Originally Posted by
Hippiebrian
I equate advocacy with promotion. How can you promote something that you (falsely, by any definition) paint as something that will definatelly maim or kill you, or something that requires protective head gear prior to attempting?
I totally agree with you on these points Brian, what I disagree with is the way you seem to marginalize the risks. And I wouldn't even bother posting anything in retort if it weren't for that fact alone. I have lost someone, hit in a bike lane on his way to work. A route he took for 2 years prior to his death. I miss him every day.
Originally Posted by
Hippiebrian
Really, advocacy is showing people how safe cycling actually is. It is the promotion of a healthy lifestyle. It is showing people that there are safer ways, healthier ways, and cheaper ways to get around than their autommobiles (which are both actively and passively through poison exhaust killing millions). It is getting more cyclists out there, which makes it safer and healthier for all of us out there.
Yeah okay no quarrel there...all good points. Still a tough sell in the city of Atlanta. But we are working on that.
Originally Posted by
Hippiebrian
How again would you define advocacy?
By promoting fellow cyclists to abide by the laws of the states they are riding in #1. (this is a thorn in the side of some cyclists who decide to scoff at the laws, thus making drivers less tolerant of us. Again, I also have been involved in the state drivers examination booklet (which is a joke anyway...) to include questions, and scenarios that involve cyclists on the road and how automobiles should interact with them. Don't forget I do own a car too.
As far as advocacy to the community of cyclists, I have been involved in several area rides and the organization of them. Including the Tour Of Georgia, which I have been a Road Marshall for on 3 different years races. I also try to get people to login to this site, and others like atlbike.org so they can stay connected with the forms of cycling they enjoy, and where they can go to be a part of it.
As I had stated on another thread that I also am a cycling merit badge counselor for the BSA. But my classes, aren't only for the cumulative riding, when I finish with the guys I teach, they are ready to go to work in a bike shop. They are prepped for a more lengthy school for bike mechanics. (which I feel will be more in demand in the future...) And I make darn sure that they are well of the laws, that they pledge to abide by them and to promote cycling as a way to stay healthy, if not for anything else than burning off a few hundred calories a day. We also rebuild a bike in the process and donate them to charity.
I have sat on local RTP (regional transportation planning) groups as a cycling advocate. Our voice goes out and has been heard loud and clear in some respects. Not all. I still have a heck of a time getting the local DOT to make repairs to road hazards I encounter. I hazard in particular... a slab of concrete obviously poured at the corner of a signal light on a busy road. It's about 2" tall and cyclists have to take the lane to avoid it. Our parks and rec dept has started a long term project aimed at making all county parks cycle-able, and they say they will eventually connect them with bike lanes in the far future.