I have been doing 30 miles a day.. and it feels good. I am going to say that 99.99% of the drivers have been courtious and given me a lot of room on the few roads with small shoulders. I even had a schoolbus today slow and let me get around a curve in the road before passing me...
and then I get the shiney people. Had somebody yell at me today at they passed (where I was not impeding their progress what-so-ever) "Get a car!"
Yup... I am really beginning to hate people
I was sitting at a stop light on my motorcycle a couple years ago when a cyclist came up next to me, sneered, "You're polluting!", and then proceeded to run the light.
So, it can go both ways.
I had a guy in a '70s one-ton dually that was more rust than steel tell me I was dangerous because I was on a bike. That was special.
Sadly, I can't ride to work anymore, as we moved from Harrisburg to Hershey, and my commute went from 4 miles to 19. It was awesome commuting (i.e. not having to sit in traffic, which let's face it, that isn't driving) without using any fuel, and getting some exercise at the same time.
The thing we all have to realize is that there's no license test for riding a bike. Yes, they are supposed to know the rules of road and are supposed to follow them, but there just isn't any way of making sure all cyclists know that. Bad drivers, though, they just don't have an excuse other than ignorance and stupidity.
In reply to mad_machine:
The more you ride, the more the ass hole drivers you will discover. I can understand drivers getting frustrated if they are being impeded, but rarely do cyclists slow down cars by more than a few seconds. There is plenty of room for everyone out there. I ride 2-3k road miles a year. Love it.
I haven't been riding very long (a few years), but I've done enough to get pretty comfortable on pavement and off. Riding on the road still freaks me out. There are just way too many cars on the road, and too many inattentive drivers. I've got a serious taillight (Radbot 1000) and I still wonder if they notice me. For pavement I've been sticking to rail trails or heading way upstate where population densities are a lot lower. I'm trying to work my way into getting on the roads, but it is nerve-wracking.
Nobody bothers me when I ride my bike. It could be because there are only 20k people in my town and no traffic at all.
The issue I have with bike riders is WHERE they are riding. Most of them need to use their head for something other than to wear the now mandatory helmet.
Cmon! 2 lane, windey country road, 60 mph speed limit with no shoulders and they ride in the middle of the lane? Even if it were legal it's not safe. Bike vs. any motorized vehicle = bike loses.
The bike argument unfortunately goes both ways.
When on a bike, everyone in a car is an shiny happy person.
When in a car, everyone on a bike is an shiny happy person.
I have been in both situations too many times.
What I dislike is bikers who are on a cruiser going 10mph on one of the more busy streets through campus. I stick to the sidewalk/bikewalk, I will never understand the bikers who are on the road when there is a bike path. Not only are they in people's way but they are less safe.
Sadly my bike has sprung a flat and also my place of work has moved from 4 miles away to 45. GAHHHH
I think you bike riders are nuts. I gave up motorcycles because all of the people texting and on cell phones and such. Whatever reason you guys have for riding a bicycle on the same road with cars, it's just not worth dying for.
fritzsch wrote: I stick to the sidewalk/bikewalk, I will never understand the bikers who are on the road when there is a bike path. Not only are they in people's way but they are less safe.
That depends. Do driveways or roads cut across that path you want the bikes to use? If so, it'd be a lot less safe to ride on it. The reason I ride in the road is that drivers are looking for traffic there, whether it's a bike or car. Nobody and I mean NOBODY stops in driveways or coming out of parking lots to look both ways for cycle traffic on a sidewalk. Same thing when pulling into a drive from a road - a sidewalk is the most dangerous place to be on a bike.
There is one group of idiots that bikes on my way to work. 2 lane highway with very little shoulder, and they're riding 3 wide. Makes me want to do something dangerous and illegal.
Most of the others are pretty courteous though.
That is also a valid point, whenever I biked in a residential area there was negligible traffic so I used the road. I have nearly been nailed on campus by a car pulling out of a parking lot though. I suppose whenever I have used a sidewalk its been in a area without many driveways.
another tidbit about riding on sidewalks... it's not legal in most places...
about the only time I take the lane is when I get to a stop light or sign (prevents an idiot from trying to turn right into you)... but between the roads and drivers around here i'm not worried to ride...
thankfully most of the main roads have bike lanes on the side... and if they don't there is another parallel road that does not far off... we've also got a nice rails to trails type trail (where I go when we do a family ride)
but yes there are also idiot cyclists out there... part of life... people can be idiots no matter their transportation means
mad_machine wrote: and then I get the shiney people. Had somebody yell at me today at they passed (where I was not impeding their progress what-so-ever) "Get a car!"
I love that one. If I could catch up to them, I'd respond "Yeah--I own two already. My house is also nicer than yours and you're a fat berkeley".
I look at it this way.. I am 41.. I do 30 or so miles a day, and I average just under 25mph for the ride (according to the computer and my riding time) so.. I must be doing something right...
and provided I do not get run over by some idiot.. will probably be in better shape when I get older than the idiot who thinks I should be in a car
Riding a motorcycle: you're still a polluting shiny happy person to the hard core spandex bike jockey AND a 2 wheeled E36 M3head that "I didn't see" to everyone else.
bastomatic wrote:fritzsch wrote: I stick to the sidewalk/bikewalk, I will never understand the bikers who are on the road when there is a bike path. Not only are they in people's way but they are less safe.That depends. Do driveways or roads cut across that path you want the bikes to use? If so, it'd be a lot less safe to ride on it. The reason I ride in the road is that drivers are looking for traffic there, whether it's a bike or car. Nobody and I mean NOBODY stops in driveways or coming out of parking lots to look both ways for cycle traffic on a sidewalk. Same thing when pulling into a drive from a road - a sidewalk is the most dangerous place to be on a bike.
That's the biker's responsibility to brake for people pulling out of their driveway. At least if the car doesn't see them they are moving at single digit speeds whereas on the road the biker doesn't stand a chance.
EvanB wrote: Nobody bothers me when I ride my bike. It could be because there are only 20k people in my town and no traffic at all.
your town has over 40X the population of the two towns closest to me (combined), and there is enough traffic in those towns to make it a treacherous thing to take my nieces for a quick bike ride around the block in either town..
I love riding, and even in somewhat busy areas, the drivers of CT have surprised me with their level of courtesy - I get worse treatment when I'm behind the wheel!
stuart in mn wrote: I was sitting at a stop light on my motorcycle a couple years ago when a cyclist came up next to me, sneered, "You're polluting!", and then proceeded to run the light.
Doth a cyclist not fart? POLLUTING!
I dunno how (or really why) you do it. I nearly got "doored" while running on the safe sidewalks of NYC today. That said, as a pedestrian here, my closest calls when crossing the street have all been with bicyclists doing something asinine, rather than with cars.
Idiot drivers I can spot a block away. The wrong-way delivery man on an electric-assist bike with no lights at night...
I'm fine with giving a full lane to cyclists and passing when possible. But I've also had peletons make intentional moves to block me from doing that.
Summation: you're crazy, and bicyclists and drivers can be either good or bad. Wonder what the correlation is between good cyclist/good driver and bad cyclist/bad driver...
My GF lives 4 miles from my office. I don't think I can safely bike to work from her place from what I see every day. :(
mad_machine wrote: and then I get the shiney people. Had somebody yell at me today at they passed (where I was not impeding their progress what-so-ever) "Get a car!"
I like the shiny happy bicyclist that shot out from a side street without stopping this weekend, onto a 50mph speed limit road, where people frequently do 60mph.
Love emergency lane changes in my truck.
oh, this thread again.
In reply to fritzsch:
As mentioned, it's usually not legal for an adult on a bike to be on a sidewalk. My problem with "bike" paths is they rarely are designed for bikes, and especially not a commuter on a bike riding at nearly 20 mph. Have you ever been walking down a path and had a bike pass you mere inches away doing 20 mph? That's a hell of a lot less safe than bikes on the road being passed by cars.
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