Back on the subject of speed

   Our relative speed in traffic is important, not the speed relative to cars with which we may collide, but how soon we get where we are going.
   Most of us know we get through city traffic as fast if not faster by bike.  I had a neat example given me the other day. As I was riding down a city street (in a designated bike lane mind you) a young woman in a new VW Beetle came up beside me, honked twice as if I was in her way, floored it and sped away.  A block later was a traffic signal  where she waited patiently in the queue while I pedaled past and moved up to the head of the line.  After the light changed, I was in the middle of the next block when she again honked as if I was in her way, she floored it and sped away in a big hurry to get back in the queue at the stoplight 3 blocks away.

This time I overtook her in the queue and reached the head of the line just as the light changed.  I went on, passing all the traffic at the light and moved nearly a block ahead before again being overtaken by the Beetle who honked  again.   As you probably have guessed there was another traffic signal a few blocks ahead and this time I smiled and waved as I passed her in the queue and reached the head of the line just as they were starting to move.  This was a downhill, I was traveling near the 25mph speed limit and keeping pace with traffic at this point.  A couple of blocks away, I looked in my mirror, saw the VW from hell approaching just as I reached my turn and "got out of her way" before she had the satisfaction of honking.
   It's not often even honk these days, but this was a treat.  3 times from the same car within a mile or two.
She certainly couldn't think I was slowing her down, I outran her to my destination on the street.