So I was driving with my wife to go drop our kids off at their respective morning destinations.

First I pull out on the main street near my house and I spy a fella taking the lane of a 4 lane road, 2 lanes each way. That part is fine until...I pass him and see he is riding with no hands nor a helmet. Not to get into a helmet debate but, I mean, c'mon. Don't ride like an idiot and still not wear a helmet. He wasn't even trying to ride the speed of the traffic. Going 4-8MPH on a 35MPH road. There is a high school just a mile up the road so I am sure he was headed there which I guess puts the above story in perspective but still. C'mon!

THEN....

I am getting ready to pull into the alley near my oldest kids school and I see 2 younger kids. 10-12 or so riding in an access road next to the main road. As I am getting ready to turn left into the alley I watch them go by, across the alley, they don't look in any direction and one kid decides it is a good idea to pop a wheelie the middle of a pretty busy little section of road near the school. The alley outlet is blind so a car coming would not have had time to see him and with his front wheel in the air he is pretty screwed. They DID have helmets on so if he were to get clobbered pulling his silly trick then I guess he has that going for him.

I think I am getting too old to put up with other peoples stupidity and I am only 32 yrs old. I am gonna be screwed as I get older.

Happy Friday!

Sorry but I've got to take issue with you.

The annoying no-hands rider: It makes no difference how fast he's going and he has no reason to try to go the speed of traffic. It's his business whether he wears a helmet, and absent a local ordinance it's not particularly stupid or less safe than wearing one. Finally, if he's not wobbling around or rushing up into a situation (hard to imagine at 5mph), no-hands is irrelevant. From what you say, this cyclist wasn't doing anything wrong and was not riding foolishly.

The kids: kids will do this. It is entirely up to the driver to look out for them, and if you're driving in an area where kids are likely to be active - such as near a school - you just have to drive an appropriate speed where you'll be able to stop when one darts out of an alley. We can not consider this an anomaly or "stupid", but simply local conditions which we're obligated to adapt to.

Wait, so "other riders" are driving you nuts because a guy was taking the lane while not wearing a helmet (the horror!!) and a 10 year old kid did something dumb? Jeebus man, you need to relax.

I have no problem with him taking the lane, nor do I have a problem with him riding with no helmet, although I am sure he was under 18 and the law requires it. My main concern was him riding with no hands on a very busy and, at times, unpredictable street. He has zero control of his ride and I think my frustration was that all of that coupled together bothered me. Just seems more dangerous, the no hands part, than anything I could envision doing. Maybe it is because I have a family I have to come home to and this dude is a super hero teenager who thinks he'll never die. I dunno. From the California Safety Tips for Bicyclists, "Be prepared to stop or take evasive action" He clearly was not.

The kids doing dumb things is what drives me nuts about that situation. I used to ride to school when I was about his age as well but I still rode aware of my surroundings regardless of how funny a wheelie might be.

I am relaxed it just points out why some drivers would have problems with cyclists in the road. I take the lane all the time when I ride now but I try not to be a nuisance and I follow the rules. I act as if the other drivers are incompetent and take my life into my own hands. I don't rely on the drivers to give a rats @$$ about whether I make it home or not. The 2 examples I stated in my first post are where my mind does not compute because they are totally reliant on others watching for them.

That's all.

It does sound like you have the makings of a fine curmudgeon in just a few short years!

I figured. People have told me I am older than I really am. My wife threw me an over the hill party when I turned 25!

other drivers are riding me nuts

It's a bit of an overstatement to say he had "zero control of his ride," don't you think?

How about, less that optimal control.

You don't happen to have a lawn do you?

get off my lawn, in fact don't even mention it

I was in a store today and this one lady bought a different brand of butter than me. My day is RUINED.

at least it wasn't margarine!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And so riding with less than optimal control "Just seems more dangerous, the no hands part, than anything I could envision doing"? You really can't imagine anything more dangerous than that?

This is why it's so stressful to take a lane. Even other cyclists get their panties in a god-damned bunch. The hick in the pickup truck won't post on a forum, he'll probably just run my ass down.

You'll live.

I do but there is a fence around it. Was there hen I moved in.

Not sure I ever said my day was ruined. Just had to share a personal observation of mine that bugged me. Glad I can post without fear of snarky remarks.

Well...when in an already dangerous situation, I.e. taking the lane, I try to mitigate whatever potentially deadly/harmful things I can. One of those being riding where I have, as I put it now, less than optimal control while riding. I spose doing a wheelie at a blind intersection is not too good either but we have moved beyond that part I spose.

The problem was not taking the lane. It was more the manner in which he took it. At least have some care and concern for your own safety. If he gets a wobble with no hands and dalls then I get to crush his skull. Not how either of us want to spen our day I am sure.

I want concerned about my life. I was more worried about his but thinks for the reassurance.

Hold the phone!


Someone was riding their bike with no helmet and not using his hands?!?!?!?!??!?

I realize that what I will say is rooted in driving, not riding; but, the principle is the same.

When my daughter had learned to drive she was a pretty cautious driver. However, she was getting annoyed by the lapses she saw around herself. This was understandable, she had learned what to do and she saw others not doing it.

The problem was that the annoyances were upsetting her and the upset was becoming a distraction to her driving. I told her something that I often repeat to myself. It turned out that she later used it as a frequent line when she was working as a police officer. "You an only drive your car, you can't drive their car, drive your own car and drive it well." The same applies to bikes.

LMFAO I call this population control. The less than bright must be sacrificed for the greater good of humanity!!!!!

In all truthfulness though, your making to much of the two aforementioned examples. Kids will be kids. Once they get hit on the bike they will learn to respect the bike and be more aware of their surroundings. Call it a learning experience.