Every time I ride, I'm reminded how fragile I am. I'm sure it's the same for you. So no, there's nothing threatening to me about cyclist fatality stories. I get enough of a reality check everytime I hit the road.

But, every story of a cycling death becomes a rehash of the same basic factors. Poor road design for bikes, arrogant or inattentive or drunk drivers, and erratic cycling...all followed by an inadequate law enforcement reponse. And the details of each story are so thin, it's hard to draw any kind of constructive conclusion. We never really know what happened, or who's at fault.

Again, a thread titled "Cycling Fatality" is impossible to ignore on an emotional level, for me at least. It's hard to skim past it without being effected. But it doesn't make me any smarter or any safer out on the road. The futility of it all just bums me out.

To put it a better way, it's a hell of lot easier to ignore a thread titled, "What kind of Bike Should I Buy," than a thread titled, "Another Cyclist Killed."

If anyone wants to delve into safety matters, there's an A & S forum for that purpose. I think we should take advantage of it on a voluntary basis.