Posted on 10/23/2013 5:20:00 PM PDT by JSDude1
In the past few years, many cities and local governments have embraced bicycling as a reasonable way to use public roads — carving out special lanes, setting up bike-sharing stations and generally making life easier for those who want to travel by two wheels rather than four.
But those moves haven't come without complaint about congestion and special treatment, and just as biking clubs have grown for weekend riders, so has anti-bike advocacy and concerns about who rules the road — such as the handmade warning signs above from a pro-vehicle group. In a shocking but not surprising turn, one Texas man now faces charges after being caught on video threatening a group of cyclists with a baseball bat — and ending the row by running over a $5,000 bicycle.
(Excerpt) Read more at autos.yahoo.com ...
No offense to anyone who is an avid cyclist, but I really dislike this hobby having been on the roads with some of the idiots who are not respectful on the roads!~
-JS
The roads are paid for by gas taxes.
If you don’t pay the tax, we tax payers, who own the roads, may permit you to use the roads when we tax payers are not on them, but you don’t get right of way.
$5000.00 bicycle...WTF??? I can buy a car for that and get to work a lot easier...Go ride a pitchfork! I don’t want to sit next to the idiot’s cubicle who just peddle 20 miles in the middle of summer! Will my employer provide gas masks?
As a conservative bike commuter (go ahead...) just let me say that I HATE BIKE LANES!!!
Treat me like a car. Behave like a car. It’s much more predictable.
You’ve got a ton of steel. I have great respect for that.
I use maneuverability and slimness to get along in traffic.
So there. Problem solved.
It doesn’t matter how polite the cyclist is, there is always that one guy in a pickup truck who is offended. I traded my road bike for a commuter-type bike several years ago so I could move closer to the edge of the road without damaging my wheels. I stay well within the 18” bike lane and still get swerved at, yelled at, beeped at, and have had things thrown at me.
I had one guy stop and block the bike lane and shoulder and get out of his truck. Once he discovered that I’m an ARMED cyclist, he rethought that decision. I guess he thought that we’re all granola-munching liberals.
Well..can I ask you one question: Would you ride your bike on a two lane (busy) road during high traffic times (or would you pull over) for vehicle drivers so they can actually get to work, etc.. on time?
Btw: no offense if you wear this, but I think bike “uniforms” look ridiculous.
>>If you don’t pay the tax, we tax payers, who own the roads, may permit you to use the roads when we tax payers are not on them, but you don’t get right of way.
Do you really think that adult cyclists don’t drive cars? Or trucks? We pay gas taxes too. And since you’re allocating road space and rights by the amount of tax paid, does that give semis the right to hit SUVs, who have the right to hit sedans, who have the right to hit subcompacts, who have the right to hit motorcycles?
>>Well..can I ask you one question: Would you ride your bike on a two lane (busy) road during high traffic times (or would you pull over) for vehicle drivers so they can actually get to work, etc.. on time?
If the road is that busy, I ride somewhere else. If it is a 30 mph subdivision, you can go around me but I will hug the edge of the road and try to let you pass. Remember, I have less than 1/2 horsepower, so when a cyclist stops, he has to restart using muscle power. You have 100-400 hp under the right foot, so try to be understanding.
>>Btw: no offense if you wear this, but I think bike “uniforms” look ridiculous.
I don’t anymore. I wear bike shorts under regular shorts and a plain bike jersey because the padding in the shorts and the construction of the jersey has a lot of practicality.
Carbon fiber or titanium frames start in the $3k range...that’s just the frame, no seat, drive train, wheels, brakes, etc.
This is a tough one, but I’ll tell you that roadies haven’t been doing themselves any favors with “demanding” equal access while they impinge upon the drivers. Coupled with the in your face flaunting of traffic laws...well, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out where it leads to.
Me? I mountain bike and do my level best to only go perpendicular to pavement when I come to it, too many idiots out there looking to take me out just because I’m on 2 wheels, like yesterday.
I guess he thought that we’re all granola-munching liberals.
Damn!...That’s what I thought.
“.....I’m an ARMED cyclist.........” Good plan. ;>)
What a totally asinine thing to post. Surely you forgot the sarcasm tag.
Trucks actually do more damage to the roads than cars, more than their increased taxes pay.
So it is a charity for trucks to be permitted to use the roads, just as it is a charity for cyclists.
Don’t like it? build your own roads, with a special bicyle tax, or double your truck tax.
Well, bicycles aren’t allowed on the interstate highway system.
>>Don’t like it? build your own roads, with a special bicyle tax, or double your truck tax.
I already pay gas taxes, same as you. A bicycle does no damage to the road.
Trucks add more value to the economy than cagers and mashers.
not asinine.
The roads were built by cars, for cars.
Treat bikers like jaywalkers. Do they get consideration? Just enough so I don’t actively target them. They need to get off the road, so they don’t block traffic with their hazardous activity. Pedestrians have their own little roads called ‘side walks’ to help them be safety separated from the cars.
Trucks can use the same roads as cars, but with restrictions, like only the right most lanes can be used by trucks, no left turns permitted.
When a bike blocks traffic, it damages the road’s utility.
“I really dislike this hobby”
_______________________________________
Hobby? A bicycle is how I go to the market every day, and anywhere else in my town. I do not have, or need, a car.
I see very few cars, even on the main highway.
In fairness, I do sympathize with your attitude concerning
snotty-nosed California leftist.
When living in Slovakia, I enjoyed a four lane divided highway that allowed ONLY bicycles and roller blades. It went from the center of Bratislava, all the way to the Austrian boarder.
It was great weekend fun, as it also had numerous pubs along the route. Near the end of the route, there was a lake for nude bathers :)
Two lanes were on top of a Danube dam, and two at the base.
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