In article <
[email protected]>,
dgk <
[email protected]> writes:
> It's still dark when I ride over the 59th Street bridge into
> Manhattan, and I notice that some of the "serious" cyclists coming the
> other way don't believe in front blinkies. I sort of see a blur coming
> the other way and then it resolves into a bike as it enters my light
> beam.
>
> What the hell is wrong with these guys?
I think many riders alternate between a cyclist mindset
and a pedestrian mindset, depending on which is the
easiest and most convenient. Pedestrians don't need
to wear active lighting at night. Pedestrians are
permitted to use crosswalks. Pedestrians don't have
to stop at stop signs. I guess there's a lot of
cylidestrians out there.
To a certain degree I'm guilty of that mindset swing,
myself. But like yourself and everybody else here
on r.b.m I distinguish riding from walking or driving,
and tend to ride responsibly, if not always lawfully.
Responsibly enough to not unduly endanger myself or
infringe on others, anyway.
I think by "serious" cyclists, I know to whom you
refer -- those grim-faced folks in the black-&-yellow
killer bee getups, who simply must be the fastest thing
on the street/road/trail/MUP/parking lot/garden path.
For "serious", those guyz know ****-all about riding.
Personally, I don't have enough time or officiousness
to attempt to [attempt to] edify 'em, or give 'em free
blinkie handouts. AFAIC they're on their own.
Actually, I wouldn't be surprised if many of 'em weren't
so much serious cyclists, but rather serious fitness phreeks
to whom a bicycle is merely exercise equipment that isn't
bolted down to a gym floor. So, there's a third mindset
at play: "I'm not a part of the general traffic flow either
as a vehicle operator or a pedestrian; I'm just having a
workout on my mobile exercise equipment." Couple that with
a diminuitive attitude about bicycles as vehicles to be
operated responsibly, and there ya go.
But I gotta ask: have you ever collided with, or had a
near miss with an unlit rider at night? I know I haven't
so far (knock on wood.)
cheers,
Tom
--
Nothing is safe from
I'm really at:
tkeats curlicue vcn dot bc dot ca