Not All the Fools Drive Cars
08-01-10, 10:39 AM
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Not All the Fools Drive Cars
Coming home from my regular run of 26 miles I had slowed for a light but was keeping a straight line on the rather shallow bike lane. As I came even with a car waiting for the light there was about 3 feet of space between myself and the car. At that point a guy on a bike came between us at 15 to 20 mph just as the light was changing. Had I swerved at all to the left there would have been a nasty collision. He did not bother to yell "on your left" as most people do. Just went sailing through. Sunday cyclists!
08-01-10, 10:44 AM
#2
aka Phil Jungels
"Coming home from my regular run of 26 miles I had slowed for a light but was keeping a straight line on the rather shallow bike lane."
You probably should have warned him that you were standing in the bike lane......
You probably should have warned him that you were standing in the bike lane......
08-01-10, 10:51 AM
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I'm glad nothing happened but it certainly could have. He should have alerted you to avoid that situation. I had a similar experience when riding with my wife. She was behind me on a slight grade and I was concerned for her so just as I turned my head to my left side to see where she was another bicycle rider passed on my left closely enough that it startled me. My first thought was a car but then I regained my composure to realize it was only another bicyclist. My immediate thought was that he should have alerted me he was passing and I wouldn't have been so startled. I know the timing of my turning my head exactly when he was passing contributed to the intensity of my being startled but if he'd just warned me it would have been much better. As I continued to peddle I kept thinking thank God I didn't get so startled that something more serious could have happened.
08-01-10, 12:24 PM
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I agree Coach50. As cyclists, it is all too easy to blame all our woes on "the other guy"--usually cars, but sometimes other bikes. We ALL need to be more vigilant of our OWN actions, such as 'on your left' alerts. Maybe this would encourage those who do not presently alert others to their presence to start doing so. It is frustrating to have something like these near-misses happen, but I know that I sometimes look more harshly on the actions of others, than on myself when I do the SAME thing!
In a perfect world, we would all ride with the best manners, but in this one, it does not always happen. As ambassadors for our sport, we should do our best to project an image of responsible riders, and hopefully others will pick up on it, and start to be better themselves.
In a perfect world, we would all ride with the best manners, but in this one, it does not always happen. As ambassadors for our sport, we should do our best to project an image of responsible riders, and hopefully others will pick up on it, and start to be better themselves.
08-01-10, 05:24 PM
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I'm glad nothing happened but it certainly could have. He should have alerted you to avoid that situation. I had a similar experience when riding with my wife. She was behind me on a slight grade and I was concerned for her so just as I turned my head to my left side to see where she was another bicycle rider passed on my left closely enough that it startled me. My first thought was a car but then I regained my composure to realize it was only another bicyclist. My immediate thought was that he should have alerted me he was passing and I wouldn't have been so startled. I know the timing of my turning my head exactly when he was passing contributed to the intensity of my being startled but if he'd just warned me it would have been much better. As I continued to peddle I kept thinking thank God I didn't get so startled that something more serious could have happened.
08-01-10, 05:34 PM
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I agree Coach50. As cyclists, it is all too easy to blame all our woes on "the other guy"--usually cars, but sometimes other bikes. We ALL need to be more vigilant of our OWN actions, such as 'on your left' alerts. Maybe this would encourage those who do not presently alert others to their presence to start doing so. It is frustrating to have something like these near-misses happen, but I know that I sometimes look more harshly on the actions of others, than on myself when I do the SAME thing!
In a perfect world, we would all ride with the best manners, but in this one, it does not always happen. As ambassadors for our sport, we should do our best to project an image of responsible riders, and hopefully others will pick up on it, and start to be better themselves.
In a perfect world, we would all ride with the best manners, but in this one, it does not always happen. As ambassadors for our sport, we should do our best to project an image of responsible riders, and hopefully others will pick up on it, and start to be better themselves.
Bud
08-01-10, 05:46 PM
#8
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I probably don't understand your location when this happened. If you were running on the right side of the road, you were on the wrong side of the road. And I think a marked bike lane would always be considered part of the road. If you were on foot, in the bike lane, and the bike was on the correct (right) side of the road, it would be your obligation to observe him coming and step off of the road and get out of his way. If you were on the right side of the road, you would not be able to see him coming. That's why there are laws regulating traffic.
A typical state (PA) pedestrian traffic regulation reads, in part:
Section 3544. Pedestrians walking along or on highway.
(a) Mandatory use of available sidewalk.—Where a sidewalk is provided and its use is practicable, it is unlawful for any pedestrian to walk along and upon an adjacent roadway.
(b) Absence of sidewalk.—Where a sidewalk is not available, any pedestrian walking along and upon a highway shall walk only on a shoulder as far as practicable from the edge of the roadway.
(c) Absence of sidewalk and shoulder.—Where neither a sidewalk nor a shoulder is available, any pedestrian walking along and upon a highway shall walk as near as practicable to an outside edge of the roadway and, if on a two-way roadway, shall walk only on the left side of the roadway.
(d) Right-of-way to vehicles.—Except as otherwise provided in this subchapter, any pedestrian upon a roadway shall yield the right-of-way to all vehicles upon the roadway.
But like I said at the start, I probably don't understand your location when this happened.
A typical state (PA) pedestrian traffic regulation reads, in part:
Section 3544. Pedestrians walking along or on highway.
(a) Mandatory use of available sidewalk.—Where a sidewalk is provided and its use is practicable, it is unlawful for any pedestrian to walk along and upon an adjacent roadway.
(b) Absence of sidewalk.—Where a sidewalk is not available, any pedestrian walking along and upon a highway shall walk only on a shoulder as far as practicable from the edge of the roadway.
(c) Absence of sidewalk and shoulder.—Where neither a sidewalk nor a shoulder is available, any pedestrian walking along and upon a highway shall walk as near as practicable to an outside edge of the roadway and, if on a two-way roadway, shall walk only on the left side of the roadway.
(d) Right-of-way to vehicles.—Except as otherwise provided in this subchapter, any pedestrian upon a roadway shall yield the right-of-way to all vehicles upon the roadway.
But like I said at the start, I probably don't understand your location when this happened.
08-01-10, 06:00 PM
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"Not all the fools drive cars."
You're right - most of them seem to drive "super-sized" pickup trucks and SUVs. Perhaps the larger road-space requirement fosters a sense of "entitlement"?
You're right - most of them seem to drive "super-sized" pickup trucks and SUVs. Perhaps the larger road-space requirement fosters a sense of "entitlement"?
08-01-10, 06:23 PM
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Terex....... I believe he was on a bike. I think he used the term {regular run of 26 miles} as meaning his regular 26 mile ride. I could be wrong but I'm thinking not only because of all the biking post he makes.
08-01-10, 07:02 PM
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Yup... that's what I thought. Bad situation... very bad. As someone said in another thread, riding a bike doesn't make you a nice person.
08-01-10, 07:05 PM
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08-01-10, 07:50 PM
#13
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Terex:
Perhaps I was wrong in assuming everyone would know I meant my regular bike "run". Sorry.
Perhaps I was wrong in assuming everyone would know I meant my regular bike "run". Sorry.
08-01-10, 08:52 PM
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I was wondering where all the stuff re. pedestrians came from; I sure didn't see anything in the OP that would have suggested s/he was not on a bicycle. 26 miles on foot is a marathon, not a "regular ... run".
"Alert"? What's to "alert"??!? I presume by "slowing for a light", you mean there was a "stale" red light, and you were slowing down in expectation of going through when it turned green. Imagine if this were two car lanes. You're in a car, approaching the light, in the right lane. Another car is stopped at the intersection. Light turns green, and a car coming up behind you figures he can squeeze between you and the waiting car to your left. Would it have improved things if he honked his horn to announce such a move. NO! It would have been a completely insane move, and legally, improper lane use. So it was with this other cyclist. A bike lane is NOT made for passing within the lane. His choices were to yield behind you, yield behind the car in the next lane, or, if there was yet another car lane to the left, pass you both in that lane. There's no "alert" that would justify such a dangerous move.
I pass slow people in bike lanes all the time. When I do, I pull into the next lane. If I can't, I yield (slow down) until I can. The one place where that's scary here in Madison is W/E Johnson St, where, because the buses use the right lane, the bike lane is on the LEFT side. Passing means moving to the RIGHT one lane, into the fast traffic lane. Speed limit is 25, average speed is 35. Mirror is almost useless.
"Alert"? What's to "alert"??!? I presume by "slowing for a light", you mean there was a "stale" red light, and you were slowing down in expectation of going through when it turned green. Imagine if this were two car lanes. You're in a car, approaching the light, in the right lane. Another car is stopped at the intersection. Light turns green, and a car coming up behind you figures he can squeeze between you and the waiting car to your left. Would it have improved things if he honked his horn to announce such a move. NO! It would have been a completely insane move, and legally, improper lane use. So it was with this other cyclist. A bike lane is NOT made for passing within the lane. His choices were to yield behind you, yield behind the car in the next lane, or, if there was yet another car lane to the left, pass you both in that lane. There's no "alert" that would justify such a dangerous move.
I pass slow people in bike lanes all the time. When I do, I pull into the next lane. If I can't, I yield (slow down) until I can. The one place where that's scary here in Madison is W/E Johnson St, where, because the buses use the right lane, the bike lane is on the LEFT side. Passing means moving to the RIGHT one lane, into the fast traffic lane. Speed limit is 25, average speed is 35. Mirror is almost useless.
