Originally Posted by practical

It's too bad that mirrors got the bad "fred" rap. Certainly early mirrors did not work well, but today since there are so many that do work well, I believe everyone should use one. Help make mirrors "cool" but using one yourself.

Originally Posted by Jim from Boston

I use both left and right rearview mirrors, in my case Take-a-Look eyeglass mounted ones… The additional right hand mirror affords a pretty good rearward view, but is particularly useful for:

1. Riding on the left-hand side of a one-way street
2. Riding in the middle or left lanes of a two-way thoroughfare
3. In a rotary
4. On a curved road to the right
5. When passing entrance/exit ramps from a freeway, with the right hand mirror, I can view the ramps to my right, and stay wide of them, while watching upcoming traffic on my left, all while almost continuously looking straight ahead
6. When the sun is directly behind, usually one mirror can be positioned away from the glare of the sun
7. When wearing a backpack, usually one mirror has a less-obstructed view over my shoulder.

My main argument for a mirror, particularly in the urban environment is summarized by Jim’s Law of the Road: “No matter how well paved or lightly-traveled the Road, a vehicle is likely to pass you on the left as you encounter an obstacle on the right.”

Originally Posted by Jim from Boston

… I thought: certainly there are the roadies, who are indeed “Beautiful People” and are splendid in their spandex and peletons; and there are Freds, kind of clunky but sincere and loveable. But there is IMO, a large segment of noble cyclists, e.g. tourists and commuters who are neither BP’s nor Fred’s, but certainly serious cyclists….

…my manifesto is, "I am not a Fred you are not a Fred, we ought not be treated this way". So I propose a new name, currently applied to frequent business travelers—ROAD WARRIORS. I AM A ROAD WARRIOR—think Mel Gibson… IMO, the society which exalts roadies and scorns road warriors will have roads only built for cars.