Injured cyclist to film dangerous drivers

Glenn McIsaac knows cyclists can be hard to see.

Glenn McIsaac plans to put cameras on his bike or helmet to film footage of dangerous drivers.

The 39-year-old Masterton man is still off work and struggling to pay bills after an accident in October when a teenage driver turned in front of him.

To avoid a collision he had to ride on to the footpath. He flipped over the kerb and skidded along the ground, almost landing underneath another car.

The grazes he suffered were so bad the nurses who treated him thought they were burns. He also badly injured his shoulder and broke two bones in his thumb and hand.

"I was slowing down coming into a 50km/h area and this muppet just pulled up right in front of me, three or four metres in front of me. I was assuming he was answering his phone because [he pulled over] so abruptly."

He is used to having near-misses with cars but this was by far the worst.

Mr McIsaac knows cyclists can be hard to see, but says it's scary to see how unaware some people are of their surroundings. "If you can't see me, you can't see a kid on the side of the road."

Cycling was just as dangerous on country roads, he said.

"A lot of them try and make it a joke to see 'how close can I get to him' ... It's like a game, but my life is not a game to play with."

In his experience the most courteous drivers are truck drivers.

"Because they understand the wake they leave behind them ... I find that trucks give a lot wider berth and have even had them slow down, chop down a gear behind me and wait till the cars on the other side of the road have gone past."

He lost his job at a commercial laundry because his hand injury meant he was unable to work.

"I did go back to work briefly for light duties, but it didn't really work out and as per a clause in my contract he had to let me go."

Now he plans to name and shame.

"I am now going to be putting two small cameras on either my bike or helmet when I can afford it to record these imbeciles and then post online the incidents I encounter to name and shame the offending drivers. I will deliberately show their number plates."

Not only has Mr McIsaac lost his job but he also missed the chance to compete in his first triathalon.

"I was more disappointed at the time but now it really is starting to bug me, I am starting to get a bit bitter, but I try not to be."