Originally Posted by Roody
The "centerline" statement was evidently a moronic lie from one of those stupid drive time radio shows. It is not a statement of fact about cycling practices. Many cycling safety experts would disagree with your statement that The right tire track is the safest place.
When and where do you ride 45 mph?
I would challenge you to find one expert that recommends riding the centerline. Most experts I know recommend riding in the lane but to the right of center of the lane which would be the area of the right tire track as I see it. I often ride 45 going down hills near my house that are on highways. I find getting 4 -5 feet from the fog line puts me right in the right tire zone of a vehicle and also well into their path making me visible to them. As the speed limits through there are 50 mph I am moving at or close to the speed of traffic (it is a fairly well patrolled area) so could probably legally ride the center line in that situation but why would I want to since I have plenty of room? I guess if the hill was curvy it might be another story but I can tell you if the road is that curvy that I have to hug the centerline, no car is going to be keeping up with me without making their passengers lose their lunch.
Their are several hills capable of producing these speeds between Mesa, Az and Saguaro lake which are the ones I ride most.
Sometimes I think we as cyclists get too caught up in trashing anyone who dares say anything about cycling if they are not an expert cyclist. This person's comments taken at face value don't seem too crazy or antagonistic to me..