Mad max cyclists exist in the US because for decades the US has promoted vehicular cycling, and built infrastructure accordingly. It was basically the concept t

Mad max cyclists exist in the US because for decades the US has promoted vehicular cycling, and built infrastructure accordingly. It was basically the concept that cycles should be treated on par with cars, share the same roads, commute at similar speeds, etc. As a result, the majority of American cyclists are people who are more risk taking, want to bike fast on super lightweight racing bicycles, and have built an aggressive cycling culture thanks to the fact that they’ve been trained to bike with cars. Most European cities advocated a different approach, where bikes had their own infrastructure built out that meant European cyclists ride slow “Euro” style bikes with baskets, usually don’t go very fast, etc. Further, good infrastructure means that bicyclists never have to interact with pedestrians other than in well controlled areas with proper signals etc that make clear when the cyclists should be moving and when the pedestrians.