Most of us who ride regularly deal with the hassle of the road without undue concern. Dealing with other vehicles who are bigger/heavier/faster carries a certain uncontained risk; but a risk I believe worth taking. Verses just sitting on the couch watch Fathead.com commercials. I think each of us probably have personally had an encounter or know of someone who has had contact with a vehicle with serious injury. I T-boned a station wagon in an act of extreme stupidity as a teenager and if I'd been a second or two earlier I wouldn't be writing this right now.
So I post this in response to inquires regarding the apparent unsafe conditions in which we frequently ride; generated at recent holiday parties asked by those (mostly inebriated) who're probably guilty of creating some of these apparent unsafe conditions.
I personally do not like to ride on bike paths per se, though I agree that they serve a purpose & use them on occasion - but I find they're usually too congested with other users which impede my progress. I would rather ride on a wide shoulder or bike lane with traffic, because they usually are better served in getting me where I'd rather go. Most cities I travel to are certainly getting better in catering to cyclists, but most also have a long way to go to get it right & also educating their drivers.
When I leave the house/hotel I do not dwell on the possibility that some car/truck/tractor trailer has my number on their hood - but I do practice caution & vigilance and are continually aware of my surroundings. Despite this I would say on average I have at least 1 encounter per ride that has potentially serious consequences that requires some evasive action on my part.
Yet I would rate the typical motorist is doing his/her fair share in practicing good driving etiquette. It is the minority of drivers that are a continual hazard to us - usually distracted (yelling at the kids, yakking on the cell, spilling their 4-bucks or fat fries, punching the GPS, putting on makeup, lighting up a cancer stick, falling asleep, etc.) or are otherwise oblivious or clueless. Some seem to be looking right at us, but don't see what they're not expecting - and give us a left or right hook; and some are just damn mean (didn't learn what the word "share" as in "share the road" means), inexperienced or too damn old.
I usually tell folks who ask about being intimidated on their bikes by other traffic a story about a guy named Jim on my 2000 year-long bike trip. In late July or early August we were in Sweden traveling to some small town (ya sure you betcha). Jim decided to get to the end of the day campground on the wide shoulder of the main highway rather than the circuitous side roads the route guide for the day called for (his prerogative). To cut to the chase Jim became entangled with the rear axle of a trailer which turned in front of him. The truck driver called their emergency response and Jim was airlifted to the nearest Hospital within 30 minutes - where they amputated one of his legs just below the knee that afternoon. One of our fellow riders who rode with a prosthetic carbon-fiber leg stayed behind until Jim's family could come out from the States & also to console/counsel him with some guidance as to how life will be as an amputee. Jim confided that 2 weeks earlier he had a premonition that he was going to get killed sometime on the trip and if all the worse that was going to happen was an amputated leg, he was OK with that.
Now I'll agree that that's some good rational for a terrible accident on Jim's part - but can you imagine getting up every morning for 2 weeks thinking that this day may be your last? I can't!
And so we do the best with what we've got - donning on our brightly colored kit & 9-ounce styrofoam helmet, maybe a flashing light or 2. If some idiot has my number out there today (well I survived today) or tomorrow (well I'm not actually riding tomorrow 'cause I'm flying all day - but the proverbial and perpetual tomorrow) I don't want to know it and more importantly I don't want to be intimidated by it - but I'll do my best to keep an eye & ear out for them.
Ride safely & smartly (offensively if you must) - even when others don't!
Only 14 more shopping days until Christmas.
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1 comment:
Funny that I mentioned socking that guy near SF in my other comment...I hadn't seen you post here about traffic, etc. My personal policy now after all these years is that if someone does something to intentionally endanger me I am going to hurt them if I catch them. They are trying to hurt or scare me with their car, and they are going to get a response if they are caught.
I acutally had the police on my side after I was honked at and tapped from behind which led to me stopping and tomahawking my bike rear-wheel perpendicular onto the car's hood. It left a satisfying dent, and I would have gone for the drive afterward, but she was weilding a cane, so I drew the line there.
I don't go looking for this kind of trouble of course.
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