Free Republic

John Edwards once said there were two Americas. He was right. Pretty sure I know which one I want to live in.

MISSOULA, Mont. -- Jim Litz is accustomed to pedaling past 300-pound black bears on his morning commute to work. “I’ve come close to them this time of year,” Litz said, clutching his side and grimacing. “I know bears. The entire creek bottom is just hammered by bears. That’s the beauty of living here. But typically, they’re crossing the road and I have plenty of time to avoid them.” That wasn’t the case during Litz’s Monday morning ride down Bear Run Creek Road, up above Miller Creek. The 57-year-old man passes slender serviceberry branchlets and dogwoods festooned with bear feed, and...

Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., rides past pedestrians on a bike ride in Chicago, Sunday, June 8, 2008.

Electric bikes are becoming an increasingly intriguing option for commuters who live relatively close to work or for avid outdoor enthusiasts. As battery and motor technology forges ahead, the speed and range of ebikes surges with it, as evidenced by the new Electric Motion Systems E+. Although DOT requirements force a road-going electric bike to twenty miles per hour, tops, the E+ is actually capable of thirty when traveling off the beaten path. With no pedaling at all, the E+ can manage twenty miles on a single charge of its 36 volt nickel metal hydride pack, which is mounted...

Injury accents bike-car tensions Wednesday, April 23, 2008 3:21 AM By Aaron Beck and Tim Doulin The Columbus Dispatch David Krohn knows all about the tensions between bicyclists and motorists sharing the road. A run-in with an angry group in a car Friday left him with a broken jaw and a gash in his head. "They think we're supposed to be on the sidewalk," he said. Proper pedaling * Bicyclists must follow the same traffic rules as those driving motorized vehicles, including stopping at stop signs and red lights and observing the speed limit. * Bicyclists must ride in the...

Whoever coined the phrase "it's just like riding a bike" probably never switched motorcycles. Even experienced riders can be wobbly on an unfamiliar bike, according to a recent study from the Progressive Group of Insurance Cos., a motorcycle insurer. Progressive reviewed nearly 2 million motorcycle insurance policies over a five-year period and found that riders who switched to different types of bikes were nearly 70% more likely to crash than riders who kept the same bike. The study also found that riders of cruiser bikes, such as Harley-Davidsons, who switched to high-performance sport bikes like Suzuki GSXRs were 3 1/2...

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The officer, whose name was not released, was on his way to assist another officer with a disturbance about 5:30 p.m. when his bike was clipped by a sport utility vehicle. ............... It was unclear whether the driver of the SUV would be cited.

Heard the one about the cyclist who rode his bike at 130mph? He must be on drugs - right? Wrong. Instead of EPO, nandrolone or a host of other illegal stimulants, Austrian rider Markus Stoeckl used a Chilean ski slope with a 45 degree drop to get up to speed. The 33-year-old broke the world record for downhill series mountain bikes by clocking a speed of 130.7mph (210.4km/h) on the La Parva run in Chile last Friday. Stoeckl, nicknamed 'Hercules', had to hold his breath for the 40-second trip to prevent the visor on his helmet from steaming up. 'At...

Rest day today.

A cyclist was transported to a hospital with minor injuries early Thursday morning after colliding with a deer in a secluded area of Walt Disney World property, according to officials. Jeffrey Norberry, 56, of Windermere, was taken to Celebration Hospital after the incident happened at about 2:50 a.m. on Floridian Way near Cast Drive, officials said. According to a Florida Highway Patrol report, Norberry was traveling eastbound on Floridian Way, and a deer was running westbound when they collided head-on. Norberry flipped over the bicycle's handlebars and the deer after the impact, the report said. The deer fled the area....