Protocol for downhill cyclist overtaking a car? Last weekend, I was driving (yes in a car, something I rarely do) down a fairly steep and very curvy mountain road (thus with very poor sight lines/visibility ahead) when I noticed a cyclist in my rearview mirror.  He looked "pro" and in control, but was close enough to me that I was worried that if I braked to slow down for one of these curves, I was going to have cyclist splattered all over the rear of the car.

After longer than either one of us would have liked (two minutes or so), I finally got ahead of him enough to slow down a lot and pull far to the right on a stretch with enough visibility for him to pass me on the left (since he was clearly wanting to go much faster than I was comfortable with on the curves) and I rolled down my window to wave "OK" to him.

As he passed he yelled at me (yelling's understandable in this cases, only have a second) about cars needing to pull aside for cyclists.

I felt terrible if I'd endangered him or caused him to damage his brakes or whatever to slow his speed more than he liked.  And I don't even care what the law says if I could do something better to accommodate fast downhill cyclists better in the future, I'm just trying to figure out what I should have done differently.

I think the cyclist wanted me to pull over as soon as I noticed him.  In retrospect I guess I could have done that safely by putting on my emergency blinkers to indicate to him I'd seen him and was planning to slow down.  In the moment, I was worried about how close he was, how variable my speed was around the tight curves, how narrow the road was, and how scant little I could see ahead of me (i.e. I wasn't going to pull left to let him pass me on my right, since I could kill him if I needed to come back right quickly due to oncoming car.)

Anyone have strong feelings about things I should/shouldn't do?

I'm not worried about my rights - I'm far more often the one on the bicycle - so just help me figure out what I should do better next time to accommodate him if I were in similar situation.
Please accept my apologies on behalf of cyclists. Hollerin' something at a motorist who was trying to figure out how to handle an obviously unclear situation was inappropriate. Thanks for doing your best and not killing any cyclists that day!

In general, I agree with the other answers here that you handled this fine and there isn't some magic you could have worked to make the situation go away. Having frequently cycled one of the curviest and steepest highways in the US, I have often been in the position of your cyclist. I also know from a drivers perspective of the same road that there are not a whole lot of obvious moves.

The primarily impetus for any action should probably be on the cyclist. As a motorist being aware helps a lot; but don't try to do anything fancy. Keep it simple. Watch for what kind of move the cyclist wants to make and adapt, but be consistent yourself. He's trying to guess how your car is going to behave -- if you change patterns on him, all bets are off.

The easiest place for a cyclist to pass is usually the place where cars naturally go the slowest. This means curves. Straights are hard because cars speed up (and try to pass each other). While we do have to follow the rules of the road, passing on a double yellow curve is sometimes the safest thing to do on a bike. Inside curves (left turns for US folks) provide the most visibility and a chance to cut a shorter path than the car. The best thing you can do is stay all the way in your lane and take the curve easy. Let the cyclist make the move. You don't have to be in the shoulder or pulled over or anything, just keep your own company and don't wander all over the road yourself.

It's ok to brake. Cyclists have brakes too and there is no physical reason we are forced go fast or follow close. If you want to be extra nice, when you do brake, touch the brakes lightly at first so your brake lights come on early and gradually add pressure to slow the car. In fact, if a cyclist is following you too closely and you are uncomfortable, tap the brakes a couple times to signal you need room to brake. You don't have to actually brake, but the brake lights are the best signal you can give to indicate you want the cyclist to add some distance.

Turn signals are confusing, but usually a right from you means you are going to pull over and a left means you can see the road is clear to pass. However, these are not set and stone and the cyclist still needs to make a judgement call. Hazard lights are even more confusing: I would save them for indicating true hazards.

To make a long story short, drive normally and safely yourself, and let the cyclist take care of the passing.