Posted on 02/25/2023 1:40:39 PM PST by PghBaldy
“ old bikers hogging the roads”
There are two lengthy trails here for bikers and pedestrians (Belt Line in the city, Silver Comet Trail in an old railbed outside of town). The Silver Comet is 95 miles long - all the way from Smyrna GA to Anniston AL (it becomes the Chief Latiga Trail when it enters AL). You have to pack your bikes to a trailhead, but after that you’re not contending with motor vehicles — just hilarious “Baby Cop” electric police cars (really just dolled up golf carts). There is a problem with crime on the trails in some segments, esp. for women - you have to always travel in a group, there have been rapes and at least two murders of women riding alone.
I was a very amateur road biker when I was in my 20s - so I don't hate cyclists. But around here there are plenty of young ones who act like they own the road. When you are trying to get somewhere and 15-20 guys in neon spandex are biking leisurely along blocking the entire lane (and sometimes the oncoming one as well), being verbally abusive to drivers and just generally being a pain, I understand why people get frustrated. They shouldn't take it out on random cyclists, that's clearly wrong -- but it is also wrong to ignore the traffic laws and endanger oneself and others, and be rude about it to boot.
See my other post. There's your specific personal experience. I could probably find the exact date because I have a copy of the police report somewhere.
At this point it's a chicken-and-egg situation - rude bikers make hostile drivers who make more rude bikers and the occasional homicidal driver.
Everyone. Needs. To. Stop. Including the bikers.
“Bicyclists on city streets are a nuisance.” Surely, you jest. Bicyclists are easy to go around in a car.
“Mountain biking is a much safer activity where the obstacles are mostly stationary.”
Except mountain lions.
Anything traveling the roadways at much less than the posted speed limit is in danger .
When I used to go to the office every day, I took a 2-lane road that had a bike lane on the shoulder. This road was weird…it’s very old and in an area that used to be way outside of town “in the desert,” but is now pretty much in the middle of Scottsdale, and it’s got these up and down little rollercoaster hills just tall enough that you can’t see oncoming traffic. Twice a day on that road, I would encounter cyclists riding 2-3 abreast into the car lane, and you would come up on them on these blind hills and they would refuse to move into their bike lane. It got so bad that I started taking the longer route on the road that didn’t have a “bike lane.” Just rude and arrogant. Whatever happened to old guys staying on the golf course Instead of playing in traffic?
When they are looking at their phone...
It’s sad…some of the “rails to trails” bike routes they have in FLorida are great from a cycling point of view, but very dangerous, particularly for women.
These trails run along the routes of old, no longer used railroad tracks. But unfortunately the “wrong side of the tracks” is still there in some areas, and you have to be very careful in those areas. Pedal fast…
It’s dangerous to ride on streets because most people drive with their eyes glued to their phones.
We don't live in a big city and don't see a lot of cyclists on the roads near where we live. The ones we do see are typically over 50 and not holding up traffic or being rude in any way. Yet we have many people in this area who hate bicyclists any way.
If you are the type of person who can't let go of a grudge likely formed long ago against people for other people's actions... then congratulations there is a lot of likeminded people who post here frequently, and you should feel very welcome here.
Because the large percentage of crass cyclist have sullied the perception of all cyclists or that that people have been swayed to that perception by common cyclist behavior?
And the other 3 haven't been diagnosed...yet.;-)"
That's the sick mindset of greedy shrinks.
The Bible calls that "broken" or "fallen."
Goodyear Police say 26-year-old Pedro Quintana-Lujan was arrested and booked on Saturday. https://www.azfamily.com/2023/02/26/man-arrested-after-hitting-multiple-cyclists-goodyear-highway-saturday-morning/
I tried to explain that I have no grudge against cyclists, was a very active cyclist myself when younger . . . and certainly some drivers are idiots and even criminal. But the wrong is not all on one side.
As for "likely formed long ago" - tu quoque. The last time I encountered dangerous cyclists in significant numbers was near the end of December 2022. I was westbound on a narrow road, Mt. Paran, when I met 10-12 younger male cyclists occupying the entire eastbound lane, including one or two riding along the center line. Extremely dangerous as this is a busy road as well as an old "drover road" that follows a ridge, with very tight curves and short sight lines, and a very high crown. Traffic was backed up for at least half a mile behind them, they were apparently oblivious and did not take single file or pull over to allow traffic to clear. Fortunately nobody gunned it around them, because they could have hit oncoming traffic (including me).
I don't understand their attitude - they seem completely unaware of others, even though it could directly affect their safety.
It’s like I told my daughter when she went off to college: 1. Travel in a pack. 2. Nothing good happens after midnight.
That’s the problem we’re dealing with here — areas that used to be rural or very, very quiet suburban have all had a bunch of development, and the roads haven’t kept up. Add to that the popularity of cycling . . . a bad combination.
Good on ya for trying! I wouldn't have been in it at all, even 30 years ago. Now if I'd had a horse . . . .
You are correct about the sun blindness. It can be very dangerous. Early morning and late afternoon can be very dangerous, while driving or biking into the sun.
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