krazygluon

so yesterday night my fiance and I were driving to the store (I'm seriously thinking I"m going to start running these occaisional errands with my bike) and we approach an intersection, where we have the light, and have had it for as long as the light was visible.

there are 3 kids, one on foot, one with a bmx and a third one (I didn't catch if he was on a bike or not, his presence didn't matter much in what happens. he was the smart one who waited for the light) as we approach the intersection, the one on foot darts across to the middle (2 lanes each way + one turning lane in the middle) my fiance's driving and we're in the left lane. all of a sudden the bmxer runs dragging his bike along in an attempt to cross the street. he gets between the left and right lane, stops for a second and tries to run acros the left lane right in front of us. My fiance managed to slow down and honk while he then backed up to between the left and right lanes. somehow nobody was hurt, but it just about scared the crap out of us!

since when was it ok to even think of crossing a 5 lane road as a pedestrian when the cross traffic has a green light? (this is a 45mph zone where most drivers are doing more like 10 over that)

slowandsteady

Kids make poor, impulsive decisions sometimes. It is part of being a kid.

maddyfish

As we're having great weather here, I just came from a 2 hour mostly on road ride with my 2 girls, ages 6 and 5. I know 5 is a little young, but there is very little traffic in my wonderful town during the day. I heavily stressed all aspects of safety, riding right, watching traffic, following traffic signals. When my kids are older, and out in town on their own, you won't see them do this stuff. Nobody cares enough to teach those kids how to be safe.

krazygluon

maddy, have people been asking you how you bike in this fine kentucky summer we're having? this past week my boss keeps asking me if I'm sure its not too hot to commute every day I head out the door.

cudak888 

Not uncommon in Miami. Every day I'll see one or another group of teenage twits pulling similar "dart the road" games down here. Most of the time on foot though. Funny thing, I've yet to see one retreat back to the center median - usually they'll simply run like hell to the other side of the road if you hit the brakes and lay the horn on them.

It's obvious that most of them (at least, those down here) do it for the hell of it.

The BMXers have the local monopoly of darting out of alleyways, cutting off auto traffic by crossing from one sidewalk to the other without warning, and other similar hazardous (and @$$holish) maneuvers. I once had a near-collision with one of these fellows while on one of my two wheeled steeds once - must have worn a few millemeters of Campagnolo brake pad right then and there.

Take care,

-Kurt

slowandsteady

Yes, you are right. The 100,000,000 or so parents in the US don't care. I guess you never made a poor, impulsive decision as a teenager regardless of what your parents told you.

nm+

Kids don't fear traffic like they used to.

slowandsteady

lol

In my day, we would toss the kids into the deep end of the street.

sbhikes

When I was in Nepal I visited a monastery there and was amazed at how the young monks goof off all during the ceremonies. They'd be kicking and punching and pushing each other or making funny faces and stuff like that but nobody would swat them or shush them or tell them to sit still.

When asked why the reason was that they are just children and they cannot be expected to have reached enlightenment yet.

maddyfish

Krazygluon- To be honest, it has been pretty hot and humid, but I enjoy riding the bike enough that I can deal with it. Thankfully, I don't have anywhere specific that I have to go, so when it is really bad, I stay to the flat areas, and run fast.

maddyfish

You're exactly right, I didn't. I was well taught.

genec

Too many kids playing Frogger...

Bad video games... teaching bad habits.

krazygluon

Oh no no no, this street has no median. its 5 lanes:

| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | - 1 and 2 run north, 3 is a turning lane, 4 and 5 run south. occasionally a 0 or 6 lane pops up for someone to make a right. we were in 4 and the kid (he was trying to get from the sidewalk parallel to 5 to the sidewalk parallel to 1) stops in between 4 and 5! had he stopped in the center lane, I'd have considered him risky but safe and I don't think I'd be paying this much mind, but he stood out like a sore thumb in the tiny gap between 2 thru lanes.

I've done some dumb crap in my youth, I'll own up to that, but this was suicide imho.

genec

Like I said... learned it from Frogger.

kjmillig

Actually, many, many parents don't teach their kids anything about bicycle safety and very little about traffic safety in general other than (maybe) look both ways before you cross. When I was in 4th grade, back when there were dinosaurs, we actually had a bicycle safety course in PE class. Now that I'm a school teacher I know most of my students in Houston have received nothing in school and highly unlikely they get anything at home. In many parts of Houston certain demographics actually walk slower when they see a car coming, and will slow down more if you honk at them, daring you to hit them so they can file a suit against you. I know this to be fact because my students tell me they do it.

slowandsteady

Must be nice to be perfect or have your memory wiped clean.

UmneyDurak

You just dated yourself. No one plays frogger these days, and haven't for a while. Besides the whole "my kids are that way becaue of video games" is just a lame excuse by the parents not wanting to take responcibility.

Head Trip

Depending on the ages of the kids. I interpreted them to be rather young. Most kids don't know how to drive, therefore don't know the rules of the road, and don't know the difference between 45 mph and 5 mph. Maybe you are expecting kids to behave like adults, but they can't. Thats why they have parents.

I'm surprized they didn't give you the finger as you drove by!

steveknight

not just kids I watch adults walk across large streets making cars stop for them. sometimes they don't even look to see if someone will stop just assume that it will happen.

slowandsteady

I believe what he posted was something called humor.

wabbit

it's funny, but lately i've been wondering if anyone tells kids about safety anymore. I've had a few near misses.

- on a bike path, two BMXer/freeriders coming back from the dirt jumps. One of them was looking across the lake and his bike wandered into my lane (going the opposite way). I yelled, 'hey! Watch it!' Fortunately, the kid had pretty good reflexes, being a BMXer so he got out of the way fast.

- coming back from a ride with a friend, this little kid suddenly turned left and right into our path. No warning, no signal nothing. The funny thing is he was with his mother and sister who were right behind him. We were really scared and furious...it was a close call.

-coming back yesterday, the bike path (which is usually quiet at that time of day) goes over a narrow bridge. Suddenly, a little kid about 5 stops in the wrong lane, turns back to yell something at his family who were right behind him. It's a blind turn and usually you go slow there anyways, but he never would have seen me coming.

Of course, adults do stupid sh*t all the time, usually people who don't ride much. But kids are really vulnerable.... what p%sses me off is that if there was collision, and some poor kid was hurt (and me too probably) I'd be blamed because I'm older and on a road bike, which of course means I'm going TOO FAST and am one of those heartless roadies. But truthfully, don't parents ever even tell kids about bike safety? Or do they assume that the entire world will stop for their kids?

catatonic

Dude, everyone knows frogger. Heck you can still buy the game today.

genec

Really? It's on my cell phone... along with Tetris and Mine Hunt and a few others...

Perhaps you are dating yourself not realizing that even electronic history repeats itself, just better, smaller and faster.

BTW on the big screen these days the kids are playing things like Grand Theft Auto...

Here is a screen shot...

You can make up your own mind about violence and video games... seems the "experts" on both sides are pretty well balanced in their opinions...

nm+

Yes, they do. Much like the parents who now taking 3 month year-iolds to R-rated movies and expebct us to manage with the crying.

sgtsmile

Sure they will

It is a part of growing up. Parents lay down rules, explain the logic behind them, and kids, when they hit about 10 or so (varies depending on the kid) and certainly by the time they hit 13, start to exert their independance. One way is to ignore all the rules that the "old man" laid down when they were a kid and to do what their friends do and take risks because they own themselves and are just discovering this. Odds are good though that they will snap out of it around their early 20s and revert to normal. Not every kid rebels against their parents - I didnt, (well, not much anyways) but that was because my parents were in my mind reasonable. But I do think that saying catagorically that your child will not rebel because you taught them well and care is a little over the top. I understand though how strongly you feel about it, and that you hope they wont rebel or do silly things when they are older. Personally, I would be shocked if my 4 year old does not rebel or do silly things when she is a teenager. I am curious to see what form this rebelion will take, and hope that the method she chooses does not harm her or anyone else (gogo wild dyed hair!!).