Ed,
If no one likes you opinions darw the obviouys conclusion and refrain
from offering them.
I wrote and article in opposion to one in Bicycle Guide glorifying the
outrageous antics of a local bicyle messenger. Here are two my two
submissions neither of which can be categorized as pabulum. Bicycle
Guide chose to publish the second one.
ERRANT MESSAGE
Until I read John Mora's article "Spider Jack" in the April issue, I
was never moved to formulate a commentary. I am a Chicago resident,
employed in the downtown area. I routinely encounter bicycle
messengers in my daily commute to and from the work place. Their
antagonistic antics, convey entirely the wrong message to the very
drivers we aspire to enlist cooperation from in courteously sharing the
road. Many of Jack Blackfelt's colleagues flagrantly violate the rules
of the road. It is commonplace to observe a bicycle messenger engaged
in senseless highjinks such as terrorizing pedestrians in a game of
"chicken" played out on the sidewalk or lane splitting against the flow
of traffic during rush hour. I was appalled by the author's cavalier
perspective, in eulogizing the swashbuckling riding style of Spider
Jack. The author's admiration for Jack's skill should have been
tempered with some verbiage explicitly devoted to the inevitable
consequences of putting those skills to the test. Much like a movie
which glamorizes war, this article deprives the target audience of a
peek beyond the hospital walls where glory is confronted by the harsh
reality of carnage.
It is rather out of character for Bicycle Guide to champion the cause
of this breed of two wheeled kamikaze. It is inappropriate for a
cycling advocacy magazine to publish an article which extols the
"virtues" of reckless abandon and endangerment, without so much as a
disclaimer.
Forgive me if I refrain from rendering homage, preferring rather to
trust my own judgment in selecting a personal cult hero to idolize.
The arena of cycledom certainly has far better representatives to
admire and/or emulate. This article was a poignant example of
journalism every bit as irresponsible as the foolhardy riding style it
portrayed. Your readership would have been better served if each of
the pages this article squandered had read THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT
BLANK!
PROFILE OF A NUISANCE
I was stunned by the tone of John Mora's profile of bicycle messenger
Jack Blackfelt, alias "Spider". Regardless of what Mr. Mora would have
the reader believe, "Spider's" brash demeanor is characteristic of the
breed. Skilled or otherwise, this aberrant fringe should be recognized
for what it is, a menace rather than a role model for the cycling
world. One word accurately personifies them --- nuisance! I sincerely
suspect that neither Jack Blackfelt, nor his colleagues, give even a
passing thought to the perils or repercussions of provoking a motorist.
It is not at all unreasonable to assume that, as a direct result of
such provocation, an entirely innocent and unsuspecting cyclist could
be become a victim of an enraged motorist's displaced aggression.
Blinded by the shortsightedness of youth, oblivious to his own
mortality, the bicycle messenger plies his trade in a vacuum, flirting
with death. As a proud member of the messenger corps, he has yet to
comprehend what the word corps becomes by merely appending the letter
E. He hasn't time for introspection. There are too many deliveries to
be made, too many cabbies to challenge, for safety to be a concern or
common sense to prevail. Is it any wonder that this mentality has
prompted enactment of regulatory legislation in response to the
outcries of outraged citizens?
Although I fully understand the use of Bicycle Guide as a platform for
exercising the right of free speech, nevertheless, I think it would
have been prudent for a caveat to have been issued such as ... "do not
try this at home ... Jack Blackfelt is a trained professional, and/or
.... this article does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the
management".
Jim McNamara
