Incredibly dumb anti-cyclist article

Ah yes...the dreaded Couriers.

In Melbourne (Australia) they ride like idiots. I know that's a
generalisation and there are presumably sensible couriers but most are
trying to fit as many trips in a day as they can (natural when you get paid
by the trip) and it's anarchy.

There are too many cyclists that apparently feel the road rules don't apply
to cyclists. It is common to see cyclists ignoring red lights, failing to
signal and in general behaving in an anti social manner.
Cyclists, however, are highly offended if a motorist doesn't obey the rules.

Unpopular as it may be, I believe that mirrors should be compulsory on
bikes - although that poses the question of educating cyclists to use them.

I don't blame cyclists for not wanting to ride in dedicated cycle lanes
though. The lanes are rarely swept, full of debris and glass, are the
roughest surface you can find and I've yet to see one terminated
safely...they just dribble out into the traffic.....

I wouldn't say I was a goodie two-shoes rider, but it costs nothing to ride
sensibly, give signals, obey traffic lights and generally act in a civilised
manner.

Maybe that's what the author was on about.

(Dons kevlar hat, ballistic jacket and groin protector....)

Paul W

On Tue, 23 Nov 2004 01:58:06 GMT

Paul W said:

Ah yes...the dreaded Couriers.

In Melbourne (Australia) they ride like idiots. I know that's a
generalisation and there are presumably sensible couriers but most are
trying to fit as many trips in a day as they can (natural when you get
paid by the trip) and it's anarchy.

If couriers are the evil to be cured, they could concentrate on
ticketing for reckless endangerment, and could pass laws requiring bicycles
to be fitted with standard safety equipment - like brakes. I hear a lot of
these couriers just reach out and grab the front wheel.

Quoted message said:

There are too many cyclists that apparently feel the road rules don't
apply to cyclists. It is common to see cyclists ignoring red lights,
failing to signal and in general behaving in an anti social manner.
Cyclists, however, are highly offended if a motorist doesn't obey the
rules.

Cyclists breaking existing laws should be ticketed under existing laws.
We don't need new laws to make these behaviors /more/ illegal.

Quoted message said:

Unpopular as it may be, I believe that mirrors should be compulsory on
bikes - although that poses the question of educating cyclists to use
them.

Please show me where to mount an effective mirror on my USS SWB 'bent.

Quoted message said:

I don't blame cyclists for not wanting to ride in dedicated cycle lanes
though. The lanes are rarely swept, full of debris and glass, are the
roughest surface you can find and I've yet to see one terminated
safely...they just dribble out into the traffic.....

My desire to ride in dedicated bicycle lanes is very close to my heart.
Unfortunately I live in a bicycle-unfriendly city.

Quoted message said:

I wouldn't say I was a goodie two-shoes rider, but it costs nothing to
ride sensibly, give signals, obey traffic lights and generally act in a
civilised manner.

Maybe that's what the author was on about.

(Dons kevlar hat, ballistic jacket and groin protector....)

I think the author was agitating for the anti-bicycle agenda.

The tone reminds me of a city council member we used to have who
proposed outlawing left turns city-wide. Intended to do it, was on the way
to doing it, when he was very soundly put in his place.

It turns out that human beings don't actually use reasoning, we only
have intuition, logic, and rationalization. The mental process we refer to
as 'reason' has been shown to occur only after we have made decisions.
Ergo, the mark of intelligence is the ability to change one's mind.

So people get these ideas in their heads and then work out all the
reasons why their idea is the only correct idea.

You can't spell certain without cretin.

And you forgot your asbestos longjohns.

Ah yes Eric - you have THAT problem
( Please show me where to mount an effective mirror on my USS SWB 'bent. )

It's the wobbly helmet mirror or none at all isn't it!?
Is there a decent helmet mounted mirror? The one I tried got the flops too
quickly.

I see there's a helmet out with a "periscope" mirror that reflects down from
the rear of the helmet. I hope the mirrors are polycarbonate - grinding
glass with ones head is not going to make the helmet safer....

You were joking about grabbing the front wheel?

Paul W

NYC seems to be focused on this now. There was a proposal that bikes
had to be licensed:

http://www.transalt.org/press/askta/041119.html

On Tue, 23 Nov 2004 06:44:52 GMT

Paul W said:

Ah yes Eric - you have THAT problem
( Please show me where to mount an effective mirror on my USS SWB
'bent. )

It's the wobbly helmet mirror or none at all isn't it!?
Is there a decent helmet mounted mirror? The one I tried got the flops
too quickly.

I got a 3rd Eye Pro but the instructions tell me to apply it to some
sort of large, flat area on the inside of the helmet with the included
sticky tape. I'm curious what planet they're from where people have large,
flat facets on their heads.

Considering using a long razor blade to cut a very thin slot in the
foam, into which i will slide the mounting plate, covered with some sort of
cement that won't just melt the foam.

Quoted message said:

I see there's a helmet out with a "periscope" mirror that reflects down
from the rear of the helmet. I hope the mirrors are polycarbonate -
grinding glass with ones head is not going to make the helmet safer....

Yeah, and only $80.

Quoted message said:

You were joking about grabbing the front wheel?

I must stress that i have not seen this myself, but i hear that there is
a breed of bicycle courier that has muscles from hell and eschews much of
what we consider basic equipment. They ride fixed gear bikes and spin like
a demon. They have no levers of any kind on their bikes, and literally lean
down and grab the front wheel (with a gloved hand) to stop. The concept is
that there is less on the bike to malfunction and cause a late delivery.

IMHO, too many cyclists consider themselves as pedestrians on wheels, not vehicles. As pedestrians, they don't consider themselves bound by vehicular rules, but they still expect their right to the road when it's more convenient to be there. Yes, they are potentially dangerous, but the solution is to enforce the existing laws, not to make new ones the also won't be enforced.

"Paul W" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Ah yes Eric - you have THAT problem
( Please show me where to mount an effective mirror on my USS SWB
'bent. )

It's the wobbly helmet mirror or none at all isn't it!?
Is there a decent helmet mounted mirror? The one I tried got the flops too
quickly.

I see there's a helmet out with a "periscope" mirror that reflects down
from
the rear of the helmet. I hope the mirrors are polycarbonate - grinding
glass with ones head is not going to make the helmet safer....

You were joking about grabbing the front wheel?

Paul W

I tried one of the h*lm*t mirrors and it was never where it was the last
time I looked. Bad case of the flops. The answer for me was to get mirror
that fit the ear piece of my cycling glasses. Add a bit of tape as added
insurance to keep it in place and it's always where it should be when you
want a rearward glance. Works on all bikes.

H*lm*t mirrors suck.

[email hidden] (john riley) wrote in message news:<[email hidden] There was a proposal that bikes

Quoted message said:

had to be licensed:

I must have ESP (extra sensory perception)! I licensed mine last
week. 3000 miles from NY, but San Francisco or Los Angeles might do
that too: demanding mandantory California registration- I never know
until too late. Better safe than sorry.

Chris Jordan
Santa Cruz, CA.

On 23 Nov 2004 09:54:05 -0800

(Christopher Jordan) said:

[email hidden] (john riley) wrote in message
news:<[email hidden] There was a
proposal that bikes

Quoted message said:

had to be licensed:

I must have ESP (extra sensory perception)! I licensed mine last
week. 3000 miles from NY, but San Francisco or Los Angeles might do
that too: demanding mandantory California registration- I never know
until too late. Better safe than sorry.

When i was a kid, the cop told me that the bicycle license was so that
they know who it belongs to when they find it in a ditch after someone
steals it for temporary transportation.

I was incredulous, having purchased licensed bicycles at police auctions
for parts. Every now and then they round up the abandoned bicycles at the
bike racks, throw them in a barn or something. When it gets full they
auction them off. For years i rode a nishiki 10 speed with 700c wheels and
drop bars that i bought for $10 when i was 14.

"Paul W" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Ah yes...the dreaded Couriers.

Maybe that's what the author was on about.

Maybe you should have read the article. Its premise was bicyclists were a
serious threat to pedestrian life an limb.

"Skip" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...> >

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I tried one of the h*lm*t mirrors and it was never where it was the last
time I looked. Bad case of the flops. The answer for me was to get mirror
that fit the ear piece of my cycling glasses. Add a bit of tape as added
insurance to keep it in place and it's always where it should be when you
want a rearward glance. Works on all bikes.

H*lm*t mirrors suck.

I could not disagree more. I ride 6000 miles/year with a Third Eye
helmet mirror. I do carry a spare when touring (which I've yet to
need) and I replace the velcro on both the mirror bracket and on the
helmet about once/year(I try to get 2 years from a helmet). It takes
me about 5 seconds when I get on the bike for a day's ride to get
mirror adjusted and it remains rock solid unless I do something
stupid (like removing a jersey with helmet on 😉.

"DeVon" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Skip" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:<[email hidden]>...> >

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I tried one of the h*lm*t mirrors and it was never where it was the last
time I looked. Bad case of the flops. The answer for me was to get
mirror
that fit the ear piece of my cycling glasses. Add a bit of tape as added
insurance to keep it in place and it's always where it should be when you
want a rearward glance. Works on all bikes.

H*lm*t mirrors suck.

I could not disagree more. I ride 6000 miles/year with a Third Eye
helmet mirror. I do carry a spare when touring (which I've yet to
need) and I replace the velcro on both the mirror bracket and on the
helmet about once/year(I try to get 2 years from a helmet). It takes
me about 5 seconds when I get on the bike for a day's ride to get
mirror adjusted and it remains rock solid unless I do something
stupid (like removing a jersey with helmet on 😉.

I could not disagree more. I tried two third eye mirrors and neither worked
for me. The first one was a semi-permanent stick on type. It was always
hitting something - being attached and sticking out from the h*lm*t 24/7.
Didn't take long for the inferior plastic joint to loosen up and for the
mirror to start flopping around. The next one I bought used Velcro to stick
to the h*lm*t. My h*lm*t doesn't always stay in the same place on my head
during a ride which means I had to "hunt" for the mirror when I needed it.
I was on a week long ride and on the second day out I went over a RR track
and the damn thing fell off - I doubled back for it and found it crushed. I
was on a Ryan - you sit in a Ryan seat - not on it, so there's no twisting
around to look back on that bike. I thought I was screwed for sure, but
fortunately there was a guy on the ride named Chuck who made and sold eye
glass mirrors using recycled bike spokes. There's no wimpy plastic on
Chuck's mirror and it's maintenance free. I've used it 8 years now and
love it. It's always exactly where it should be.

I'm a true believer in Chuck's little eyeglass mirror gizmo. It is something
I would never ride without. I also use it kayaking where it's difficult to
look back to check on your paddling partners. I'm sure creative people
could come up other uses for it.

"Tom Sherman" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Eric Jorgensen said:

...
Please show me where to mount an effective mirror on my USS SWB
'bent....

I had an USS SWB recumbent that had no good place to mount a mirror. Due
to the deficiencies of h*lm*t mounted mirrors [1], the bicycle was not
safe for me to ride in traffic, so I sold it.

Good Grief! You got rid of a bike just because you couldn't figure out a
rear view mirror problem? Why not wear some kind of glasses and mount your
rear view mirror on these if you don't like a mirror mounted on your helmet.
Jeez! Just how fussy wussy can you get!

--
Regards,

Ed Dolan the Great - Minnesota

Eric Jorgensen said:

...
Please show me where to mount an effective mirror on my USS SWB 'bent....

I had an USS SWB recumbent that had no good place to mount a mirror. Due
to the deficiencies of h*lm*t mounted mirrors [1], the bicycle was not
safe for me to ride in traffic, so I sold it.

[1] One of the issues where I agree with Jobst Brandt:
<http://www.sheldonbrown.com/brandt/mirrors.html>.

--
Tom Sherman - Rock Island County Illinois
Tetrahedral carbon lattices are not forever.

DeVon said:

I could not disagree more. I ride 6000 miles/year with a Third Eye
helmet mirror. I do carry a spare when touring (which I've yet to
need) and I replace the velcro on both the mirror bracket and on the
helmet about once/year(I try to get 2 years from a helmet). It takes
me about 5 seconds when I get on the bike for a day's ride to get
mirror adjusted and it remains rock solid unless I do something
stupid (like removing a jersey with helmet on 😉.

How the heck do you get something like this
<http://www.jerseyheritagetrust.org/collections/fame/images/cow.jpg> on
you in the first place? And just how often do Jerseys wear h*lm*ts anyhow?

--
Tom Sherman - Rock Island County Illinois
Tetrahedral carbon lattices are not forever.

Skip said:

H*lm*t mirrors suck.

And mirrors mounted on the end of OSS "T-bars" are great.

--
Tom Sherman - Rock Island County Illinois
Tetrahedral carbon lattices are not forever.

"Tom Sherman" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Edward Dolan said:

"Tom Sherman" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Eric Jorgensen wrote:

>...
> Please show me where to mount an effective mirror on my USS SWB
> 'bent....

I had an USS SWB recumbent that had no good place to mount a mirror. Due
to the deficiencies of h*lm*t mounted mirrors [1], the bicycle was not
safe for me to ride in traffic, so I sold it.

Good Grief! You got rid of a bike just because you couldn't figure out a
rear view mirror problem? Why not wear some kind of glasses and mount
your rear view mirror on these if you don't like a mirror mounted on your
helmet. Jeez! Just how fussy wussy can you get!

Mirrors mounted on glasses have the same exact problems as mirrors mounted
on h*lm*ts - no fixed reference so it is impossible to determine the
relative bearing of overtaking vehicles.

I have never liked rear view mirrors mounted on the bike. I much prefer rear
view mirrors mounted on glasses or a helmet. That way they rotate in
alignment with my head. Admittedly it is very important that they don't lose
their adjustment, but provided they don't I do not see what the problem
would be.

Trek made a rear view mirror a few years back that was a masterpiece. It
attached to your glasses. It was much better than the damn Third Eye Mirror
which never kept it's adjustment.

I have mounted a rear view mirror on my helmet by bolting the damn thing
into the helmet. It is as solid as the Rock of Gibraltar. All rear view
mirrors must hold their adjustment, otherwise they are worthless and even
dangerous. You must be able to see what is behind you in a split second with
doing any searching. This is especially critical when traffic conditions get
heavy.

--
Regards,

Ed Dolan - Minnesota

Edward Dolan said:

"Tom Sherman" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Eric Jorgensen said:

...
Please show me where to mount an effective mirror on my USS SWB
'bent....

I had an USS SWB recumbent that had no good place to mount a mirror. Due
to the deficiencies of h*lm*t mounted mirrors [1], the bicycle was not
safe for me to ride in traffic, so I sold it.

Good Grief! You got rid of a bike just because you couldn't figure out a
rear view mirror problem? Why not wear some kind of glasses and mount your
rear view mirror on these if you don't like a mirror mounted on your helmet.
Jeez! Just how fussy wussy can you get!

Mirrors mounted on glasses have the same exact problems as mirrors
mounted on h*lm*ts - no fixed reference so it is impossible to determine
the relative bearing of overtaking vehicles.

The bike had several other problems, such as a front idler mounted in
the wrong location, terrible chain management, an uncomfortable seat,
and a ride so harsh that blurred vision was a problem on fast downhills.
If I had kept the bike, I would have needed to get new idlers, Pantour
hubs, and a Schlumpf Mountain drive crank to make it satisfactory for me.

--
Tom Sherman - Rock Island County Illinois
Tetrahedral carbon lattices are not forever.

Edward Dolan said:

"Tom Sherman" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Edward Dolan said:

"Tom Sherman" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

>Eric Jorgensen wrote:
>
>
>
>>...
>> Please show me where to mount an effective mirror on my USS SWB
>>'bent....
>
>I had an USS SWB recumbent that had no good place to mount a mirror. Due
>to the deficiencies of h*lm*t mounted mirrors [1], the bicycle was not
>safe for me to ride in traffic, so I sold it.

Good Grief! You got rid of a bike just because you couldn't figure out a
rear view mirror problem? Why not wear some kind of glasses and mount
your rear view mirror on these if you don't like a mirror mounted on your
helmet. Jeez! Just how fussy wussy can you get!

Mirrors mounted on glasses have the same exact problems as mirrors mounted
on h*lm*ts - no fixed reference so it is impossible to determine the
relative bearing of overtaking vehicles.

I have never liked rear view mirrors mounted on the bike. I much prefer rear
view mirrors mounted on glasses or a helmet. That way they rotate in
alignment with my head. Admittedly it is very important that they don't lose
their adjustment, but provided they don't I do not see what the problem
would be.

Trek made a rear view mirror a few years back that was a masterpiece. It
attached to your glasses. It was much better than the damn Third Eye Mirror
which never kept it's adjustment.

I have mounted a rear view mirror on my helmet by bolting the damn thing
into the helmet. It is as solid as the Rock of Gibraltar. All rear view
mirrors must hold their adjustment, otherwise they are worthless and even
dangerous. You must be able to see what is behind you in a split second with
doing any searching. This is especially critical when traffic conditions get
heavy.

The best helmet mirrors I've ever used, have come from Chuck Harris. I've
got two of them (he has different-sized mirrors, and I couldn't resist!), as
well as one for glasses-mounting.
And being of the belt-and-suspenders school, I also like to have
bike-mounted mirrors as well. Both my GT3 and my ICE Q have two mirrors on
them, as does my Barcroft Dakota - I like to be able to glance at them while
riding, just to see if anything is coming my way. The helmet mirror is for
zeroing-in on something that caught my attention, as well as scanning for
things that are outside the range of the other mirrors.

--
Larry Varney
Cold Spring, KY
http://home.fuse.net/larryvarney