If he uses the paths (unlikely) in Austin or any similarly-sized city stateside, then yes, he probably does. Goose poop is a problem in many of our city's parks, on the paths, on the beaches and in the water. I was surprised by the volume; it looks more like the scat of a small to medium-sized mammal than that of a bird. It's actually become something of a public health issue here. There've been no reports of attacks, but they don't shoo off the path when a bike is coming, unless you make a lot of noise.
Remember, this isn't the fault of the geese. Either they've been displaced from some habitat that's been taken from them by human development, or they've been fed by humans to the point where they're encouraged to overbreed, or some other human activity has put them there in those numbers, or some combination of the above.
We have the same problem in the Bay Area. There are plenty of wetlands available to them, so the geese have a more-natural place to go. The reason the city is more attractive, in my opinion, is the displacement of predators. To solve that problem, the cities hire dog trainers who have Shetland Sheepdogs and Australian Shepherds, who love to try to herd the geese together, but are too quick to get nipped by the geese. This aggravates the geese so much that they rarely return, preferring the quieter wetlands. :)
Alrocket
06-16-04, 11:50 AM
Forgot to mention in my post above - re: the class thing I mentioned, I have found that it's less educated and less advantaged drivers who are the most likely to be abusive. I cycle through a lot of different types of neighbourhoods, including the Docklands and Dublin Port areas, and the richer south part of Dublin. I live on the edge (but not in) a tough part of town.
mrdoright0405
06-16-04, 12:58 PM
Avoid eye contact and say nothing. You are not being a coward. You are being smart. Worked for me. Not looking for trouble. But I also "carry" while riding.
Daily Commute
06-16-04, 01:23 PM
I do that too, and make it plain so that other cars behind can see. If a car passes safely, and especially if they have to wait briefly, I give them a big wave as they go by :)
I like to do this for the jerks, too. Given the context, the sarcasm is clear. It also deflates my anger, which makes the rest of the ride more pleasant. Sometimes, the anger gets the best of me, and I give the finger, but that only makes me mad for the rest of the trip home. The more I ride, the more I use the sarcastic wave and the less I use the middle finger.
Alrocket
06-17-04, 12:57 PM
Avoid eye contact and say nothing. You are not being a coward. You are being smart. Worked for me. Not looking for trouble. But I also "carry" while riding.
I'm the opposite - I like to be loud and assertive, and occasionally back it up with aggression if I feel the situation warrants (not in situ above), but only as a last defensive measure. We don't carry here, so sitting back can be a bad idea because if you're not assertive/aggressive people will think they can threaten you. In the states, it's a different issue, because anyone in the street can be carrying (something I really dislike about the US when I visit).
wabbit
06-17-04, 07:42 PM
Yes, I find that the redneck shlubs are often the ones who are the worst abusers. A couple of weeks ago we were yelled at by some idiot, "Get on the bike path" etc. I should mention this happens a lot on this road where the bike path starts on one side, then stops and continues on the OTHER side. SO you have to cross over at an intersection. Really convenient and safe, especially at busy rush hours. So we'll just stay on one side. This causes drivers to yell at us. When he did, my partner gave him the bird and the driver curses and yelled, :**** you, buddy! And he was yer typical shlub, with a baseball cap and relief pitcher hair. In the meantime, he has a KID in the car. What a great example he's setting!
Chris L
06-17-04, 09:04 PM
In the meantime, he has a KID in the car. What a great example he's setting!
Simply put, people should have to pass a licence test before being allowed to become parents. Problem solved.
Dchiefransom
06-17-04, 09:14 PM
I'm the opposite - I like to be loud and assertive, and occasionally back it up with aggression if I feel the situation warrants (not in situ above), but only as a last defensive measure. We don't carry here, so sitting back can be a bad idea because if you're not assertive/aggressive people will think they can threaten you. In the states, it's a different issue, because anyone in the street can be carrying (something I really dislike about the US when I visit).
Around here they might not be carrying a gun. They could pile out of the car with knives/clubs/bats. Four or five guys with those coming at you is just as bad as a firearm. Better to just keep going and not let them affect you.
Chris L
06-17-04, 09:33 PM
Around here they might not be carrying a gun. They could pile out of the car with knives/clubs/bats. Four or five guys with those coming at you is just as bad as a firearm. Better to just keep going and not let them affect you.
Yep, that's actually happened to people I know.
goatmeal
06-17-04, 09:40 PM
mostly curse words which I wouldn't say to my mother...
Phil
holicow
06-18-04, 06:53 AM
... And he was yer typical shlub, with a baseball cap and relief pitcher hair. ...
Ha! I don't know what that means, but it's funny.
I always have my pepper spray on the bars right in front of me, in case of small-brained mammals of any species.
wabbit
06-18-04, 08:45 PM
I guess 'relief pitcher hair' means 'mullet.' Kind of like Randy Johnston had, although he's not a reliever.
Chris, agreed about parents, but what can you do.Most people seem to reproduce because they're too stupid to figure out how NOT to.
noisebeam
06-28-04, 02:55 PM
I had a similar situation yesterday morning on the way to work.
Single lane and a garbage truck comes up behind me and sounds his horn just as he's passing me making no attempt to move to the left (even though there is a clear lane there) and misses me by an inch. It was all I could do to avoid being knocked over by the air wash.
500 meters down the road, he's stopped at a light behind 5 cars. I pass and 30 seconds later, the same thing.
Stupid idiot has the company's phone number on the back of the truck printed in 3
foot numbers.
I call the company and the driver gets a hearing.
I'm sure the driver wanted to intimidate me, not hurt me. What I don't get is, is why this bozo thinks doing something like this will make his life easier. He's not likely to see me specifically even if I was intimidated enough not to ride on the road again, so does he think he's going to stop all cyclists from riding on the road by driving like this? Not likely.
I also think someone who does something like this isn't in a good place to respond to critisism of his driving so call the employer or the cops is the best bet.
How did you get ahead of the g-truck the 2nd time? I didn't know it was legal to pass on the right. Even if it is, it doesn't seem wise given that the truck would have to pass you again.
Al
Dchiefransom
06-28-04, 04:24 PM
How did you get ahead of the g-truck the 2nd time? I didn't know it was legal to pass on the right. Even if it is, it doesn't seem wise given that the truck would have to pass you again.
Al
It depends on the road. With a marked bike lane you can keep riding past stopped traffic. With waits at lights of a few hundred yards during rush hour, I slow down and ride past on the right if the lane is fairly wide. There's a reason people on bikes can get around better in heavy traffic, otherwise, we're just another small vehicle waiting in line and sucking more fumes than the cage drivers.
noisebeam
06-28-04, 06:03 PM
It depends on the road. With a marked bike lane you can keep riding past stopped traffic. With waits at lights of a few hundred yards during rush hour, I slow down and ride past on the right if the lane is fairly wide. There's a reason people on bikes can get around better in heavy traffic, otherwise, we're just another small vehicle waiting in line and sucking more fumes than the cage drivers.
In most of the places I ride the bike lane ends 10-50 yards before the intersection. I always file in line behind traffic. I think this helps get treated like traffic better, act like a car, get treated like one. I also don't see motorcycles filing forward, even though they could (yes some times one does, but almost always if gridlock situation). This all said, if I would miss the green because of staying at end of line would probably file forward if safe so as not to wait two light cycles.
In the description of the incident I responded to (garbage truck did not move a left to provide passing clearance) it very much seemed like there was not a bike lane. At least where I ride cars passing bikes in the bike lane don't need to move left unless the cyclist is taking road due to debris in the bike lane.
Anyway I totally agree that the garbage truck should have left more room. BUT shouldn't a cyclist who had a close call with the same garbage truck avoid passing them and recreating the dangerous situation?
Al
closetbiker
06-28-04, 06:26 PM
Anyway I totally agree that the garbage truck should have left more room. BUT shouldn't a cyclist who had a close call with the same garbage truck avoid passing them and recreating the dangerous situation?
The particular road allowed me to move up to the light passing the truck. It's funny how many drivers complain about cyclists passing on the right when it is illegal to do so when I see far many more drivers passing others on the right when it is illegal to do so.
Should I not have passed the truck? That's a personal call. My reading was the driver wasn't trying to hurt me, but to scare me. I wanted to show he didn't scare me. He could have, but didn't hit me.
The bigger question is should we try to please drivers by letting them do what they wish or do we simply all follow the same rules and co-operate on the road? If I were to let drivers who were annoyed by my presense on the road pass me, I would never get anywhere. I'd be waiting on the side of the road all day.
Chris L
06-29-04, 02:29 AM
I would have just claimed the lane and to hell with what the garbage truck driver thinks.
Allister
06-29-04, 07:30 AM
I would have just claimed the lane and to hell with what the garbage truck driver thinks.
Yep.
I occasionally get some wag blasting his (it's almost always a male) horn at me as though I'm supposed to get out of his way when I'm claiming the lane. I usually give no overt acknowledgement of them. I just hold my line and keep riding. If they persist, I'll slow down a bit, and maybe sit a bit more upright, just to make it quite clear thet I'm slowing down. I've had a couple of guys almost burst a blood vessel. It's my hope that I'm bringing these buffoons just a little bit closer to their inevitable stress induced heart attack. It's just my small contribution to improving the quality of the gene pool.
I always think after these occasions, which are fortunately rare, that I should get a jersey with the legend 'The more you honk, the slower I go.' on the back.