Aggressive/Suicidal Bicyclists

oldsaw wrote: Sounds like a good rationale to promote additional user-fees and taxes on bicycles, the revenue then used to fund bike lanes and dedicated bike-only paths. You (and the like-minded) would stand or ride for that, right?

Actually, I would... but then again, I seem to have this silly un-American notion that I should pay for what I get... Of course, I'll admit there's only a tiny minority of cyclists that I know who would agree with me.

Why do I want this thread to go away? Because it's like road kill...

What if we (gasp) rethink our policy of letting every idiot that can fake their way through a driving exam have access to our roadways? What if we offered free public transportation and more of it, covering more areas with fewer waits between shuttles? Do you think more people would take advantage of it if it was clean, safe, went where they want to go when they want to go, and was free? I am all for offering ways for more people to choose to not drive.

What if we as a community, demanded (and paid for with our taxes) for more lanes for alternate means of transport, wider roads that can accomodate everyone, and tougher and much more regular tests in order to gain access to the roadway at all, not just motor vehicles. Do you think there would be more room on the road for people who actually like to drive?

Yet, when I hear of proposed bike lanes or public transport it seems there are people who want to argue "it's going to raise my taxes and I'm not using that service, I don't want to pay for it". It would benefit all of us if more people didn't clog up the roads, so even if you aren't directly using public transport you will still benefit from it's improvement by having fewer, and generally more skilled road users to deal with.

I would like to see our transportation system readdressed with a greater focus on reducing roadway fatalities by investing in our infrastructure and incorporating more green alternatives. I know lots of people who would bike to work if they didn't have to deal with so much traffic, and that's the sad irony of it all.

Funny enough--

I mentioned this thread to a customer today, who brought her taco'd rear wheel in after her husband borrowed her bike and shortly thereafter got forced off the road by an SUV up in Maine of all places.

In reply to EastCoastMojo:

I'll go along with everything except the free part. Most local bus and rail systems are already subsidized by the government and most of them suck. At least down here on the coast. You couldn't pay me to ride our bus system. People in this country are too fond of having their own space. The love affair with the car is ingrained in all of us a young age.

Locally they are building bike lanes on some roads, the problem is they are building them on the roads that really don't need them. Bikes on a wide four lane 35 mph road are a waste. Not to mention the bikers don't want to ride that particular road unless they are headed for the bridge which has a bike lane. How about a bike lane on the two lane narrow roads where bikers cause the most congestion problems. The problem is money. The DOT is spending all their money trying solve automotive congestion. Worrying about bikers is way down their list. Here is a little info for you. These are 2002 numbers.

10-foot shared use path $92,000 per mile 4-foot bike lane on each side with curb and gutter $270,300 per mile 5-foot bike lane on each side with mountable curb $281,100 per mile Wide curb lane (2 feet extra on each side) $48,600 per mile 4-foot paved shoulder on each side of the road $69,200 per mile

There just aren't enough bikers to move bike lanes to the top of the list. Times are changing, it just takes a while.

The only people that will EVER ride public transit are those too poor to afford their own car and drunks with too many DUI's. Most of the drunks will be on mopeds, not public transit.

1988RedT2 wrote: The only people that will EVER ride public transit are those too poor to afford their own car and drunks with too many DUI's. Most of the drunks will be on mopeds, not public transit.

It's very sad that that's the state of public transit in so much of this country. Sad that there's such a stigma attached to it even if it got better.

Then again, a LOT of people ride the T in Boston...

Yep. No one ever road Metra to work in Chicago.

We seem to move a lot of people

Otto_Maddox wrote: I hate cyclists when I am in my car. But when I'm on my bike, I really hate the people in cars. Life would be so much easier if everyone could constantly monitor and mimic my mode of transportation. If I am running, I'd prefer cars and bikes stay off the roads.

Went to more than one multi-use trail symposium over the years. The hikers (who seem to have the most clout, for whatever reason) would say:

'Horses stink and drop road apples. Motorcycles are too fast and too loud. Bicycles are too fast and too quiet. So we aren't willing to share the trails with any of them. They'll have to have their own trail systems.' But when a new separate system for any of the above was proposed, they'd squeal and squall and oppose them. Thereby locking up the process over and over again.

I ride the rail to trail system here in SW ohio a lot (several access spots within a 5 min drive of my home). I wear spandex, under a shell unless its wicked hot, and wear a helmet and ride clipless - no different than wearing a helmet on a autox course or leathers on your motorcycle. I have a loud as hell buzzer on my bars and a set of good brakes for when useless-soccer-mom and crackberry-dad arent watching Kylie and Tristan, and also for when hippy-organic-deodorant-dreadlocks-freak isnt watching Fido. Im prepared to brake often, and I dont really mind. Keeping a high pace on a relatively flat and straight path gets boring quick. I really dont mind a little variation in my ride that results from other users various modes of transport.

That said, I am all too familiar with douchey riders on gleaming $1k + carbon bikes with their obscure jerseys and zomgbazilliondollar oakleys. If you think they are rude to drivers, pass them on a 2 decade old bianchi in a pair of covered shorts and clipless mtb shoes/pedals...or better yet, have them know youre coming and then try to pass them! Youve never met entitlement embodied like that until youve met a divorced CPA on a weiner-swinging "Im better than you cuz I dropped more coin on this ridiculous getup" powertrip. If you wanna seriously see some fireworks, catch up with them at the starbucks they stopped at after some turdhole cycling asshattery , and call them out on their e36m3. I carry mace too, and its not just for stray dogs

My only issue with spandex is very, VERY few people can pull it off. Some squid in leathers may look silly, but at least seeing them doesnt make me want to barf. I think football is lame too.

Hey, heres a GRM idea I think everyone can get behind: Lets make bicycles faster! Then there would be no speed differential!

ECMJ made me think in a post once a while back about not passing a cyclist when a pass is illegal. So now I dont, but often times I see cyclists trying to wave me around, but I still wont pass untill its a legal spot to do so, as Im not going to trust anyone except my own eyes that the approaching lane is empty

Joey

joey48442 wrote: I think football is lame too.

does not compute?!?! error error errorer er ror orerro ero eroorroorreeoreroerererr..ere..e.e....r.......

thanks joey, youve just broken the interw3bz.

In reply to 4cylndrfury:

Sorry! In just not a sports guy. If it involves shooting though, I'm probably interested.

Joey

Cars and marksmanship? OK, thats acceptable.

...but just barely

whodey

Jensenman wrote: Went to more than one multi-use trail symposium over the years. The hikers (who seem to have the most clout, for whatever reason) ...

I think it's because all suburbanites secretly think they're hikers at heart. Just as soon as the weather's good, the bugs aren't out, and they buy a new pair of boots they're going to go walk around nature's beauty...

4cylndrfury wrote:

joey48442 wrote: I think football is lame too.

does not compute?!?! error error errorer er ror orerro ero eroorroorreeoreroerererr..ere..e.e....r.......

Oh my. Football bores me to tears, too. In the words of the great George Carlin (but about a different sport): 'It's like watching flies berkeley'. Now teh int3rwebz is broken and in flames.

...so when there is a separate bike path, for bikes, and the cyclist uses the road, which has no shoulder... is the cyclist just being an ass-hat? I saw this recently and I was compelled to acknowledge him with a single finger wave.

@ kabel: not necessarily, but when there are multiple entry/exit points for said bike path and they happen to bypass a section of road that is a bit hairy to drive in a car, then I'd say that we need to start teaching people when to err on the side of caution.

just to describe this road turn-by-turn, headed west on said road, locals to Loudoun County know it as Dry Mill Road/Rt. 7 Business: picture a VERY tight, 5mph yellow-sign-speed limit right-hander, followed by a quick and very blind right-left, onto a straight over a crest that the bike path is on, falling into a left-hander, up a hill and back down into a quick and nearly blind left-right, into two blind sweeping lefts, then a sweeping right with good visibility, into some blind crests, and then the road opens back up into a regular 1 lane each way. all of the dangerous stuff is on a section with about 14 feet of total road width, lined with a foot of gravel and a dense-ish forest on one side and often times a fence or trees right up to the road on the other side. wonderful good fun if you can guarantee that you won't have any traffic coming the other way, and no speed limit to obey, but get a big SUV or a truck with a trailer coming your way around a turn and suddenly the lack of a shoulder doesn't seem to be quite so much of a reason not to go off the tarmac. and this is driving a car. now imagine what could happen if someone came over one of these blind crests to find a bicyclist trudging along far enough over that passing would require going into the other lane, and an oncoming vehicle. see my point?

After thinking about this thread for a day, I think I'm ready to post.

I think the BIGGEST problem with these bikers riding around in their spandex "racing" outfits, is the fact that you can't tell whether it's a man or woman when looking at their posterior... so when you finally get to a point where you're able to tell, you just realized you've been staring at a mans ass in spandex.

I can understand where the anger and angst comes from.

-meaty

joey48442 wrote: Hey, heres a GRM idea I think everyone can get behind: Lets make bicycles faster! Then there would be no speed differential! Joey

lol, you have just stumbled upon the goal of about every road bike rider and manufacturer there is.

Well, lets hear it.... got any suggestions?

RedS13Coupe wrote:

joey48442 wrote: Hey, heres a GRM idea I think everyone can get behind: Lets make bicycles faster! Then there would be no speed differential! Joey

lol, you have just stumbled upon the goal of about every road bike rider and manufacturer there is. Well, lets hear it.... got any suggestions?

Jato pack.

Joey

RedS13Coupe wrote:

joey48442 wrote: Hey, heres a GRM idea I think everyone can get behind: Lets make bicycles faster! Then there would be no speed differential! Joey

lol, you have just stumbled upon the goal of about every road bike rider and manufacturer there is. Well, lets hear it.... got any suggestions?

Motors. That would solve the problem.

And I realized that my problem with bikes has everything to do with the speed today as I went from following a fast motorcycle to being stuck behind a car doing 15 under the speed limit. The motorcycle didn't annoy me at all. The slow car couldn't have annoyed me more if it was a fat guy in spandex.

unfortunately, it does seem to be the minority of bikers that give us all a bad name. I ride a mountainbike on my daily rides, I can tell you that the roadbikers on the skinny little tyres get REALLY upset when I can keep up with them. The ones that get upset tend to also be the ones who get everyone else pissed at bikers in general.

DILYSI Dave wrote: Motors. That would solve the problem.

I am so buying one of these. (ebay link, work safe)