Signs of the times . . . Bicyclists with: dogs on leashes, cell phones. ear buds .
07-29-11, 11:19 AM
#51
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I've offered this in other threads some time ago, but will revisit it again. I think one of the things western civilization has lost is an appreciation for solitude. Perhaps, Elise Boulding, a significant Quaker writer, has put it best:
"Solitude is the most beautiful condition of the human spirit. I understand now what St. Augustine really meant when he said, “Every time I go out among men I return less a man.” He was trying to say that in solitude he understood humanness, but easily lost track of it when confronted with his fellow specimens of humanity."
A great deal of my cycling life is aimed at riding to achieve a space for solitude. I can't do this if I ride with others, have ear buds in listening to music, talk shows, or audio books, or ride as competition. I find that when I'm successful I remember what it means to be human outside of my singular view of self. Hence, I tend to pick routes that afford me the best opportunity to reach that state of contemplation which always enriches me (sometimes I'm more lucky with this than others). As I said, I think western civilization has lost an understanding of the value of solitude and many find it difficult to quiet themselves to be open for such contemplation.
"Solitude is the most beautiful condition of the human spirit. I understand now what St. Augustine really meant when he said, “Every time I go out among men I return less a man.” He was trying to say that in solitude he understood humanness, but easily lost track of it when confronted with his fellow specimens of humanity."
A great deal of my cycling life is aimed at riding to achieve a space for solitude. I can't do this if I ride with others, have ear buds in listening to music, talk shows, or audio books, or ride as competition. I find that when I'm successful I remember what it means to be human outside of my singular view of self. Hence, I tend to pick routes that afford me the best opportunity to reach that state of contemplation which always enriches me (sometimes I'm more lucky with this than others). As I said, I think western civilization has lost an understanding of the value of solitude and many find it difficult to quiet themselves to be open for such contemplation.
I wonder if it isn't generational. As a kid I used to love hiking by myself and listening to nature and my own thoughts. Perhaps it is a lost skill in the ear buds of today?
07-29-11, 11:21 AM
#52
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I am up to date on dog walking. Done wrong it's a menace but done right I consider it a virtuous act.
07-29-11, 01:08 PM
#53
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I have been known to listen to music when I ride but that depends on the surroundings. Never, never in traffic or where I need to be aware of surroundings. And always with an open type of ear speaker so I can still hear what is going on around me.
07-29-11, 03:30 PM
#54
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This was just on the news here:
Woman on bicycle killed by truck in Hempfield
Friday, July 29, 2011
By Moriah Balingit, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
State police said a bicyclist was killed this afternoon after being run over by a tractor-trailer in Hempfield.
Susan A. Belli, 48, of Greensburg, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Trooper Steve Limani said Ms. Belli was riding north on the berm of Mount Pleasant Road. As she approached Towne Square Drive, witnesses said she passed several cars that had slowed because a tractor-trailer in front of them was turning right. Ms. Belli, who was wearing earphones attached to an iPod, slammed into the side of the truck cab as it turned and she went underneath it, where she was run over at around 11:20 a.m. Trooper Limani said the driver could not see Ms. Belli.
The Westmoreland County coroner's office said she died of trauma to the head and chest. She was not wearing a helmet.
Read more: https://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11210...#ixzz1TX2fop2B
Woman on bicycle killed by truck in Hempfield
Friday, July 29, 2011
By Moriah Balingit, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
State police said a bicyclist was killed this afternoon after being run over by a tractor-trailer in Hempfield.
Susan A. Belli, 48, of Greensburg, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Trooper Steve Limani said Ms. Belli was riding north on the berm of Mount Pleasant Road. As she approached Towne Square Drive, witnesses said she passed several cars that had slowed because a tractor-trailer in front of them was turning right. Ms. Belli, who was wearing earphones attached to an iPod, slammed into the side of the truck cab as it turned and she went underneath it, where she was run over at around 11:20 a.m. Trooper Limani said the driver could not see Ms. Belli.
The Westmoreland County coroner's office said she died of trauma to the head and chest. She was not wearing a helmet.
Read more: https://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11210...#ixzz1TX2fop2B
07-29-11, 03:37 PM
#55
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This was just on the news here:
Woman on bicycle killed by truck in Hempfield
Friday, July 29, 2011
By Moriah Balingit, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
State police said a bicyclist was killed this afternoon after being run over by a tractor-trailer in Hempfield.
Susan A. Belli, 48, of Greensburg, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Trooper Steve Limani said Ms. Belli was riding north on the berm of Mount Pleasant Road. As she approached Towne Square Drive, witnesses said she passed several cars that had slowed because a tractor-trailer in front of them was turning right. Ms. Belli, who was wearing earphones attached to an iPod, slammed into the side of the truck cab as it turned and she went underneath it, where she was run over at around 11:20 a.m. Trooper Limani said the driver could not see Ms. Belli.
The Westmoreland County coroner's office said she died of trauma to the head and chest. She was not wearing a helmet.
Read more: https://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11210...#ixzz1TX2fop2B
Woman on bicycle killed by truck in Hempfield
Friday, July 29, 2011
By Moriah Balingit, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
State police said a bicyclist was killed this afternoon after being run over by a tractor-trailer in Hempfield.
Susan A. Belli, 48, of Greensburg, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Trooper Steve Limani said Ms. Belli was riding north on the berm of Mount Pleasant Road. As she approached Towne Square Drive, witnesses said she passed several cars that had slowed because a tractor-trailer in front of them was turning right. Ms. Belli, who was wearing earphones attached to an iPod, slammed into the side of the truck cab as it turned and she went underneath it, where she was run over at around 11:20 a.m. Trooper Limani said the driver could not see Ms. Belli.
The Westmoreland County coroner's office said she died of trauma to the head and chest. She was not wearing a helmet.
Read more: https://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11210...#ixzz1TX2fop2B
07-29-11, 03:48 PM
#56
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True, but plugging in the earbuds can be part-and-parcel of tuning the world out, and tuning the world out is what gets you killed. I'm not saying that everyone listening to music is tuning everything else out. But it reduces the probability that you are tuned into your environment, and makes many, if not most, less aware of those around them. I've had many, many instances of trying to let someone know I was passing them on a MUP (cyclists, joggers, pedestrians), not being able to, and then seeing the earbuds, which explained everything.
07-31-11, 09:31 AM
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True, but plugging in the earbuds can be part-and-parcel of tuning the world out, and tuning the world out is what gets you killed. I'm not saying that everyone listening to music is tuning everything else out. But it reduces the probability that you are tuned into your environment, and makes many, if not most, less aware of those around them. I've had many, many instances of trying to let someone know I was passing them on a MUP (cyclists, joggers, pedestrians), not being able to, and then seeing the earbuds, which explained everything.
