What is the matter with these kids?

[knotty]

I was riding along my usual MUP in Marin County, Ca. yesterday when I saw a teen girl ahead laying flat down across the path on her back as if to say to everyone, "hit me, I dare you".

This is the second time I saw something like this. The first was when a group of four, again teen girls sit in a circle, cross legged right in the middle of the path.

knotty

[stapfam]

Give them a choice- "What side do you want the tyre marks" - and don't stop or vary your line. Works every time.

[swan652]

Had the same thing happen to me two summers ago. Ran over her hair.
Wanna play games? We'll play games. :mad:

[BSLeVan]

Absolutely nothing. With youth comes a license to a certain level of folly, some of which can be quite dangerous. It's one of the reasons not everyone lives to be as old as we are.

[luv2cruz]

Probably someone nearby with a camera, capturing whatever might happen to show on YouTube....:rolleyes:

[tsl]

Yahoo! Bunny hop!

[BluesDawg]

Absolutely nothing. With youth comes a license to a certain level of folly, some of which can be quite dangerous. It's one of the reasons not everyone lives to be as old as we are.

+1
Kids gotta be kids.

[2manybikes]

Sneak up quietly, get really close, have the curve of the front tire almost overlapping one of them. Then stop, no need to stop fast or at the last minute, be careful, no need to get risky to enjoy this manuver. Then scream "Passing" at the top of your lungs as your dog barks as loud as he can. Oh..you don't have a dog with you. Too bad. Do it anyway. Do you have an Air Zound? Do you have a powered megaphone? A train whistle ?

It's a lot of fun. Have fun with it, that's what they are doing with you. It's typicall of kids.

Next time bring a camera with a flash and start flashing the camera at them, so it looks as if you are taking photos. Or take photos. Then post them on the trees, or my space.
Then take the top off your bottle and dump it on one of them, just water so it won't stain. Always single out the one that looks the weakest.

Use your imagination. Don't do anything that is really dangerous or harmful, don't get close while going fast.

Scream at them a long way away and accelerate as hard as you can and aim for one, change your aim if she moves, stay aimed at her. Then slow down in plenty of time, and smile and wave. Or squirt her.

[Jet Travis]

+1
Kids gotta be kids.

I'm still doing a lot of dumb things. I hope I always will. (Not much to worry about there).

[knotty]

It just occurred to me, why didn't I dump the water bottle on them? or at least squirt it. LOL.

knotty

[Jet Travis]

It just occurred to me, why didn't I dump the water bottle on them? LOL.

knotty

Cuz you knew somewhere inside it would have revealed you as a middle-aged jerk?

[Louis]

+1
Kids gotta be kids.
Indeed. Stop and talk to 'em...sometimes we can learn.:)

*****Bragging Alert*****

Here's a pic of my youngest granddaughter (#24), age 14, freshman, excelling at the HS varsity level in a very tough NE Ohio league. She's never had time to do the normal kid stuff.

[countersTrike]

Yahoo! Bunny hop!

I can't bunny hop mine - 150 pounds of hurt....... >:-)

countersTrike

[The Smokester]

Reminds me, when I was a teenager in the '60s, the rage around where I lived (out in the country) was to sit out in the middle of a two-lane road inside a large cardboard box. The practice died out after a while, though.

[John E]

Give them a choice- "What side do you want the tyre marks" - and don't stop or vary your line. Works every time.

I like your response the best of any of them, stapfam.

[Timtruro]

Reminds me, when I was a teenager in the '60s, the rage around where I lived (out in the country) was to sit out in the middle of a two-lane road inside a large cardboard box. The practice died out after a while, though.

surprised you survived to be in the 50+ club.

[Blanchje]

Get off my lawn you rotten kids....

[WalterMitty]

Reminds me, when I was a teenager in the '60s, the rage around where I lived (out in the country) was to sit out in the middle of a two-lane road inside a large cardboard box. The practice died out after a while, though.

Yeah there was a fad a few years back for lying length wise on the double yellow line on highways at night. I don't hear so much about that any more.

I think our root problem has been our systematic interference with evolution over the past 3 or 4 decades. We've been saving too many people that otherwise would have removed themselves from the gene pool. Intead they continue to breed, and now, several generations later (the dumber, the more generations) there's an expectation that no matter how stupidly anybody behaves, it won't be their own fault if they are injured or killed.

It this instance, I would have stopped, laid down beside her, and then licked the whole side of her face.

I'm pretty sure that if she or any of her peers saw me coming again I wouldn't have to slow down at all. ;)

[gcottay]

I assume most of the posts on this were in jest.

In my little corner of the world, kids like this are asking if you notice. My response is say, "Yes, I notice you." "Hey, how's it going?" "Beautiful day, isn't it."

[luv2cruz]

Reminds me, when I was a teenager in the '60s, the rage around where I lived (out in the country) was to sit out in the middle of a two-lane road inside a large cardboard box. The practice died out after a while, though.

Darwin's theory prevailed? :D

[Mariner Fan]

http://www.venturerider.org/forum/images/smilies/255.gif

[WalterMitty]

I assume most of the posts on this were in jest.

In my little corner of the world, kids like this are asking if you notice. My response is say, "Yes, I notice you." "Hey, how's it going?" "Beautiful day, isn't it."

Now that's just sweet. I don't care who you are. You should get a job working with kids full time.

Personally, I prefer that my 16 year old daughter run away screaming anytime she sees someone in lycra bearing down on her doing a Gene Simmons impression.

But that's just me.:D

[Bud Bent]

As Bill Cosby would say, "That's brain damage!"

[cccorlew]

I always think "Here's a chance for me to not be an ass and create another cyclist hater."

This happened to me yesterday. A group of kids, maybe runners, was doing push ups on the path I commute on. I called "hello" and some of them started to move. I said "You're OK. Just stay still" and rolled through the middle of the pack. No big deal.

The only time I was worried was the night I came around a corner, in the dark, and found a small group of beer drinkers. I was glad I saw them in time. I got slowed down and said "That's what I'm doing when i get home! And hey, don't break the glass on the path, OK?"
They kinda laughed and smiled and said "OK."

Who knows, maybe I saved myself a flat.

We just have to be nice. I don't want to turn into an angry cyclist like the folks over in the Commuting forum. I don't want to be a cyclist that treats people like car the drivers treat us. Heck, I'm on a bike! I get to be happy!

[BSLeVan]

I always think "Here's a chance for me to not be an ass and create another cyclist hater."

We just have to be nice. I don't want to turn into an angry cyclist like the folks over in the Commuting forum. I don't want to be a cyclist that treats people like car the drivers treat us. Heck, I'm on a bike! I get to be happy!



Good stuff! +1

[solveg]

I assume most of the posts on this were in jest.

In my little corner of the world, kids like this are asking if you notice. My response is say, "Yes, I notice you." "Hey, how's it going?" "Beautiful day, isn't it."

Exactly. I love the response.

[The Weak Link]

This was an opportunity to go the way of the Tao, an opportunity to free yourself from insular Marin monochromatic monolithic mediocrity (I lived there for two years, I know these things). In the girl you encountered the yang, the foolish, youthful, fertile, vibrant, unfettered. She opposed the yin, the wise, impotent, senescent, disciplined spirit that you represented.

In the Meeting of the yin and yang there lied Everything and Nothing, Order and Anarchy, freedom and repression. You had an opportunity to embrace all that is good and yet evil, for in the last analysis, neither of them exists, nor do you, nor does she.

I hope you made the right choice.

[Digital Gee]

This was an opportunity to go the way of the Tao, an opportunity to free yourself from insular Marin monochromatic monolithic mediocrity (I lived there for two years, I know these things). In the girl you encountered the yang, the foolish, youthful, fertile, vibrant, unfettered. She opposed the yin, the wise, impotent, senescent, disciplined spirit that you represented.

In the Meeting of the yin and yang there lied Everything and Nothing, Order and Anarchy, freedom and repression. You had an opportunity to embrace all that is good and yet evil, for in the last analysis, neither of them exists, nor do you, nor does she.

I hope you made the right choice.

You forgot "May the Force be with you." :D

[The Weak Link]

You forgot "May the Force be with you." :D

I was going to throw that in there but I didn't want to sound like a mittromnian.

[hoss10]

The getting in your way thing is something new (started 3 -4 years ago, around here). I've taught in a high school for almost 30 years, and the young kids now will block the halls, talking and not move out of the way. ( I've never seen this before)

I think perhaps it has something to do with the anti-bullying lectures they have been they have been getting since grade school. Years ago senior students would use juniors blocking the halls as bowling pins.

[Retro Grouch]

This was an opportunity to go the way of the Tao, an opportunity to free yourself from insular Marin monochromatic monolithic mediocrity (I lived there for two years, I know these things). In the girl you encountered the yang, the foolish, youthful, fertile, vibrant, unfettered. She opposed the yin, the wise, impotent, senescent, disciplined spirit that you represented.

In the Meeting of the yin and yang there lied Everything and Nothing, Order and Anarchy, freedom and repression. You had an opportunity to embrace all that is good and yet evil, for in the last analysis, neither of them exists, nor do you, nor does she.

I hope you made the right choice.

Impotent?

[spry]

Indeed. Stop and talk to 'em...sometimes we can learn.:)

*****Bragging Alert*****

Here's a pic of my youngest granddaughter (#24), age 14, freshman, excelling at the HS varsity level in a very tough NE Ohio league. She's never had time to do the normal kid stuff.

Have they played Regina high yet?

[Digital Gee]

Have they played Regina high yet?

I dated a girl from Regina High about a hundred years ago.

[Louis]

Have they played Regina high yet?
Didn't play 'em but they were trying to get her to play there.

Her Green High team just finished the season tonight (Feb 6) at 17 and 3. Now it's on to the tournament.

She also plays AAU with Berea Fastbreak, now called Rip City Fastbreak.

[solveg]

I went* to Regina High! In Minneapolis, though.

"We are Regina Girls
we wear our hair in curls
we don't go out with boys
we play with tinker toys
we wear our sweaters flat
that's cause we're built like that
We are Regina High School Girls"

Which makes no sense at all. It seems more like a song we'd sing about those Holy Angels or Visitation girls, not about ourselves. Oh well, those were simpler times, I guess.

[Louis]

I dated a girl from Regina High about a hundred years ago.
Was that when you had your studly avatar pic taken? :D

[Louis]

I went* to Regina High! In Minneapolis, though.

"We are Regina Girls
we wear our hair in curls
we don't go out with boys
we play with tinker toys
we wear our sweaters flat
that's cause we're built like that
We are Regina High School Girls"

Which makes no sense at all. It seems more like a song we'd sing about those Holy Angels or Visitation girls, not about ourselves. Oh well, those were simpler times, I guess.
:roflmao::roflmao: Good one, solveg. I'm gonna hang onto that in case they ever do play Regina.:p

I wonder if today's kids have even heard of 'tinkertoys'?:rolleyes:

[The Smokester]

I said "Reminds me, when I was a teenager in the '60s, the rage around where I lived (out in the country) was to sit out in the middle of a two-lane road inside a large cardboard box. The practice died out after a while, though."

and you said

surprised you survived to be in the 50+ club.

Believe me when I say that, although I have done a lot of adventuous, risky and dare I say stupid things, the above was not one of them.

[The Smokester]

Yeah there was a fad a few years back for lying length wise on the double yellow line on highways at night. I don't hear so much about that any more.

I think our root problem has been our systematic interference with evolution over the past 3 or 4 decades. We've been saving too many people that otherwise would have removed themselves from the gene pool. Intead they continue to breed, and now, several generations later (the dumber, the more generations) there's an expectation that no matter how stupidly anybody behaves, it won't be their own fault if they are injured or killed.

It this instance, I would have stopped, laid down beside her, and then licked the whole side of her face.

I'm pretty sure that if she or any of her peers saw me coming again I wouldn't have to slow down at all. ;)

Man. That is really scarey.

[The Smokester]

Darwin's theory prevailed? :D

Well, just speculation on my part.

[Camilo]

Absolutely nothing. With youth comes a license to a certain level of folly, some of which can be quite dangerous. It's one of the reasons not everyone lives to be as old as we are.

Absolutely. Kids, teenagers especially do things because they make sense at the time and they haven't figured out that some things are silly or stupid (or dangerous). Teenagers go beyond that and do stuff just to be contrary or outrageous.

Doesn't mean they don't need to learn - gentle comments (with good humor if possible), parental discipline when needed, or natural consequences are the way we all grow up and learn.

I think that at the tragic extreme, kids who kill themselves and others driving drunk aren't thinking about the potential consequenses even though they've heard it and probably even understand it in theory. They're having fun in a stupid way and don't understand statistics and risk.

I'm always suspicious and actually feel a little pity for teenagers who don't at least do a little stupid stuff. They're too tightly in the box. I do respect them though for knowing at a young age what it took me until my late 20s to figure out.

By the way, my teenaged daughter is continually surprising me at the stupid stuff she does. Rarely more than once (once she is told and/or figures it out), but the immense possibilities for stupidity are mind boggling. I continually have to remind myself that there's little irritating stupid stuff and "bad kid" stupid stuff that needs some serious intervention. I'm glad I wasn't like that!

It wouldn't surprise me if she did something inconsiderate like blocking up a bike path. But she wouldn't be doing it to be nasty, just "duh", and if she understood it was in fact inconsiderate, she wouldn't do it again and would probably be embarrassed and apologize.

[WalterMitty]

Man. That is really scarey.


Well, it's hard to always have a chainsaw with me. ;)

[maddmaxx]

Absolutely. Kids, teenagers especially do things because they make sense at the time and they haven't figured out that some things are silly or stupid (or dangerous). Teenagers go beyond that and do stuff just to be contrary or outrageous.

Doesn't mean they don't need to learn - gentle comments (with good humor if possible), parental discipline when needed, or natural consequences are the way we all grow up and learn.

I think that at the tragic extreme, kids who kill themselves and others driving drunk aren't thinking about the potential consequenses even though they've heard it and probably even understand it in theory. They're having fun in a stupid way and don't understand statistics and risk.

I'm always suspicious and actually feel a little pity for teenagers who don't at least do a little stupid stuff. They're too tightly in the box. I do respect them though for knowing at a young age what it took me until my late 20s to figure out.

By the way, my teenaged daughter is continually surprising me at the stupid stuff she does. Rarely more than once (once she is told and/or figures it out), but the immense possibilities for stupidity are mind boggling. I continually have to remind myself that there's little irritating stupid stuff and "bad kid" stupid stuff that needs some serious intervention. I'm glad I wasn't like that!

It wouldn't surprise me if she did something inconsiderate like blocking up a bike path. But she wouldn't be doing it to be nasty, just "duh", and if she understood it was in fact inconsiderate, she wouldn't do it again and would probably be embarrassed and apologize.


Have to agree with this. In my opinion, humans do not go out and learn to do the right thing. We learn by doing the wrong thing not to do that again. I think that's a practical description of Darwinism at work. You do things......if they don't kill or hurt you then you survive (and by chance are allowed to procreate). Kids need to do things.....else they wont get hurt and wont know what not to do.

[cranky old dude]

I haven't heard of this particular trick around here yet but,around these parts,
if the bike path is blocked DO NOT STOP! The rest of the kids are probably hiding
in the woods just waiting for someone to make that mistake. Let them know you're
not stopping, and don't.

The big thing around here occasionaly is to walk down the middle of the street
not allowing traffic to pass. A standard transmission comes in very handy in this
situation....rev it up, pop the clutch, watch the dummies scatter. (especially
if you're behind them).

[ad6mj]

Doesn't mean they don't need to learn - gentle comments (with good humor if possible), parental discipline when needed, or natural consequences are the way we all grow up and learn.



So, it would be actually doing them a favor to run over them with a bicycle. :eek: Kind of like small children seem to need to get a minor burn to understand what hot is. Being run over by a bicycle would be be much gentler than getting run over by a car.

[wrk101]

I did a few stupid stunts as a kid. I can remember we used to like to pay catch with the basketball across the street. We would launch a "perfect" bounce pass in front of oncoming traffic. Other stunts were even worse... Stupid, stupid, stupid.... Somehow we survived our stupidity.

[genec]

Yeah there was a fad a few years back for lying length wise on the double yellow line on highways at night. I don't hear so much about that any more.

I think our root problem has been our systematic interference with evolution over the past 3 or 4 decades. We've been saving too many people that otherwise would have removed themselves from the gene pool. Intead they continue to breed, and now, several generations later (the dumber, the more generations) there's an expectation that no matter how stupidly anybody behaves, it won't be their own fault if they are injured or killed.

It this instance, I would have stopped, laid down beside her, and then licked the whole side of her face.

I'm pretty sure that if she or any of her peers saw me coming again I wouldn't have to slow down at all. ;)


and no doubt if they did, you would be charged with sexual assault...

[BlazingPedals]

Yeah there was a fad a few years back for lying length wise on the double yellow line on highways at night. I don't hear so much about that any more.

That behavior was encouraged by a movie at the time. HS sports were involved and that was supposedly a training exercise in trust. Pretty stupid - I almost hit a kid who was doing it. Even when they lie still, they're wider than the lines! Funny, after a few incidents, I never heard of that movie again!

[Retro Grouch]

I went* to Regina High! In Minneapolis, though.

"We are Regina Girls
we wear our hair in curls
we don't go out with boys
we play with tinker toys
we wear our sweaters flat
that's cause we're built like that
We are Regina High School Girls"

Which makes no sense at all. It seems more like a song we'd sing about those Holy Angels or Visitation girls, not about ourselves. Oh well, those were simpler times, I guess.

There's a town in Missouri called "Peculiar". Before the schools were reorganized and consolidated it undoubtedly had it's own high school. I would love to hear the Peculiar High School song.

For that matter, there's a school district in Iowa called "Interstate 80" or maybe its "Interstate 35". That's got to have a good school song too.

[luv2cruz]

There's a town in Missouri called "Peculiar". Before the schools were reorganized and consolidated it undoubtedly had it's own high school. I would love to hear the Peculiar High School song.

For that matter, there's a school district in Iowa called "Interstate 80" or maybe its "Interstate 35". That's got to have a good school song too.

Does Intercourse, PA have its own high school....?

"Three cheers for Intercourse!!" :D