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Bikes and Cars (was: Re: Driving Pet Peeves)
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Subject: Bikes and Cars (was: Re: Driving Pet Peeves)
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From: joliver3@alp541.srl.ford.com (John Oliver)
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Date: Fri, 23 Jun 1995 14:05:55
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Newsgroups: rec.autos.driving, rec.bicycles.soc
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Organization: Ford Motor Company - Vehicle Dynamics Attributes
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References: <dooshDAJ477.6w@netcom.com> <3saag2$8en@lo-fan.jpl.nasa.gov> <tomkDAK3GE.423@netcom.com> <3scjsu$qc4@lo-fan.jpl.nasa.gov>
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Xref: news.clark.net rec.autos.driving:72747 rec.bicycles.soc:20047
Antonio S. Esporma writes:
>In article <tomkDAK3GE.423@netcom.com> tomk@netcom.com (Thomas H. Kunich) writes:
>>In article <3saag2$8en@lo-fan.jpl.nasa.gov>,
>>Antonio S. Esporma <tony@sebastian> wrote:
> < endless debate about bikes on the road, bike lanes, Bubbas in pickup
trucks with guns, etc., etc., deleted >
As both a driving enthusiast and a cyclist, I wonder why people can't just use
a little "common" sense. (Of course, common sense isn't quite as common as
you might think.)
I was out riding last night, and I got pissed off / balked / endangered by
both a car driver (or two) and a cyclist. Here's the deal:
1) On a two lane road with a gravelly shoulder, I get passed by a pickup who
squeezed me to the very edge of the pavement (because of oncoming traffic, he
couldn't cross the center line). Plainly in view about 100 yards up the road
was a red light. So he endangers me for the convenience of sitting at the red
light for about 10 extra seconds! Come on!
2) On another two lane road (frequently used by cyclists), I was rounding a
gentle uphill right-hand bend, with two trailing cars about to pass me (no
problem, plenty of room), when a cyclist comes around the bend in the
opposite direction ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE ROAD! Since he was headed right
at me, and there were two cars about to pass me, I enthusiastically gestured
that the safest place for him to be in this surprising situation would be
between me and the curb (rather than having him try to swerve over to the
right side of the road infront of oncoming cars). I therefore had to move to
the left, partly in the way of the cars behind me, to give this schmuck room
to get by, putting myself at increased risk.
r.a.d drivers -- please use a little common sense! I know that when I'm on my
bike, I'm probably holding you up by a few seconds, but most of the time when
people rush by me, they only end up stopped at a traffic light a few seconds
sooner! If there's an oncoming car, you usually have to wait only a few
seconds to get by. Yeah, I may hold you up a few seconds, but what's a few
seconds, really?
r.b.s cyclists -- we've got to clean up our acts! Every cyclist you see
breaking a law is a cyclist who's giving us ALL a bad name! If we want the
same respect that is given to cars, then we've got to earn it -- after all
they outweigh us by about 20:1! It's our responsibility to educate cyclists
about using the road safely and responsibly, otherwise we all suffer.
Just my opinion, of course! But in general, if people just try to get along
and cooperate, if both sides give a little, then I think everyone ends up
better off in the end. Why does everyone have to take sides about everything?
John Oliver
Canton, MI
'94 Probe GT
'92 Trek 2100
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All opinions expressed above are my own and in no way represent the views of
Ford Motor Co.
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