Originally posted by Andy Dreisch
Well, Dchiefransom, let's just say motorists are predictably stupid, and many cyclists are horribly, unpredictably unsafe. Not that I'm any boy scout with my riding, but most people on this board piss and moan endlessly about bad ol' cars and motorists and rarely ever take an introspective view of our hobby.
This is because if I hit/get hit by an incompetent cyclist, I'm highly unlikely to be killed or even break a bone. The same can't be said for incompetent drivers. A tonne of steel
does make a difference. As far as I'm concerned, there is a direct correlation between the amount of damage one is likely to do and the amount of responsibility one should be expected to take.
Yes, I know in some extreme 0.001% of cases from ridiculously obscure angles, bicycles can also be fatal. However, let's be realists and look at what is likely to happen in the majority of instances, shall we?