ARROGANT CYCLISTS A DEADLY HELL ON WHEELS

NY Post ^ | July 30, 2008 | Andrea Peyser

[Postman]

Why not wait until no one is around and then give them a gentle tap off the nearest cliff? I learned a long time ago that those who pedal bicycles can’t really afford to piss off those who drive 2 tons of wheeled metal.....similar to bringing a knife to a gun fight.

[12Gauge687]

You are correct! ‘Da mayor’ is a big (literally) proponent of cycling. New ordinances put the onus on motorists with hefty fines, around $200 or more, for crowding the bike lane or not yielding to cyclists.

Critical Mass sometimes shows up in Chicago, too. A bigger bunch of morons I don’t know. If they’re trying to win people over to cycling, they’re doing a crappy job, especially when traffic is at a dead stop for hours.

[bikerman]

A broom stick in the spokes would slow them down.

[TV Dinners]

They should be ticketed...

Signed,
an avid cyclist!

[weegee]

In Amsterdam the bicyclists have the right of way over pedestrians whether you are a tourist who doesn’t realize this or not.

[TV Dinners]

They should be ticketed...

Signed,
an avid cyclist!

[RandallFlagg]

These bikers will run your car right off the road here in Colorado. They have more right of way than the cars. I’ve even seen them on I25! Of course, they’ll flip you the bird, if you get too close to them, but you have to risk accidents to swerve into other lanes to avoid them!

I can verify that. They're really bad in Golden right around the Coors Brewery. The state spent millions putting bike paths in lovely locations all over the areas here -and all over the brewery- so more bikes would get off the streets. Yet these people STILL insist on riding alongside the winding 32nd Ave. This is a two lane road with NO shoulder, and nowhere to move off in case something happens. Trees on one side, mountain on the other, 18-wheelers rolling in every direction to and from the brewery.

Needless to say, there's a lot of crosses and memorials along that road. The latest is from a guy killed in April of this year.

[arthurus]

You can’t help it if you target them carefully.

[Fireone]

For pedestrians, it seems like a walkingstick made
of 1/2” re-bar would be a handy item.
Spokes, skewer, or just carry it sideways sticking out to
the sides. “personal space”

[JimSEA]

If cyclists obey the traffic laws

In both Portland and Eugene, OR, it is pretty easy for thy cyclist to "rabbit" on the cops. There is also some overlap between our local anarchists and local bike riders (not to imply that being a cyclist makes one suspect but a lot of anarchists do chose that mode of transport along with many folks of the radical greenie persuasion).

[Melas]

See, the problem is that sometimes they just don’t put a bike lane from your house to your place of employment so you have to ride on the streets. Other times, there is no lane to the grocery store, or the beer store, or.....

[pjd]

And what about those crazy unicyclists! Check this out,

I ride a unicycle, too. But nothing like this...

[StACase]

I ride the Ozaukee trail just north of Milwaukee, and just today I had a discussion with a 20 something who wizzed by me on the right with no room to spare and no warning. Seems he thinks it would be my fault if he ran into me from behind.

Well maybe I did some good as he passed me again after the discussion with an, “On your left” but he was still going to fast on a public trail with dogs, kids and old fuddy duddies like me on it.

[fightinJAG]

It’s too easy for them to skidaddle off.

That’s why we need citizen journalists with camera phones and vid to catch them on tape and post it on a “Cyclists Behaving Badly” blog.

[Fichori]

I almost hit a 50-60 year old pedestrian while riding on a (8 foot wide) bike/walking trail.

We were both going the same direction and I was about to pass them, and they suddenly decided, without looking behind them, that they wanted to be on my side of the trail.

Needless to say they freaked out when I stood it up on the front wheel.

[fightinJAG]

A safe distance before reaching them, did you happen to call out “on your left” or “on your right”?

Many bikes these days are pretty noiseless. Plus an older pedestrian might not have the best hearing.

[Fichori]

Fortunately I was watching them just in case...

They really should have looked behind them before attempting to cross.
(You are supposed to look both ways before crossing a thoroughfare, aren't you?)

I guess its all about situational awareness. (or the lack of it.)

Perhaps thats why they used to put those little bells on bikes.

Maybe I should mount one of these on my handlebars: