Take The Lane

Angry SUV driver tries to honk two cyclists off the road

This video, of a driver relentlessly laying on the horn at two Colorado cyclists out for a Sunday ride, is why there was a such a crowd at the booth selling bike-mountable minicameras at ExpoCycle this month.

Everyone is going to want the ability to record road users who don't deserve a share of the road. At least, we need to be able to get licence numbers down. Having the video is what is so often missing from motorist-cyclist incidents: hard evidence that police can act on and that lawyers can take to court.

Moron of the Week, #40

You were riding on Highway 7 between Guelph and Kitchener, around 8:05 p.m. today. And the only way I, approaching in my car, knew that you were there, was when you were silhouetted against the last light in the sky.

No lights. No light clothing. No reflective tape on the bike. No reflective tape on your backpack. There were some wimpy flashes from the orange reflectors on your pedals, which were generally hidden by your shoes.

That was it, on the edge of a busy 80 km/h highway, after dark.

Can you say, "Police statistic"? There, I knew you could.

 

 

Moron of the week, #39

I was going to write something nice about the CAA, having just received the latest issue of the CAA magazine, and finding that the main article (aside from the travel items, anyway) was about motor vehicles and bicycles sharing the road.

There's even an online poll at the CAA Magazine web page (although no copy at this writing of the Share the road article) asking for opinions on share the road campaigns and the co-existence of bikes and cars on our roads.

All good.

And then as I was waiting for the bus, I watched as a CAA tow driver laid on the horn to force a cyclist over to the curb on Ottawa Street in Kitchener. From my vantage point, the cyclist was simply riding along Ottawa, a street that does not have bike lanes at that point, and so was justifiably occupying enough of the road to ensure that overtaking vehicles would have to move over to pass.

Not good enough for the CAA representative, who may not have heard about sharing the road. The tow driver did know how to use the horn.

So sad.

 

Moron of the Week, #38

It took me a while to realize that this cyclist was moron-worthy.

But after I had retold the story to a number of people, it occured to me that his behaviour was an object lesson for us all.

The rider was the perfectly equipped cyclist for this snowy, crappy Saturday: gloves, headcovering under helmet, full high-viz jacket, riding a heavy-duty winter-equipped bicycle down Ottawa Street toward the most dangerous intersection in the Waterloo Region: Homer Watson Boulevard and Ottawa Street. Regularly on the Top Five list for collisions, due to become a roundabout.

The light turned yellow, and the motor traffic -- no doubt concerned about the slick and snowy conditions -- slid slowly to a stop. All but the cyclist, who continued on up the grade to the intersection.

Surely, I thought, he will stop on the crosswalk. But no, with the light turning red, he entered the intersection and, I'm sure to the astonishment of the motorists, continued on through the red light.

I know what he was betting: that in such sloppy conditions, no motorist would make a move until they were certain the cross-traffic had come to a complete stop. Taking advantage of that, the cyclist sailed through.

I imagined that he was thinking, "Ha, that'll show all those gas-guzzlers" . . . and I could imagine what a bad taste that left in their mouths. I'm sure some of them were muttering about the "idiot cyclist." What good PR for the rest of the winter cycling community, or the cycling community generally.

Moron of the week, #37

You were a Cycle Chic-worthy, early thirty-something female rider, making good time Wednesday along Queen Street approaching King Street in downtown Kitchener, arguably one of the busiest intersections in the urban heart of the city.

And, without signalling, you cut in front of an SUV to move over to the centre of the road, just about on the centre line. Oh, I thought, you must be about to turn left at that alleyway. And you passed the alleyway, still in the centre of the road.

Oh, I thought, as I am sure the SUV behind you thought, you must be planning to turn left at the light.

And you continued on through that intersection (on the green), still on the centre of the road.

No signals, no glances over the shoulder. Total oblivion to the one-tonne metal monsters on all sides.

I was so hoping you would do something sensible that I stopped what I was doing and adjusted my vantage point to watch you, silently saying, please turn left at the next alleyway.

No. You continued on, up the street, passing on the left the cars stopped for the traffic light and then, not even turning left there, continued on straight through the red light, on the centre line, confusing and blocking the cars behind you.

At this point, even I would have honked at you.

Oh cyclists, you do not "own" the road, you "share" it. The centre line is not a narrow bike lane! There are signs and signals, rules of the road, even simple etiquette. Did your mothers not teach you to say "please" and "thank you?" Signalling an intention, any intention, is the "please" of the roadway. Acting like a competent member of the road-sharing community is the "thank you."

It's been a long time since I have seen a cyclist worthy of being Moron of the Week, but this rider deserves the honour.

 

 

The perils of using the bike lane

A couple of people have sent me links to this video of New Yorker Casey Neistat, who graphically demonstrates why it is not always wise to ride in a bike lane.

I empathize. On my way to work on Friday, my bike lane was obstructed by a cement truck and tractor with flatbed trailer, both of which parked in the bike lane, even though there was designated street parking (totally empty) not 50 metres ahead of them.

Add to that, my personal irritation with the boulevard grass-mowers, who have been dumping clumps of mown grass into the bike lane.

It's not storage space, people! Sheesh.

Moron of the Week, #36

I haven't posted on a moron since last summer ... must be getting more tolerant.

But today, ah today.

You were tricked out in red and white, with a Specialized logo prominent on your back. You came up from behind pretty fast on King Street, as I was puttering along on my commute to work. And just past the light, you blitzed by me without so much as an "On your left." I'm fairly confident that my shouted and sarcastic "Passing on MY left" fell on unhearing ears.

And boy, was I irritated. How does someone manage to spend that much money on cycling shoes and socks that match his jersey (and his bike) and not know the most basic of cycling courtesies? I had a pretty decent speech worked out to deliver when I caught you at the next light .... except that I was two car lengths behind when you peeled away.

So, the moron of the week goes to  . . . . me, for forgetting that having the best clothing, the best bike and the best gear doesn't mean that you have the best cycling manners.

Moron of the Week, #35

It's like shooting fish in a barrel to take shots at the man who could be Toronto's next mayor, Rob Ford, and here's why.

Says Mr. Ford: "At the end of the day," when a cyclist is killed by a motorist, "it's their own fault."

Glad I'm not cycling in Toronto.

Bicycle world domination theory gets plenty of attention

I never thought I'd see a group of bike-share bicycles compared to Hitler, but that's what the National Post did today in an item that picks up on the Denver Post news nugget I posted on a couple of days ago.

Hey, satire is fine, but when you summon up the spectre of the man with the wee moustache, you'd better have good reason for it.

The reason for the Adolfism was the report about Colorado Republican candidate for governor, Dan Maes, who accused his Democratic rival, Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper, of "converting Denver into a United Nations community" through his promotion of cycling. Maes apparently fears that Americans will have their basic human rights violated by bicycle promotion. You'd think that a Republican would like red rental bikes.

Ever since Maes suspicions of a worldwide bicycle conspiracy have been made public, he has been the focal point of much reportage, and some of it incidentally illuminating.

The website Foreign Policy, for instance, notes that the United Nations is not at the forefront of bicycle promotion. In fact, last year, the UN tore out several rows of bicycle racks in its New York headquarters to make way for a building reno. The bike parking area disappeared entirely, to the chagrin of the UN secret cycling agents who would spread their two-wheeled philosophy around America, or at least, ride their bikes to work.

The website The Wonkette did a pretty straight report, except for that bit about rounding up gun owners and evangelicals and putting them into camps.

It was sad to note that the New York Times blog reported that a spokesperson for Mayor Hickenlooper actually felt it was necessary to put some distance between the mayor and the city's cycling initiatives by noting that Denver had signed on to the sinister International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives in 1992, and that Hickenlooper had only been mayor since 2003.

Come on Hickenlooper. Stand tall in your saddle. Be proud to be bicycle-friendly.

Gun racks on bicycles

Those reading with interest the recent post that referred to gun racks on bicycles will like this site.

Not sure I'd have need of a Browning Automatic Rifle on my bicycle, though there have been occasions when my AirZound bicycle horn was not enough of a statement...