just hit em.....

 

I completely understand, and I used to do that as well. I just wouldn't take a 2 yr. old that was barely saddle broke and hasn't ever been on even a trail ride on the road and see what happens. That's along the lines of what these cyclists do.

There is this one cyclist, every morning at 5(which is still very dark out) he is out there. He wears dark clothing, there is no reflectors on his bike and he has to be right in the middle of the lane(usually the one I'm in) because there is no shoulder. The only reason I knew he was there because of my lights reflecting off the spokes. I know his there(and so far when I'm out that way at that time, he is always there) and so I'm always looking, but he may not be lucky when someone that doesn't know his habits and I don't want to live with the guilt of hitting(and probabily killing him(or any of them)), but he(and the vast majority of the others here) take these types of risks and increase that possibility of that happening.

My girlfriend's friend is still seeing a shrink because she had hit a cyclist(this is almost a year and a half later). The friend was cleared because it turned out that the cyclist's brakes had failed and the cyclist couldn't stop at the stop sign, went out in traffic and then boom. Now that could happen to the car or the bicycle(brakes going out), but when it comes to a wreck between a vehicle and a bicycle, I can promise you that the bicycle is going to get the short end of that "fight".

Now when I talk to most cyclists about this little issue, I don't mention what I have above anymore, because most of them just didn't care(or atleast it looked like they didn't care). That is why I mention that it really isn't healthy riding along the roadway. The good that your getting from riding the bike(yes riding a bike in of itself is healthy, I'm trying to make sure that no one gets confused on that again) is mitigated be being on the roadway breathing all those contaminates, not only from the vehicle(although that's going to be the one that your going to always get), but if they are putting fresh asphalt down, that isn't good for lungs at full expansion either. As this is the primary reason why they said that they will stick to certain roads and/or stay on roads in general. I try to approach their argument in this manner.

All that I ask is the cyclists really be smart about the decision that they make to go riding their bike on the road(which like I said most here do not). Some roads actually have a path that is close to the road, but it is not a shoulder because the path is actually separate, do cyclists get on there... no they do not. Do they get on the 30' shoulder that is attached to the same road that has that path, no they do not. They are right smake dab in the middle of one of the lanes of traffic and this road is a major road between a couple of towns and has high traffic flow. Now how is that smart decision making? What happens if a vehicles brakes go out or the cyclists brakes go out and the cyclists is in the middle of a lane of traffic? This is what frustrates me to no end, it's like the cyclists around here just don't care. If any one of y'all can explain to me how this is smart decision making then I can hopefully accept it and move on, but I just don't see it. Why don't I just take my 2 yr old filly ride her right down the middle of that same road(not use the shoulder or the "pedestrain road(I guess that's what it is)" and see how well she acts and to hell with what other people have to do to get away from me and if I lose control of my horse then "oops". However, I think I have a little better of a chance surviving a crash being on a horse then being on a bicycle depending on what the horse does. Also the other vehicle will be getting more then just a ding on their vehicle compared to if it was a bicycle(might even do more damage then that to the vehicle and/or person depending on once again what the horse does).

 

Has anyone ever seen or heard of a bicyclist ticketed for blowing through a stop sign, speeding or any other traffic infraction? Ever hear of one losing his license or going on high risk insurance?
Is there any real deterant to bad cycling other than personal injury or the threat thereof?

 

Like I said before, health issues. Rather or not y'all believe it or not, when a person is at VO2 max your getting bad stuff in your lungs and it's absorbing it at a higher rate then if you were to be walking alongside that same road with the same type of traffic.

Think of a turbo diesel without an air filter getting gunk in at 2psi(walking) versus getting it at 28 psi(VO2 Max). I use a truck without an air filter as that would actually be closer to a the person scenerio then having a filter although both scenerios with the truck without an air filter are not good, just thinking about that scenerio which one would you intuitively think is better off, unfiltered at 2psi boost or unfiltered at 28 psi of boost?

 

As far as I see it there will always be problems with cars, bikes and horses sharing the road. I was an avid cyclist back 20 years ago. It started when I tore my knee up in a skiing accident and I biked for rehab. I would ride all over the place. I would ride to work and back a 50 mile commute. I was one of the few that try to find the road less traveled by cars and use the bike paths. Still there were many close calls between me and the cars on the road. Most drivers were OK with it and would share the road with me. I live in Marin county where cycling is very big. It is where mountain biking was born. Fast forward to the present. Cycling has gotten very popular. On weekends there seems to be more cyclist than there are cars on the road. They are all over the place. Unfortunately our roads are very narrow. They were not built for multiple use. There are signs everywhere that say "share the road" with a drawing of a bike. The expert cyclists are usually not a problem. They have control of there bike and know the space that needs to be allowed to share the road. It is the inexperienced and uneducated rider that posses the biggest problem. They can't control their bike and have a hard time riding on the shoulder of the road. Then there comes road rage into play. The driver that thinks they own the road and will swerve into the cyclist to show their power of the road. It's just a dangerous situation. Now lets put a horse into play. I ride my horse through town all the time. I usually never have a problem. 99% of the cars will stop for me or give me the right of way. With bikes its a 50/50 chance of whether they will stop or give the right of way.
Towing the horse trailer on the weekends can be a HUGE challenge. There are places on the road that are so narrow that my trailer will not even fit into the lane. For the most part it is not a problem. But when there are a ton of bikes out it's are real pain in the you know what. I will need to slow down to a crawl and wait until it is safe to pass. I can't even tell you how many close calls I have had because of the inconsiderate inexperienced bike rider.
The only solution that I know of is education. Here in Marin they have the bike coalition that tries to educate drivers and cyclists. It helps. We also have the Marin horse council that tries to educate equestrians and cyclists. It helps.
Fact: Cyclist must abide by the rules of the road. They need lights in the dark just like cars. They must stop at stop signs and yield when necessary.
Will they ever? From my observance, not if they don't have to.

 

I agree with the entire post and would give you rep points but I have to spread the loving around and I don't give them out as often so that might take awhile.

I used to ride my horses on the road, but it's gotten too dangerous around here for all concerned and I felt for me atleast it was better to stop doing that.

 

Thanks tex. It has taken my horse years to be able to ride on the road. I still have problems but, for the majority of the time he is good. There are times when I have to hop off him just to be safe. I hope you can solve your bike problem.

 

More power to those that want to ride their bikes...but something needs to be done as far as enforcing rules about riding. If a person can get a DUI on a bike, then why dont the cops write tickets for blowing a stop sign or peddeling a bike in a crosswalk...I think all bikes operated on public roads should have a license and every operator needs to pass a skills test. It is total B.S. what these people are getting away with.

 

MCBC Bike Etiquette: Calif. Vehicle Code
tex--Thought I would share this with you. I am sure the great state of Texas has laws too.

 

Bike etiquette? From what I see the bikers think thay own the road.

 

Actually you can get a ticket for blowing a stop sign on a bike, have seen it in person while driving by.

 

I am one of the ones that has got a ticket for blowing a stop sign. It was on a military base (Presedio) in San Francisco. I had no ID on me. The MP asked for my phone number and all my info came up on his screen. And that was 20 years ago.

 

Yep - I got a warning from a TX state trooper for "blowing" a stop sign on a bike out in the middle of nowhere with no traffic. I think he just wanted to be an a$$...

 

I understand completely. I am a long distance runner so I am always interacting with traffic in the opposite direction. Mostly every time there is a diesel truck coming, they can't help themselves but puff out all the black smoke they can. I own a 6.0 L and respect cyclists and runners and any pedestrians.

Thanks

FordGuy

 

Here in Germany.. yes. The same laws that apply to cars apply to bicycles here, they are also required to have a front head light [either battery or friction powered] and rear flashing red light. Can be fined for not wearing a helmet. You can and will be ticketed for speeding, traffic violations, riding in the road when there are bicycle lanes, drunk while riding, and failing to follow any of the other traffic laws. Points can be taken off driving license [if they have one] for causing a traffic accident, whether or not the bicyclist was physically involved or not. Many Germans do not have cars so laws are much stricter here.