Originally Posted by zeytoun
What about a cyclist who "understands" traffic patterns, but does not practice VC?
Comparing a vehicular cyclist who also understand traffic patterns to a non-vehicular cyclist who does not understand traffic is like comparing the test scores of a smart kid with a pencil and a dumb kid with a pen, and saying that a pencil is the factor that causes the better test score.
Then, when riding on the roadway, he is riding dangerously. I rather doubt that a cyclist who understands how traffic works is then going to consciously violate the rules of the road that he recognizes endanger him. Oh, well, we know of the scofflaw cyclists who deliberately violate the rules of the road in the belief that their superior competence will enable them to avoid the dangers so created. Bike messengers are one example, but there are some others, including ILTB according to his own confession, and some pseudo-racing groups which have become notorious.