Bolter03 said:I'm pretty much tired of Bike trails as well. You're in danger on the road and it seems even more in danger on the trails. Seems most people are pretty much oblivious and I don't think can really appreciate how fast we can get going. As far as other cylcists (actually I'll call them novelists) it seems we can not get it into their heads that they are a vehicle even though we're bio-fueled and that applies on the trail as well as the road. As far as pedestrians...can't we make a deal that they stay on the sidewalk if we stay on the streets and trails? Aren't they called BIKE trails?
I decided to reply to this post only because I noticed the word "oblivious". Unfortunately, oblivious is what too many cyclists are. This is the first time that I can remember that I'll be criticizing the cyclist as opposed to the automobile operator. I was reminded yesterday of a situation I run into often on bike trails. I was heading home from the market, in my car by the way, and I came up on two cyclist wearing team jerseys on very expensive bikes. The reason I point out that these bikes were expensive is because I assume that if anyone can afford that much for a bike they can certainly afford a rear view mirror or two. These guys were COMPLETELY and UTTERLY OBLIVIOUS to the fact that they were riding on a public road with a fair amount of traffic on it. To make matters much worse (this is the part I have the biggest problem with) they were riding two abreast. Now I completely understand the desire to ride next to as opposed to in back of your riding partner. The drag is that when you ride two or more abreast like that you take up much more space then you do when you ride in single file. At one point these guys were one in the bike lane and the other hanging out pretty far into the street. If you've ever read any of my other posts I mention that I don't have a problem with cyclists being out in the road. I just think it's a very bad idea to be there if you don't have to be there. To top it off because they were riding two abreast they were having a conversation instead of paying attention to their surroundings. I ended up following close behind them for quite a ways so that I wouldn't startle them and I needed to turn right very soon so I didn't have a many choices other than to slowly follow. I don't mind going slow for a while. That is not a problem. My problem is this. I keep knocking the rare driver that has no respect for cyclists but how can we take the high ground if we're riding around with our heads in the clouds?
For the life of me I don't understand why anyone would ever consider riding without a means to see what's going on behind them when riding on a public street or highway. Actually I think you ought to have a rear view mirror when on the bike trails as well. When you're out riding and giving everything you have to keeping up a maximum average speed, and there's two guys in the bike lane in front of you riding abreast and taking up the entire lane it sucks. There's been many times I even yelled, "Coming up on your left", and these characters completely ignored me. I even yelled louder and more than once. They simply didn't give a rat's ass. They were too busy talking to pay attention or care about anyone else but themselves.
Come on guys, I know you hate being passed up routinely by a guy on a recumbent bike but please, pay attention will you? (I had to throw that one in there. Yes I do leave road bikes in the dust virtually every time on my Velokraft lowrider.) Don't ride two or more abreast anywhere that you might encounter another rider or car. It's just plain rude. To make matters worse, this type of behavior gives all of us a bad name and gives the occasional road rager more reasons for doing something really stupid.
So please, don't ride without some method for seeing what's going on behind you, and don't ride two or more abreast unless there is no other choice. (I can not think of any reason at this point why there wouldn't be a choice though.) Pay attention people! You don't own the road any more than the psycho in the car that's experiencing road rage.
Ride Smart everyone.
P.S. By the way. To comment briefly on the above post. At least here in California, it's illegal to ride on the sidewalk. So I agree strongly with the author's suggestion for pedestrians to stay on the sidewalk so bikes have a relatively safe place to ride. It sucks when you're doing 40 mph and a jogger decides to step out into the bike lane right in front of you without looking. The last time that happened I jerked out into the street and just about got creamed by a car. Yikes!
P.S. P.S. I don't see why Diamond Frame riders often get so P.Od. when I mention passing them often on my recumbent. (It's worse when I actually do it out on the bike paths. You'd think I told them bad things about their mother.) It's a completely different animal. It's not even fair to compare them for God's sake. For one thing I have only about one quarter the wind resistence they do. Oh one last thing. I pass them even more often on the hills, so the idea that recums are slow on hills is just a myth.
