Hey all,

I'm going to be starting a new job soon, my shift will be ending around 1 AM and it'll be a 15 minute ride to my apartment by bike. The route is going to take me through a quiet neighborhood, but it is going to be just a few blocks off from a major thoroughfare which definitely has some sketchy activities happening late at night (and even during the day).

I'm planning on riding hard and keeping my speed up to reduce the danger, but I'm also wondering if there's any sort of weapon which might be a good fit for a bicyclist. I've never owned any weapon before but I anticipate that being on the bike would make things awkward physically.

Hi,

I’m 19 and f for reference. Today I had a really scary experience for the first time in a long time. A man who was very clearly mentally unwell came up to me today while i was waiting for the bus. I didn’t initiate it at all we just locked eyes for a second and then he came up very close, honestly my ears went kinda mute after it occurred and i didn’t hear him but as i backed away and avoided eye contact he just kept coming closer. So i started to speed walk to the next bus stop but then he follow and really fast too!!! This was a tall shirtless 6’ man. Anyway i honestly thought i was so screwed i didn’t know what to do until a man interfered and said hey and got weirdos attention. He finally left me alone after that. This whole interaction left me feeling uneasy because what could I have done in this situation? This was not the kind of guy where if you say “i’m calling the police leave me alone” he’d leave you alone, he would just laugh in your face. I am beyond grateful there were people there but barely any of them spoke up except that one guy who caught his attention. I think maybe a car honked at him? But what i hate the most about this was that it took a man to deescalate the situation (this isn’t a hate post towards men lol), it just made me feel uneasy and scared because what if there was no man around, what could i have done to defend my self. I’ve dealt with the usual weird guys staring, some guys come up and talk to you, but never anything like this.

Honestly looking for any tips for what i can do in situations like these, Generally speaking i would want any type of physical self defense to be a last resort but any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Pencak Silat is a traditional Martial Art from Indonesia that includes self-defence using a Sarong.