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Who here is afraid of getting killed while commuting?

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Who here is afraid of getting killed while commuting?

Old 09-25-10, 08:08 PM
  #101  
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What better way to go than on a bike?
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Old 09-25-10, 08:19 PM
  #102  
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Originally Posted by hairnet
What better way to go than on a bike?
Amen
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Old 09-25-10, 08:25 PM
  #103  
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Originally Posted by o0adam0o
Ive always felt that when i die it will be in a freak accident. Dunno why... im a pretty careful person.. i dont even get on rides at theme parks. Ive been commuting 12mi a day 3 times a week for the past 2months and as im ridding sometimes i think to myself how vulnerable i am on the road. So i make sure to pray everyday and never take risks no matter how fun they appear... lame i know I stop at all ligts and stop signs even if there no cars, cuz i want to get a habit of following traffic laws.

So i would say YES.. im affraid of getting killed while commuting... but if im affraid, then why do i continue to do it?

However, I do hate the fact that i have yet to crash on my bike... i want to get that part over with! Has anyone here not had a single crash? (ie.. ran into something.. fell off.. etc)
You have succumbed to the Fear of the Modern Cyclist, ie, "I ride a bike, so something MUST happen to me."
It is a rampant concept in this age, and isnt exclusive to cycling. Fear is everywhere, it seems, doom lurking around every corner.

But I am 53 years old and have never had an accident that even came close to a mortal event. The few that I have been involved in, many years ago, were decidedly my own fault.
I have not even come close to an accident in more years than I can count, since then.

- I ride assertively and I watch cars.
- I use a mirror, and I remain aware of them at all times.
- I expect they DO NOT see me.
- I'll use my brakes if I need to and dont stand on my "rights to the road" where my safety is concerned.
- I take the lane as a way to force awareness upon approaching cars - I don't care if they honk or get pissed.
- I dont ride with MP3's and ear buds, music overpowering the sounds of the road.
- I keep away from MUP's and sidewalks whenever I can.
- I keep my bike well maintained - my stuff works.
- I ride a lot, all over, under all sorts of conditions, so as to keep my skills sharp.
- I consider myself and my bike as a vehicle, just like a car, and operate that way.
- I know that cycling is far safer than most any other activity I can undertake. I take comfort in this.

I dont want to sound pretentious in all this. I know my number can come up, like anyone else's.
But I stopped riding in Fear of the Reaper. I prefer to Ride with Joy.
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Old 09-25-10, 09:03 PM
  #104  
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I happen to do a lot of training in risk analysis and management as part of my profession. So when I started commuting by bike I realised there was some danger and I started to think of it the same way I would of any other industrial risk assessment.

As you ride your bike, identify the hazards and figure out how to manage them.

This is just a few of my techniques.
[1] Ride slow enough that you can stop if there is a problem.
[2] Don't ride in the door zone; but if you have to - see rule [1].
[3] Get off the bike and walk it across at a controlled intersection if there is a risk of right-hook, etc.
[4] Ride on the sidewalk (it's legal in my city) when the edge of the road is dicey. But always give way to pedestrians.

With my approach I believe the chance of me being killed on my bike is no more than other activities.
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Old 09-25-10, 09:45 PM
  #105  
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The end comes when it comes, matey. Do what you love.
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Old 09-25-10, 09:52 PM
  #106  
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Originally Posted by 009jim
I happen to do a lot of training in risk analysis and management as part of my profession. So when I started commuting by bike I realised there was some danger and I started to think of it the same way I would of any other industrial risk assessment.

As you ride your bike, identify the hazards and figure out how to manage them.

This is just a few of my techniques.
[1] Ride slow enough that you can stop if there is a problem.
[2] Don't ride in the door zone; but if you have to - see rule [1].
[3] Get off the bike and walk it across at a controlled intersection if there is a risk of right-hook, etc.
[4] Ride on the sidewalk (it's legal in my city) when the edge of the road is dicey. But always give way to pedestrians.

With my approach I believe the chance of me being killed on my bike is no more than other activities.
I like it, in a weird techno-industrial manner. I rarely get off my bike, but I will creep it and even stop, if needs be. As for the Door Zone I just take the lane, right outside its edge. Let em honk, I say.
I do a lot of safety and risk assessment work, too. Its a good way to approach the issue.

I've always wondered who was the smart guy that formalized accident mitigation and risk analysis as a career. I've been doing it all my life, but wasn't clever enough to make it pay, i guess.
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Old 09-26-10, 02:01 AM
  #107  
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I was hit from behind by a GMC dually pickup. The only thing that changed for me was my route. My original route was through a beautiful housing development with plenty of hills and trees, but I had to ride on a 45mph narrow two lane road for a mile. Now I take the shoulder of the 55mph divided 4 lane. Its a WIDE shoulder, about the same as a bike lane. But the route is SOOOO boring. Still a couple of hills but no scenery.

You get over your fear, or you don't. If you don't then you spend the rest of your life on an exercise bike in a gym.
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Old 09-26-10, 03:33 AM
  #108  
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Originally Posted by chephy
It doesn't happen to me often, but occasionally I do get the door popped right as I am passing by a parked car, and from the startled look of the driver I just KNOW he hasn't checked his mirrors and the only thing that saved me was that I stayed out of the "death strip".
It's a priceless time to use an Airzound or GaleForce; even if you're far enough out, giving them the scare might make them more careful next time. I once knew a guy who had lost two fingers opening a door into traffic; they were still hooked in the handle when a 60MPH car took the door off, so it's not just the passing cyclists that are in danger from inattentive door opening.

As for the original question, I worry a lot less about dying in traffic than I do about being permanently disabled. I lost my father when I was young, so I know my kids (just got the test results back; should be plural by next summer) will be able to get on with their lives without me, and probably more easily than if they're watching me vegetate in a hospital bed.
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Old 09-26-10, 07:11 AM
  #109  
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Yep I am. It's not a crippling fear but it's the activity I perform everyday that has the greatest potential to kill me. I see it as a forgone conclusion so Its not really a big fear anymore. I imagine when it happens and as I lay passing I will think..F*ck, a Smart Car?
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Old 09-26-10, 07:47 AM
  #110  
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Originally Posted by Schwinnrider
I was hit from behind by a GMC dually pickup. The only thing that changed for me was my route. My original route was through a beautiful housing development with plenty of hills and trees, but I had to ride on a 45mph narrow two lane road for a mile. Now I take the shoulder of the 55mph divided 4 lane. Its a WIDE shoulder, about the same as a bike lane. But the route is SOOOO boring. Still a couple of hills but no scenery.

You get over your fear, or you don't. If you don't then you spend the rest of your life on an exercise bike in a gym
.
May I use that?
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Old 09-26-10, 10:40 AM
  #111  
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Originally Posted by hairnet
What better way to go than on a bike?
Something that nags me about that, when people say "he died doing what he loved" well... getting mangled by a car isn't what I loved!

BTW...

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Old 09-26-10, 10:45 AM
  #112  
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Originally Posted by elvez
Yep I am. It's not a crippling fear but it's the activity I perform everyday that has the greatest potential to kill me. I see it as a forgone conclusion so Its not really a big fear anymore. I imagine when it happens and as I lay passing I will think..F*ck, a Smart Car?
OF course one should have just as many negative thoughts while in the car but, north american culture has billed the bicycle as exceedingly dangerous and a car as safe. This lack of social normalization and cultural internalization of risk has a lot todo with your original worries and the worries of the OP that they are doing something reckless
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Old 09-26-10, 03:56 PM
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I couldn't really, give a flying **** as to that supposed "fear". **** it.
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Old 09-26-10, 04:55 PM
  #114  
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Originally Posted by electrik
OF course one should have just as many negative thoughts while in the car but, north american culture has billed the bicycle as exceedingly dangerous and a car as safe. This lack of social normalization and cultural internalization of risk has a lot to do with your original worries and the worries of the OP that they are doing something reckless
This is indeed the case. Almost anything we do has been branded as dangerous in some way.

Like a little Taco Bell, now and then? It'll kill you.
Enjoy a cold beer? Brewed death awaits.
Fancy a dip in the sea? It's alive with threats.

We have embraced threat, in fact. It has become a social passion, our mantra is "Something bad lurks around every corner."
It fills each newscast we see. Gurus make a career out of it and politicians a business of it.

I especially find it interesting, because I can recall a time in the near past when this was not the case. It isn't that were blind to danger, or ignorant, but we assumed a certain element of risk awaited when we left our door each day. We knew that you could get into trouble or have accidents, and we called that Life. As a result, we told stories about people who beat the odds through intelligence and force of will, and we called them heroes.

Today we call them fools or reckless and insist they wear a helmet, or "check in" before they do anything. It is no wonder the OP feels death awaits at every turn of the pedal - he's been taught that it does.
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