Despite being stalled by a single cyclist this weekend, the “people’s convoy” of aggrieved truckers continues to roll around the United States’ capital.
On Saturday morning, videos of a cyclist bringing the anti-vaccine mandate convoy to a grinding halt spread widely after being posted by The Daily Beast’s Zachary Petrizzo. The video shows a lone cyclist biking at a leisurely pace down a road where it would be difficult for vehicles to pass, with a lengthy line of truckers stretching far behind him. A livestreamer filming the incident pulls up beside the cyclist—his steed, a bike with a green basket on the front—and asks him what he’s doing.
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“What’s that? I didn’t hear you, what did you say?” the cyclist says amid the near-constant blaring from the horns of the trucks behind him. When the livestreamer—annoyed the drivers can’t annoy more people—asked him if he knows if there are trucks behind him, the cyclist responded simply.
“I’m sorry. I can’t hear you—it’s too loud.”
The cyclist then turned away from the livestreamer and carried on slowly biking up the road. His actions were, unsurprisingly, celebrated by local residents annoyed by the convoy—many of whom welcomed the truckers to their city by flipping them the bird or cursing them out.
Despite being trolled into oblivion by the cyclist on Saturday, the convoy carried on this weekend. The group drove into the heart of Washington, D.C. for some honking and did a few laps of the Beltway—the highway that encircles the D.C. area. They also distanced themselves from a man who was invited on stage on Friday to give a speech where he said they were going to “take back” Black Lives Matter Plaza.
On Monday, the convoy leadership stated they’ll carry on for the time being, but changes may be coming shortly. The convoy’s de facto leader and spokesperson, Brian Brase, left late last week to spend time with family and did not return by Monday, so a new person was giving out instructions. At the morning drivers meeting, the organizer said they were planning to relocate by the end of the week, likely on Thursday, but did not indicate where they will be going. The group has been using the Hagerstown Speedway parking lot, located about two hours north of D.C., as a staging ground since they arrived.
When sending the drivers out to protest, Monday’s organizer urged them: “Behave yourselves out on the road.”
“Don’t do any stopping, don’t pin anyone in,” he said with the tone of a substitute teacher.
This likely referenced an incident late last week when a group of truckers boxed in a Tesla on the road. A video shows four trucks bringing the car to a standstill—allegedly in the hopes that a state trooper would arrest the driver after they brake-checked one of the drivers. Video shows the truckers coordinating on CB radio to pull the driver over and essentially taking over two full lanes of the highway as they conducted their operation.
The truckers have been in Hagerstown since March 4. They’re protesting the few remaining vaccine mandates and COVID-19 health measures left in place, and their main goal is to get the federal emergency declaration set in 2020 rescinded.
Despite having met with prominent GOP politicians, they have yet to achieve anything.
Follow Mack Lamoureux on Twitter.