ironwood

It all depends where you are. In some situations it might be safer and perfectly legal; on other situations it is neither. There is a long thread on this sub forum concerning sidewalk cycling.

kickstart

Sidewalks like anything else are situational, and its foolish to dismiss them automatically.

howsteepisit

Yeo this is part of the arrogance. Assuming you know what is best in all situation without regard to any location specific facts.

AlmostTrick

I ride with extreme confidence (almost arrogance?) that I could safely out-box most motorists. Is that bad?

I-Like-To-Bike

Though I know that some of their gurus claim that training/indoctrination into the mysteries of Effective Cycling™ trumps experience, I never knew that Cycling Instructors certified by the League of American Cyclists believe they never make mistakes.

Jim from Boston

So true.

canklecat

Depends on your footwork. Most cyclists have terrible footwork. I prefer to yell "Hey, look! It's Elvis!" and pedal away.

Dave Mayer

The last thing that someone wants when riding is an ego. The surest way to getting creamed is for you to have a sense of entitlement, or confidence (whatever that means), or sense of right and wrong. Particularly dangerous is the sense that you as a cyclist are somehow superior or more righteous than bigger traffic.

Another way to get squashed is to ride with emotion, no matter it be fear, anger, joy, whatever. Emotions only cloud perceptions.

Riding safely is a Zen thing. No thought, no emotions, no ego, no consciousness. Only reactions based on experience and pure unclouded perception.

Finally, to think that any state of mind or experience level will make you impenetrable, think again. There is a lot of stuff happening out there that you cannot control or anticipate. Such as a 2-year old running right in directly of you from between parked cars. Or being jumped by a pack of Dobermans on a rural road. Or a million other wildcard events. Sooner or later your number will come up.

skye

Another cycling know-it-all who has never taken a class. Yeah, I know...you don't need it, been riding for years without an incident, blah, blah, blah...

jgadamski

The less experience I had, the more conflicts. I initially had an me vs. them mentality. In time, I realized I was not that great a cyclist, and probably they were not that great of drivers. I de-escalated. I adopted a mentality that shaving 2 minutes off my commute was meaningless. I tried ( and still do,) to initiate human contact with drivers. A nod, a thank you for careful operation, a "gee,its a beauty day, eh?" remark..
I have had few conflicts over the past decade.
attitude is everything, i believe.

kickstart

My athletic ability and technical riding skills are probably no better than average, but being a professional driver on the road around 10 hours a day, I'm constantly honing my roadcraft skills, and rarely have any issues regardless of vehicle.

fthomas

I like this statement after reading each of the responses in this thread. It is honest and simple in its assertion and conclusion.

As a former military pilot we used to remind ourselves: "There is no such thing as an old bold pilot." And we were highly trained and constantly evaluated!

In my opinion arrogance verses a confident measured level of skill might lead some to exceed their bike handling skills and place themselves into situations / environments that are extremely high risk and at the mercy of motorists. While fear and timidity can wreak havoc on someone's ability to perform at their optimum when it is most critical. Both extremes impact an individuals ability to properly respond to the road hazards and challenges of traffic faced in a defensive manner thus keeping themselves out of harms way verses being behind the power curve and reacting to dangerous situations that may have already begun to spiral out of control. We are talking milliseconds!

As cyclists we are facing drivers who are inattentive or under the influence and these drivers are a dangerous wild card that none of us can really predict or be prepared for. Look at the recent accident where a 25 year old young lady ran her car into a crowd at a homecoming parade in Oklahoma killing four and injuring 47. What went wrong? There is always the search for the cause and I am sure there will be more information come out as the authorities investigate the driver at the time of the accident and what she had been doing leading up to the accident. Was she drinking, on drugs or did she have a psychotic break, a seizure, diabetic coma or ______________ ? Whatever it was the results are tragic.

If we are riding defensively (not aggressively) and making use of every available safety accessory at our disposal I really wonder what the probability is that we will be involved in an accident with a motor vehicle that results in serious injury or death?

Cyclist hit from behind
Right Hook by vehicle that speeds up to go around the cyclist and then cuts the cyclist off making a right turn
Left Hook by vehicle traveling in the opposite direction
Cyclist is doored and is thrown into traffic
Driver who runs a red light / stop sign

[h=2]ODDS OF DYING FROM ACCIDENTAL INJURIES[/h]

• The odds of a car occupant dying in a transportation accident were 1 in 37,028 in 2011; the lifetime odds were 1 in 470 for a person born in 2011.

Unfortunately the same type of data for bicyclist does not seem to be available because of non-standard reporting.
So, I remain hyper vigilant while in a bike lane and choose to walk my bike on the sidewalk over and past entrances / exits to the interstate. Even after I have become a pedestrian I still keep my head on a swivel and am extremely cautious even when crossing the roadway in a marked crosswalk with the right of way. In the past six months I have had numerous close calls in the crosswalk - drivers running the red, failing to observe a yellow, driving into the crosswalk at a high rate of speed when their vision of possible pedestrians is blocked by vehicles in the inside lanes. I have often wished I had picked up those wheel weights I pedaled by! Probably a good thing I haven't had something in my hand to throw because the temptation has been pretty high quite a few times.

vol

Just keep in mind that the most aggressive cyclist can be killed by a vehicle driven by the least aggressive driver.

Jim from Boston

In an analogous way, my cycling experience/awareness has made me a better driver, and even a pedestrian., e.g anticipating people exiting a doorway, coming around a corner, or walking alongside to make a left or right hook.

Like some other subscribers have reported, when walking I even rarely glance upwards to my left, looking for my rearview mirror.

kickstart

Yes, the things that really matter are universal, they're just accomplished in different ways.

I-Like-To-Bike

True, me and about 99.99% of every other adult bicyclist. Oh the horror, how do we ever survive without ever taking a bicycle "class" taught by a Cycling Instructor certified by the League of American Bicyclists?

I will grant I am without knowledge of any credible evidence or data about the "incident" record of bicyclists who have taken "classes" vice those who have not; perhaps you learned in "class" where that evidence can be found.

yooperbiker

Why would a cycling instructor believe they never make mistakes? Just because they are teaching a safe biking program to people, and are trying to reduce everyone's risks, in no way justifies this silly comment.

I-Like-To-Bike

Why indeed, unless the cycling instructor was brainwashed by the The Leader of the so-called safe biking program into thinking that their training/knowledge precludes him (and others similarly trained) from making mistakes.

Perhaps that would be the explanation for this comment originally posted by Jim from Boston "I got my comeupppance about my riding delusions two years ago, when I invited another BF subscriber to come to Boston for an organized ride...
...[After a long ride the next day]… Finally he revealed that he is a certified Cycling Instructor by the League of American Cyclists and taught safe, including urban, cycling to adults and children. As a decades-long, year-round urban cyclist, I proudly told him I learned by experience, and he replied, “It shows. You made some mistakes out there.”

yooperbiker

Commenting on some else's perceived mistakes is much different than claiming to be perfect yourself.

jfowler85

ermergerrrrdddddd im gonna die cause i never took a cycling classssssss

MisterJ

There is a saying in aviation: "There are old pilots, and there are bold pilots, but there are no old, bold, pilots."

I hope it doesn't apply here.

randomgear

Geez, hohum hasn't posted for a few days. I might just wonder if he has lost his arrogance; but I really don't give a hoot.

kickstart

But more immediate and apropos.

Never trust a fart.

B. Carfree

I've been on rides with a few LAB certified instructors. Let's just say that I hope what they practice isn't what they are teaching. (And no, I don't always practice what I preach either.)

GamblerGORD53

Ever seen an LAB grad NOT wearing a foam hardhat ???
Tells me all I need to know about who is making mistakes everytime they leave the house.