My sheriff's department had a cycling team and we had two to three motor officers riding with us (depending on the pack size) to block traffic and one car to bring up the rear. You can bet people didn't pull that kind of stuff on our group. Lots of badges and lots of guns.
I'd recommend carrying the latter if your state allows it (which it probably does since 80% of the country allows it). You never know what kind of person you will run across.
I've seen all kinds of crazy things happen to cyclers - people leaning out of their window and knocking them off their bike, people reaching out and grabbing their bike as they are riding and then accelerating while still holding on to the bike, all kinds of stuff thrown at them, and the worst are the people that get in front of the cycler and slam on their brakes. Also, in my state, it is a felony to throw stuff that is capable of doing serious bodily harm at a moving vehicle (a bike is a vehicle). There has also been a specific police department that I won't mention here, but it is in the Los Angeles area, that has been known to mistreat cyclers recently (although some of it is well deserved; however, usually given to the wrong person). It's amazing how people have no regard for other people just because they are on a bike and do things to them that could possibly kill them or seriously injure them.
Originally Posted by JulieC
