AlmostTrick

Was there a specific incident that caused this loss of nerve? I'm genuinely interested in your answer.

I understand, and cop to also being fascinated by what is possible. If nothing else, these video's show that cycling in traffic is nowhere near as risky as most people think.

I'd say anyone cycling in traffic is depending on the "skills of motorists to not hit them" to one extent or another. This is not a bad thing... motorists really don't want to hit us. That's why being visible and predictable works so well at keeping us safe.

Rollfast

I didn't even watch. What was the point of this? You Tube is full of bright folks doing stuff that gets them hurt badly or put in jail, their minds melt and they have to have 'fame'. If it was really bad and just beyond the pale, ask for a takedown.

TenSpeedV2

They aren't "racing", that is mostly shot from alleycat races. Usually no rules, maybe just no brake for the fixed gear riders. It's a dang free for all, ride at your own risk, get the checks on the paper and get back. You put yourself and others at risk riding like this. I have never done an alleycat, and I do not run red lights, but the other stuff, I have done it. Between buses and trucks, cars, dodging turning vehicles, etc. Sometimes I feel like that is the safest place to be. A car usually is not going to merge into the lane where a city bus is riding so picking that spot can be ideal. After riding in Chicago quite a bit, it almost feels like second nature. Once you do it a few times, you start to see lines and gaps that you never saw before and you ride through them and you come out unscathed. Often times we find ourselves riding defensively, but maybe we should try to be a little more on the offense.....

work4bike

That's true in all of life, there are so many ways to inflict serious injury/death. However, these guys are becoming totally dependent on the motorists to stop. That's far different than how traffic was designed to work.

When I'm in traffic there is always the chance that someone will all-of-a-suddenly swerve into me, especially those passing on my side. But laws prevent a lot of that, but these guys seem to not want laws, why don't we all just toss these laws....

BTW, I'm not as vulnerable as many, I've been using a bike as my form of transportation since the mid-80's and I've become very good at defensive riding and my mirror is crucial in keeping me safe, I'm no easy target; if someone is coming up from my rear I can see when they are making room or playing around and planning too close a pass and I make correction and let them know I see what they are doing.

I've been hit three times by vehicles and so far not a single time was my fault

JoeyBike

HA! The answer will surprise you and highlight the ironies of life.

A couple of years ago our house had to be completely re-done (again) due to contaminated drywall from China being installed after the H.Katrina flood. So my wife and i rented an apartment and I took 5 months off from my real job to work at the house along with the contractors and their crew. During those five months I used my wife's car nearly every day taking care of the dead house and multiple trips to hardware stores, and acting like a "house husband" getting groceries, running errands and so on so she didn't have to miss any work. Anyway...I spent a ton of time behind the wheel of a car. THIS is when I noticed how much time an individual looks at their phone behind the wheel WHILE the car is MOVING. You know, on a bike my interludes with motorists lasts a few seconds each, but behind the wheel of a car lined up with the rest of the lemmings, I had a much different viewpoint. I could observe the same motorist for literally five minutes in stop and go traffic.

So, believe it or not, driving an automobile almost daily for five months cured me of wanting to spend extra time on a bicycle exposed to those phone using IDIOTS.

GravelMN

Watched the whole thing. What a load of crap. I saw many close calls, collisions with pedestrians, vehicles having to swerve or slam on their brakes, video being stopped just before an obvious impact, and several cyclists who were not seriously injured or killed after going down in traffic only because alert motorists managed to avoid hitting them. If "being alive" means being a dumbass with total disregard for others, no thanks. I'm not against taking risks, but many of the riders in this video are just fools and arsholes who survive because others are more responsible and conscientious than they are. I've been on the other end of this when some jackarse came weaving through traffic at high spped and blatantly blew across in front of me. He got lightly clipped as I slammed on my brakes to avoid killing the moron. If I hadn't seen him coming out of the corner of my eye, he'd have been toast. He pounded my hood and flipped me off before bolting across oncoming lanes causing another car to slam on its brakes.

Just because God looks out for fools too stupid to look out for themselves, don't think you are invincible. It is very possible to be killed. I've lost two cycling friends in two years to distracted drivers, and they were riding responsibly at the time. Both were experienced riders well known and respected for both their abilities and character.

Thanks for giving the rest of us a bad name, inflaming the hatred of cyclists, and generally contributing to the problem.

JoeyBike

Hmmmm...

There are hundreds of alleycat races every year in the US alone. Thousands of riders, tens of thousands of "incidents" and I can only think of ONE cyclist who was ever killed doing it. Yet this board fills up with memorials to cyclists riding responsibly and getting creamed. Food for thought huh?

Sorry about your buds. That sucks no matter the circumstances.

baron von trail 

Thousands running an alley cat; tens of millions riding a bike. Gee, I wonder why we all know someone who died just getting from A to B.

GravelMN

Thank you for the condolences.

I agree with BVT, there are millions more riders who are not alleycat racers. Also, most alleycat races are generally held in city traffic, where roadway congestion slows traffic from slow (under 20 mph) to a crawl or even a standstill. If you look at the articles on cyclist deaths, the vast majority occur when they are struck in freeflowing traffic, often at highway speeds. Look at your own video, most of the traffic is barely moving. I have only hear of one cyclist killed in sub-25 mph traffic in this area and he was 85 years old and had his legs crushed by a truck making a right turn.

But safety wasn't even the main focus of my reply, it was that alleycat racers put their own thrills and entertainment above the needs of everyone else.

JoeyBike

Just to be clear, I do not condone alleycat races. I do enjoy watching cyclists race in any manner. I would never EVER put myself in a position where a motorist had to save me by being alert and capable. I don't want to get damaged. Not wanting to be a jerk to motorists or pedestrians is a distant second.

italktocats

when people comment about my riding, i ask them "if you were able to fold out wings and fly off, be free-er then a bird, would you stop for traffic lights?"

if you have abilities beyond "the normal people" why not use them?

JoeyBike

Of those millions of casual riders, what percent are clueless? I bet the percent of clueless experienced bike messengers is a statistical zero. Being clueless on a bicycle under almost any circumstance is very dangerous. Paying strict attention and having skill along with the ability to instantly problem-solve, then make your body do something, is not the norm for weekend warriors.

Rollfast

This is kinda getting it's logic bent, nay, mangled as we go along.

Excuses and buts. For any mention of a bad thing some spectator has a defense.

We're not spectators. We aren't apologists.

We want to ride a bike and get there okay.

If you want the Jackass thread or whatever, we got one.

GravelMN

Glad to hear it. Then my problem isn't with you. I'm not even saying everyone, or even the majority, of those in the video are doing anything wrong. There are, however, several examples in this video of vehicles having to swerve or slam on their brakes to avoid the cyclist. There are also examples of disregard for the safety of others. At 1:42 a cyclist jumps from the street to the sidewalk to take a corner and misses an older man by only an inch or so. AT 7:47 a pedestrian is struck by a cyclist ignoring a red light while entering a crosswalk with extremely poor visibility at a busy intersection.

Honestly, this isn't the worst video I've seen on the subject and I'm sure anything that makes the alleycats look bad has been carefully edited out. The narrator is spouting the same kind of BS that we heard from pseudo-intellectual gurus selling college girls acid in the 70s.

italktocats

99% of the population is PHYCIALLY able to do this, they just dont do it, they like being slower, less responsive and more passive

350htrr

I think it's more like they have a higher sense of self preservation than people who do those kinds of things... JMO

italktocats

so why do they run into objects? fall over while standing still? bounce off the pedals with rocky roads or whatever your fav noob mistake is? thats not really safe is it?

they live the slow life, and die with it

GravelMN

I like going fast, pushing my limits, trying new things and occasionally scaring the crap out of myself in the process, but damned if I'm going to turn a crowded street into my personal playground so I can be an asshat on YouTube. I'm not going to be shoulder checking little old ladies in crosswalks or causing a fender bender for some working class stiff just trying to get home from work. Maybe I'm old fashioned but I still believe that respect and consideration for others is more important than getting my jollies.

350htrr

Because, physically being able to do it isn't the whole story... NOT that I agree that 99% of the people would/could physically do it, in fact I would say probably less than 50% of people "could" do that to a successful conclusion only on their physical ability ... To do what these guys are doing is way more than the physical ability that it takes. It takes coordination, it takes reflex, it takes spatial acuity, it takes a mental attitude, it takes a willingness to take risk above the average persons risk level that most people take every day ... For most people even when falling off their bicycles, well they overcome that, and that is a normal risk factor they overcome with practice/time.... As to why they run into things, fall over while standing still, I guess they need practice...

EDIT; OH, and as for living in the slow lane of life and still dying... Well, everyone dies but not everyone lives as long, I guess everyone make their choice which is better... Most people just decide to burn 1 end of the candle at a time, not both... It's usually way better for longevity, usually, even tho maybe not as exciting for the short term...

jfowler85

Being a butthurt contrarian doesn't make you a sage, it just makes you a butthurt contrarian.

kickstart

The abilities one has, and the abilities one thinks they have are two different things.

A&S exists because of those in all user groups who overestimated their abilities, and BF seems to have a fair share in that class.

Miele Man

An utterly fantastic video - for those looking for reasons to have bicyclist licensed! The public wants a means to catch and punish such scofflaw bicyclist s depicted in this video. Thanks for giving the anti-bicycling crowd yet more ammunition to use against bicyclists!

Cheers

JoeyBike

The anti-cycling crowd has no idea these events exist.

Miele Man

Perhaps not but they see such behaviours every single day in an decent size city.

Dig the dude in the video hanging onto the side of the truck. Dig the dudes swerving in and out of traffic and causing motorists and pedestrians alike to have to tkae evasive action. That's the sort of behavious that fuels the anti-bicycling on streets crowd.

Cheers

AlmostTrick

Didn't the LAB have a course covering proper traffic jamming skills like these?