I'M 186cm tall and 100kg. So anyone smaller than me walking down MY footpaths had better stay out of my way or find somewhere else to walk. Or else I'll feel completely entitled to barge straight through you and/or hurl abuse, food, spit or bottles at you as I go about my important business.

I also have a big car - a heavy, strong Holden Sportwagon - so anyone on MY roads had better not have the temerity to slow me down one iota or force me to share the space with anyone else or I'll just mow you down, too.

And I'll feel completely entitled to do so. You're smaller than me so you don't have the same rights. You're lesser, unworthy.

Unreasonable, offensive, illegal you cry?

Not if you listen to the mindless, hateful vitriol that has been spewed forth in The Advertiser's letters pages and online in the most recent discussion of road safety as it pertains to cyclists.

And just about every other discussion of cyclists' rights, come to think of it.

According to the general tenor of the sadly too many hard-core bike haters out there, cyclists have NO rights to use our roads and must be forever consigned to Adelaide's inadequate, disjointed, litter-strewn and tyre-shredding bike paths.

But here's the flaw in their argument: Cyclists like myself are just as entitled to use the road as any car, truck or bus.

READ MORE: Thomas Voeckler out of TDU

We have the same responsibilities - and rights - as any other vehicle user. Nobody is entitled to arbitrarily ignore the rights of other road users simply because they are smaller or slower than you or your vehicle.

And we have the right to ride two - but no more - abreast. Please look it up.

Speaking of the law, can we please once and for all abandon the ``no rego, no rights'' argument?

No government has an interest in imposing registration on cyclists because it would be costly to the taxpayer and place a needless obstacle in the way of citizens engaging in an activity that is good for their health and the environment, provides a net financial benefit to the community and reduces traffic congestion and road wear and tear for those who still choose to drive.

The more people who cycle, the better it gets for drivers.

My aim here is not to exacerbate the already poisonous tribalism on our roads - quite the opposite. I am not saying cyclists are blameless, they are not. This is a call for peace and a plea for haters and bullies to think twice before acting. Lives depend on it.

Certainly, we cyclists should endeavour to get out of the way of other traffic. But no more so than the driver of a dawdling car sitting in the outside lane and blocking traffic should do his best to consider those around him and drive to free up the traffic flow.

All road users have the responsibility to show respect and consideration towards ALL other road users. Not just the ones you like or the ones that will cause harm to you or your vehicle if you collide with them.

I was riding with a friend who was hit by a car last year. We were in the cycle lane, safely and legally, but the woman driving the car wanted to turn left. So she did, regardless of our presence. She knew we were there and admitted as much but she ``thought I could beat you''.

I guarantee she would not have been so blase had my friend been in a cement truck instead of on a bike.

It is this ever-increasing indifference - the greatest enemy to road safety - that we must combat, particularly now.

This month South Australia's cycling population swells dramatically for the Tour Down Under. Many of these people are the once-a-year riders who do no favours to the reputation of cyclists as they ride in an unpredictable fashion which betrays their inexperience.

But just as it would be unacceptable to promote the abuse, assault or banishment from the roads of L-plate drivers, it is equally obscene to target cyclists of whatever skill level for such treatment.

I have been a driver for more than 25 years, motorcyclist for 15 years and a daily cyclist for the past seven years. I have seen my fellow cyclists do some stupid, illegal, inconsiderate and dangerous things on the road and have taken many to task for it.

But the stupidity I've witness from two-wheelers pales into insignificance compared to the antics of some car and truck drivers. So let's keep the judgmental attitudes in perspective.

We're all right and we're all wrong - but we all have a right to the public roads.

And then there are those motorists who go a step further, by attacking cyclists - with food, drink, spit, bottles, rubbish, abuse - not for acting improperly, but for simply existing.

Those of you who stand by the ``cyclists have no right to be there'' rant stand with cowards like these. You should ask yourselves why.

The roads are there to be shared. Show respect and consideration towards the users of ALL vehicles of all sizes and speeds.

Those championing abuse towards or the outright exiling of cyclists from public roads should realise they are the problem - not their intended targets.