recursive

Story

galen_52657

And we complain about motorists getting off easy.... to bad the victim had no relatives to sue the cyclist.

genec

The cyclist should be treated just like a motorist in similar cases...

Give the cyclist a $240 fine and let him go.

Blue Order

Thanks for posting this. A sad story, both for the pedestrian whose life ended, and for cycling.

Hopefully this will put an end to the nonsensical claim that cyclists can not and do not injure and kill pedestrians. Hopefully, this will put an end to the nonsensical claim that cyclists who blow stop lights only risk injury to themselves. A negligently ridden bicycle is potentially lethal, and there is obviously a liability risk associated with riding. It's irrelevant that the potential for causing injury or death is less than that for a car, and it's irrelevant that the liability risk may or may not be less than that for a car. The potential is still there.

If this had been a cyclist run down by a speeding motorist who blew a stop sign, we'd be up in arms that the motorist got off with a failure to stop ticket. Hopefully, we'll be just as disgusted that this COB is getting off with a slap on the wrist instead of the vehicular manslaughter charge he so richly deserves. I am.

Falkon 

What I want to know is if the cyclist fled the scene. He should at least have the decency to stop. I'm sure he must have gone down after running smack into a person.

Bikepacker67

What does that mean? Was the cyclist actually travelling above the speed limit?

randya

Just curious where exactly this happened? Wisconsin? Victoria, British Columbia? Other location?

rajman

I don't see how the cyclist is less culpable, just because he wasn't operating a motor vehicle. Does the state law specifically exclude bicyles from being held responsible for breaking traffic laws?

If so, it would seem free game for cyclists to blow red lights, stop signs, ride on sidewalks, whatever they want to do - and be free from prosecution when they cause a crash.

It seems to me the reporter might have been misinformed...

recursive

Melbourne

tomcryar

Australia. Sounds like these cyclists have no regard for anything.

geo8rge

Let's say you know of something like this going on, what should you do? It is not like it has an organization behind it, with a go to person.

recursive

All you can do is punish the individuals behaving badly. If all of them are behaving badly, they must be violating some law (under my definition of bad behavior) that they could be punished under.

wild animals

that poor guy

if they can't charge the cyclist with irresponsible driving charges, then they should charge him with assault or battery or something like that. if i knocked the guy over with my arms, they wouldn't let me off just because i wasn't driving a car.

DCCommuter

I agree the cyclist got off easy.

On-street cycling races -- particularly "unofficial" ones -- are troubling from an advocacy point of view. A quick look at the local statutes shows serious penalties for racing on public streets, with enhanced penalties if an accident results. However, the law specifically applies only to motor vehicles.

I don't think a charge of reckless endangerment would be unreasonable in this case.

remsav

But if you were driving a car you would only be cited for traffic violation and fined for the "accident". The cyclist does deserve a reckless driving charges if he didn't "see the pedestrian due to the sun or something", if he ran over the ped on purpose then he deserve man slaughter charges.

CB HI

I feel sorry for the pedestrian. The racers should receive harsh punishment and the cops should put an end to the unsanctioned/unsafe racing.

But, how did the article turn into a poor motorist thing. The incident was between a cyclist and a pedestrian. I guess it is always about the poor motorist!

Blue Order

The Hell Ride

History of "The Hell Ride"

Every Saturday at 7am, a group of cyclists takes off from the shopping strip at the Black Rock clock tower and tears down Beach Road and the Nepean Highway at speeds of up to 60 kmh.

This is the Hell Ride, Melbourne's most famous and controversial cycling tradition, which had its beginning in 1984 when VFL footballer Bernie Quinlan and two friends began a weekly ride from Black Rock to Mt Eliza and back - reviving an older tradition known as the Frankston Derby.

Bayside motorists have long been familiar with packs of triathletes and road cyclists rolling up and down Beach Road all weekend and pre-dawn weekdays. But unlike even the toughest of these other training groups, the Hell Ride has transformed into a heart-thumping, ferocious race, which at the height of summer attracts up to 200 cyclists.

Cycling at these speeds in close formation calls for razor-sharp skills. Doing it on a public road with traffic lights and other road users is, say some veteran elite cyclists, a tragedy waiting to happen.

For years, the police have tried to control the flouting of road rules by riders who ignore red lights at the back of the long pack, block traffic in the outside lane and sometimes abuse impatient and aggressive motorists. Police have swerved patrol cars in front of the pack at high speed in an attempt to block the highway and have forced cyclists off the road to hand out infringement notices.

They have even appeared at the start to lecture the group, among whom are off-duty policemen and other law enforcers who cannot resist the thrill of cycling at high speed alongside some of Australia's top professional cyclists.

Peter Macgeorge, the only one of the original three founders still riding the Hell Ride, says: "It's my adrenalin rush for the week. You go straight flat-out from the jump."

Apart from Quinlan, Macgeorge, 60, has seen many footballers come and go over the years, including Chris Grant of the Western Bulldogs, Glen Coleman of Fitzroy and Mick Nettlefold, as well as big names from other sports, such as former marathon record-holder Derek Clayton and six-time Winter Olympic speed skater Colin Coates. But it has grown out of all proportion over the years, Macgeorge says. Now no one organises the Hell Ride and no one controls behaviour. Another former Olympian, Max Rainsford, said he remembered the time when professional riders patrolled training bunches, sending dangerous riders to the back. Now there is no respect - you give them advice and they say, "Who the hell are you?".

"I reckon they're playing with fire," said Rainsford, 39.

Senior Sergeant Brad Hanel who set up Operation Flock at the Mordialloc police station to deal with the Hell Ride, says: "There's got to be a code of conduct. We don't want to stop the Hell Ride, but we want them to comply with the legislation."

Fearful that restrictive controls or new laws could endanger access to Beach Road, members of the St Kilda Cycling Club have organised a public forum on Monday evening, jointly hosted by the Police Department.

Club member Ken Lowe said motorists with strong views on the subject were welcome to join representatives from councils, VicRoads, other cycling clubs and cycling bodies Bicycle Victoria and Cycling Australia.

"What's at stake is safety and lives but also the general utility of the road for drivers and cyclists, and the existence of pack rides full-stop," Mr Lowe said.

Beach Road is unique in Australia as a training venue. Many of Australia's greatest cycle athletes have begun their careers there and continue to use it.

For club riders of all ages around Melbourne, it is the centre of the universe.

Mr Lowe said: "It's a rolling community in its own right."

Mike van Niekerk occasionally does the Hell Ride. The Hell Ride forum is at the Felix Bar and Restaurant, 43 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda, at 6.30pm on Monday.

Article thanks to THE AGE newspaper

By Mike van Niekerk
May 18 2002

tomcryar

I was a little torn at first after reading this. On one hand, I am all for tradition, and the original intent was to revive an even older tradition than this one of 22 years. But after I read it a few more times, I came to the conclusion that these people are out of control, with apparently even law officers participating. I wonder if there have been other deaths? It seems to me that, while it may not be "traditional", they could move it somewhere out of the way, because it sounds like they don't even respect the original intent anyway. I still feel really bad for the man who died, though, he sounded like a truly gentle soul.

nm+

Honestly, how hard would it to have gotten the road closed for the event?
They close the roads around here for nearly any racing event, even arteries that make it damn near impossible to cross the city in car, on bike, or foot.
These riders were irresponsible and deserve any punishment they get.

Blue Order

The punishment for killing a pedestrian is a failure to stop citation.

sentinel4675

Why should they close the street EVERY week? This isn't a once a year event according to the article. There is no way they should close a road for such a weekly event.

Blue Order

Then they should close the event. Close the road, or close the event. And that cyclist should be facing prison time.

recursive

How do you close an unorganized ride with no leader?

I'm assuming that it would still go on, even if you "closed" it.

Blue Order

Ban the event and arrest any participants.

Or alternatively, harass it out of existence. Issue citations for each and every traffic violation.

Personally, I don't think it would be that big a deal to close the road; if not once a week, then once a month.

recursive

I don't really know the law in Australia, but I know that would not fly around here. Look at CM in NYC. You can't really arrest someone just for riding a bike on a public road at a certain time.

Basically, in order to arrest someone, I think there has to be a suspicion that they have broken a law. IANAL, but that's my understanding anyway.