To: kabukidaimyo (Mad Cyclist)

Again, I still have issue with the whole "khaki pulling rank to take advantage" argument and the Enraged Motorcyclist didn't touch that claim after you corrected his bad information. A jerk is a jerk and that in itself is a good enough argument no matter who you are. If you are really a jerk, shame on you, if he is, then shame on him. Does rank really matter driving down the road in Japan? He seems to me....... inflamatory.