zonatandem

Been struck from behind at least twice at about 45 mph.
Once on my single bike when the westcoast mirror on pickup truck hit me in the back, ripping off the mirror (and the bolts holding it to the door); driver was drunk and police arrested him. He got the ticket and a 3 month suspension from driving. I ended up seeing a chiropractor for 3 months.

Another time riding our tandem on a quiet frontage road we were struck by a pickup. Mirror hit stoker (rear rider) in the back. Luckily it was a 'break away' mirror. She ended up in emergency room. Driver claimed "I did not see you. Don't sue me, I am on social security, have no insurance and a restricted driver's license."
Asked the 70+ year old driver, "what do you see?" He replied "I try to drive between the lines and did not see you." This was at noontime on a bright sunny day with hardly any traffic! We were wearing orange jerseys!
Uninsured motorist fund paid for medical; driver was ticketed. Saw to it that he had his license revoked.
In both cases we never fell down . . . luck and decent bike handling helped.
The device that is shown would have made zero difference in each hit.
In 40+ years of cycling this were our 'major' encounters with traffric.
Pedal on!
Rudy and Kay/zonatandem
Rudy and Kay/zonatandem

AlmostTrick

Of course. No action or product can eliminate all careless driving. That doesn't mean this gadget doesn't offer any benefit at all though.

Most drivers upon seeing it WILL steer farther around the cyclist. Surely you can see how this may offer comfort to some, in your words, more "timid and unskilled" riders.

asmac

The whip is carbon fibre.

indyfabz

The idea is nothing new, folks. I am 50. When I was a kid I remember seeing a few people with day-glo pinkish/redish, flexible, rectangular "arms" that attached near the lower end of the left chainstay and stuck out a few feet. IIRC, they also had some sort of reflective material, and at the end was a circle, almost like a target.

MMACH 5

Texas has no 3-foot law, so correct me if I'm wrong. If you're riding in a bike lane, the cars are not required to give you three feet of clearance. The car stays in its lane, cyclist stays in thiers, and they can legally be inches from each other.

Legally, I think you'd have to retract it when riding in a bike lane, correct?

kickstart

So whats better, a timid or unskilled cyclist receiving a false sense of security from a stick, or their being more cautious and vigilant until they have confidence and skill?

There's also the concern that its far more likely to cause undesired results than protect the user from an actual harm.

AlmostTrick

I don't see why you'd have to retract it unless there is a law restricting how wide a bike can be. Or some other law prohibiting these types of gadgets.

A cyclist carrying a load, or pulling a trailer can be much wider than a regular bike, and that's certainly legal.

AlmostTrick

I already stated I'm not a proponent of these contraptions. Just pointing out how it can help calm some cyclists and get them out there.

If drivers are going wider around this thing, (and I believe most will) that's not a "false sense of security". It's real.

I also don't see much chance of these units causing any harm, especially if not extended out too far... though I'm sure people can come up with some unlikely event of death and destruction.

MMACH 5

Agreed. However, is the load or trailer allowed to encroach into the adjacent lane?

If the bike lane is 24" wide and the Distanciador is 36" wide, it would be sticking into the adjacent lane and I believe the 3-foot law does not apply there (cars just have to stay in their lane -- and bike probably do to).

Shimagnolo

In CO, the 3-foot law is the law, regardless of whether there are bike lane markings.

MMACH 5

Really? So, if a cyclist is riding on the left hand side of a separated bike lane (separated by an 18" gap between the bike lane and auto lane), then the motorist is required by law to drive another foot and a half away from that protected area?

I admitted my ignorance of the 3-foot law in my first post in this thread, so if you tall me it's the law, I'll believe it.

Shimagnolo

Relevant CO Statutes:

42-4-1003 Overtaking a vehicle on the left
(b) The driver of a motor vehicle overtaking a bicyclist proceeding in the same direction shall allow the bicyclist at least a three-foot separation between the right side of the driver's vehicle, including all mirrors or other projections, and the left side of the bicyclist at all times.

42-4-1008.5 Crowding or threatening bicyclist
(1) The driver of a motor vehicle shall not, in a careless and imprudent manner, drive the vehicle unnecessarily close to, toward, or near a bicyclist.
(2) Any person who violates subsection (1) of this section commits careless driving as described in section 42-4-1402.

Do you see an exception regarding lane markings?
Neither did the cop who ticketed this idiot: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oF8tJC7LBnM

MMACH 5

Right on.

Vicegrip

Kaleco. Beat them to it with the friendly cat paw

curtiseddie

I think there are some motorists that would use that as a target to attempt to hit.

Harhir

We had similar ones as kids in Germany on our bikes. Not three foot wide but around 12.5" wide. But I think they never made a difference.
BuM Abstandhalter orange 320mm: Amazon.de: Sport & Freizeit

unterhausen

if something on your bike sticks out 3 feet, then then motorists should pass you 3' further out. This is why I've never done it. Although riding around with an old frame on the back has occurred to me

Shimagnolo

Not long ago I did a double-take as a motorcycle passed me going the opposite direction;
It had a complete bicycle attached to the sissy-bar, (with bicycle oriented 90 degrees to the motorcycle).

kickstart

I sometimes carry a bike perched upright on top of my motorcycles sidecar, some of the looks I get makes me feel like I'm from Mars or something.

hooCycles

Often I will ride very near the centerline for a few seconds due to potholes or other debris. I don't want to have to worry about hitting an oncoming car with this thing, even if it is retractable. I'm not talking about a thought-out maneuver here, I'm talking about a quick head check and sharp turn.

Also, does anyone know if they have a '1 meter law' in European countries?

CrippledKonaBoy

I think most of us would agree that this is being presented as a tool to counter the majority who DON'T observe 3-foot passing. So the 'extra 3 feet' is a strawman argument.

kickstart

I think most disagree.
A "tool" has a legitimate and useful function, and the vast majority who pass a cyclist do so in a responsible manner.

It's a rubber crutch that will probably do more harm than good when one takes into account who would actually use one.

Darth Lefty 

When you crash when it's slick
You high-side on your stick
That's distanciador-ay

CrippledKonaBoy

Guess I should have been more clear, then you wouldn't come off like an ass.

When I said "majority", I should have specified that I was referring solely to those who DO pass unsafely, not simply those who pass. MOST who pass unsafely would likely start doing so with this tool; those that wouldn't care are the ones discussed earlier, who's catch the thing on their cars. It's a"majority within a minority" as a separate group.

But I'm done with this.