I was riding home the other day when I approached a four-way stop.

Perpendicular and to my left was a car with a “Student Driver” tag, already stopped. Another car approached across the intersection from me.

I stopped and waited my turn (I was third to reach the intersection). And waited. And waited.

Nobody budged.

I looked over at the student driver and saw the instructor instructing, while looking at me out of the corner of his eyes.

In my head (where I hear all sorts of voices), I imagined the instructions went something like this: “You HAVE to watch out for cyclists. They never stop at stop signs.”

So, naturally, I made a point to stop and wait my turn.

Eventually, the student driver proceeded cautiously through the intersection.

Coincidentally, that same night the Hartsock clan went for a family ride. We were riding on a relatively quiet residential street when we approached a four-way uncontrolled intersection.

My wife and daughter had cleared the intersection; my son and I were lagging behind.

As we approached, a car rolled up perpendicular and to our right.

I told my son to watch out for the car; he promptly grabbed a handful of brakes and would have come to a full and complete stop in the middle of the road if I hadn’t told him to keep rolling.

A few feet down the road, I asked why he had stopped.

“I thought you said to stop for the car,” he replied. “But didn’t we have the right of way?”

He’s 9 and doesn’t have any concept of right-of-way, but I reckon he’s heard it enough he thinks he’s an expert, just like he is with everything else he’s heard of, and most things he hasn’t.

I explained that, yes, we did, in fact, have right of way, but right of way doesn’t provide much cushion against a car bumper.

He didn’t get it.

Later, though, I explained that when he’s riding on the road, he has to follow the laws, but he also has to look out for himself. I explained that he legally could have gone through the intersection, but that I wanted him to see the car and make sure its driver saw him before proceeding.

I’m not sure how much sunk in, but it’s not the first time I’ve made that point, nor will it be the last.

Maybe the student driver and my little student rider both learned a little something that day: not everybody ignores the rules of the road, and it’s always a good idea to look out for the other guy.