Hey cyclists, stop clogging up the roads!



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Alan

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Hey cyclists, stop clogging up the roads!

06/11/2003

Columnn By Jeff Edelstein

Rush hour, any delightful summer day.

You're cruising down Route 206, or maybe Princeton Pike, or some other busy little two-lane road.

Everything is going smoothly.

You're looking forward to a little dinner, maybe a beer, catch a ball game on the ol' **** tube.

And then: Red brake lights ahead.

Things crawling to a stop.

You crane your neck to look ahead.

Accident?

No.

Funeral procession?

Nuh-uh.

Impromptu Britney Spears concert?

You should be so lucky, but no.

So what's the problem?

It's them.

A whole mess of them.

A whole mess of Spandex-clad bicyclists gumming up the works.

A dozen, maybe more, sucking up nearly an entire lane of traffic. (snip)

Is part of the sport of bicycling stopping traffic cold?

Before angry bicyclists pound my e-mail box, yes, yes, Lance Armstrong, blah blah blah.

I agree: Competitive cycling is a sport.

Riding a Schwinn down Route 206 is dangerous.

Jeff Edelstein is a columnist for The Trentonian and can be reached at [email protected].

http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=8280945&BRD=1697&PAG=461&dept_id=44551&rfi=6

--

alan

Anyone who believes in a liberal media has never read the "Daily Oklahoman."
 
>Subject: Hey cyclists, stop clogging up the roads! From: "alan"

>Hey cyclists, stop clogging up the roads!

Hey Alan-get off your tired saggy ass, and get some exercise. Same for you, Jeff Edelstein.

4 lane highway eh?
 
alan <[email protected]> wrote:
: Hey cyclists, stop clogging up the roads!

: A whole mess of them.

: A whole mess of Spandex-clad bicyclists gumming up the works.

: A dozen, maybe more, sucking up nearly an entire lane of traffic. (snip)

: Is part of the sport of bicycling stopping traffic cold?

The law in California requires that slow moving traffic yield to backed up traffic when 5 or more
cars are in back of you.

--------------------------------
Bob Masse' [email protected]
--------------------------------
 
In article <[email protected]>, [email protected] (Papayahed1) wrote:

> >Subject: Hey cyclists, stop clogging up the roads! From: "alan"
>
> >Hey cyclists, stop clogging up the roads!
>
> Hey Alan-get off your tired saggy ass, and get some exercise. Same for you, Jeff Edelstein.
>
> 4 lane highway eh?

Who'd ride their bike on a busy highway anyways? You'd have to be mazzo, especially at rush hour.

However,someone should point out to this shlub that it's the cars clogging up the highways, not
the bikes.
 
Originally posted by kh6zv9
alan <[email protected]> wrote:

The law in California requires that slow moving traffic yield to backed up traffic when 5 or more
cars are in back of you.

--------------------------------
Bob Masse' [email protected]
--------------------------------
Click to expand...

Clarification : (quoting the CMVC)
"21656. On a two-lane highway where passing is unsafe because of traffic in the opposite direction or other conditions, a slow-moving vehicle, including a passenger vehicle, behind which five or more vehicles are formed in line, shall turn off the roadway at the nearest place designated as a turnout by signs erected by the authority having jurisdiction over the highway, or wherever sufficient area for a safe turnout exists, in order to permit the vehicles following it to proceed. As used in this section a slow-moving vehicle is one which is proceeding at a rate of speed less than the normal flow of traffic at the particular time and place."

So it may be completely acceptable from legal and safety perspectives for a group of cyclists to take the whole lane of a California road for a given stretch of road. The cyclists should be the ones who decide whether a safe turnout exists.

The only people who complain about traffic are the ones that are causing the problem.
 
From: [email protected] Date: 6/11/03 11:25 AM Eastern

>
>The law in California requires that slow moving traffic yield to backed up traffic when 5 or more
>cars are in back of you.
>

How about New Jersey where this scenario played out? Anyone know?
 
<[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...

> The law in California requires that slow moving traffic yield to backed up traffic when 5 or more
> cars are in back of you.

Yup, you're supposed to pull over at the next turnout or wide shoulder. :)

Matt O.
 
[email protected] (Papayahed1) wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>...
> >Subject: Hey cyclists, stop clogging up the roads! From: "alan"
>
> >Hey cyclists, stop clogging up the roads!
>
> Hey Alan-get off your tired saggy <snip>

Nothing like shooting the messenger.

Austin
 
"alan" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

> Hey cyclists, stop clogging up the roads!

> Columnn By Jeff Edelstein

> You're looking forward to a little dinner, maybe a beer, catch a ball game on the ol' **** tube.

Being worried about missing the "**** tube," or having to wait for his beer says it all.

> Riding a Schwinn down Route 206 is dangerous.

Well, I guess it is, with people of that attitude on the road.

I guess Canada has its share of dumbshit flame-baiting columnists too. Unfortunately, this stuff
sells papers, just as making fart noises in a 3rd grade classroom gets attention.

Matt O.
 
No problem. Normally I'd post some sarcastic commentary, but I was pressed for time this morning. I
heard later in the day though, that the journalist's in-box was no longer accepting mail. Tomorrow
morning I'll find the e-mail address for his editor.

--

alan

Anyone who believes in a liberal media has never read the "Daily Oklahoman."

"James Messick" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> "alan" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > Hey cyclists, stop clogging up the roads!
>
> Oops! Sorry. Won't happen again.
 
"alan" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>...

> A whole mess of Spandex-clad bicyclists gumming up the works.
>
> A dozen, maybe more, sucking up nearly an entire lane of traffic. (snip)
>
> Is part of the sport of bicycling stopping traffic cold?

An amusing mental exercise to is replace the dozen Spandex-clad bicyclists with the same dozen
people whose hobby, rather than bicycling, in RVing.

So now, instead of a dozen bicyclists taking up "almost" an entire lane, you've got a convoy of a
dozen humongous, pastel-colored RVs, each about as long as a football field, as wide as a sherman
tank, as underpowered as a Toyota Tercel towing a housebout, driven by a herd of incompetent
nincompoops whose idea of a "big" vehicle is a Cadillac Coupe de Ville and who last checked their
rear-view mirror in 1942.

NOW you can start talking about traffic slowdowns.

(Although exactly where the "danger" comes in, is still an open question. Maybe this guy needs to
get his brakes--or brain--checked .
. . )

--Brent bhugh [at] mwsc.edu

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+ Missouri Western St College Dept of Music, St. Joseph, MO +
+ Missouri Bicycle Federation: http://www.MoBikeFed.org +
+ Piano Home Page : http://staff.mwsc.edu/~bhugh +
+ Music IQ Songs : http://mp3.com/MusicIQ + ++ Music of the Human Genome :
http://mp3.com/brent_d_hugh ++++
 
> Well, I guess it is, with people of that attitude on the road.
>
> I guess Canada has its share of dumbshit flame-baiting columnists too. Unfortunately, this stuff
> sells papers, just as making fart noises in a 3rd grade classroom gets attention.

...Not only does it sell papers, but it sells people to hate cyclists. I always wondered about the
mindset of those who cut right in front of me to pull into a parking lot driveway. I'm sure part of
it is due to this kind of reporting.

On the flip side, we all must ride well within the bike lanes so as not to upset those rushing home
to their couches to pop open a frosty. Heck, I'm sure lots of them stop at 7-eleven and sip on one
before they even get home; scary thought.

Michael
 
"Michael J. Anderson" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:p[email protected]...

> I always wondered about the mindset of those who cut right in front of me to pull into a parking
> lot driveway. I'm sure part of it is due to this kind of reporting.

I doubt it. In my experience, this happens because motorists misjudge cyclists' speed. They probably
expect you to be going slower. They then make poor decisions in a fit of frustration.

Matt O.
 
In article <[email protected]>, <[email protected]> wrote:

> The law in California requires that slow moving traffic yield to backed up traffic when 5 or more
> cars are in back of you.

Doesn't that only apply on narrow roads where there are few passing opportunities?
 
Jay <[email protected]> wrote in message news:BB0D357E.12AD2%[email protected]...
> > Jeff Edelstein is a columnist for The Trentonian and can be reached at
> > [email protected].
> >
> >
http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=8280945&BRD=1697&PAG=461&dept_id=4 45
> > 51&rfi=6
>
> Apparently this is a story originates from Philadelphia.

Well, that explains it. Freakin' Pennsyltuckey, a consistent first-place award for the worst roads
in the US. Not uncommon to see entire vehicle axles along with wheel covers, etc. on the "shoulder".

BTW, they call them "Pedalcycles" in the Commonwealth, and they are generally afforded the rights
and responsibilities of motor vehicles under Vehicle Code Article 75 §3501(a). However, they are
prohibited from riding more than two abreast, under §3505(e). The OP, therefore, does have a
legitimate gripe.

It's <single-file> here in Maryland, and I'm not above pointing that out to fellow cyclists. The
yahoo in the Escalade that you ******** by swarming the lane may just be the one that clocks me with
her o/s right mirror.

baltobernie

ps Up the road from Trenton is Princeton, a reasonably bicycle-friendly area.
 
"baltobernie" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]

>
> > Apparently this is a story originates from Philadelphia.
>

> ps Up the road from Trenton is Princeton, a reasonably bicycle-friendly area.

Actually, the columnist is writing about Princeton! I live here, I know those roads. However, I find
the area reasonable for cycling. Rt. 206 is one of the worst roads.

Harriet

--
Posted via Mailgate.ORG Server - http://www.Mailgate.ORG
 
On Wed, 11 Jun 2003 11:46:18 GMT, "alan" <[email protected]> wrote:

>A dozen, maybe more, sucking up nearly an entire lane of traffic.

How dare they use the roads, just because their taxes paid for them and their predecessors (the
League of American Wheelmen of blessed memory) campaigned for the roads to be paved in the first
place? The cheek of it! a few tens of thousands more of those damn cyclists and the holdups would
get almost as big as those caused by cars!

Guy
===
** WARNING ** This posting may contain traces of irony. http://www.chapmancentral.com Advance
notice: ADSL service in process of transfer to a new ISP. Obviously there will be a week of downtime
between the engineer removing the BT service and the same engineer connecting the same equipment on
the same line in the same exchange and billing it to the new ISP.
 
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